"The Runthrough" podcast with Adam & Ashley

[On My Own]

Adam is only talking about the major players

Huh. I guess Adam was a "major player".

I saw playlists posted on reddit, and laughed at them seemingly having left Kozuka and Savoie out. But I suppose none of the hosts know what an edge is or how to recognize one.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Left out of "major players?" Savoie was not a major player -- many of us were relieved when he made the Olympic team and were amazed when the judges recognized him enough for a Top 10 placement there -- and Rippon lauded him like mad. Kozuka was not a major player for any Olympics: he went from 2nd at the delayed 2011 Worlds, where PJ Kwong picked his FS as her favorite performance of the competition on the Bold channel, where she single-handedly did all the commentary on every program, to 11th a year later, to not on the team in 2013, the year he placed 5th at Nationals. He had a chronic injury: I think the explanation was that his hip joint was too loose in the socket, and he never regained his silver-medal-winning form.

Kozuka is one of my favorite Men, period, and nothing would have made me happier than him being a major player, but, physically, he couldn't be.

 

[On My Own]

Left out of "major players?"

Left out, when they included Adam Rippon.

Kozuka did win a silver, unlike Rippon's zero world medals, and Savoie was a plain better skater. Kozuka also made the Olympics on a deep field, and failed to make the Olympic team against an even deeper field. His basics are some of the best ever - hence my comment.

And if we're going by world medals or how major the players are, I'd also point out they posted Abbott, lol. Which "major player" was he again? Or Brown so far.

This is just self-indulgent nonsense so they can talk about 'artistry' and the quotes I did unfortunately see, I wish I could scrub my brain of. It shows how little either of them know about art, and the extent of it seems "So You Think You Can Dance" level.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Adam Rippon has an Olympic medal.

 

[tony]

Adam Rippon has an Olympic medal.

Also, if one would actually listen to the podcast, he explains that he never felt he was in medal contention and defers to Ashley a few times as someone who had been in the top ranks fighting for the medals. He’s very self-aware of what his limitations and what his chances were, even if it’s only in hindsight. But, as they said, ‘this is our podcast so of course we’re going to talk about ourselves’

Savoie and Kozuka are two of my absolute favorite skaters of all-time, but I agree with everything you wrote.

 

[kwanette]

Also, if one would actually listen to the podcast, he explains that he never felt he was in medal contention and defers to Ashley a few times as someone who had been in the top ranks fighting for the medals. He’s very self-aware of what his limitations and what his chances were, even if it’s only in hindsight. But, as they said, ‘this is our podcast so of course we’re going to talk about ourselves’

Savoie and Kozuka are two of my absolute favorite skaters of all-time, but I agree with everything you wrote.

Agree, Tony..I have been listening to all of the lore..I became a FANatic in 1980..but..had loved skating my entire life going back to the yrs when the Ice Capades performed in Atlantic City for 6 wks every summer. A few of them rented an old bay house across the street from us and that is how we got our free tickets. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/21198/zz0002v1xt/

 

[Matryeshka]

If you actually listen to the podcast, Adam makes it very clear he never considered HIMSELF to be a major player after 2014--he flat out said he knew he was never going to get a Worlds/Oly medal, and it would be odd to me to not mention your own experience. Like if Mark Mitchell hosted a podcast and was doing a lore episode, I'd want his perspective, even though he never won/medalled at a major event. Presumably, people listening to a podcast are doing so because they are fans and want to know more about that athlete's experience. I got the feeling that if Adam was doing this as research for say a skating documentary hosted by someone else, he wouldn't have included himself at all.

I say this as a world history teacher--telling the complete story of anything is an impossible task. Cuts have to be made. People, events, characters have to be left out. I do this all the time in history--the story of Galina Brezhneva who smuggled diamonds through the Russian circus, Zheng Yi Sao the Chinese Pirate Queen, or the Australian "Emu War". But I don't cause there are other events that are more germane to history as an academic field. I would have loved to have heard their take on Weiss over Savoie for 2002 Olys (I had FEELINGS about that), BUT would I have talked about that over the DARK MAGIC accusations between Mishin and Tarasova? Absolutely not. That was GOLD (literally, for Yagudin).

 

[NinjaTurtles]

They did at least shoutout Matt Savoie’s The Mission program.

 

[zebobes]

Also, if one would actually listen to the podcast, he explains that he never felt he was in medal contention and defers to Ashley a few times as someone who had been in the top ranks fighting for the medals. He’s very self-aware of what his limitations and what his chances were, even if it’s only in hindsight. But, as they said, ‘this is our podcast so of course we’re going to talk about ourselves’

To be fair, every time Adam competed against Plushenko, Adam won, so he's relevant from that perspective. I remember that Japan Open performance very fondly, and I really thought that Adam was going to break through that season.

This is just self-indulgent nonsense so they can talk about 'artistry' and the quotes I did unfortunately see, I wish I could scrub my brain of. It shows how little either of them know about art, and the extent of it seems "So You Think You Can Dance" level.

While I understand that Adam and Ashley's viewpoint and sensibility are different from your own, I would not make light of how much research Adam put into these episodes, and how well he organized the narrative over decades of figure skating history. I was surprised when he did not even mention some aspects of US men's drama, or why the US only had two spots in 2014.

 

[On My Own]

To be fair, every time Adam competed against Plushenko, Adam won

I mean I hope this a joke.

I would not make light of how much research Adam put into these episodes,

That's very nice, but I would definitely make light of research that goes like:

"Yeah it's not traditional masculine energy we're seeing in figure skating.

No, and it makes people uncomfortable. Famously, the Swan is performed only by a female in pointe shoes. And with this, he's pushing, like, the ideas of gender in men's skating.

And what's so crazy is that, like, you know, so many Russians can be homophobic or say homophobic things, but this is, like, a program made by Russians. They'll call you the F-slur, but then they'll make you a program where you're a swan. Right.

Because the arts are so important to Russian people."

 

[skatfan]

I mean I hope this a joke.

It's the truth, which Adam related in a pretty sarcastic way, knowing how odd it is.

I'm loving the lore episodes, which of course will have a subjective point of view. If you don't like it, you don't have to listen.