From Russia with Love [#34]: Autumn 2019

[clairecloutier]

An article I did on Zagorski/Guerreiro, ahead of their appearance this weekend at IdF:

Tiffani Zagorski & Jonathan Guerreiro overcome adversity & find success - Figure Skaters Online

Five years ago, ice dancers Tiffani Zagorski and Jonathan Guerreiro teamed up to skate for Russia. Zagorski and Guerreiro have faced their share of challenges since then.

figureskatersonline.com

 

[muffinplus]

Alina's really grown in her skating based on that new exhibition...

Alina's new EX programme for 2019-2020 season

This is "Alina's new EX programme for 2019-2020 season" by JazzUp on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

vimeo.com

I can't believe Olympics win was only a year and half ago, she's undergone quite a transformation since

 

[love_skate2011]

This is the deepest russian pairs field since the 1990s ?
do they still even need T/M ???

 

[Ananas Astra]

This is the deepest russian pairs field since the 1990s ?
do they still even need T/M ???

No.

 

[hanca]

This is the deepest russian pairs field since the 1990s ?
do they still even need T/M ???

Well, someone needs to be sent to europeans and worlds when Mishina/Galliamov are clearly not ready yet.
Russian federation needs someone to fill the spots to europeans and worlds. I would say Boikova/Kozlovski and Tarasova/Morozov have their spot certain. It is quite possible that Zabijako/Enbert won’t compete this season at all. In that case, there will be fight between Pavliuschenko/Khodykin and Mishina/Galliamov for the third spot. And at the moment, Mishina/Galliamov are losing to P/K. That answers your question - yes, they still need Tarasova/Morozov.

 

[love_skate2011]

No.

they still got some generous score at Skate Canada, but I don't think it will last long
anybody remember Shishkova / Naumov ? they were russian top skaters on borrowed time like Tarasova / Morozov now

 

[love_skate2011]

Well, someone needs to be sent to europeans and worlds when Mishina/Galliamov are clearly not ready yet.
Russian federation needs someone to fill the spots to europeans and worlds. I would say Boikova/Kozlovski and Tarasova/Morozov have their spot certain. It is quite possible that Zabijako/Enbert won’t compete this season at all. In that case, there will be fight between Pavliuschenko/Khodykin and Mishina/Galliamov for the third spot. And at the moment, Mishina/Galliamov are losing to P/K. That answers your question - yes, they still need Tarasova/Morozov.

3 points behind in SP ? M/G can make ground in FS
T/M haven't been skated clean yet and P/K just beat B/K in SB SP score

so should we leave B/K behind ?

 

[hanca]

3 points behind in SP ? M/G can make ground in FS
T/M haven't been skated clean yet and P/K just beat B/K in SB SP score

so should we leave B/K behind ?

You are comparing scores from different competitions, but the fact remains that Boikova/Kozlovski won gold at their GP event defeating world medalist (and Russian number 1 pair), whereas at the moment M/G struggles to beat a much weaker pair who was last season only Russian pair number 4.

 

[Ananas Astra]

I don't get all this bitching about Russian pairs.
They are all awesome, let's just enjoy all of them and wait until Russian Nats are over until facts will be created who will actually make the team.
We still have to see Stolbova/Novoselov in action.

I, for one, am happy to see such a gifted nation in Pairs and may the best ones win their spots fair and square.
Easy as that.

 

[Jeschke]

I don't get all this bitching about Russian pairs.
They are all awesome, let's just enjoy all of them and wait until Russian Nats are over until facts will be created who will actually make the team.
We still have to see Stolbova/Novoselov in action.

I, for one, am happy to see such a gifted nation in Pairs and may the best ones win their spots fair and square.
Easy as that.

I'd love the same harmonic attitude by you towards Sotskova

 

[love_skate2011]

You are comparing scores from different competitions, but the fact remains that Boikova/Kozlovski won gold at their GP event defeating world medalist (and Russian number 1 pair), whereas at the moment M/G struggles to beat a much weaker pair who was last season only Russian pair number 4.

the fact that M/G scored 73+ in their first GP event and ranking second only by 3 points behind the russian pair that won silver in SA. B/K could barely score 70s last season.

wait till the FS before your verdict that M/G are far behind ? people seem threatened they are scoring those marks against headcase skaters like B/K and T/M.

 

[Sylvia]

Geez, I'd rather read another 10 pages about the greatness of Mishina/Galliamov than more of this.

 

[Perky Shae Lynn]

I just want to comment on how gorgeous Zagitova looks this season. Not in terms of her skating skills (though I feel like there is some improvement) but just in her physical appearance. She's growing into a beautiful young woman.

 

[Vash01]

I just want to comment on how gorgeous Zagitova looks this season. Not in terms of her skating skills (though I feel like there is some improvement) but just in her physical appearance. She's growing into a beautiful young woman.

And still she is just 17.

 

[puglover]

And still she is just 17.

"Well she was just 17, you know what I mean, but the way she looks......"

 

[Wyliefan]

She's lovely.

 

[kwanfan1818]

But I need T/M

 

[Bigbird]

But I need T/M

Hunger games.

As for Alina her borderline improvement is only cosmetically covered by clever choreography. And they need to give Alena her true PCS. She cannot be ranked lower than Alina that is as messed up as it can truly get. They just need to deal with that. Please and thank you.

 

[Ananas Astra]

I'd love the same harmonic attitude by you towards Sotskova

"Ehre, wem Ehre gebührt." Sotskova simply is not in that crowd. Sorry, not sorry.

 

[NAOTMAA]

the fact that M/G scored 73+ in their first GP event and ranking second only by 3 points behind the russian pair that won silver in SA. B/K could barely score 70s last season.

wait till the FS before your verdict that M/G are far behind ? people seem threatened they are scoring those marks against headcase skaters like B/K and T/M.

No skater/team is perfect at every competition.

At their last 4 major competitions (nationals, Europeans, worlds, GP Canada) B/K in 8 performances were perfect in 7 of them. Their only mistake was a minor one when he stepped out of a triple toe at Euros. So in the great competitions that matter B/K have proven to be pretty reliable so far for Russia. The test skate and Shanghai invitational are small peanuts since nothing of importance was at stake at either. So to call them "headcases" these days is pretty ridiculous. They are not the same as they were as juniors, or even last year for that matter.

And if they skate semi-clean at Rostelecom and at nationals they will most likely be on the Euros/worlds team no matter how M/G skate. No way will the Russian fed. leave a Tamara Moskvina team that can perform decent at home. In the game of backstage politics Moskvina has the Velikovs beat hands down.

 

[Karen-W]

No skater/team is perfect at every competition.

At their last 4 major competitions (nationals, Europeans, worlds, GP Canada) B/K in 8 performances were perfect in 7 of them. Their only mistake was a minor one when he stepped out of a triple toe at Euros. So in the great competitions that matter B/K have proven to be pretty reliable so far for Russia. The test skate and Shanghai invitational are small peanuts since nothing of importance was at stake at either. So to call them "headcases" these days is pretty ridiculous. They are not the same as they were as juniors, or even last year for that matter.

And if they skate semi-clean at Rostelecom and at nationals they will most likely be on the Euros/worlds team no matter how M/G skate. No way will the Russian fed. leave a Tamara Moskvina team that can perform decent at home. In the game of backstage politics Moskvina has the Velikovs beat hands down.

Well, I think the argument is that the Baby Russians (P/K, B/K, and M/G) could push T/M and Z/E off the podium entirely. And that's not even taking into consideration the other teams in the junior ranks who will be competing senior for nationals or S/N who have yet to debut. I'm not sure that T/M or Z/E would be sent to Worlds if RusFed feels reasonably confident that the trio of teams they send can secure three berths again next season. This would be the season to take that gamble since it still leaves 2021 to get back to three teams by the next Olympics should they somehow lose a spot this year.

 

[muffinplus]

I just want to comment on how gorgeous Zagitova looks this season. Not in terms of her skating skills (though I feel like there is some improvement) but just in her physical appearance. She's growing into a beautiful young woman.

Looks gorgeous and skates so much more maturely. That exhibition is the most expressive she's been on the ice

 

[Dobre]

The young teams are very nice. If T&M cannot get their jumps together, then that will be an issue.

But . . . their ceiling is at least 12 points higher than we have seen for clean programs from the younger teams, which is 12 points closer to Sui & Han. (And that is without the programs T&M have right now, which I think are pretty good--that LP the best they've ever had). I'm pretty sure the Russian Fed would like to send T&M.

 

[taz'smum]

I just want to comment on how gorgeous Zagitova looks this season. Not in terms of her skating skills (though I feel like there is some improvement) but just in her physical appearance. She's growing into a beautiful young woman.

as tiff is sharing a room in Grenoble with Zagitova, I have had the good fortune of being able to see her very close up. She has blown me away with how beautiful she has become!
Also she is also such a nice girl!

 

[hanca]

Well, I think the argument is that the Baby Russians (P/K, B/K, and M/G) could push T/M and Z/E off the podium entirely. And that's not even taking into consideration the other teams in the junior ranks who will be competing senior for nationals or S/N who have yet to debut. I'm not sure that T/M or Z/E would be sent to Worlds if RusFed feels reasonably confident that the trio of teams they send can secure three berths again next season. This would be the season to take that gamble since it still leaves 2021 to get back to three teams by the next Olympics should they somehow lose a spot this year.

I think the Russian federation will hold T/M up. They did it in the past with other pairs. For example, when T/M was a relatively new pair on senior level, they were already beating Stolbova/Klimov internationally and yet at home competitions S/K always ended above them, often with padded GOE and PCS to make up for the technically lower mark. And it wasn’t only in the first senior season of T/M, this happened for a few years. The same way the federation will be betting on T/M getting consistently worlds medal for the past three years and therefore will make sure that they will get sent to Europeans/worlds this year, even if they had to hold them up at the nationals.

 

[Jeschke]

Is there any update on Nikita Nazarov?
#hopedieslast

 

[PRlady]

as tiff is sharing a room in Grenoble with Zagitova, I have had the good fortune of being able to see her very close up. She has blown me away with how beautiful she has become!
Also she is also such a nice girl!

I’m really happy to hear that last part. She’s endured a lot of negativity since the Olys and I give her huge credit for not retiring like most Oly gold winners did. She’s not my favorite among the Russians but she’s undeniably talented and her maturity relative to the new kids is worth a lot in terms of presentation.

It’s sort of a shame that she’s matched against everyone’s fave Kosternaia at both her GPs, more room for bitching.

 

[rfisher]

I like all 4As as well as a lot of other Russian ladies. Sadly, only 3 will get to Euro/Worlds and even more sadly some of my favorites are in a battle to even get to Russian nationals. I'm a big Zagitova fan and have been since she was a junior, but if the 3 younger skaters are on the podium at Russian Nationals and Russia goes with them, I'm good with that. But, it's too early to predict what will happen there. I really though Shcherbakova was the weaker of the 3, but I'm thinking Kostornaia might be in the sense of nerves getting to her. Trusova has nerves of steel and Shcherbakova was absolutely focused in landing the 2 quad lutzes at SKAM and making up the SP shortfall. So, now, I really don't know how things will go. If Liza/Mishin focus on maximizing her points, she's still very much in contention. Med will likely have to have a quad to stay competitive at Natonals. I think. But, who knows.

 

[Finsta]

Zagitova does look very beautiful and skating well. I see now she is starting to show more emotion, but seems only to have one face while competing,but is showing the improvement. I like the LP costume. Am glad there are no gimmicks with her program and its about her skating and not costume changes. She is one that doesn’t need the gimmick to get attention. Unlike others I feel her team thought she’d skate better than Alena and so she’s being protected this season. It is up to Alena to keep nerves in check and try to beat her. If she can’t then it’s sport. These girls are friends as posters keep pointing out. There will be no hard feelings between them if one fails to advance. It is sport. Overall Alina is better skater than Sasha and Anna. Oddly I’m not certain she can defeat them.

 

[babayaga]

as tiff is sharing a room in Grenoble with Zagitova, I have had the good fortune of being able to see her very close up. She has blown me away with how beautiful she has become!
Also she is also such a nice girl!

taz'smum, does Alina speak any kind of English by now?