Over 20 years later, I still have PTSD (post-traumatic skating disorder) over this competition.
The decision to send Robinson to worlds set back the ladies' program for years. If she had skated first among the three, she would not have won. Her skating skills were so poor. I believe this is one of the competitions that made Skate Canada later base their worlds team decisions on "body of work"... which led them to send Robinson again years later ahead of Phaneuf, even though Robinson had skated 4th in the FP! Gah!!! (Wrong decision, in my view.)
As for Josee, I think she would have been top 10 at worlds, as she always had in the past. She had great skating skills, beautiful edges, and consistently delivered in the SP at worlds. She did not skate the FS well all year but still made GP final. Her Nationals FS performance was also very unusual - she usually did not tend to double or pop jumps. When stressed, Josee tended to go for the triple jumps anyways and risk a fall, which I always admired, but she was sometimes mocked in the media for her falls. She made a comment about not wanting to be seen falling at this competition at the SP press conference, and I think this explains her FP performance.
Her big disadvantage that year was her long program. I don't know why she and her team picked this music - it did not showcase her biggest strengths, which were her bubbly personality, joyful skating and connection to the audience. Even her costume had a stiff collar, which made her look less relaxed.
On another note, Josee has mentioned how kind Susan Humphreys was to her that night and how much Susan supported her to get through the medal ceremony.
The decision to send Robinson to worlds set back the ladies' program for years. If she had skated first among the three, she would not have won. Her skating skills were so poor. I believe this is one of the competitions that made Skate Canada later base their worlds team decisions on "body of work"... which led them to send Robinson again years later ahead of Phaneuf, even though Robinson had skated 4th in the FP! Gah!!! (Wrong decision, in my view.)
As for Josee, I think she would have been top 10 at worlds, as she always had in the past. She had great skating skills, beautiful edges, and consistently delivered in the SP at worlds. She did not skate the FS well all year but still made GP final. Her Nationals FS performance was also very unusual - she usually did not tend to double or pop jumps. When stressed, Josee tended to go for the triple jumps anyways and risk a fall, which I always admired, but she was sometimes mocked in the media for her falls. She made a comment about not wanting to be seen falling at this competition at the SP press conference, and I think this explains her FP performance.
Her big disadvantage that year was her long program. I don't know why she and her team picked this music - it did not showcase her biggest strengths, which were her bubbly personality, joyful skating and connection to the audience. Even her costume had a stiff collar, which made her look less relaxed.
On another note, Josee has mentioned how kind Susan Humphreys was to her that night and how much Susan supported her to get through the medal ceremony.