U.S. Ladies [#29]: Skating with Adjusted Vision

[VGThuy]

Nancy also said she didn’t think the whack helped her skate better as she was feeling more prepared and better than she has previously going into the Olympic season. She also mention a big reason for her bad Worlds skate was some toe nail thing that was excruciating during her LP skate. Not sure about the other times she skated badly, but Nancy’s season was starting off better than the entirety of the 1992-93 season at Piruetten. The whack may have made her angrier and focused on proving people she belonged in the Olympic team and to show up Harding (and show her that she basically ruined her life for nothing), but who knows if that extra crap added or took away from what Nancy could have done in Lillehammer.

 

[concorde]

They took place only 6 times (5 summers, 1 winter) , had very low TV ratings, viewership was down, could not fill the advert spots, so Time-Warner (owners) cancelled them.

Thank you! I remember hearing about them as a kid (I followed swimming back then) and thought they were a big event.
Never realized there were winter games as well.

 

[Theatregirl1122]

Imagine thinking that someone was lucky to be assaulted. No one is ever lucky to be a victim of a violent crime. If someone manages to be strong despite that, that is because they themselves are strong, not because the assault gave them something.

 

[Frau Muller]

The Goodwill Games included a figure skating event, even in summers...including the “summer games” in Australia, which technically occurred in winter (September 2001, Brisbane...Kwan, Slute & others debuted their 2002 Oly programs there). Psst: Slutskaya won; Kwan 2nd and Suguri 3rd. Hughes, who eventually won the ‘02 Olys, was not there.

Aliona Savchenko was in the Pairs event, with Stanislav Morozov!

The lone Winter Goodwill Games was odd for Figure skating- only PROS participated, because it was in the middle of the ISU elite season (Feb. 2000-Lake Placid). For ex, Ladies result:

1. Bonaly
2. Sato
3. Kerrigan

Gosh. Memory lane! Just consulted my treasured DVDs.

 

[olympic]

Nancy also said she didn’t think the whack helped her skate better as she was feeling more prepared and better than she has previously going into the Olympic season. She also mention a big reason for her bad Worlds skate was some toe nail thing that was excruciating during her LP skate. Not sure about the other times she skated badly, but Nancy’s season was starting off better than the entirety of the 1992-93 season at Piruetten. The whack may have made her angrier and focused on proving people she belonged in the Olympic team and to show up Harding (and show her that she basically ruined her life for nothing), but who knows if that extra crap added or took away from what Nancy could have done in Lillehammer.

I remember the toenaii thing mentioned for 1993. A hangnail?

 

[Sylvia]

Audrey Shin performed "Winter Song" for an appreciative audience outdoors at the Vail, CO Skating Festival last night: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CJSZ8wGDDH0/

Here's Karen Chen doing a 3Lo as snow was falling on the same Vail rink earlier this month: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIvqyG0H51C/

 

[mtnskater]

Thanks Sylvia! We live in Denver and go to Vail frequently. Love that place. That rink is so small I won’t even skate on it. For Karen to do a triple loop on that ice is amazing. Audrey is lovely. Hope she does well at Nationals! Vail has a fabulous indoor rink called the Dobson Arena. My favorite rink to skate in Colorado. I’m glad they are doing the show outdoors this year to keep people safe.

 

[skylark]

I remember the toenaii thing mentioned for 1993. A hangnail?

I don't know what Nancy's was, but once I accidentally kicked a metal bed frame, hard, and hit it right at the top/side of my big toe. I didn't lose the nail, but the pain kept going for months. I guess the nail finally grew in straight again. "Excruciating" is the right word, though. One particular pair of shoes made it hurt worse, so I can imagine Nancy's dilemma; she had to wear her skates.

Off topic but still skating related: I was listening to Charlie White's commentary for 2018 nationals yesterday. He said that at his first Grand Prix event, he kicked the boards hard with his heel during the program, and he can still "hear" the collective gasp that shuddered through the crowd.

 

[skylark]

Well Nancy did say the wack did in a way give her a whole new motivation and reason to skate. A lot of people thought she wouldn't be able to skate again and she wanted to prove them all wrong. She was doing it for herself now and stopped thinking of everyone else. While she did still have pressure on her it wasn't the same as it was pre-wack. It was very different pressure and I think it was to Nancy's benefit.

That's a great example of Nancy utilizing the positive. But to me, it's sort of like a soldier who gets super-motivated in the moment to be heroic (i.e. killing enemies), let's say for comparison's sake, after seeing his best buddy killed right beside him. After the battle's over and maybe for years after, PTSD remains and tortures.

I've seen posters, to this day, say they continue to dislike Nancy because of a couple of little faux-pas she made on camera afterward. But imagining myself in her place -- after all the physical pain, rehab, and the mental stress of not knowing if she'd be able to compete, then having the skate of her life and getting the silver (as some have said, the result most difficult to deal with -- look at Sui/Han at 2018 olympics vs. Duhamel/Radford) ... some of that heroic self-control crumbled a little bit. In the Dick Button or Peggy Fleming era, maybe photographers and reporters wouldn't have publicized those moments. And when you think of Plushenko's behavior at the 2010 Olympics, the term "unsportsmanlike" arises, and puts Nancy in a whole new light. All in all, Nancy was treated very unfairly, but to her credit, she doesn't dwell on it; she has her sights on more important things in her life.

 

[olympic]

I don't know what Nancy's was, but once I accidentally kicked a metal bed frame, hard, and hit it right at the top/side of my big toe. I didn't lose the nail, but the pain kept going for months. I guess the nail finally grew in straight again. "Excruciating" is the right word, though. One particular pair of shoes made it hurt worse, so I can imagine Nancy's dilemma; she had to wear her skates.

Off topic but still skating related: I was listening to Charlie White's commentary for 2018 nationals yesterday. He said that at his first Grand Prix event, he kicked the boards hard with his heel during the program, and he can still "hear" the collective gasp that shuddered through the crowd.

TMI - I get in-grown toenail on my big toes and I am a big exercise freak. When I am lazy and don't remedy the situation, then try to do aerobic activity that involves jumping, it shifts my feet inside my tennis shoes and the impact is quite painful. Imagine landing a triple in a tight skating boot made of harder material .... But you would think a top-level olympian / her team would ID and remedy it before the year's premier competition. The only thing I can think of is that in the scope of things, it might not have seemed like a big deal, so it was just ignored .....

 

[UGG]

Nancy has been very direct in stating she wants to move on from the assault, and she has been that way since it happened. She became a household name and became more popular as an athlete but whenever she has ever been interviewed about it, she wants no part of it. I am sure she wish it never happened.

 

[VGThuy]

Even when I, Tonya was out and everyone was revisiting the whole thing or exposed to it for the first time (and many people got the wrong idea and thought of Tonya as totally wronged and started doing the basic predictable blame Nancy crap) Nancy was just ignoring it and letting the hype die down. She wanted nothing to do with that part of her life anymore. The only thing she said was when Olivia Munn did a parody of the movie called I, Nancy where Munn played Nancy and was like “she said she didn’t do it? Whatever!”, Kerrigan tweeted that Munn could play her anytime.

 

[olympic]

Even when I, Tonya was out and everyone was revisiting the whole thing or exposed to it for the first time (and many people got the wrong idea and thought of Tonya as totally wronged and started doing the basic predictable blame Nancy crap) Nancy was just ignoring it and letting the hype die down. She wanted nothing to do with that part of her life anymore. The only thing she said was when Olivia Munn did a parody of the movie called I, Nancy where Munn played Nancy and was like “she said she didn’t do it? Whatever!”, Kerrigan tweeted that Munn could play her anytime.

I always felt that Tonya in a sense got what she wanted with 'I, Tonya'; (1) attention and (2) her story outside of the whack being told to critical accolades. Allison Janney won the Oscar and Golden Globe for playing her mother. I remember she was a guest of Margot Robbie at the Golden Globes the year. Janney deferred to her in her acceptance speech, which was a little weird to me as an FS fan who knew every aspect of the story (probably the gen pop didn't get it). She talked about the movie and obstacles that Tonya being poor had to overcome but nothing was said about Tonya being part of a criminal conspiracy.

 

[Coco]

I found the violence in that movie sooooo disturbing.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

The Goodwill Games included a figure skating event, even in summers...including the “summer games” in Australia, which technically occurred in winter (September 2001, Brisbane...Kwan, Slute & others debuted their 2002 Oly programs there). Psst: Slutskaya won; Kwan 2nd and Suguri 3rd. Hughes, who eventually won the ‘02 Olys, was not there.

And lets not forget the greatest figure skater the United States has Ever produced... Miss Angela Nikodinov!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[NAOTMAA]

And lets not forget the greatest figure skater the United States has Ever produced... Miss Angela Nikodinov!!!!!!!!!!!!

Angela was amazing but it's such a shame she was so inconsistent. The little Bronze medal she got for the worlds SP in 2001 is a testament to how great she could have been. The judges there even placed her above Sarah Hughes who the USFSA always backed bigtime (she should have won silver over Sarah at nationals that year!).

It was terribly sad just when if felt like all things were starting to click for her she lost her coach, who she was so close to, to cancer

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

Angela was amazing but it's such a shame she was so inconsistent. The little Bronze medal she got for the worlds SP in 2001 is a testament to how great she could have been. The judges there even placed her above Sarah Hughes who the USFSA always backed bigtime (she should have won silver over Sarah at nationals that year!).

It was terribly sad just when if felt like all things were starting to click for her she lost her coach, who she was so close to, to cancer

And then her Mom while en route to the 05 Nationals (after a stellar 04 GP season) ...

And then her last coach, Igor, to suicide.

I had to go look at my photos with them a few weeks ago, I was a bit sad.

 

[AxelAnnie]

The Goodwill Games included a figure skating event, even in summers...including the “summer games” in Australia, which technically occurred in winter (September 2001, Brisbane...Kwan, Slute & others debuted their 2002 Oly programs there). Psst: Slutskaya won; Kwan 2nd and Suguri 3rd. Hughes, who eventually won the ‘02 Olys, was not there.

Aliona Savchenko was in the Pairs event, with Stanislav Morozov!

The lone Winter Goodwill Games was odd for Figure skating- only PROS participated, because it was in the middle of the ISU elite season (Feb. 2000-Lake Placid). For ex, Ladies result:

1. Bonaly
2. Sato
3. Kerrigan

Gosh. Memory lane! Just consulted my treasured DVDs.

Oh the good old days. I took my 4 year old granddaughter (it was 911 and her parents could not get into the country. My Anna was just mesmorized for hours. When Sasha left she gave Anna one of the kawola bear key. Chains she had brought back as gifts for kids at the rink.

 

[Tinami Amori]

Nationals are in 10 days, so just for fun:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CBoiWkeJknt/

 

[Sylvia]

The two youngest Junior ladies at 2021 Nationals will be Kanon Smith, who I believe is 12 now (link to watch her Novice FS in a summer club competition that was posted earlier in this thread, along with other info I found online): https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...th-adjusted-vision.107389/page-3#post-5860125

Mia Kalin will turn 13 in February:

This appears to be Junior Lady Mia Kalin's "rehearsal" video for her virtual championship series run-through. 7 triples (including two triple-triples), no falls, no pops. And compared to last season she looks faster, spins more solid. Based on the birthdate I found for her, Mia is now 12. Makes me excited about our junior ladies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBTk-CNSXbk

ETA: The Junior Ladies competition will take place in Las Vegas on Wednesday & Thursday, January 20-21, 2021.

 

[Tinami Amori]

Mia Kalin will turn 13 in February:

Looking forward to see her skate!

Heewon Seo, the korean-turned-american girl will also participate, so i read some where (FSU?).

서희원 Heewon SEO (Hee-Won) | 2그룹 Jr. Ladies - SP 8 | 2019-12-13 피겨랭킹대회 1일차 | 수원북중학교 1

캡쳐 및 재가공 금지 | Do Not Reupload & Secondary Processing |(Dec. 13-15) 2018 KB-Star Bank KSU President Cup Ranking Competition | Day 1 |Republic of Korea (South ...

www.youtube.com

서희원 Heewon SEO (Hee-Won) | 2그룹 Jr. Ladies - FS 24 | 2019-12-14 피겨랭킹대회 2일차 | 수원북중학교 1

캡쳐 및 재가공 금지 | Do Not Reupload & Secondary Processing |(Dec. 13-15) 2018 KB-Star Bank KSU President Cup Ranking Competition | Day 2 |Republic of Korea (South ...

www.youtube.com

서희원 Hee-Won SEO | FS 23 | 2017-10-29 피겨꿈나무대회 2일차 | 여자초등부 4급 | 영화초등학교 5학년

재가공 금지 | Do Not Re-Upload & Secondary Processing |스포츠토토 대회와 꿈나무대회가 2017년부터 하나로 통합됐습니다.2017-10-29 스포츠토토 제19회 전국남녀 피겨스케이팅 꿈나무 대회 | 2일차 | 태릉실내빙상장 |29 Oct. 19th ...

www.youtube.com

 

[Sylvia]

^^^ I posted about her in this thread on Dec. 1st :

...this is the bio for 14-year-old Clare Seo who was one of the later additions to the ISP this year: https://usfigureskatingfanzone.com/sports/figure-skating/roster/clare-seo/437
I had not heard of her previously (I checked last season's U.S. Juvenile/Intermediate/Novice qualifying season results) and it turns out the reason is because she competed in Korea prior to this season and is, in fact, the 2020 Korean junior national ladies champion!

Clare's SP music is listed in her bio as "Rain in Your Black Eyes" by Ezio Bosso, choreographed last season by Anna Novichkina - here is a video of her performance to this music at KOR Junior Nationals in January 2020 (her Korean name is Heewon SEO):

서희원 Heewon SEO (Hee-Won) | SP-37. 2그룹 Jr. Ladies | 2020-01-03 피겨종합선수권 1일차 | 수원북중학교 1

캡쳐 및 재가공 금지 | Do Not Reupload & Secondary Process 74th KB Bank, Republic of Korea Figure Skating National Championships 2020 (South Korea National Championsh...

www.youtube.com

 

[AxelAnnie]

Ignore

Imagine thinking that someone was lucky to be assaulted. No one is ever lucky to be a victim of a violent crime. If someone manages to be strong despite that, that is because they themselves are strong, not because the assault gave them something.

Of course, it was lucky. It gave her fame and notoriety. The entire country was rooting for her. I remember pulling my car to the side of the road to listen to the commentary on the radio of her skate.

 

[UGG]

Of course, it was lucky. It gave her fame and notoriety. The entire country was rooting for her. I remember pulling my car to the side of the road to listen to the commentary on the radio of her skate.

It also probably gave her PTSD and other mental health issues. You can tell whenever she is asked about it she does not want to talk about it. She has never supported or endorsed any projects related to the wack. It was a friggin assault. Who would ever feel lucky for being assaulted that was intended to be a hit?!? Omg I can’t understand people. That’s like the same as thinking someone is lucky to have won a multi million dollar lawsuit but their kid dying was the cause of the lawsuit Good lord.

 

[Integrity]

Of course, it was lucky. It gave her fame and notoriety. The entire country was rooting for her. I remember pulling my car to the side of the road to listen to the commentary on the radio of her skate.

I wonder if you (and the others in this thread who say Kerrigan was "lucky") would take a few moments to think about this incident. Try to imagine leaving your place of work or home and having a strange man run up to you and hit you with a bat, a baton, etc. Would you truly consider yourself "lucky" for having experienced this? This train of thought is baffling.

 

[Coco]

It only worked out as well as it did for Kerrigan because she responded with so much heart and effort. So I think hindsight is NOT always 20/20 (lol) because we take how a circumstance worked out and then make that result a certain outcome of the original circumstance when it is most definitely not.

 

[Sylvia]

I've posted a link to a local Massachusetts article on Mirai Nagasu, including excerpts and her own updates re. her jumps post-surgery, in her fan thread: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...return-to-olympus.103245/page-33#post-5925260

 

[Sylvia]

This Alysa Liu article by Elliott Almond (who has written about her since she won the U.S. junior title in 2018) doesn't really contain anything new: https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/01...-s-championships-without-signature-big-jumps/

ICYMI, more info is in Phil Hersh's article that was published last month, linked/discussed here: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...h-adjusted-vision.107389/page-16#post-5912814

 

[Natanielle825]

“This year, she doesn’t need big jumps to win,” Scali said. “She is now a full package skater.”
Thoughts? If her and Bradie both skate clean 7-triple programs, I think Bradie would still beat her, and Alyssa doesn't seem likely to skate clean based on recent performances. Idk who else is planning that content, or even who's likely to skate clean. Lot's of uncertainty from all the top skaters, but that's still a bold claim from her coach considering.

 

[Karen-W]

“This year, she doesn’t need big jumps to win,” Scali said. “She is now a full package skater.”
Thoughts? If her and Bradie both skate clean 7-triple programs, I think Bradie would still beat her, and Alyssa doesn't seem likely to skate clean based on recent performances. Idk who else is planning that content, or even who's likely to skate clean. Lot's of uncertainty from all the top skaters, but that's still a bold claim from her coach considering.

Well, we haven't really seen much out of Alysa this fall, apart from a few months ago with the SA exhibition and "Team" competition, so I'm not sure we know how much she has developed the rest of her skating skills. If she's gone through a transformation like MK did around the same age could she beat Bradie and Mariah and the rest of the top ladies, without a 3A or quads? Sure, I don't see why not.