The value of a European versus Four Continents title/medal

[TheIronLady]

But why is Ashley not going this year?

It's not as prestigious yet as a US title. It may never be as prestigious, but if we have 5-10 more years where US ladies are clearly behind Asian ones, 4CC could become for USA ladies like it already is for CAN's ladies.

[MacMadame]

But why is Ashley not going this year?

Because she needed the time to regroup more, IMO. It's not always about prestige. People skip prestigious events all the time when it suits them.

Though I thought TheIronLady was going to say it was because the UBZ dance team sucked.

[AJ Skatefan]

But why is Ashley not going this year?

Because she had been injured and sick before Nationals and Nationals wore her out.

[Marco]

^^ and 4CCs was immediately after Nationals.

[Marco]

It's not as prestigious yet as a US title. It may never be as prestigious, but if we have 5-10 more years where US ladies are clearly behind Asian ones, 4CC could become for USA ladies like it already is for CAN's ladies.

Competing at US Nationals is not (just) a matter of prestige - it's fighting for assignments for the rest of the season and for next season (and funding) as well.

Except for the Olympic season (understandably), the top US ladies from US Nationals have gone to 4CCs since 2009 - so it's safe to say they generally send top ladies to 4CCs in recent years. And Wagner has had such a solid fall season that my bet is if she wasn't injured / so worn out from 2 bad free skates in a roll, and 4CCs was so immediately after 4CCs and in Japan, she would probably go to defend her title too.

[TheIronLady]

Competing at US Nationals is not (just) a matter of prestige - it's fighting for assignments for the rest of the season and for next season (and funding) as well.

Except for the Olympic season (understandably), the top US ladies from US Nationals have gone to 4CCs since 2009 - so it's safe to say they generally send top ladies to 4CCs in recent years. And Wagner has had such a solid fall season that my bet is if she wasn't injured / so worn out from 2 bad free skates in a roll, and 4CCs was so immediately after 4CCs and in Japan, she would probably go to defend her title too.

That's a lot of ifs you mention, but your first point is probably truer than anything any of us could say. Prestige is just icing. Nationals will have priority because assignments and funding are contingent on nationals. You dare not be the defending champion and show up at nationals and finish fourth or seventh!

In gymnastics, they used to have trouble staging a world championships in the year following the summer Olympics (e.g. 2001, 2005). One problem was the timing was inevitably close to the quadrennial National Games of the People's Republic of China. These national games have a role in determining Chinese government funding for the years to come, an important thing in a centralized sports system. Consequently, the Chinese federation chose not to send a-team gymnasts to the 2001 world championships. Due to this and other post-Olympic year organizational issues, the international gymnastics federation stopped holding a team competition in the first year of an Olympic quadrennium.