^^ Yep
@clairecloutier, you said it succinctly. While below is my longer version of the same thing you have pointed out, taking into consideration the entire current pairs scene. Bottom line, Lubov & Charlie are talents who can go all the way with the right decisions and advantages flanking them. So clearly, SC and L&C themselves, are looking to put the best team on their side. I find it interesting that Cizeron is doing choreo with Dubreuil though. Gauthier seemed to think Cizeron's sp choreo for James/Cipres wasn't all that, even though I think it was quite good for a first effort, and Cizeron did J/C's sp for free. Maybe Dubreuil asked for Cizeron to work with her, or maybe Gauthier or Charlie asked?
Just imagine what Cizeron might wrought for L&C with Dubreuil, when he's being paid.
It's quite a team. I hope its not too many cooks in the kitchen, but I am very glad to Marie France and Guillaume doing the choreography. That will give them an edge right there, if they can handle it this early in their partnership.
Well, Lubov and Charlie are both veterans who need an edge with the goals they have of making a significant impact out-of-the-gate with their new partnership. I'm sure they will be working very hard during the entire off-season to be ready. Their comments make it clear they see an opportunity and they are going for it.
I wouldn't bet on Sui/Han not being ready for Beijing, but Sui has had some surgeries and a lot of rehab over the past few years. Maybe she will be turning a corner to the point of being healed and stronger. However, until Sui's health is fully proven to be stable, there is a sense of vulnerability usually overcome by fierce will, of course. But S/H haven't competed on the GP for the past two seasons, so we'll see if/how they will be pacing themselves this coming season. James/Cipres won everything this season except for Worlds, so they are a team to be reckoned with. IMO J/C have been pushing the excitement envelope in pairs since forever, but especially since their 2017 Euros breakthrough, despite reluctance in some quarters to give them full credit for how wonderful they are in so many ways.
It was obvious that the absence of retired and inactive teams this season had the judges quickly pushing up the scores of teams like Peng/Jin and M-T/M. IMO, both of those teams, while good, still have a bit of work to do before being given full credit for having that extra something that sets them apart. Both are still trying to discover and solidify their styles and enhance what makes them unique. So they are still works-in-progress despite the rise in their scores this season.
As for the Russians, I think T/M need to step it up and prove that they are more than just picture-perfect technicians coddled by the judges whether or not they skate with any excitement, and whether or not they skate clean. I don't see Z/E becoming more interesting or exciting as a team, ever. Just skating clean and technically pleasing but bland performances, IMO, is not enough. Perhaps Boikova/Koslovski will at least begin to surpass Z/E, fingers-crossed, next season. I can see B/K also surpassing T/M too, if politics don't get in the way.
Other teams in top and second tier have different levels of talent. Italy's Della-Monica/Guarise need to change things up with their approach if they desire to make headway. Yu/Zhang may be returning now that China will have 3 teams back for Worlds next year. But frankly, I have seen no evidence that Yu is fully committed in terms of her heart. Yu has just seemed to be gong through the motions, despite judges' tendency to shower Y/Z with PCS gifts on the basis of rep. Top U.S. teams will now have two spots available, and they can threaten for gaining three spots over the next few years due to the increasingly improving talent in their ranks.
So, with this current transitional pairs scene, there's plenty of opportunity for veteran pairs skaters like Lubov & Charlie to make a competitive splash, if they continue to gain significant strides with their new partnership. Skate Canada is fully aware of the need to jumpstart their pairs discipline and they aren't wasting any time getting down to business with that effort. I think it's obvious too that Canada has the edge of bringing more political clout and pairs rep to the table than the U.S., which has not always been fair to some very good U.S. teams. But that's the way of this sport. If you want to stand out, consistency, determined self-belief and unique impact are key, with politics and luck always crucial factors.
As far as I'm concerned, James/Cipres have been leading with the je ne sais quoi factor, with other teams being inspired and attempting to emulate either their moves, music, costumes, and/or ice dance edge factor. Everyone has been taking notice, so that's not a secret. L&C clearly want to make strides in that exciting direction, also traversed by diva Aliona and Bruno Massot. S/H simply didn't have the best fp vehicle at the 2018 Olympics, and Sui was a bit hampered by injury, so that's a couple of reasons why S/H didn't prevail for gold. Another reason is Aliona's will and destiny.
Beijing 2022 may indeed be featuring Wenjing Sui's will and destiny.
