U.S. Men in 2018 - articles & latest news

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

How awesome for Nathan! World Champ. Won the free skate and also at the Olys!!!!

Wow, North America won the golds in singles and Europe in Teams.

Looking forward to seeing how Nathan develops!!!!

 

[VGThuy]

Regarding Vincent and Max, we all know Vincent has a higher scoring ceiling than Max and is capable of astronomical scores but we also know with that high reward there’s a high risk of bombing and Vincent also has a lower floor than Max because he has a bigger chance of messing up his highly ambitious content. Plus, Vincent is still a first year senior at his first Worlds at 17 and is learning how to compete. Max has become pretty reliable in international competitions for the most part and has been to like four of the past six Worlds where he came through with solid performances for the most part.

 

[Sylvia]

For completeness' sake, here are the other U.S. men's ISU Quick Quotes immediately post-free skate:

Vincent:

It's hard to describe how I feel. This last week has been extremely difficult for me. Two days before I left for Worlds I had back pain and I've been struggling all week with it. Practices were horrible. I was able to do well in the short program because I have a great medical team. I'm not using my back as an excuse for today. I was just tired. I think I should have taken yesterday to rest a little more. This entire season was extremely difficult and stressful. I had the pressure of making Olympics and I did two senior Grand Prix. Coming here there was a lot of talk of my potential to medal and I do have that potential. I did as good of a job as I could have today. Every champion has their ups and downs so now I'll go home and keep working and come back next season and establish myself in the top group of skaters and hope to be on the podium at the next Worlds.

Nathan:

I’m so happy I was able to do that here. Of course a lot of the past world champions weren’t here, so there was a little bit of a different feel to this event, but I’m so happy I was able to do this here and I wouldn’t change it for the world. (on the competition) I was kind of checking what everyone was doing on Jackie Wong’s Twitter [eta: ] so I was sort of updated on what was going on. It gave me the opportunity, the chance. Of course I don’t want to see my competitors fail or do badly, I want them to be pushing me and pushing each other, but I’m glad I was able to do what I needed to do and I felt the audience really wanted a good performance and they motivated me to do it. It’s just a dream come true, it’s something I have wanted to achieve my whole career and I’m just so glad I was able to do it.

I've posted the ISU's summary of Nathan's press conference in his fan thread here.

 

[Tavi]

A visa isn't required to enter Italy.

Your link doesn't go directly to the PDF - misskarne excerpted Max's post-FS quick quote to the ISU earlier in this thread:

It's possible that Max either misspoke unintentionally or there was a typo in the transcription of his quote (it happens).

Yeah, sorry about that - I kept trying to link to the pdf unsuccessfully.

And yeah, agreed - he could have misspoken or there could have been a translation error.

 

[Max Enchilada]

Three spots. The max. Or The Max. It depends on your point of view.

Wow, this makes me think of one of my favorite television programs - Saved by the Bell!

 

[misskarne]

I wish Max would stay another year since he is guaranteed 2 GPs.

I'm a jumble of feelings about the whole thing. I want Max to do what makes him happy, and if that's moving on to the next phase of his life I'll be so heartbroken but accept it. But at the same time, I really hope he looks back over the season and says, "I'm still competitive, even when I'm studying and training at the same time. I pulled off a 161 FS on a couple weeks' training and I still won a GP medal this season. I'll take one more year to see how I go under the new rules and without study in my life."

I don't expect another four years out of Max - that would make him nearly 30 by the next Olympics - but...please just give us, give yourself, one more year.

 

[jlai]

I know a lot of people complain Chen just goes from jump to jump, and I agree he needs more transitions. I remember his programs back when he was a kid. He was capable of tons of transitions -- when he didn't have to do quads. Once he figured out he got more points from quads than transitions, then he focused on that. You hear that from his interviews, he talked about points and stuff.

If doing transitions in and out of jumps add features or bonus points starting next season, I bet you you will see those in his programs.

 

[berthesghost]

I'm a jumble of feelings about the whole thing. I want Max to do what makes him happy, and if that's moving on to the next phase of his life I'll be so heartbroken but accept it. But at the same time, I really hope he looks back over the season and says, "I'm still competitive, even when I'm studying and training at the same time. I pulled off a 161 FS on a couple weeks' training and I still won a GP medal this season. I'll take one more year to see how I go under the new rules and without study in my life."

I don't expect another four years out of Max - that would make him nearly 30 by the next Olympics - but...please just give us, give yourself, one more year.

if you love something, set it free.

Even if he’s still in the mix on gps, nats has become a real issue. He’s survived two quads with 3 different champs in 4 years, for a total of 6 different champs in 8 years, but I think things are stabilizing and Nathan and Vincent are as close to podium locks as we get now.

 

[Wyliefan]

It was Ryan who made that mistake.

And he apologized for it.

 

[acraven]

In fairness to Ryan (whose commentary I don't particularly enjoy): I'm very aware of the rule and wasn't under the stress of having to call the event, but I thought we were going to be down to two men next year, too. I saw skaters bombing, but I didn't realize that several were dropping below Max in the overall standings. Max was low enough that his placement wasn't shown on the screen as we moved through the last 6 or 9 skaters.

 

[misskarne]

In fairness to Ryan (whose commentary I don't particularly enjoy): I'm very aware of the rule and wasn't under the stress of having to call the event, but I thought we were going to be down to two men next year, too. I saw skaters bombing, but I didn't realize that several were dropping below Max in the overall standings. Max was low enough that his placement wasn't shown on the screen as we moved through the last 6 or 9 skaters.

Maybe this was because I was just hyperaware of Max, but I definitely was aware that multiple skaters were dropping below him. It wasn't hard to keep track of; I had the isuresults page open in another tab.

I would have thought that the US commentators would be tracking all of the US skaters. It wouldn't have been that hard to jot Max's score down on a post-it, realise a bunch of skaters were scoring below that, and keep an eye on it.

 

[Dobre]

We've been blessed with a generation of extremely talented men in Max, Adam, Jason, Ross, Grant, Josh, Richard, Tim, Alex, Sean, and others.

I just wanted to add that #8 in the World, Keegan, was/is part of this generation also.

 

[berthesghost]

Maybe this was because I was just hyperaware of Max...

Maybe?

 

[Erin]

I just wanted to add that #8 in the World, Keegan, was/is part of this generation also.

And what's funny is that Keegan probably wouldn't have made this year's US team and may not have even been an alternate for it, yet he ended up beating two of the guys on the US team. It's why I say that sometimes the depth that the US and Russia has works against them. Since there is so much talent, you don't know who will perform on the day and it's impossible to pick the "right" team.

 

[nimi]

@kwanfan1818, we are assuming that Max and Ross are retiring but they yet to confirm it themselves... eta: ditto for Adam and Grant (who may be the "surest bet" of the group at this point).

There's a new interview with Adam about his future plans where he practically confirms it. The description of the video says "Adam Rippon is at a career crossroads after finishing his competitive figure skating career with an Olympic bronze medal", and listening to him talk, the description appears to be pretty accurate and not just something some clueless journo/intern at NBC made up. He speaks about how he's ready to move on like he has no intention whatsoever of going back into competing. So, I think we can exclude him from the GP spot discussion.

https://www.nbcnews.com/better/video/adam-rippon-s-career-after-olympic-figure-skating-1195007043858

 

[sk9tingfan]

And he apologized for it.

Yes, he did

 

[Bonita]

I like Ryan's commentary as he doesn't disrespect skaters and talk about his own skating like Johnny. Also doesn't over talk.

He kept calling jumps by the wrong name, though.

 

[mattiecat13]

I rarely hear Johnny talk about his own skating. It’s Tara who frequently mentions her skating career.

 

[kwanette]

In fairness to Ryan (whose commentary I don't particularly enjoy): I'm very aware of the rule and wasn't under the stress of having to call the event, but I thought we were going to be down to two men next year, too. I saw skaters bombing, but I didn't realize that several were dropping below Max in the overall standings. Max was low enough that his placement wasn't shown on the screen as we moved through the last 6 or 9 skaters.

I thought we had lost a spot as well.I was so focused on Vincent's performance. Then when order was flashed on screen, I was watching IN, I saw Max was 11th..and even I, math impaired, could figure that out. Bless Max.

 

[Foolhardy Ham Lint]

Following his free skate, this is part of Vincent Zhou's quick quote in the mixed zone.

It's hard to describe how I feel. This last week has been extremely difficult for me. Two days before I left for Worlds I had back pain and I've been struggling all week with it. Practices were horrible. I was able to do well in the short program because I have a great medical team. I'm not using my back as an excuse for today.

I'm sorry, but I think the state of the sport is insane when an eighteen year old talks about having a great medical team, as though he is fifty and coming back from suffering through a major car accident or worse.

So many broken bodies as a result of skating's continual drive to push the technical envelope. Men's programs are no longer art but long set - ups into quads, three spins, manic footwork, and we're done.

I'm going to watch Robin Cousins do his free skate from Worlds in 1980 again.

 

[A.H.Black]

I like Ryan's commentary as he doesn't disrespect skaters and talk about his own skating like Johnny. Also doesn't over talk.

He kept calling jumps by the wrong name, though.

I think he over talks. I'm yelling at him to shut up pretty often. I want the Eurosport commentary. Oh well.

 

[Erin]

I thought we had lost a spot as well.I was so focused on Vincent's performance. Then when order was flashed on screen, I was watching IN, I saw Max was 11th..and even I, math impaired, could figure that out. Bless Max.

I think a lot of people were just focused on Vincent's placement and either forgot Max was there or didn't remember he had placed high enough to matter (since he wouldn't have without Boyang and Vincent bombing). I was texting with three different FSUers who all thought the US lost a spot and none of them were listening to Ryan's commentary. So even though there are many things that are irritating about his commentary, I can forgive that mistake.

 

[Cleo1782]

Following his free skate, this is part of Vincent Zhou's quick quote in the mixed zone.

It's hard to describe how I feel. This last week has been extremely difficult for me. Two days before I left for Worlds I had back pain and I've been struggling all week with it. Practices were horrible. I was able to do well in the short program because I have a great medical team. I'm not using my back as an excuse for today.

I'm sorry, but I think the state of the sport is insane when an eighteen year old talks about having a great medical team, as though he is fifty and coming back from suffering through a major car accident or worse.

So many broken bodies as a result of skating's continual drive to push the technical envelope. Men's programs are no longer art but long set - ups into quads, three spins, manic footwork, and we're done.

I'm going to watch Robin Cousins do his free skate from Worlds in 1980 again.

I am glad he has a great medical team, but wouldn't they and his coaches advise he scale back his content if he was in pain? Certainly, one of his many coaches would have known by the time he was the 2nd to last skater he didn't need to try all of his quads. You would think if he was injured they would have had some sort of back up content that would have been easier to complete if he was struggling. That was more troubling to me than his injury-the fact his team let him go full out when it was unnecessary.

 

[Dobre]

I am glad he has a great medical team, but wouldn't they and his coaches advise he scale back his content if he was in pain? Certainly, one of his many coaches would have known by the time he was the 2nd to last skater he didn't need to try all of his quads.

Not in order to place top ten. But in order to contend? Vincent was up against guys that get higher PCS. And he often doesn't get all the points for his rotations. He scored 276.69 at the Olympics with two performances in which he went for the jumps & stood them up. Kolyada had 272.32 at Worlds. Vincent didn't know if he could medal with a watered down program. And he missed the first jump so no cushion at that point.

Everyone gets a first Worlds. You go. You learn. You come back with more experience.

 

[Cleo1782]

Not in order to place top ten. But in order to contend? Vincent was up against guys that get higher PCS. And he often doesn't get all the points for his rotations. He scored 276.69 at the Olympics with two performances in which he went for the jumps & stood them up. Kolyada had 272.32 at Worlds. Vincent didn't know if he could medal with a watered down program. And he missed the first jump so no cushion at that point.

Everyone gets a first Worlds. You go. You learn. You come back with more experience.

Sure, but if he was feeling pain wouldn't it have been a lot wiser to not risk further injury then to contend at this one competition? If the back injury was bothering him enough to miss as many jumps as he did, it seems very unwise to keep all of the high level content in. It seems short-sighted and like I said Vincent skated 2nd to last. There was no need to go for everything and I am sure his coaches knew it at that point. He could have done a clean program with 3 quads and 2 nice 3a's and medaled. The fact is he put himself at high risk for longer term damage and injury for a skate that was nowhere near the medals and well below the top 10. It doesn't make any sense to me and I really don't understand his teams thinking with that.

 

[acraven]

I have no idea what was wrong with his back, so I'm not prepared to say that what he did was risky--at least as far as his back goes. I suppose if he was in a lot of pain and it affected his technique, he could have taken a bad fall and ended up with a severe leg injury or something like that.

 

[Dobre]

Sure, but if he was feeling pain wouldn't it have been a lot wiser to not risk further injury then to contend at this one competition?

Maybe. Maybe that's something they learned. But how many guys would water down while sitting in third place for the first time at a World Championships? How many guys skate with some form of pain at every competition? And Vincent didn't know the third spot was wrapped up. For all he knew, his own chances for next season were very much on the line. In hindsight, of course a more solid performance would have been better. But he didn't know how the performance would go.

I'm sorry, but I think the state of the sport is insane when an eighteen year old talks about having a great medical team, as though he is fifty and coming back from suffering through a major car accident or worse.

Well, Vincent is unique. He sometimes talks as though he's fifty.

 

[olympic]

I enjoy watching competitions from the POV of other countries outside the US, and often watch Canadian, Russian, Spanish, Italian broadcasts off of Youtube. There are NO available videos for viewing this year's Worlds. Anyone know why? It is a big departure from years past when I could take my pick.

 

[Sylvia]

I enjoy watching competitions from the POV of other countries outside the US, and often watch Canadian, Russian, Spanish, Italian broadcasts off of Youtube. There are NO available videos for viewing this year's Worlds. Anyone know why? It is a big departure from years past when I could take my pick.

There's been talk in the 2018 Worlds forum in Kiss & Cry -- it appears the ISU has been enforcing their worldwide broadcast copyrights even more this year than last year.

Re-posting this video (from the U.S. Ladies thread originally) here -- this montage of clips is from the team building exercise at Champs Camp in August 2017:

Celebrate the end of the 2017-18 season with a special treat from Team USA! Song: "Feel It Still" by Portugal. The Man
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6U4ipi3WNM

ETA: The Adam and Max moment on the ladder made me !

 

[mag]

I was able to do well in the short program because I have a great medical team. I'm not using my back as an excuse for today.

I'm sorry, but I think the state of the sport is insane when an eighteen year old talks about having a great medical team, as though he is fifty and coming back from suffering through a major car accident or worse.

Lots of skaters far less accomplished than Vincent have medical teams they meet with regularly. Sports doctors, physios, massage therapists, trainers, it is not unusual. It is not just the work (falling) it takes to get the big elements, but there is more of a preventative element as well. Skaters like Kwan, Lipinski, Yags, etc, their over use injuries are in part because of their training practices. Science has come a long way and trainers and physios often work together to build the right muscles, keep the right stuff loose and the right stuff tight to help keep Skaters healthy.

This is why I get so angry when fans spout off about a skater not “looking” in shape or needing to be some mythical perfect weight. Even when fans are former skaters. The science has progressed and developed to a point where those sorts of crude measurements no longer really have any meaning.

I am glad Vincent has a team behind him. That bodes well for his future.