2025 Cup of China Women's Free PBP - Unchained FGB

[Kateri]

I think she’s mentioned that she’ll go too fast and run out of gas with fast music.

Wish she could find something that built to the end more, to finish strong. (Rain in Your Black Eyes was great for this)

 

[leilaofpaper]

Wish she could find something that built to the end more, to finish strong. (Rain in Your Black Eyes was great for this)

agreed. love her, but never have been in love with her programs

 

[tony]

This score is gonna sink down. UR everywhere if they actually look. I just can’t get into her skating. Weird landing positions, never really stretched all the way, spin positions kinda lazy too.

 

[Belsornia]

Loop is a snake.

Love Rinka’s guts but she’s one of those skaters you think could get a lot better results with a little more strategising.

 

[Bunny Hop]

Watanabe - Aargh, no! Gets the triple axel then falls on second part of the combo.

Double footed second triple axel - under rotated for sure. This will make things interesting.

Popped loop. I think Glenn may be pulling up a spot.

Spins look great, but flying camel only level 2.

That's not going to be enough. The program was good, but it needed to be clean.

 

[Karen-W]

Rinka's gonna fall right off the podium here, I think. Lots of mistakes and not making the case for Japan's 3rd Oly spot for herself.

 

[leilaofpaper]

Loop is a snake.

Love Rinka’s guts but she’s one of those skaters you think could get a lot better results with a little more strategising.

I think given the depth in Japan she’s trying to set herself apart as the best technically.

 

[Wyliefan]

That won't do it, I'm afraid. Gutsy skate, though.

 

[skatingguy]

Rinka Watanabe
Rank after SP: 2
Coach: K. Nakaniwa, M. Nakata, M. Nagumo, A. Tanoue
Music: JIN by YU Takami, Seika Nagaoka

3A+3Tq - fall
3F!q
3A< - two-footed
3Lz+2A+SEQ
Flying Sit Spin 4
Choreo Sequence
3Lz
2A+1Eu+3Sq
1Lo
Change Foot Combo Spin 4
Flying Camel Spin 2 (3 after review)
Step Sequence 3 (4 after review)

The pop of the loop jump set to such a power moment in the music. #elegantpop The program fell flat, lacked energy, and generally a connection to the music.

-1.00 = Falls
124.62 = 4th Place
198.63 = 2nd Place

 

[Lilia A]

Manages to stay on the podium by the skin of her teeth
ETA: Not kidding, I wrote that before Chris said it

 

[Karen-W]

Hmph. I haven't seen Gubanova yet, obviously, but Watanabe got a gift there in staying on the podium.

 

[tony]

Hmph. I haven't seen Gubanova yet, obviously, but Watanabe got a gift there in staying on the podium.

Gubanova sometimes gets gift high GOEs considering how terrible her jump entry technique is. I’m sure they both (and everyone else) got gifts from this panel.

 

[her grace]

Two reused programs is too much. I fear that if we don’t see Lady Gaga at SA that it’s not going to come back.

 

[tony]

Not surprising at all that Alysa looks tight through some of this stuff, really no flow out of the jumps and she’s moving slow like she did at the beginning of last season.

I hope they REALLY rework Gaga because it needs it and I think this program already had it’s moment(s).

 

[Bunny Hop]

Liu - The perk/spark seems abit forced on this outing. It was good, but not sure this will be enough to stay in the lead.

 

[skatingguy]

Alysa Liu
Rank after SP: 1
Coach: Philip DiGuglierno, Massimo Scali
Music: MacArthur Park Suite by Donna Summer

3F
3Lz+3T
3S
Change Foot Combo Spin 4
3Lo
Flying Camel Spin 4
3Lz - step out
3F!+2Aq+2T+SEQ
2A+2T
Step Sequence 2 (3 after review)
Choreo Sequence
Layback Spin 3

Solid skate, and this program still works as well it did last year, but obviously this audience not responding quite the same.

137.46 = 2nd Place
212.07 = 2nd Place

 

[Wyliefan]

About 3/4 of that looked fantastic. But it seemed like she ran out of gas at the end.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

Amberrrrrrrrrr

 

[Karen-W]

Alysa's head for competition is really something else. Good thinking on her feet to get that sequence in after the error on the 3lz, but that's not going to be enough to beat Amber today, I don't think. Still, good enough for her first senior GP medal!

 

[thvu]

The program just crawled at the end. That step sequence really shows how her skating skills are more with Glenn & Gubanova than with Matsuike and Watanabe.

 

[tony]

First Grand Prix medal

 

[Skaterbob]

Alysa really is the most chill skater in the K&C I have ever seen lol

 

[leilaofpaper]

Messy FS in general after the brilliant SPs from everyone.

Wild that none of the podium here would have medalled at GPdF

 

[leilaofpaper]

First Grand Prix medal

she can hang her silver medal between her World gold and World bronze lolol

 

[Wyliefan]

The program just crawled at the end. That step sequence really shows how her skating skills are more with Glenn & Gubanova than with Matsuike and Watanabe.

I'm very fond of Rinka, but how are you lumping in her skating skills with Rino? They're pretty far apart in that department. Or am I misreading?

 

[thvu]

I'm very fond of Rinka, but how are you lumping in her skating skills with Rino? They're pretty far apart in that department. Or am I misreading?

It's not an equivalency. Glenn's are much better than Gubanova's too. I'm just simplifying the groups to show the huge contrast in skating skills between Liu and the others in this group. There's a huge gap with Watanabe, and an even bigger gap with Matsuike.

 

[Jammers]

Good job by Alysa not perfect but after Lombardia she came back and skated strong here, Winning is nice but the finish line is where Alysa is looking at let the others peak early and Alysa can finish strong like last year. She did seem to run out of steam a little bit i wonder if the boot issues took some time away from practicing or just it's the start of the season and no one is in top conditioning.

 

[MacMadame]

Manages to stay on the podium by the skin of her teeth
ETA: Not kidding, I wrote that before Chris said it

I noticed a lot of people using Chris' phrases this weekend. It amuses me.

Two reused programs is too much. I fear that if we don’t see Lady Gaga at SA that it’s not going to come back.

She was forced to change her SP and now is reworking her FS. That's a lot at this point in the season. I'm cutting her some slack.

 

[her grace]

Went back to watch Matsuike

Glorious carriage and fantastic edge work. She even made the intentional waltz jump look elevated. The medalists’ SS aren’t even in the same ballpark. Would be a showstopper skated clean.

 

[tony]

I noticed a lot of people using Chris' phrases this weekend. It amuses me.


She was forced to change her SP and now is reworking her FS. That's a lot at this point in the season. I'm cutting her some slack.

She wasn’t forced to change it. She’s an Adult who can and will do as she wants. She changed it because it was obvious she would not want to be associated with it; just as her favorite artist dissociated herself with the other artist. Stop pedaling that.