U.S. Ladies [#24]: Starr-Ting Order/Detailed Classification

[giselle23]

Thank you. I was just going to post exactly this. In addition, Cecilia also had international success before 1936. She was 12 when she won the 1933 European silver medal and 14 when she won the World silver medal behind Henie in 1935. As you mentioned, Megan was 13 when she was second at 1934 Worlds behind Henie. Hilde Holovsky was also 13 when she won World silver in 1931.

Little girls achieving great things on competitive ice has a long history!

And everyone seems to forget that Mirai Nagasu won the National Championship when she was just 14--a year older than Alysa. Michelle Kwan won silver at Nationals at age 13--and arguably should have had gold after Tonya Harding was stripped of her title.

 

[giselle23]

Lest we forget an overhyped “future Kwanette” Caroline Zhang.
Cha Cha Cha. Blah blah blah!

But don't forget Ms. Kwan herself, who won silver at Nationals at age 13.

 

[her grace]

During Junior Worlds last season, Ting placed a respectable 7th, behind 3 Russians, 2 Japanese, and 1 South Korean. If Ting were to be sent this year and performs cleanly, she can score at least a 210 which the Japanese nor Koreans won’t touch, so the best she can get is 4th. If one of the Russians falter, she can place on the podium. As for Hanna, because she was injured during her only JGP, we don’t know how international judges will score a clean Hanna, but I’m betting somewhere between 185-200, so that places her anywhere between 5th and 7th. Ideally, if Ting places 4th and Hanna places 7th, we can get back 3 spots for Junior Worlds and all the spots for the JGP season, meaning our skaters get more international exposure. I’m not worried about Hanna going clean... Ting is a huge question mark because she’s so inconsistent. The difference between her season’s best and worst is nearly 43 points.

I appreciate your optimism, but I'm not sure how realistic you're being. Ting has never scored above 200 internationally, and she has formidable opposition in the Japanese and Korean Jr. world teams. Ting lost to Korea's Lee on the JGP this season and she hasn't yet faced You, Korea's other Jr. World team member and new Sr. national champion. Ting hasn't faced any of the Japanese team this season, but team member Yokoi beat her at Jr. Worlds last season.

And Harrell, whom you're not worrying about going clean, has never gone clean in any international competition (she had 3 last season and 1 coming off injury this season). Historically, she's just as inconsistent as Ting, and her personal best ISU score is 157.08.

 

[AxelAnnie]

Yeah, we also have the issue of citing the phrase, "Knock on wood" which refers the to cross on which Jesus was crucified".

Well, we Jews do have the ever popular turn your head and spit over your shoulder three times. It is effective.....it is just that people look at you a little weirdly....or they all move away!

 

[sk9tingfan]

Well, we Jews do have the ever popular turn your head and spit over your shoulder three times. It is effective.....it is just that people look at you a little weirdly....or they all move away!

I'll have to remember that as
an option!

 

[AxelAnnie]

Where did the phrase come from? From when people believed that spirits lived in trees, of course.

Yet another theory is that people knocked on wood to chase away evil spirits or prevent them from listening in when they boasted about their luck, thereby preventing a reversal of fortune. Christians, meanwhile, have often linked the practice to the wood of the cross from Christ's crucifixion.

 

[kwanatic]

I don't know why but I honestly feel like Alysa Liu may win here...Just putting it out there. I hope I'm wrong but if I'm right I have proof I predicted it.

Well, there's my proof! I just felt she was going to win all year and, for once, I was right.

Alysa: Very impressed with her composure and competitiveness. That is something we need lots and lots of in this field. I'm not as impressed with her jumps (slow, small, not a lot of ride out) but I'm hoping they will improve as she grows. This was not a "gimme" win for her at all. The judges played it pretty fair overall in terms of her scores. She was just the better competitor that night and her win is deserved IMO. Fingers crossed she can weather the next few years in terms of growth, technique, injuries, etc. and be a force in this field of ladies. Congrats to her!

Bradie: I feel like Tara jinxed her in the FS . I tweeted it: every time Tara professes how Bradie just can't miss, she misses. Again, I don't understand why they continue to push that narrative. It makes no sense. Bradie was great in the SP but the nerves came out in the FS. She definitely fought but it just wasn't enough. Still, she goes into worlds as the top American, granted with how close she finished next to Mariah I still feel like the two of them are neck and neck.

Mariah: Pretty sure she's kicking herself. If she'd landed that 3Lz she fell on she may have edged out Alysa for gold and definitely would have finished above Bradie. The performance was solid but wasn't nearly as strong as her NHK performance. It was obvious the judges were rooting for her here considering her scores relative to the content she put out. I feel like this was definitely a missed opportunity for Mariah and, sadly, it may not come around again. One thing we can agree on is the field is getting deeper (Alysa, Hanna, Ting) and all of them have the content she lacks.

Hanna: By far the biggest surprise of the competition. She knocked my fuzzy socks off! I love the spring and height of her jumps--big like Karen's lutz except with more control and better rotation. There's really good power there, enough that I feel like she's in a good position to adjust well to a growth spurt as she's not relying on quick rotations. I like her sass and attitude too! Very very excited to see more of her in the future. I hope she gets a spot to jr. worlds.

Ting: Amazing comeback in the FS! Despite the fact she breaks my heart at least once per competition, I am in love with this girl. On a shallow note, thank god she got a better dress for the FS! That other one was a hot mess. On to more important things: Her lines, her carriage, those jumps, her expression...total dream. Just a gorgeous all-around skater. Had she nailed her SP she could have challenged for a medal here. I am praying she improves her competitive focus in the coming years because she could be epic. Very proud of her!

Megan: I love her power and speed! The only thing she's missing right now is content. As great as she is she needs tougher content if she wants to really compete. Strong overall competition for her.

Amber: I made sure to temper my excitement from her strong SP because I knew the FS would tell the story. Amber started off so strongly but it was almost like hitting that opening combination caused her to get ahead of herself. She had a very real shot at a medal here but those nerves...It sucks b/c she really is a talented skater but she continues to be held back by her inability to stay focused. I feel bad for her.

Starr: I like Delmar as a coach but if Starr wants to go farther she is probably going to need an elite level coach. The jumps are there but need to be tweaked/cleaned up; someone needs to work with her on her posture, especially as the program goes on--it just gets worse and worse; and she needs stronger programs--I like her SP but the FS never really came together the way it needed to. She's got talent and Starr quality () but I don't know how much more she can improve where she is...

Emmy: Her SP was the SP of the event for me. I knew the FS was going to be tough but I think it's great she finished top 10. Love her!


All in all a really good competition! I'm glad to see the judges played it fair. It's safe to say had Bradie or Mariah skated cleanly they'd have beaten Alysa. The judges made Alysa work for it...and she did. She's an adorable girl (the boohooing was SO cute!) and a very impressive talent. She has a long way to go but I really hope she's going to be around for a while.

I feel like Alysa winning and Hanna and Ting finishing 4th and 5th will be a good thing overall for the US women. It's going to push the younger generation to step it up and develop the content and competitiveness needed to compete internationally. For the first time in a long time, I'm excited about the US women for this quad.

 

[Sylvia]

A new U.S. Ladies thread has been started: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/threads/u-s-ladies-25-method-in-the-madness.105207/