For everyone bringing up T/M's ages.... remember the ages of Aliona Savchenko and Zhao Hongbo were when they won. Even in 2026, they'd still be younger than that. I know there is a lot of depth to Russian pairs, but they still have time.
My feelings on Marina are complicated, partly because of things that happened a long time ago now and partly wondering if it's objectively the training situation that is best for T/M. Even though they switched to her two years ago, circumstances have made it so it's impossible to know what she is/was really capable of with them. They looked great at test skates in 2019, but then there was the leg injury that Evgenia spent the season skating on and that had to have played a big role in their outings in the truncated 2019-2020 season. Skating hurt is a hard thing to do. They were there less than a year before they went back to Russia last March and were then unable to return to Florida until later in the summer. They were there a couple of months, and then went back to Russia where they have been ever since. In September, they got on a plane to do test skates and what was supposed to be the first two RC events before returning to Florida and then off to Skate America. All of us here know what happened next. I think about what Brian Orser said about settling in and adapting to a new coach and seeing results....and that just wasn't possible here. They changed coaches basically three years out from the Olympics--which would have normally been adequate time. So much happened though and now we're less than a year out and here we are. Maybe in a different world in which Evgenia hadn't been injured and YNW hadn't have happened, today would have been a lot different. That said, Marina is an ice dance coach and pairs in this day and age is a different beast. T/M are fabulous technicians, but they still have to have someone who knows pairs technique to be with them to continue to drill this stuff. That is just not available in Florida and I don't think Max flying in on occasion is enough. They have to have a good pairs technical coach.
Coaching changes this close to the Olympics rarely works as hoped--the only exception I can think of is K/P heading into Albertville. Max was not meant to be in the position he was in this season. He was more supposed to be the mentor, but he ended up the everything this season--head coach, choreographer (since the fs had to be redone from what John Kerr did). I once read that Max has clucked over T/M like a mother hen since T/M were paired in 2012. I think they mean a lot to him personally. I think Max wants for T/M the same success that he and Tatiana had--world champions, OGM. I think he would move heaven and earth to make it happen if he could. He just doesn't have the experience. Same for Voronov--he seems so sweet and to very personally want T/M to succeed and his doing all that he can. They just need a real pairs coaching team and a stable set up. Max said in his interview that they struggled to get ice time while they've been in Russia, that they've had trouble with funding and have had to pay for a lot of this year themselves. As top Russian skaters, they shouldn't have to be worrying about this stuff.
What I don't know is exactly who the answer is here with coaching. I will say that I think that Moskvina is a coach who could handle all three teams. DL in Montreal are juggling more top teams than that and Moskvina has years more experience than they do.
Like I said, they are great technicians. Someone who knows jumping a lot better than me has even pointed out that there is actually zero wrong with their jump technique. It's just mental. They need someone who is emotionally steady who can keep them on an even keel, who can teach them how to compete. I think Mozer failed them big time because I don't think she ever taught them how to compete and manage all of that mentally. Related, I've seen some of the usual suspects in other corners of the internet flinging out the "they just don't seem to want it" type of statements. I think the problem is actually the opposite. I think they want this all too much and they need someone there who can help them not hold too tight to that. Also, a big plbbt to the people out there who say they have no connection, no personality, blah, blah blah. They need to watch their gala skates and reconsider. T/M do have it all, they just seem to have a mental block on putting it all together when they need to.
A few more thoughts I have tonight:
I think sometimes, judges tend to pick on certain skaters more than others and seem to hold them to a higher standard, particularly when it's an especially gifted team. I think T/M fall into this category. It feels like others sometimes get more grace from the judging and tech panels than T/M do when we're talking similar mistakes.
I saw a tweet where someone made the remark that it speaks to the depth of Russian pairs that three different teams are currently the reigning National, European, and World Champions. Worlds gets more weight because it's worlds, but I think everyone needs to keep in mind that T/M are one of the teams that holds one of those titles and they, when clean, are just as capable of putting up scores that exceed what were put up today.
If worlds had happened last year and T/M had laid down this set of skates, I think it's what we would have been expecting. It just seemed that they had turned a corner and so many people were predicting a win or rooting for them to. I think it made it all that much worse to see them struggle with the jumps and come up short here.
I think China very much wants that OGM next year. That they moved the pairs event to be last says as much. I tend to agree that anyone other than S/H needs to be thinking 2026.
I swear that their weird music choices are a huge part of it. When things don't go well, the music often grates.
That tweet from Megan shows what nice people they are. They've always seemed very mature and sweet.
I think music is part of it.
They both seem to be very sweet/kind people. It's baffling why people seem to dislike them.
