A Divine Sport blog

Yes, interesting. I wonder @clairecloutier about the state of U.S. pairs coaching. John Nicks is now retired, albeit Todd and Jenni are his proteges who are trying to find more success with pairs coaching. They did have Marley/Brubaker, but for too short a time. Calalang/Sidhu are good, but now suffering with injuries which can slow momentum.

The Florida crew and coaching staff are doing very well. I looked up Jim Peterson and discovered that he skated formerly with Natalie Vlandis, and Laura Handy. I can't find any old vids of Peterson skating with either of his former partners, and I don't remember him as a skater. His Wiki bio states that he used to be coached by Ron Ludington (a former U.S. Nationals pairs champion), and by Canadian, Kerry Leitch.

I am hoping that Haven and Brandon can come back and enjoy success and creativity with coach, Ingo Steuer. Is Steuer still their coach, and is he doing some coaching these days while waiting for Haven's recovery?

Re Smith/Reiss, I thought someone had said they were moving to Skating Club of Boston, so I was surprised seeing them in kiss 'n cry at Nationals with Peter Oppegard. I wonder why they are moving way across country when Peter seems like a good fit for them as a coach?
 
That's interesting about Jim Peterson skating with Natalie Vlandis and Laura Handy. I still remember both of those girls from their pairs skating days with other partners. But I don't remember ever seeing them with Peterson.

WRT Haven/Brandon ... I don't know what their current coaching status is. I suspect we will hear something about that during the offseason, when they are fully back to regular training. My hunch is that they probably won't return to Steuer, but that's just a hunch, we'll have to wait and see.
 
@clairecloutier, why is it your 'hunch' that Haven & Brandon won't return to Steuer (the length of time not training together due to Haven's injury, and the logistics of Steuer's situation re having a son in Germany, and not being fully established in the U.S., or a combination of factors)?
 
^^ Thanks for your 4CCs pairs summary @clairecloutier. I agree with you about Luba/Dylan's programs this year. Thanks for articulating your impressions so well. I generally agree with your takes throughout.

Do you think you will be reviewing ice dance again some time soon?

Yes, definitely I too am increasingly excited for Worlds in Boston! Pairs and Ice Dance are my favorite disciplines these days.
 
Thanks @aftershocks. I'm glad you liked the 4CCs review.

To answer your question above about ice dance ... I may try to do a little dance coverage from Worlds. I did a short column about dance/men's at Skate America, just because I was there to see the events live. But in general, I don't feel I have the teknik to really analyze dance. The discipline is just so complex!
 
^^ Yes @clairecloutier, I enjoyed the dance review you provided at SA, early in the season. Even if you don't feel completely comfortable with the ice dance 'teknik,' you know enough to provide your own very interesting and thoughtful insights. Thanks as always. :)
 
So, here's something different ... Tonight, I posted the first interview I've done for my web site.

Interview with Amy Vecchio: "It's extremely important for skaters to work with sports nutritionists"

https://adivinesport.wordpress.com/...or-skaters-to-work-with-sports-nutritionists/.

Amy Vecchio is a former competitive skater, professional skater with Disney on Ice, adult ice dancer, and longtime coach in the Boston area. Amy has been in figure skating for 40 years and has seen a lot in this sport. In this interview, she is very candid in sharing her thoughts on everything from the current state of U.S. singles skating, to the elimination of figures, to why everyone should try ice dancing! Amy also talks emotionally about her struggles with an eating disorder and how important it is for skaters to get nutritional guidance. What I posted tonight is Part 1 of our interview; Part 2 will appear tomorrow.

Full disclosure: Amy is also my own skating coach! I wanted to interview her because I love listening to her talk about skating during our lessons. She just has so much knowledge of this sport. (And she's also an amazing, beautiful skater.) I knew it would be interesting to interview her ... But I wasn't even remotely prepared for how personal and in-depth our talk went.

I really hope a lot of you will take the time to check out this interview! Amy may not be a famous coach like Frank Carroll or Mr. Nicks, but she has a lot of interesting stories, ideas, and perspectives to share on this sport.
 
Fabulous interview Claire! I really love her insights..you are absolutely blowing the doors of a topic that NEEDS to be more honestly talked about!
 
Thank you for this interview, Claire, it's one of the first times I think I've heard in skating (paraphrasing), "No, you don't need to lose that ten pounds if that's not your healthy weight and it won't help you land that axel."

I would let her coach my (non-existent, but if they did :) ) children. I can't say that about too many skating coaches I've read about.
 
el henry said:
Thank you for this interview, Claire, it's one of the first times I think I've heard in skating (paraphrasing), "No, you don't need to lose that ten pounds if that's not your healthy weight and it won't help you land that axel."

I would let her coach my (non-existent, but if they did :) ) children. I can't say that about too many skating coaches I've read about.
Click to expand...


Thanks @el henry. I agree with you that I'd feel safe letting Amy coach my own daughters! :)
 
Interview with Amy Vecchio, part 2: "The most important thing in skating is perseverance"

https://adivinesport.wordpress.com/...tant-thing-in-skating-is-perseverance-part-2/

In part 2 of our interview, Amy talks about the highs & lows of coaching, how much she still enjoys skating as an adult, her new passion for ice dancing, her involvement in theatre on ice, and why skating parents get a bad rap. :-) Amy also offers her views on some topics that we've debated here at FSU, namely: How the elimination of school figures has affected the sport; whether we have adequate facilities for skating in the U.S.; and why the U.S. is struggling in singles skating. Grab a cup of tea, and get ready for an interesting read!

Also--if you like the articles on the blog, please take a moment to "like" my page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adivinesport/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel. Thanks!!
 
I thought I was about to read an article on Anna Rechnio, but this interview was fantastic. I particularly enjoyed the discussion regarding compulsory figures.
 
Her passion for every aspect of the sport is beautiful and must be contagious. You are lucky to be working with her... And I hope to hear about your daughters' training soon! :)
 
^^ Very thoughtful and beautiful the way you express yourself @clairecloutier. Such articulate insight and a perfect tribute to Patrick's indescribable skating. When Patrick is on, he's heavenly. I hope Patrick will be in top form in Boston. :)

I like this current version of Patrick's costume a bit better than the original, although I am not in love with it.

I do love the way you write and how you so eloquently share your viewpoints and emotions about figure skating. :respec:
 
Just now catching up and I'm loving all the blog entries! Love your blog entry about Patrick Chan. Loved his Chopin LP. Great job and it's appreciated! :)
 
clairecloutier said:
My pairs preview/predictions for Worlds: https://adivinesport.wordpress.com/2016/03/25/worlds-2016-pairs-preview-predictions/

I'm predicting Savchenko/Massot for silver :D
Click to expand...

Great preview! I liked that you went past the top 5, I often have lots of favorites in the lower ranks and some of them are more interesting than the top competitors (I mean in general in other disciplines too). Great that they get some attention :)

S/M for silver is quite the bold prediction ;) I'm picking/wishing Sui/Han for gold, but i'd be equally happy with S/K. Hope both teams are healed!
 
Thanks @levineismine. Yes, i may well be the only one who thinks Savchenko/Massot could be on the podium. ;) I too am hoping that S/K and S/H are in good shape, healthwise. It worries me a bit that we've not heard anything about S/K lately. But perhaps no news is good news ...
 
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