2019-20 Canadian Men news & updates

dramagrrl

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2,123
I've never gotten Roman's skating, to the point where hearing people rave about him has actually confused me. I've seen him skate live several times and this hasn't changed my mind. I just watched his NHK FS to see if maybe a clean, internationally-rewarded skate from him would change my mind, and I still feel the same way. For more than the first minute of his program, right through to the triple loop, he literally does nothing except crossovers into jumps. I know he is definitely not the only male skater who is guilty of that right now, but a) I would say the same about them, and b) I have felt this way about all his programs that I can remember. I can see how people might like his long, lean look, but I don't even think he takes the most advantage of that, and even though he is skating to dramatic, emotional music, I rarely saw any facial or bodily expression that conveyed this.

I'm not posting this just to sound negative - I just honestly don't get it.
 

4rkidz

plotting, planning and travelling
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14,675
I've never gotten Roman's skating, to the point where hearing people rave about him has actually confused me. I've seen him skate live several times and this hasn't changed my mind. I just watched his NHK FS to see if maybe a clean, internationally-rewarded skate from him would change my mind, and I still feel the same way. For more than the first minute of his program, right through to the triple loop, he literally does nothing except crossovers into jumps. I know he is definitely not the only male skater who is guilty of that right now, but a) I would say the same about them, and b) I have felt this way about all his programs that I can remember. I can see how people might like his long, lean look, but I don't even think he takes the most advantage of that, and even though he is skating to dramatic, emotional music, I rarely saw any facial or bodily expression that conveyed this.

I'm not posting this just to sound negative - I just honestly don't get it.

in the performance I watched his body especially his arms and carriage portray so much emotion. I was a classically trained ballet dancer and I love how he moves on the ice his power and speed an great glide. I had an ISU judge say to me a couple of years ago that Roman has the most potential of all the Canadian men, after NHK I agree. His spins and especially his stretch make beautiful lines. His jumps have huge ice coverage. He’s also able to feel the music in how he moves. Sorry you don't get it.
 

dramagrrl

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2,123
in the performance I watched his body especially his arms and carriage portray so much emotion. I was a classically trained ballet dancer and I love how he moves on the ice his power and speed an great glide. I had an ISU judge say to me a couple of years ago that Roman has the most potential of all the Canadian men, after NHK I agree. His spins and especially his stretch make beautiful lines. His jumps have huge ice coverage. He’s also able to feel the music in how he moves. Sorry you don't get it.
I do see his speed and glide, but it is easy to generate speed and cover more ice when you are doing nothing but crossovers (which, as I noted in my above post, he often does for at least the first full minute and a half of his long programs). I don't see the "feeling of the music" through his movement, personally, or at least not enough of it for my liking. Aside from Keegan and Nam, at this point in time I would rather watch Phan, Nadeau, or Gogolev; even though all five of them also obviously have weaknesses, I just find them more interesting to watch than Roman.
 

Aaron MB Fan

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886
in the performance I watched his body especially his arms and carriage portray so much emotion. I was a classically trained ballet dancer and I love how he moves on the ice his power and speed an great glide. I had an ISU judge say to me a couple of years ago that Roman has the most potential of all the Canadian men, after NHK I agree. His spins and especially his stretch make beautiful lines. His jumps have huge ice coverage. He’s also able to feel the music in how he moves. Sorry you don't get it.

This x1000. I have loved Roman ever since he first came onto the Senior Men’s scene and been waiting for a performance like this which he has always had inside him.

Roman is exactly the kind of skater I can watch being mesmerized as time passes by and I’m shocked (and sad) the program is already over. This skate had me fighting back the tears. I hope to see him skate this clean live at Nationals and win the title or at least finally medal!

Roman’s style reminds me in many ways of Canadian Men’s greats like Buttle and Sandhu. Granted he doesn’t have the transition difficulty, his lines and stretch are impeccable, he has big beautiful jumps (including quads), music choices that bring me in and highlight his style and line, along with what I’m a huge sucker for, incredible spins in terms of positions, speed and flexibility. I could re-watch this performance on repeat :)
 

Erin

Banned Member
Messages
10,472
I've never gotten Roman's skating, to the point where hearing people rave about him has actually confused me.

I really liked Roman as a novice and junior skater...I first saw him finish second in novice at Canadian Challenge (behind Nadeau) and was really impressed with both of them for how musical they were and how interesting their programs were. Here is a video from shortly after that, his first JGP season, that has some of those same qualities:

Unfortunately in the last couple of years, I think that some of the musicality has been lost in an attempt to get the jumps consistent. I also think that his current programs don’t do him any favours, especially the short. I think I have a little bit of residual fandom for the junior skater I still remember but am not thrilled with a lot about the current incarnation. It would be great at some point if we could see a combination of the musicality from his younger days with the big jumps he has now.
 

barbarafan

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5,303
in the performance I watched his body especially his arms and carriage portray so much emotion. I was a classically trained ballet dancer and I love how he moves on the ice his power and speed an great glide. I had an ISU judge say to me a couple of years ago that Roman has the most potential of all the Canadian men, after NHK I agree. His spins and especially his stretch make beautiful lines. His jumps have huge ice coverage. He’s also able to feel the music in how he moves. Sorry you don't get it.
I have liked his skating for years but usually I am disappointed because his normal MO is as soon as he makes a mistake he seems to write off the performance and dials it in. It would almost be (ok it is no longer perfect so I will treat it as a practice and try again next time) His lines and interpretation have always been beautiful but I find this yr. even when he makes a mistake he seems to be pushing through. I hope this new confidence continues as his PCS will surely grow as he has the goods.
 

shutterbug

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2,452
For the Canadians for haven't seen Roman's FP yet, here is CBC's archived video: https://www.cbc.ca/sports/sadovsky-claims-bronze-after-men-s-free-skate-in-japan-1.5370993

Definitely his best senior showing to date. Bogged down a little in the middle, but finished strongly with the 3 spins, a smart choreographic choice. The footwork sequence is a real highlight and done very well. What I'm most pleased to see though, is that some of the ease and flow is starting to come back into his skating, most notably on the jump landings. Everything has just looked so hard for him the last few seasons. Hurt my heart to watch him struggle. :(

Coach Tracey Wainman's reaction to the medal: https://www.instagram.com/p/B5N3JU1ndfn/
A little shout out from Chris Mann: https://www.instagram.com/p/B5OUR-Qn92v/

I really liked Roman as a novice and junior skater...I first saw him finish second in novice at Canadian Challenge (behind Nadeau) and was really impressed with both of them for how musical they were and how interesting their programs were. Here is a video from shortly after that, his first JGP season, that has some of those same qualities:

Unfortunately in the last couple of years, I think that some of the musicality has been lost in an attempt to get the jumps consistent. I also think that his current programs don’t do him any favours, especially the short. I think I have a little bit of residual fandom for the junior skater I still remember but am not thrilled with a lot about the current incarnation. It would be great at some point if we could see a combination of the musicality from his younger days with the big jumps he has now.
Baby Roman. :love: Here's a more recent example (my favorite of his SP's) that shows off his natural musicality a bit better: Roman Sadovsky 2017 Junior World Figure Skating Championships - SP Yes, the music is overused, but he does a nice job with it. I also love the costume. This is year 2 for his current programs, so we should see new ones next season, hopefully with more choreographic detail.
 

puglover

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2,728
I recall rushing back from lunch at a Canadian Nationals - I think in Ottawa 1014/15 to not miss Roman's skate. His program was to Les Mis and I had watched him perform it on television and knew it was something special. I was so amazed at how patient he was, really skating to his music, finishing each move, rare in someone of his age. It is sure nice to see him smiling again.
 

Foolhardy Ham Lint

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6,277
in the performance I watched his body especially his arms and carriage portray so much emotion. I was a classically trained ballet dancer and I love how he moves on the ice his power and speed an great glide. I had an ISU judge say to me a couple of years ago that Roman has the most potential of all the Canadian men, after NHK I agree. His spins and especially his stretch make beautiful lines. His jumps have huge ice coverage. He’s also able to feel the music in how he moves. Sorry you don't get it.

A great explanation!
 

screech

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7,409
What I'm most impressed with was his rotations. The only element underrotated was the 3s in his 4s/3s combo, where he had no speed. That's a huge boost for him. Also his first 4S had huge GOE and his first 3A had all positive GOE, which is big for him too.
 

aftershocks

Banned Member
Messages
17,317
I really liked Roman as a novice and junior skater...I first saw him finish second in novice at Canadian Challenge (behind Nadeau) and was really impressed with both of them for how musical they were and how interesting their programs were. Here is a video from shortly after that, his first JGP season, that has some of those same qualities:

Unfortunately in the last couple of years, I think that some of the musicality has been lost in an attempt to get the jumps consistent. I also think that his current programs don’t do him any favours, especially the short. I think I have a little bit of residual fandom for the junior skater I still remember but am not thrilled with a lot about the current incarnation. It would be great at some point if we could see a combination of the musicality from his younger days with the big jumps he has now.

Thanks for sharing 'baby Roman' junior performance from 2012. :) He was just a little sprite, but still with those long forever legs and smooth skating with such gorgeous lines. Part of the reasons why Roman has struggled in recent years is because his body kept growing at the same time he was trying to solidify triples and incorporate quads. That double process obviously made it hugely difficult for him, as he had to constantly re-adjust, regroup and go back to the drawing board. The necessary focus on developing quads is known to take away from emphasis on aesthetic skills. It is what it is.

Quads take up a lot of physical and mental energy. It's rare to be able to land multiple quads along with full and complete attention to artistic nuances and interpretation throughout a performance. Anyone who desires the great artistry of complete performances combined with superb technique, go back at look at the best of John Curry, Toller Cranston, John Misha Petkevich, Brian Orser, Brian Boitano, Robin Cousins, Paul Wylie, Dai Takahashi at his best, Denis Ten at his best, et al.

In some of his earliest vlogs, Romsky has spoken of being very gung ho about quads and eager to master them. Over the past two seasons, as he has apparently completed his growth spurt, Romsky has gained an increased maturity. It's lovely to see him having finally grown into his body and feeling more comfortable and confident with his skating. His opening quad jumps are so gorgeous with fast rotations and beautiful landings. If he can consistently continue pulling everything together to eventually skate completely clean performances, hallelujah! :encore:


Regarding how the sport's emphasis has changed and fluctuated over the years without any vision with respect to making the sport better and assisting the athletes in mastering the basics, listen to the below mid-2000s interview with Brian Orser (from old research footage compiled by David Barba and James Pellerito when they were planning a figure skating documentary, which ultimately turned into a profile on Johnny Weir: Pop Star On Ice, 2009). The old interview footage was later given to TSL. Dave Lease recently began uploading some of the interviews on Youtube. In the below clip, Brian Orser discusses how lack of emphasis on practicing figures has impacted the sport:

I love how Brian mentions 'the politics of scoring figures.' Today that would equate to 'the politics of manipulating PCS and especially GOE scores.' It would be cool to hear how Orser feels about the issues of the absence of figures and how political scoring works in today's environment. I'm sure though that Orser would be more circumspect in his criticisms, since he's an active and successful coach.
 
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Sylvia

TBD
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79,976
Joseph Phan's 4T+3T+3Lo in practice:

Article on Gogolev "updated from the one originally published in the IFS October 2019 issue":
 

Sylvia

TBD
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79,976
Roman Sadovsky's vlog (Dec. 20, 2019) - how he adjusts his blade mountings:

Post-NHK Trophy (Dec 12, 2019):

His recap of his season before he left for NHK Trophy (Nov. 29, 2019):
 
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Sylvia

TBD
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Sylvia

TBD
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Men SP starting order link (updated Jan. 8): https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020CDNS/2020CDNSSeniorMenSP1SO.html
Philipp Mulé-Mirochnitchenko QC (17th of 17 at Challenge last month) has replaced Gogolev.

ETA that Gogolev, if healthy, is still eligible to be selected for Junior Worlds based on Skate Canada's published criteria document:

... will then take into account, in no specific order, the following criteria:
➢ Results, scores and skills performed versus age of eligible athletes / teams at the 2019-2020 ISU Junior Grand Prix Series, ISU Jr Grand Prix Final, and ISU International competitions in which Skate Canada has selected and nominated the skater(s)
➢ Results, scores and skills performed versus age of eligible athletes / teams at the 2020 Youth Olympic Games
[Aleksa Rakic is competing in Lausanne this week].
Results, scores and skills performed versus age of eligible athletes / teams at the 2020 Canadian Championships. Athletes may be considered from Novice, Junior, or Senior categories if they meet the eligibility requirements.
➢ Skater / team’s performances trends over the previous year based on total and technical scores achieved.
 
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Sylvia

TBD
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79,976
Ilya Kovler is no longer listed either. :(
Dominic Rondeau, 16th in Senior Men at Challenge, has been added as well.
 
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Tinami Amori

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20,156
Stephen Gogolev is no longer listed on the roster for nationals. :(
probably health related.. because in jan 1, 2020 interview he and RA stated they intend to skate at CN, with hope to make the world team.

Maybe this is a good time for Arutyunyan to make his usual elaborate comments about his student in his club... ;)
 

Sylvia

TBD
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79,976
I don't think it's right to joke about withdrawals at any skater's/coach's expense.

Gogolev is not age-eligible for Worlds this year but still can be considered for Junior Worlds, as I posted earlier, if he is okay. Hopefully we will hear an official update about his unfortunate withdrawal from Canadians.
 

barbarafan

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5,303
I don't think it's right to joke about withdrawals at any skater's/coach's expense.

Gogolev is not age-eligible for Worlds this year but still can be considered for Junior Worlds, as I posted earlier, if he is okay. Hopefully we will hear an official update about his unfortunate withdrawal from Canadians.
He will not be named without competing.
 

Sylvia

TBD
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79,976
Dominic Rondeau's IG post:
Skate Canada Challenge was in fact a challenge for me this year but I pushed through and kept going and didn't stop training during holidays... And now, I'm really happy and proud to say that I'm finally going to Skate Canada Nationals Championship 2020.

My 5th Nationals as a Senior Men.

Not bad for a comeback year after almost 2 years of not competing. 🤘🤘

2019 Canadian Junior Men's silver medalist Beres Clemens (was #7) is listed as WD in the Senior Men's SP starting order that was revised yesterday (no replacements left): https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020CDNS/2020CDNSSeniorMenSP1SO.html

I think I glimpse Stephen Gogolev on Irvine, Calif. ice (wearing white) in the middle of the group being instructed by Shae-Lynn Bourne in this Instagram story from yesterday, captured in this tweet:
 

Vase

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308
Dominic Rondeau's IG post:


2019 Canadian Junior Men's silver medalist Beres Clemens (was #7) is listed as WD in the Senior Men's SP starting order that was revised yesterday (no replacements left): https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020CDNS/2020CDNSSeniorMenSP1SO.html

I think I glimpse Stephen Gogolev on Irvine, Calif. ice (wearing white) in the middle of the group being instructed by Shae-Lynn Bourne in this Instagram story from yesterday, captured in this tweet:
Definitely is Stephan, though I see he’s grown so much.
 

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