The Dance Hall 10: The Saitama Samba 2022-2023

[Colonel Green]

A very merry Christmas indeed for Team Lane.

 

[Lara111]

A very merry Christmas indeed for Team Lane.

They deserve it. They put out these amazing original dances one after another every year.

 

[Andrea82]

Mrazek siblings had collected more falls than a standard Men single event.

But their FD is just brilliant.

Additionally, Fradji/Forneaux and Grimm/Savitskiy have struggled in the last couple weeks at their junior B int'ls, and Bekker/Hernandez didn't exactly knock it out of the park at Brit Nationals this weekend.

JGPF bronze really is up for grabs - and I suspect Jr Worlds bronze will be the same, with Neset/Markelov and Kudryatseva/Karankevich & Tkachenko/Kiliakov figuring into the mix somewhere.

I think Simova/Aksenov may be in that part of the mix. I guess they will likely do Europeans too (they have beaten quite comfortably the other Slovak Senior team at Golden Spin) and this may give them a bit more exposure to the judges.

 

[~tapdancer~]

Cripes, she's only 18.

Back in my youth, 18 was considered an adult and marrying at that age was just fine. Course 18 year olds were actually adulting at that age more than now...

 

[angi]

C/B right now probably going around the rink handing "the reports on our demise were greatly exaggerated" t-shirts...

They are so gonna frame those t-shirts after this competition... And send one to TSL as a Christmas gift...

 

[Debbie S]

They are so gonna frame those t-shirts after this competition... And send one to TSL as a Christmas gift...

Weren't they supposed to finish last and lose to H/B on levels?

Actually, the calling here was really tough. But it's still the first half of the season. I'm sure the teams will be cleaning up their elements and edges before the 2nd half.

 

[her grace]

Laurialt/Le Gac got married when she was a teenager, presumably for the same reason. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t.

 

[litenkyckling]

Laurialt/Le Gac got married when she was a teenager, presumably for the same reason. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t.

he's not a decade older than her

 

[firstflight]

Actually, the calling here was really tough. But it's still the first half of the season. I'm sure the teams will be cleaning up their elements and edges before the 2nd half.

And in this toughly called meet, it was H/B who earned the highest base value in the FD, skating first. I know they were disappointed with their score but I’m sure they felt better in the overall scoring context once the other scores started coming in.

 

[litenkyckling]

you know my biggest gripe of the entire gpf fd is that H/B were 3rd in the one foot - behind g/p and c/b. Theirs is by far the best of everyone - the ice coverage, the smoothness, just everything. Piper and Paul's is a literal blink and you'll miss it element and with Kaitlin and Jean-Luc you cannot look away as it's just so fantastic.

 

[deegee]

Gibson is comparable to Baker and Hawayek to Fear probably

no

 

[Lara111]

you know my biggest gripe of the entire gpf fd is that H/B were 3rd in the one foot - behind g/p and c/b. Theirs is by far the best of everyone - the ice coverage, the smoothness, just everything. Piper and Paul's is a literal blink and you'll miss it element and with Kaitlin and Jean-Luc you cannot look away as it's just so fantastic.

Interesting. I got bored by all programs but Piper and Paul's. This is just a taste thing.

 

[litenkyckling]

Interesting. I got bored by all programs but Piper and Paul's. This is just a taste thing.

This wasn't even about the programmes? Comparably, H/B's one foot element was much better skated than G/P's. Not really anything to do with taste to be honest.

 

[Khaleesi]

Imagine believing Fear/Gibson have better skating skills than Hawayek/Baker.

Seriously it’s making me hate ice dance. In what world are F/G better than H/B. I guess the judges’ world. I hate it here.

 

[PRlady]

I wonder how Kaitlin and Jean-Luc just keep going. They must have spines of steel.

 

[happycamper2554]

I wonder how Kaitlin and Jean-Luc just keep going. They must have spines of steel.

or delusions of grandeur

 

[angi]

I wonder how Kaitlin and Jean-Luc just keep going. They must have spines of steel.

I think they probably go into every season thinking this might be their breakout season and keep getting disappointed, and at this point, I feel for them and worry for their mental state because Kaitlin has no poker face, and every time they don't get the score they deserve (which is most of the time) you can see the blow hit her in the K&C.

 

[thvu]

or delusions of grandeur

There’s a difference between snark and being an a**hole that you clearly don’t understand.

 

[Colonel Green]

I wonder how Kaitlin and Jean-Luc just keep going. They must have spines of steel.

Spiting the judges is a powerful motivator (it sustained Piper & Paul for a long time, after all).

 

[happycamper2554]

There’s a difference between snark and being an a**hole that you clearly don’t understand.

or i enjoy being an a**hole

 

[litenkyckling]

I'll be intrigued to see what happens when C/B retire - who knows if the judges will push them into sky high scores at this point

 

[Debbie S]

H/B are progressing as you would expect. Last quad, they were USA #3, and with 2 top teams ahead of them, it was a given they weren't going to be contending for World medals. Not to mention, some of their programs weren't that good. They are now USA #2 and are firmly in world top 6. The teams ahead of them are technically strong and have been near the top for many years. And H/B have a tendency to lose levels.

 

[litenkyckling]

H/B are progressing as you would expect. Last quad, they were USA #3, and with 2 top teams ahead of them, it was a given they weren't going to be contending for World medals. Not to mention, some of their programs weren't that good. They are now USA #2 and are firmly in world top 6. The teams ahead of them are technically strong and have been near the top for many years. And H/B have a tendency to lose levels.

perhaps but they did have highest base value here today. It begs the question of what more do they need to do to get the judges to go with them

 

[Karen-W]

H/B are progressing as you would expect. Last quad, they were USA #3, and with 2 top teams ahead of them, it was a given they weren't going to be contending for World medals. Not to mention, some of their programs weren't that good. They are now USA #2 and are firmly in world top 6. The teams ahead of them are technically strong and have been near the top for many years. And H/B have a tendency to lose levels.

Yup. Once teams like GilPoir, ChoBat, GuiFab and FBSoer move on sometime this quad, I expect to see HawBak skyrocket onto the podium, and maybe even start beating FearGib. It was pretty close this weekend at the GPF, something I wasn't expecting based on their earlier fall scores from either the Challengers or GPs.

 

[cocotaffy]

C/B's FD finally got to me. It is starting to work and by worlds could be great. They manage to create a mood this time around.
Evita, I still cannot but I do enjoy the waltz part, very charming. The rest, too much theatrics for my taste.
Sad for the Danadians, such a great start to the season but maybe the pressure got to them. Anyway, better now than at worlds.
I don't get H/B scores, their skating quality is obvious. They have a wonderful dancing quality too which is evident in their opening poses.
The Brits are starting to get boring. I appreciate the energy and fun, their choreographic sequence is infectious but after the 3rd competition, it is already slightly tired. That is also why C/B might be on to something because their program has definitely room to grow.

 

[chantilly]

I think C/B just need to fix the middle of the dance. The music lacks dynamics. I think they need something with a beat or faster tempo.
But I love the beginning and the end is solid.
But yeah not their greatest work this season but they skated well here and IMO deserved the silver

 

[Karen-W]

I think C/B just need to fix the middle of the dance. The music lacks dynamics. I think they need something with a beat or faster tempo.
But I love the beginning and the end is solid.
But yeah not their greatest work this season but they skated well here and IMO deserved the silver

The beginning is very strong. They really embody their concept of fire and air to me, with the languid way Madison moves and weaves her body around Evan's. At first, I wasn't sold at all on these new costumes, because a de-blinged Madison is not something we're at all accustomed to, but the plain dress actually increases the impression of air swirling and bending fire and smoke at will.

 

[Karen-W]

I think Simova/Aksenov may be in that part of the mix. I guess they will likely do Europeans too (they have beaten quite comfortably the other Slovak Senior team at Golden Spin) and this may give them a bit more exposure to the judges.

Four Nationals is actually going to have a pretty interesting ice dance event this season, I think, between the Taschlers, Hungarians, both Slovakian teams and the Poles all vying for their countries spots at Euros.

 

[chantilly]

The beginning is very strong. They really embody their concept of fire and air to me, with the languid way Madison moves and weaves her body around Evan's. At first, I wasn't sold at all on these new costumes, because a de-blinged Madison is not something we're at all accustomed to, but the plain dress actually increases the impression of air swirling and bending fire and smoke at will.

I think her dress is perfect. Especially in movement.
It’s a bit much when she’s just standing there but in her weaving movement through and around Evan it’s excellent.

 

[Belsornia]

Taking stock after the JGPF. By my tally we're looking at a field of up to thirty teams for junior worlds:

1. CAN1 Bashynska/Beaumont
2. CAN2 Gauthier/Thieren
3. CAN3 most likely Lewis/McMillan
4. USA1 Neset/Markelov
5. USA2 Carhart/Horovyi
6. USA3 Hauer/Starr or Pham/Rogers
7. CYP1 Kudryavtseva/Karankevich
   CYP2 [no second team]
8. DEU1 Grimm/Savitskiy
9. DEU2 Karl/Hoferichter
10. FRA1 Fradji/Fourneaux
11. FRA2 most likely Bordet/Gipoulou
12. GBR1 Bekker/Hernandez
13. GBR2 Slatter/Ongay-Perez
14. KOR1 Lim/Quan
15. KOR2 Kim/Lee
16. AUT Straub/Straub
17. BRA Pallu Neves/Panesar [have tech minimums from last season and eligible to compete for Brazil from early Feb]
18. CHN Li/Wang [ETA - thanks @Gris ]
19. CZE Mrazkova/Mrazek
20. ESP Ogor/Bermejo
21. GEO Vainik/Barshak
22. HUN Benkiewicz/Shapiro
23. ISR Tkachenko/Kiliakov
24. ITA Talli/Frasca
25. JPN Kida/Morita
26. MEX Stanley/Sosnenko
27. POL Dovhal/Kulesza
28. SVK Simova/Aksenov [if they come back to juniors, though senior worlds is looking more likely]
29. SUI O'Brien/Weiderkehr
30. TUR probably Yucel/Ivanov
31. UKR Pinchuk/Pogorielov or Pidgaina/Koval [depending on whether P/P come back to juniors after Euros]