Patrick Uber Thread - road to Sochi

[clarie]

Thank you Ali dorate. That eases my mind somewhat. The way people have been going on in other forums/threads, it seems as though he had "lost" all his jumps. I'm cautiously optimistic that the jumps will re-appear when he has more mileage on this program.....maybe by Skate Canada only 3 falls, by the next only 2, and so on . By the time Worlds comes around, he can skate clean

[nlyoung]

Anyway I'm not worrying about his jumps. He did great 4T-3T and good 3A during the practice as I said before. He has not lost his beautiful jumps. And I'm sure this beautiful program will develop in due time.

Exactly!

[spikydurian]

I'm cautiously optimistic that the jumps will re-appear when he has more mileage on this program.....maybe by Skate Canada only 3 falls, by the next only 2, and so on . By the time Worlds comes around, he can skate clean

JO 4 falls
SC 3 falls
COR 2 falls
GPF (maybe) 1 fall
Candian - 1 wobbly landing
Worlds - perfection!

Oh Clarie I like your prediction .. <3 for you all the way from Down Under.

Ali dorate, thanks for your opinions/post. They are reassuring to our eyes and hearts.

[VarBar]

His planned jump layout at JO included 4T3T, 3Lz2T and 3F1lo3S iirc.both triples were in the second half. However I saw him doing a transiton move right after the 3F in the warm-up so I asuume the triple jump combination layout is actually flexible.

According to this, Patrick's elements were:

4T-3T/4T/3Lz/StSq/CCSp/3A/3Lo/3Lz-2T/FSSp/3F-1Lo-3S/ChSq/2A/CCoSp

Thank you vigiliae and ali_dorate. Seems like Patrick changed the order of his jumps a bit against last year when his first three jump passes were 4T/3T, 4T (or 4T, 4T/3T), and 3A if memory serves, whereas now it's a 3Lz in the place of the 3A.

And that second 3Lz! Do you remember the entrance of 3Lz at his SP "Tango de los Exilados"? That was one of my favorite entrance into 3Lz and it's back!

How could I possibly forget Tango de los Exilados...it's that program that made me fall in love with Chan's skating when I wached him at 2009 Canadians. But do you think there would be enough room between the landing spot for that 3Lz and the rink boards for Patrick to throw a second jump after it even if it's a jump with just two revolutions in the air?

I still haven't watched it yet (I know...I'm a big chicken). What upsets me more than anything is that certain people/posters on other threads and forum are so negative about him. I get the impression that they just want him to go away. There's so much mean spirit and delight in putting this guy down. I just don't understand and am very dismayed.

clarie, haters in general are really not worth spending time on. Have you finally watched his La Boheme? I promise Chan's multiple mistakes don't ruin the choreography much or the mood of the program for that matter.

[clarie]

I finally watched..........very painful!!!! But, it's going to be a beautiful program when he gets it together with the jumps.

[kwanette]

I finally watched..........very painful!!!! But, it's going to be a beautiful program when he gets it together with the jumps.

I finally watched today, also. When he wasn't falling, he was fabulous.

[Emdee]

I too felt his pain Clarie. Did you notice how he flew into a fall a couple of times. Ouch! Poor Boy.

[clarie]

As an afterthought, I thought I might add that I would rather see a skater show some gumption and attempt the difficult jump, rotate, and fall, rather than "pop" it. I've always been frustrated watching some of my favs do that. Patrick shows a lot of courage to at least attempt the jumps even when he is having an off day or is not quite comfortable. I think that is what makes for his successes later on in the season..........any thoughts on that?

[spikydurian]

CBC article: Patrick Chan admits being ‘intimidated’ at Japan Open
http://www.cbc.ca/sports/figureskati...e-skating.html

At the Japan Open nearly two weeks ago, Patrick Chan was unmotivated and unsure, and not entirely committed to a pair of new programs.
It showed as the 21-year-old from Toronto fell four times in a performance he says was a "slap in the face."
"Japan Open woke me up in a way and smacked me into what I need to do to do well during the season," Chan said a on a conference call Wednesday, a week before he travels to Windsor for the Skate Canada International competition
The two-time world champion spent the long flight home from Japan thinking about where competition went awry, and came the conclusion that his shaky competition may go down as the best thing that happened to him this season.
"It's early in the season but my turning point of my season was Japan Open," Chan said. "I kind of woke up and came back and really wanted to work hard, was really motivated to do my programs and run my sections and get the jumps more consistent and just give myself more confidence."
"Hopefully people see that. I find myself, I don't lose my temper as much on the ice, on practice, I really take time to think about what I need for myself to do well," Chan said. "That's definitely something you have to experience, you have to go through the ups and downs, you can't just pick it up. . . someone can't teach you that.
"It's a sign of maturity and being a veteran of figure skating, which is really cool," he added with a laugh. "I never thought I'd be mature enough to be where I am."

Oh Chiddy. Life’s journey is often long and full of bumps. Every now and then, we fall, get up, reassess our priorities and needs, and move on in our journey and next goal. I am happy to hear that you took time to reassess your priorities and needs and determine what really needs to be done. Go Chiddy go. The most important thing in falling is the ability to get up and move on. You have shown that you can do it in your skating.

[clarie]

Here's hoping he never feels "intimidated" again . There's not reason he should be, and I hope he's as good as his word and picks himself up to finish the season with success.

[Eyre]

Thanks so much, spikydurian!

It seems that Patrick needs this kind of bumps once in a while. He bumped in Vancouver. He got up and better than ever. Hope he could get up soon enough for this season.

[luckiest1]

I am a bit confused...Patrick mentions his "programs" at JO but in fact he only skated the long, correct? I am not missing a video of the short, am I? Because I can't wait to see the short!

[VarBar]

I am a bit confused...Patrick mentions his "programs" at JO but in fact he only skated the long, correct? I am not missing a video of the short, am I? Because I can't wait to see the short!

No, you aren't. Patrick only skated La Boheme in competition and his exhibition number was Til Kingdom Come.

[leapfrogonice]

It is so very difficult being at the top. The seasons are long. The time until Sochi is either soon or far, depending on one's perspective.
The JO experience was likely invaluable. No better time to have a skate like that than before the meat of the season begins.

[spikydurian]

It is so very difficult being at the top. The seasons are long. The time until Sochi is either soon or far, depending on one's perspective.
The JO experience was likely invaluable. No better time to have a skate like that than before the meat of the season begins.

I agree leapfrogonice. In terms of training, it's two seasons away and still anything can happen between now and then. I am glad that Patrick is able to look at all these experiences introspectively, for it is only from within that change and understanding can arise. I like the fact that he took on new challenges to test himself. Just train well and do your best. Go Patrick go!

[VarBar]

"I kind of woke up and came back and really wanted to work hard, was really motivated to do my programs and run my sections and get the jumps more consistent and just give myself more confidence."

I remember Christy Krall said of Patrick after she resigned that he went to 4 really tough months leading into the Worlds in Nice, that he felt frustrated and unmotivated during that time - pretty much the same as Chan said himself. Now I hear from Patrick that he was still missing motivation before Japan Open and it's a bit puzzling to me because he's got two new programs he says he loves and he seems pretty happy with his coaching situation.

I just hope Patrick will realize that he needs a technical coach by his side and more scientific training, I would have said that even if he had won JO with a perfectly clean skate. I understood from him that he plans on including a quadruple flip in his long program by Nationals, can Kathy Johnson teach him how to fully rotate that jump?

spikydurian, thank you for the link.

[Eyre]

I understood from him that he plans on including a quadruple flip in his long program by Nationals, can Kathy Johnson teach him how to fully rotate that jump?

I think she can teach him how to rotate four revolutions in the air, but she can't teach him how to land it on his blade on ice.

[The Accordion]

It makes me think of Jeff Buttle retiring before the 2008/9 Season even though they were 1 year from the Olympics in Canada. He said he didn't have the drive to train anymore. I hope that this is just a slump for Patrick and not him losing his drive halfway to the next Olympics.

[clarie]

Looks like Patrick has some company in the "fall" department, but I don't see anyone complaining about it .....hmmmm. Now if it had been Patrick with 3 falls and coming 2nd, there would have been another uproar. Methinks there's a double standard here with many.

[Emdee]

Looks like Patrick has some company in the "fall" department, but I don't see anyone complaining about it .....hmmmm. Now if it had been Patrick with 3 falls and coming 2nd, there would have been another uproar. Methinks there's a double standard here with many.

Yup so many excuses:
Poor Hanyu he is young
Poor Hanyu he had a bad day
Poor hanyu he has asthma
Poor Hanyu its Brian Orser's fault etc etc etc

I adored Hanyu's Sd at SA. He filled the ice completely. But I think the weight of expectations got him. There is something to be said for maturity as a skater and he has to mature and learn to control the flutters.

The strange part was the reaction to Hanyu's great SD from Dai supporters. Some seemed really paranoid that he would win over their adored Dai.

I think Hanyu will be Patrick's main competition at Sochi and the man who puts two good programs down will win.