LP: Eteri's Skaters at the Olympics, who do you prefer? Lipnitskaya Vs Medvedeva Vs Zagitova

[bardtoob]

LP: Eteri's Skaters at the Olympics, who do you prefer? It can be, but it does not have to be about scoring, unless you prefer the highest scoring.

Lipnitskaya 2014 Team Event LP
Vs
Medvedeva 2018 Individual Event LP
Vs
Zagitova 2018 Team Event LP (Go to the 41 minute mark)

 

[bardtoob]

It is nice to remember how good Lipnitskaya was at her peak.

I feel a little more bitterness that Medvedeva has no Olympic Gold Medal than that Lipnitskaya only has a Team Olympic Gold Medal.

Of course, Zagitova has no World medal yet, but otherwise has it all.

 

[alchemy void]

I think Med is the best of all 3, by a considerable margin. I just wish she had a better program this season. But she gets my vote.

Lipnitskaya’s Schindlers List is definitely the most iconic program of the three but she was just hanging on by the skin of her teeth here—the jumps and even the spins weren’t very secure. Her performance at Euros was clearly superior technically and performance wise.

Zagitova, well, I admit I’m biased by having that horror show Worlds LP fresh in my memory. I think her skating skills are just too far behind Medvedeva. Maybe I’m wrong.

BTW, @bardtoob, you forgot to include Kvitelashvili in the poll.

 

[bardtoob]

BTW, @bardtoob, you forgot to include Kvitelasvili in the poll.

Who? . . . I think it's weird that Kvitelasvili's 3A is essentially the triple version of Yulia's 2A.

 

[bardtoob]

. . . the three but she was just hanging on by the skin of her teeth here—

Given Medvedeva's 2A issues plus the injury and Zagitova's Worlds performance, I think this could be said about anyone of these skaters. Eteri clearly intended them all to peak very, very specifically at the Olympics.

 

[3Lz+3Lo]

I prefer Lipnitskaya but I enjoyed those programs of Medvedeva and Zagitova as well

 

[puglover]

I still occasionally watch and show others Lipnitskaya's team event long program.

 

[kittysk8ts]

I have a soft spot for Lipnitskaya's programs that season because I saw her live debut of them at Skate Canada in October 2013. She absolutely charmed us. I just watched a short Russian documentary about her and I can see myself (egad) in the footage. Probably not the best of reasons for choosing her in the poll, but there it is

 

[SamuraiK]

If we are judging the olympics performances. Julia's 2014 team event for sure.

better skater ? Medvedeva by a long margin.

 

[MAXSwagg]

Difficult. But both Julia and Zag programs were better than Med's by a long shot. Eteri team made a big mistake with that choo choo train program and it seemed very juvenile, especially with all the mimeography (though the judges didn't mind since she almost got perfect PCS...for that).

 

[briancoogaert]

Definitely not Lipnitskaya.
And I prefer Medvedeva's style but Zagitova's technique. Very difficult to choose !

 

[skatepixie]

Look at my avatar and guess!

 

[Wyliefan]

Difficult. But both Julia and Zag programs were better than Med's by a long shot. Eteri team made a big mistake with that choo choo train program and it seemed very juvenile, especially with all the mimeography (though the judges didn't mind since she almost got perfect PCS...for that).

There's like three seconds' worth of train noises in there. It's not like she's chugging around the ice pretending to be a caboose or something.

 

[Vash01]

It is a close one for me, between Medvedeva and Lipnitskaya. Both skated emotional programs very well, had the technical difficulty (though not as much as Zagitova's), and they both touched me in different ways. Lip as a child, and Med as a woman who experienced love and tragedy. Zag did not touch me emotionally at all, though her jumps were delightful. For this poll I went with Medvedeva, for her maturity and depth of emotion, better posture, etc. but I could have easily chosen Julia. I am a little partial to Zhenya because she skated well despite a serious injury and all the pressure was on her.

 

[MAXSwagg]

There's like three seconds' worth of train noises in there. It's not like she's chugging around the ice pretending to be a caboose or something.

The program as a whole has been her worst yet by far. Her other senior FSs have been MILES better, and the composition of that FS certainly was not the best of the field.

 

[Ananas Astra]

The program as a whole has been her worst yet by far. Her other senior FSs have been MILES better, and the composition of that FS certainly was not the best of the field.

Nah, I always had to cringe so badly during her 9/11-George Bush-program.

 

[lauravvv]

Difficult. But both Julia and Zag programs were better than Med's by a long shot. Eteri team made a big mistake with that choo choo train program and it seemed very juvenile, especially with all the mimeography (though the judges didn't mind since she almost got perfect PCS...for that).

The program as a whole has been her worst yet by far. Her other senior FSs have been MILES better, and the composition of that FS certainly was not the best of the field.

When will people like you learn to express their personal opinions as just that - opinions? Also, how can choosing that FS be a "big mistake" when, as you yourself said, judges gave Medvedeva very high PCS for it? Your statement is definitely lacking logic.

 

[MAXSwagg]

When will people like you learn to express their personal opinions as just that - opinions? Also, how can choosing that FS be a "big mistake" when, as you yourself said, judges gave Medvedeva very high PCS for it? Your statement is definitely lacking logic.

That's the point. It wasn't her best FS and certainly not the best of the other top ladies, yet there's no impetus for she or Zag et al. to improve or do better programs (like Candyman as well) because the judges give high components. Just because they gave high components doesn't mean it wasn't a mistake or wasn't a weak and juvenile program.

I also don't need to explicitly state that it's my opinion. It's clearly my opinion. But FOR YOU, it is in my opinion that when you actually LOOK at what's going on in the program compared to those of Kostner and Miyahara (even Osmond), its composition as well as the skating skills are not up to that level.

 

[MAXSwagg]

Nah, I always had to cringe so badly during her 9/11-George Bush-program.

That program as well. Though it was marginally better than this Karenina...

 

[Vash01]

Look at my avatar and guess!

Mine too.

 

[Meoima]

I chose Yulia because that program has the best flow and continuity out of all 3.
Skatingwise, Zhenia did best and she skated mature.
Atmospherewise, Alina won. She lit up the audience.

 

[DreamSkates]

The only thing I liked better about Zags programs - there were built around energy and happiness instead of death.

 

[IloveFS]

Yulia

 

[hanca]

That's the point. It wasn't her best FS and certainly not the best of the other top ladies, yet there's no impetus for she or Zag et al. to improve or do better programs (like Candyman as well) because the judges give high components. Just because they gave high components doesn't mean it wasn't a mistake or wasn't a weak and juvenile program.

Could it be because the judges’s role is to judge the skating and not the level of likes/dislikes of the program? If someone has decent skating skills and plenty of transitions, why should they deduct marks because you consider the program juvenile? If they were marking the ‘quality’ of the program according to how much the audience likes it, wouldn’t the skaters who can afford big names choreographers have a huge advantage? So one could be buying extra points by buying a program from a few famous choreographers?

 

[briancoogaert]

Could it be because the judges’s role is to judge the skating and not the level of likes/dislikes of the program? If someone has decent skating skills and plenty of transitions, why should they deduct marks because you consider the program juvenile? If they were marking the ‘quality’ of the program according to how much the audience likes it, wouldn’t the skaters who can afford big names choreographers have a huge advantage? So one could be buying extra points by buying a program from a few famous choreographers?

In the components scores, judges can judge Originality, complexity, treatment of the theme. So, they can deduct marks for juvenile programs. I'm not saying it should be the case for Zagitova.
My only problem with Zagitova's PCS is about her speed (or lack of), and her not well-balanced program

 

[hanca]

In the components scores, judges can judge Originality, complexity, treatment of the theme. So, they can deduct marks for juvenile programs. I'm not saying it should be the case for Zagitova.
My only problem with Zagitova's PCS is about her speed (or lack of), and her not well-balanced program

Originality still doesn’t mean marking how much one likes/dislikes the program. In fact, I would say that Tarasova/Morozov’s FD is very original. It is not as if we could see many of those programs. And I didn’t see anything juvenile on Zagitova’s program.

I saw Zagitova at worlds and there was nothing wrong with her speed.

 

[bardtoob]

FSU loves them some Lipnitskaya.

 

[Wyliefan]

FSU loves them some Lipnitskaya.

Darn right.

 

[Brenda_Bottems]

You forgot 'none of the above'.

-BB

 

[Marymas]

Alina >>>>>>>>>>>> Yulia > Med

Med's seriously labored and muscled jumps make me cry. Not to mention her terrible jumping techniques. Med's miming is worse than Yulia's expressionless program. Overall though 3 are not memorable, I'll give it to Alina because her program was the most difficult one out of three.