2006 Olympics ladies and mens if everyone skated cleanly

[olympic]

Hey. You stole my gig

Ladies - For some reason, I cannot recall the programs from the ladies further down the ranks. But here is what I think:

Asada and Kim are not considered: They were too young and that was the rule.

1. Slutskaya - Would this be the prettiest set of programs to get an OGM since Trixi Schuba? No. But she really worked IJS and rotated jumps. I remember her 130 pts. in the LP at CoR was considered massive at the time

2. Cohen - She never skated a clean LP but if we are considering elements, you could say that the 1st half of her Nationals winning LP and the 2nd half of her Olympic program showed that she could land the jumps in her LP layout that year. Judges did love her and she didn't have problems w/ rotation (bad edges were not considered at the time).

3. Arakawa - As it was, she had chronic URs that year on the 3L and the 3-3 was usually called UR. I think this would have left her behind the top 2.

A big question for me is Kostner, Rochette and Meissner clean. Would they have moved ahead of Fumie Suguri, who was as clean as possible?

And let's not forget the Kween. She was capable of 6 triples at this point (I think she abandoned the loop in '05) which would put her in a match against Arakawa, but she did have problems achieving levels on the non-jump elements. TAT was in her corner that year and her team choreographed what would be Mao's 2010 LP for MK. It may have helped her further adjust to IJS and MK was probably a spoiler

 

[sonsofanarchy]

Hey. You stole my gig

Ladies - For some reason, I cannot recall the programs from the ladies further down the ranks. But here is what I think:

Asada and Kim are not considered: They were too young and that was the rule.

1. Slutskaya - Would this be the prettiest set of programs to get an OGM since Trixi Schuba? No. But she really worked IJS and rotated jumps. I remember her 130 pts. in the LP at CoR was considered massive at the time

2. Cohen - She never skated a clean LP but if we are considering elements, you could say that the 1st half of her Nationals winning LP and the 2nd half of her Olympic program showed that she could land the jumps in her LP layout that year. Judges did love her and she didn't have problems w/ rotation (bad edges were not considered at the time).

3. Arakawa - As it was, she had chronic URs that year on the 3L and the 3-3 was usually called UR. I think this would have left her behind the top 2.

A big question for me is Kostner, Rochette and Meissner clean. Would they have moved ahead of Fumie Suguri, who was as clean as possible?

And let's not forget the Kween. She was capable of 6 triples at this point (I think she abandoned the loop in '05) which would put her in a match against Arakawa, but she did have problems achieving levels on the non-jump elements. TAT was in her corner that year and her team choreographed what would be Mao's 2010 LP for MK. It may have helped her further adjust to IJS and MK was probably a spoiler

On Arakawa that is one thing I am considering. I don't think a hypothetical clean for her even includes a 3-3, and it wouldn't even include 7 triples like Cohen had, it would be the same skate she did but with a triple loop instead of the double loop. Whenever she tried the 3-3 after 2004 when they became more strict in the calling she was called < so I find it more likely that is why she didn't do it and not since Cohen had problems like her team tried to theororize after.

 

[VGThuy]

I think in the end, the correct result for history was made even if the skates were blah and Arakawa skated slow and conservative with 5 solo triples completed. Arakawa was like a mix of Slutskaya/Cohen. Her strengths aren't as high as theirs, but her weaknesses weren't as glaring as theirs. She has the flexibility and somewhat had musicality with a respectable (though COPed version) LP to be in-between Cohen and Slute in that regard, but she had the edges and jumps to be above Cohen and behind Slute in that regard. IMO, as a skater, she's the one who I think was the best combination of TES and PCS.

 

[sonsofanarchy]

I think in the end, the correct result for history was made even if the skates were blah and Arakawa skated slow and conservative with 5 solo triples completed. Arakawa was like a mix of Slutskaya/Cohen. Her strengths aren't as high as theirs, but her weaknesses weren't as glaring as theirs. She has the flexibility and somewhat had musicality with a respectable (though COPed version) LP to be in-between Cohen and Slute in that regard, but she had the edges and jumps to be above Cohen and behind Slute in that regard. IMO, as a skater, she's the one who I think was the best combination of TES and PCS.

It depends what perspective it is from. From a purely skating perspective probably. From a marketability and fan interest perspective both Cohen and Slutskaya as Olympic Champion would be a far better result. Actually from a marketability and fan interest perspective any of the contenders (Cohen, Slutskya, young Kostner on her home ice, Ando who is way more popular in Japan than Shizuka is, Rochette, young Asada, Kwan, even young Meissner) minus Suguri winning would have been a more desired result. It was kind of the equivalent if Sato had won the gold in 94.

 

[VGThuy]

I don't think Slutskaya was that marketable no matter what she won, and I do think Cohen exhausted her marketability which wasn't contingent on winning gold. She did a movie and it didn't go anywhere. Kostner's career has been pretty good because she kept competing. I don't think her winning a gold before her prime would have really helped matters too much other than more endorsements in the beginning. Young Asada I could see, but if she kept losing to Kim afterwards, it would be seen as more of a flash in the pan win like the two OGMs prior to Torino and the past two we have now. Hasn't Shizuka been the one who was running those tours in the subsequent years after Torino giving Ando jobs? I think Ando's popularity wasn't that extensive at least not more so than Shizuka. Rochette? I think she actually reached what she could reach. I don't think Kwan would have hit any new heights in popularity. She was already living the OGM lifestyle and had a limited fame in the U.S. that transcended figure skating that most don't get to enjoy and again, it was still a limited fame no matter how much media and millions she made from it.

 

[Coco]

Hey now, Blades of Glory was a huge success.

 

[VGThuy]

Hey now, Blades of Glory was a huge success.

Oh yeah! I forgot she had a cameo in that one! I loved it!

 

[skateboy]

I’d personally rather watch Hanyu’s short program in Sochi than any of the programs from Torino.

That's your choice. Hanyu's 2014 gold medal free skate is, for me, the worst and sloppiest winning Olympic skate, by far.

 

[lucaslavoie]

That's your choice. Hanyu's 2014 gold medal free skate is, for me, the worst and sloppiest winning Olympic skate, by far.

Not the short program.

 

[viennese]

Lady Catherine de Bourgh would have won the gold medal, if we are speaking of ladies figure skating.

It is of all subjects her delight. There are few people in England [which is the same as the world], she supposes, who have more true enjoyment of free skating than Herself, or a better natural taste. If she had ever learnt, she should have been a great proficient.

Results:

1. de Bourgh, Lady Catherine
2. de Bourgh, Miss Anne
3. No Medal Awarded: None shall deserve it

 

[Kateri]

Lady Catherine de Bourgh would have won the gold medal, if we are speaking of ladies figure skating.

It is of all subjects her delight. There are few people in England [which is the same as the world], she supposes, who have more true enjoyment of free skating than Herself, or a better natural taste. If she had ever learnt, she should have been a great proficient.

Results:

1. de Bourgh, Lady Catherine
2. de Bourgh, Miss Anne
3. No Medal Awarded: None shall deserve it

I complain about commentators, but thank god Mr Collins never sat in the booth!

 

[Orm Irian]

I complain about commentators, but thank god Mr Collins never sat in the booth!

Well, I'm sure Charlotte would manage it so that he was never there for more than five minutes at a time...

 

[skateboy]

Not the short program.

Agreed, Hanyu skated a fantastic SP. The freeskate, on the other hand...

 

[Kateri]

Well, I'm sure Charlotte would manage it so that he was never there for more than five minutes at a time...

Charlotte and Elizabeth to commentate! Perfect combo of rational knowledgeability and hilarious mostly-affectionate snark.

 

[Vagabond]

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a solo commentator possessed of reason and knowledge must be in want of another with good snark.

 

[Braulio]

For me 2006 Olympics were meh... totally forgettable

 

[VGThuy]

For me 2006 Olympics were meh... totally forgettable

Me too. I enjoyed 2006 Worlds more all around.

 

[Colonel Green]

Me too. I enjoyed 2006 Worlds more all around.

Cohen not only managing to not win Worlds but to end up with the bronze medal is the stuff of legend.

 

[VGThuy]

Cohen not only managing to not win Worlds but to end up with the bronze medal is the stuff of legend.

Isn’t that so on-brand though?

 

[Coco]

hey ...how did they calculate final totals at 2006 worlds? It looks like a portion of Q round scores counted?

ISU World Figure Skating Championships - Ladies

www.isuresults.com

 

[VGThuy]

Looking at the protocols, IJS didn't fully reward Nakano's skating.

 

[Vagabond]

ISU World Figure Skating Championships - Ladies

www.isuresults.com

The highest PCS mark in that Qualifying Round Group was Kostner's 7.00 for Skating Skills. Those were the days!

 

[tony]

hey ...how did they calculate final totals at 2006 worlds? It looks like a portion of Q round scores counted?

ISU World Figure Skating Championships - Ladies

www.isuresults.com

Same way it counted the year before, as well. 25% of the score earned became the segment score. Rochette went into the short program in 1st place overall.

 

[VGThuy]

The highest PCS mark in that Qualifying Round Group was Kostner's 7.00 for Skating Skills. Those were the days!

And would be more accurate if given today for the top skaters...Just saying.

 

[Vagabond]

And would be more accurate if given today for the top skaters...Just saying.

Zagitova's Skating Skills at Worlds in 2019 were marked in the range of 8.50 to 9.50 (9.21 and 9.11 overall). Kostner's Skating Skills in 2006 were much better than that.

 

[tony]

I've commented in other threads about 2005-2010 and the early stages of IJS (COP, whatever version it got to throughout those years) and I really think so many of the results are ridiculous and the skating is unwatchable as a serious competition. It was the same story always: the top skaters were struggling to get above a 7.50 or maybe an 8.00 towards the end, and skaters like Contesti and Lysacek were nearly matching the PCS of Takahashi and Chen. All of the top tier of skaters was usually clumped together close enough on PCS that they really didn't matter much.

I mean.. the year Buttle won Worlds the entire top 6 in the SP basically got the same PCS, but Buttle came in 6th of 6 -- even behind Verner in overall PCS in the segment. Looking quickly at the ladies and there was a little over 2 points difference between the top 9 in PCS in the SP there.

 

[sonsofanarchy]

I've commented in other threads about 2005-2010 and the early stages of IJS (COP, whatever version it got to throughout those years) and I really think so many of the results are ridiculous and the skating is unwatchable as a serious competition. It was the same story always: the top skaters were struggling to get above a 7.50 or maybe an 8.00 towards the end, and skaters like Contesti and Lysacek were nearly matching the PCS of Takahashi and Chen. All of the top tier of skaters was usually clumped together close enough on PCS that they really didn't matter much.

I mean.. the year Buttle won Worlds the entire top 6 in the SP basically got the same PCS, but Buttle came in 6th of 6 -- even behind Verner in overall PCS in the segment. Looking quickly at the ladies and there was a little over 2 points difference between the top 9 in PCS in the SP there.

Heck Lysacek often got higher PCS than Takahashi. It might be his getting higher PCS than Takahashi in the short that ultimately won him the gold since Takahashi beat him on TES in the short but finished behind on PCS. That is IMO what made Takahashi feel like he had to try the quad to beat Lysacek for the gold.

 

[viennese]

I complain about commentators, but thank god Mr Collins never sat in the booth!

Dying.

 

[jenny12]

Zagitova's Skating Skills at Worlds in 2019 were marked in the range of 8.50 to 9.50 (9.21 and 9.11 overall). Kostner's Skating Skills in 2006 were much better than that.

Kostner skating skills in 1987 were much better than that.

 

[briancoogaert]

If everyone clean, Slutskaya might have won. She got so massive scores in 2005-2006 GP series !