Pick the Best Ice dance team that won the OGM

[Vash01]

The best ice dance team that won the OGM In your opinion?

Please explain why you picked this team as the best Olympic ice dance champions.

 

[mjb52]

hmm very interesting. I would take Usova/Zhulin, Krylova/Ovsiannikov, and the Duchesneys at their best above any of these teams, even T/D. None of the three are as consistent but their best touches my heart more.

 

[VGThuy]

I was so close to voting Klimova/Ponomarenko but Virtue/Moir’s second gold medal win put it over the top for me. That was such a win and the cards were stacked against them. To be fair, K/P probably should have been two-time OGM…

 

[aka_gerbil]

Virtue/Moir. Two gold medals, 8 years apart, and never finished lower than second in the years between the two. A lot of ice dance teams have long careers, but to stay at the top for that long is truly remarkable.

 

[VGThuy]

Virtue/Moir. Two gold medals, 8 years apart, and never finished lower than second in the years between the two. A lot of ice dance teams have long careers, but to stay at the top for that long is truly remarkable.

Technically, K/P have a similar record to V/M with eight years never placing lower than 2nd but they don’t have two OGMs, which is why I also voted for V/M.

 

[Vash01]

Grishchuk Platov also won two OGMs.

 

[VGThuy]

Grishchuk Platov also won two OGMs.

They did. They are worthy too as are T/D.

 

[thvu]

Grishuk & Platov. Just like people credit Papadakis & Cizeron with truly mastering the light and flowy style, Grishuk & Platov are the masters of speed and power. When they used it for drama, no one can come close. Who else could pull of that St. James Infirmary FD but them? That program was so undeserving of being wasted on 1993.

 

[VGThuy]

Grishuk & Platov. Just like people credit Papadakis & Cizeron with truly mastering the light and flowy style, Grishuk & Platov are the masters of speed and power. When they used it for drama, no one can come close. Who else could pull of that St. James Infirmary FD but them? That program was so undeserving of being wasted on 1993.

Their best program IMO.

 

[Taso]

Their best program IMO.

Indeed! Loved it, one of my favorite FDs of all time. Totally wasted on 1993, and totally wasted on a silver medal...

 

[escaflowne9282]

Indeed! Loved it, one of my favorite FDs of all time. Totally wasted on 1993, and totally wasted on a silver medal...

It actually is my favorite FD of all time. I so wish it had been their Olympic program.

 

[VGThuy]

It actually is my favorite FD of all time. I so wish it had been their Olympic program.

It’s seriously close to being mine.

 

[thvu]

I’m so glad St. James Infirmary is getting so much love!

It’s one of those programs that has aged well with time, and I appreciate it more and more. The intensity, the violence, the desperation - it’s all just blended together so beautifully with intricate skating. Thematically speaking, it was way ahead of its time, and I imagine would be controversial today. What I love about it is how raw the tension is. While I would never condone violence, I understand the feelings of animosity that can occur in a relationship. I understand the desperation one can feel in wanting to cling to something, to someone that is bringing me down.

I know Ice Dance gets made fun of for being so superficial. We make fun of the costumes, the outlandish themes. This is one of those programs that gives us a glimpse of life for some, and all the pain that can come with it. It’s one of those programs that gives me perspective about my own life, and makes me appreciate what I have and how far I’ve come.

 

[skateboy]

I feel like T&D would be the aficionados choice, but I went with Grishuk/Platov.

 

[VGThuy]

Given how many votes Virtue/Moir have, which shouldn't be surprising for a myriad of reasons, I kind of wished I voted for Klimova/Ponomarenko. I know K/P's early routines weren't emotional like their later ones, but I find their Dubova years of the 1980s-1990s to be incredible when I actually watch the dance and the steps and just the way Marina and Sergei were able to change arm-holds and watching their overall intricacy and ability to know where the other was at all times. Their early, dancier years were just full of difficulty and impressive steps. Their "Air" 1992 FD is actually my third LEAST favorite FD of theirs behind Mack the Knife and their 1983-84 season FD. I know it's a beautiful dance and invoked the emotion people wanted out of ice dance, but I would have appreciated a bit more dancing/steps throughout like their older dances.

 

[PRlady]

I picked T/D because their choreo was seemingly impossible to do seamlessly and they did it anyway. I had to look up the G/P '93 FD -- that whole year was a wash for me, I watched no skating at all -- and wow, that is quite something. Not to mention that Platov was back then.

 

[nuge]

I loved K/P My Fair lady best!

 

[Vash01]

I adored Klimova/Ponomarenko for their perfect technique. After they developed emotion in their skating, they were truly great.

 

[AxelAnnie]

Torvill and.Dean. No explanation needed.

 

[clairecloutier]

I'm kind of inclined to go with Torvill & Dean, just because I've watched some of their compulsory dances in recent years, and they were just amazing, to me anyway. They had unprecedented creativity and performance quality in the longer dances, and great chemistry and skill, while also having wonderful classic compulsories.

But I could certainly see picking Virtue/Moir as well. My only issue with V/M as GOAT is that I found them about 90% more compelling in their comeback than during their Marina years, when i could never quite get into them, despite their obvious talent.

Klimova/Ponomarenko are also right up there for me. Their 1992-1994 period is still some of the most memorable ice dancing I've seen, and their technique, partnering, and connection so outstanding. I'm not as familiar though with the earlier part of their career.

 

[tony]

Definitely Grishuk/Platov for me in terms of pretty much everything. Both had such solid foundations, she had the cleanest edges throughout all of the complex choreo, and as @thvu said, that speed! Had I grown up in a different era, I may have felt it was Torvill/Dean, but I still think G/P pushed ice dance to a new level and the complexity in their programs still holds up today.

Virtue/Moir had a similar span to Klimova/Ponomarenko, but in all honesty, the majority of their programs came nowhere near the excitement level that I got watching (and still watching to this day) G/P. There, I said it.

 

[Vash01]

I'm kind of inclined to go with Torvill & Dean, just because I've watched some of their compulsory dances in recent years, and they were just amazing, to me anyway. They had unprecedented creativity and performance quality in the longer dances, and great chemistry and skill, while also having wonderful classic compulsories.

But I could certainly see picking Virtue/Moir as well. My only issue with V/M as GOAT is that I found them about 90% more compelling in their comeback than during their Marina years, when i could never quite get into them, despite their obvious talent.

Klimova/Ponomarenko are also right up there for me. Their 1992-1994 period is still some of the most memorable ice dancing I've seen, and their technique, partnering, and connection so outstanding. I'm not as familiar though with the earlier part of their career.

K&P:
1988 - Beatles mix was very Good technically but their OD was brilliant, on another level.

1989- I don't remember the OD but their FD skated to Mac the knife was a deviation from their elegant style. They won worlds because of their technique but I didn't care for the program.

1990 - back to traditional, with My Fair Lady. I loved it although some people preferred the Dychesnays' emitional style.

1991- the doping scandal (cleared later) cost them time and the gold. It went to the Duchenays' highly emotional 'Missing' FD (I loved it). K&P skated well to Lawrence of Arabia (traditional) but it was not enough.

The lack Of support by Dubova during the doping scandal made K&P leave her and go to Tarasova, who brought out the deep emotions in them and created the Bach masterpiece In 1992. From that point on they were a transformed pair. Before that, they were great technicians. After going to Tarasova they became great artists (sort of like Yagudin).

 

[VGThuy]

Klimova/Ponomarenko created the Golden Waltz that couples today still struggle with, so that says it all. And Klimova/Ponomarenko skated to it in a faster tempo. Out of Grishuk/Platov's routines, I love their 1992 FD, 1993 FD, 1995 OD, and 1997 OD (masterpiece). I like their 1997 FD but something is missing for me. I wish I liked Memorial more than I do, but my favorite version of that dance was the GPF. That said, I'm always in awe of Pasha during Memorial. She did so much difficulty and that dance was athletically demanding on her (and her knees, thighs, and legs!)

 

[miffy]

I have gone for T/D as they changed ice dance and they didn’t just skate the programmes, they created them too.
Honourable mention to A/P, one of my faves but didn’t love their programmes as much that season. Also G/P were amazing, their 94 FD is still classic.

 

[jenny12]

It’s always difficult to compare different eras, but I’d go with Virtue and Moir. The crispness of their moves, edging, line, ability to do a variety of styles puts them on top IMO. I understand I might be a prisoner of the moment by choosing them but I honestly think they are the most balanced team ever.

 

[gk_891]

Klimova/Ponomarenko created the Golden Waltz that couples today still struggle with, so that says it all. And Klimova/Ponomarenko skated to it in a faster tempo. Out of Grishuk/Platov's routines, I love their 1992 FD, 1993 FD, 1995 OD, and 1997 OD (masterpiece). I like their 1997 FD but something is missing for me. I wish I liked Memorial more than I do, but my favorite version of that dance was the GPF. That said, I'm always in awe of Pasha during Memorial. She did so much difficulty and that dance was athletically demanding on her (and her knees, thighs, and legs!)

Memorial Requiem always leaves me in awe. It really shows off their incredible running edges and the choreography was unbelievably demanding. I remember Platov said that he does not look back at Memorial Requiem fondly because of all the work that went into it. But it does an incredible job of showing off their incredible power, strength of stroke, and huge glide because they did everything in that free dance without stopping and with very little set-up time. And Pasha put herself into a lot of unusual positions throughout that free dance but was still able to maintain all of her power and glide which just goes to show how amazingly strong their basics were.

I once read that Klimova & Ponomarenko's 1987 OSP was actually skated six steps faster than the compulsory version. That's another ice dance program that always leaves me in awe because of the non-stop content. But they handled it with such ease. I was glad to see the judges put them in first at the 1987 Worlds for the OSP. I think one or two judges even gave them 6.0s as well which was well-deserved. I might go as far as to say that it is the greatest OSP of all time.

 

[Vash01]

G&P's Memorial was a fantastic FD. I thought they skated it better at the Europeans than at the Olympics. Still it was very very good at the Olympics. At the Euros Dick Button compared it with T&D's Bolero. It was not as revolutionary as Bolero but it was one of the most difficult ice dances ever. Their speed was incredible.

I thought Tracy Wilson was very unfair to them when she implied that they looked unprepared or had not worked hard enough, something of the sort. Some others joined her In the criticism of their Olympic performance. Pasha was almost in tears in an interview when asked about it. No way they could have pulled off that without very high level of hard work.

 

[thvu]

Virtue/Moir had a similar span to Klimova/Ponomarenko, but in all honesty, the majority of their programs came nowhere near the excitement level that I got watching (and still watching to this day) G/P. There, I said it.

I still remember falling in love with Virtue & Moir after seeing their Russian Folk FD from junior worlds, and fiercely wuzrobbing them for shit Skate Canada politiks that put them behind Senft & Gislaison.

Then they switched to Igor, and my excitement waned more and more other each coming season. Those Zoueva programs with the repetitive Shpilband steps were just so bland and unimaginative. So, I totally agree, the excitement level that G&P brought was just never matched by V&M.

 

[Judy]

Ice dance has changed sooo much over the years. I know who my favourites were at different time. I totally missed T& Deans skating career as I was a teenager. I really like the changes to the ice dance now though and it's more exciting to watch.

 

[gk_891]

G&P's Memorial was a fantastic FD. I thought they skated it better at the Europeans than at the Olympics. Still it was very very good at the Olympics. At the Euros Dick Button compared it with T&D's Bolero. It was not as revolutionary as Bolero but it was one of the most difficult ice dances ever. Their speed was incredible.

I thought Tracy Wilson was very unfair to them when she implied that they looked unprepared or had not worked hard enough, something of the sort. Some others joined her In the criticism of their Olympic performance. Pasha was almost in tears in an interview when asked about it. No way they could have pulled off that without very high level of hard work.

Tracy Wilson was such a bitter hater of G&P. She did an interview a few years ago and she seemed to have softened her stance a bit on them but she was still full of garbage in so many respects. She said that her concern with Memorial Requiem and why she preferred K&O's Carmen was because she preferred the British-style of ballroom ice dance (or something along those lines) where the emphasis was on content. But Memorial Requiem's content completely blew Carmen out of the water. In fact, I only had K&O in fourth for the FD behind G&P, A&P, and P&S because the content was pretty woeful whereas G&P, A&P, and P&S skated programs with much more seamless choreography and content.