U.S. Women [#1]: The Contenders Unmask Themselves

[Sylvia]

Skating Club of New York shared a Senior women's podium photo from last night [9/11/21]: https://www.instagram.com/p/CTug0JMLrri/
1st - Isabeau Levito, SC of Southern New Jersey 219.89 (146.12 in FS, 7 clean triples)
2nd - Lindsay Thorngren, SCNY 202.37 (130.19 in FS, 3A<<, deduction was for a time violation deduction)
3rd - Rena Ikenishi, SCNY 168.53
FS protocols: https://ijs.usfigureskating.org/leaderboard/results/2021/30093/SEGM002.html

Just saw that Isabeau Levito has uploaded her Middle Atlantics club competition Senior FS (filmed by the competition's official videographer) on her YT channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBJH6eHHAPY

 

[VGThuy]

Please. This discussion is inappropriate and unnecessary—PC culture run amok. Besides,if you desire to meet a bona fide 'tiger mom',I will introduce you to Mother Bottems.

-BB

Is/Was she fabulous?

 

[Alexa]

Greetings from the girl who secured the three spots

https://twitter.com/absoluteskating/status/1441772334831083520?s=20

She almost forgot about it

Said Liu about confirming the third U.S. spot: "It means a lot. I'm pretty excited. I actually completely forgot about that ... It's pretty crazy actually. It's great that I could do something to help the U.S."

Alysa Liu secures third Olympic figure skating spot for U.S. women

The ISU Challenger event is the final chance for figure skaters to qualify Olympic quota spots for Beijing 2022.

olympics.com

2 unclear edge warnings for her 3F and a q for the 3t from the combo, same as in SP,

https://twitter.com/olyphil/status/1441771525456252932?s=20

ETA: From Massimo Scali about Alysa’s free skate, Alysa was pretty upset about the failed 3A attempt in the program. She had two successful attempts in warmup

https://twitter.com/olyphil/status/1441807635146108934?s=21

https://twitter.com/olyphil/status/1441807874196451328?s=21

 

[Alexa]

Also congrats to Lindsay for the bronze in Ljubljana. 3A was downgraded, but as Ted said, the mechanics are there, it would come someday

https://twitter.com/ISU_Figure/status/1441781285358170116?s=20

 

[Stephanie]

Also congrats to Lindsay for the bronze in Ljubljana. 3A was downgraded, but as Ted said, the mechanics are there, it would come someday

https://twitter.com/ISU_Figure/status/1441781285358170116?s=20

I agree. The fact that she feels ready enough to try it in competition is a positive step. Looking forward to seeing her at a challenger (I'm guessing Austria since her coach is Austrian) in November!

 

[sjs5572]

Greetings from the girl who secured the three spots

https://twitter.com/absoluteskating/status/1441772334831083520?s=20

She almost forgot about it

Alysa Liu secures third Olympic figure skating spot for U.S. women

The ISU Challenger event is the final chance for figure skaters to qualify Olympic quota spots for Beijing 2022.

olympics.com

2 unclear edge warnings for her 3F and a q for the 3t from the combo, same as in SP,

https://twitter.com/olyphil/status/1441771525456252932?s=20[/URL

http://

 

[mtnskater]

Great job Alysa! I knew she would do it! A lot of pressure on her small shoulders to get the US women that third spot for the Olympics in her first year as a senior. She looked a little tight in her free skate but got the job easily done. She didn’t water down her content either. Went for that 3 axel. Way to go!!

Lindsey did great too! Two medals on the junior grand prix. I love the body line, extension and toe point she has developed. Beautiful skating! Full split on the Bielmann….so impressive. it’s going to be fun to see where she slots in at senior nationals.

 

[SkateFanBerlin]

Is it because there's a young crowd here? Why are people so obsessed with how likeable Alyssa is. How the US public will support her? i.e. how she can turn this Oly year into cash?

I admire great athletes. I'm inspired by their obstacles and achievements. I'm a little envious because I could never do what they do. I hold in my memory the greats like Greg Louganis, Alexei Yagudin, Evelyn Ashford, etc. They remind me when the world is tanking what people can really do when they persist. Likeability is so much less than that.

 

[layman]

Fantastic Free from Alysa Liu at Nebelhorn. I was stunned when I saw the protocols and saw that she had popped the opening 3-axel. Alysa never pops! In all the years that I have been watching her, I have never seen her pop before.

Her popping that opening 3-axel is actually a good sign! It means she is using new technique. She's jumping with her legs (something that Jeremy Abbot is teaching her to do). In the past, Alysa would just spin off the entrance edge, spin right off the ice without ever really using her legs to get lift. Now she's using her legs. She does not pop using the spin technique, but if the entrance pattern is not perfect in the entrance using her legs, then she misses the timing...the jump goes up but she cannot initiate the rotation. Her technique is now the same as Tuktymusheva's (who also occasionally pops the 3-axel for the exact same reason). This is a step in the right direction for Alysa. All she has to do is make the entrance pattern more secure and the jump will go up and she will also be able to snap into the rotation to complete it. Progress!

Everything else in the program looked great. She's using her legs more in all the other jumps. The spins look fast and centered and I love the way she interprets her music. Alysa has grown so much as a performer and as a skater in just a few short seasons.

 

[Jammers]

Crazy that just a year ago at this time people were writing Alysa off. She had just had a growth spurt and her big jumps disappeared and most people were saying she was done. Now she qualifies the 3rd Olympic spot for the US ladies and is the frontrunner to win Nationals again. Who knows where she will be in another year.

 

[sk9tingfan]

Crazy that just a year ago at this time people were writing Alysa off. She had just had a growth spurt and her big jumps disappeared and most people were saying she was done. Now she qualifies the 3rd Olympic spot for the US ladies and is the frontrunner to win Nationals again. Who knows where she will be in another year.

If Alysa had to select a year during which she went through those changes, she could not have selected a better year.

 

[skatingguy]

If Alysa had to select a year during which she went through those changes, she could not have selected a better year.

The changes in her body also seem to have been handled very well by the team around her, and it's particularly impressive that she has come back from not having any triples about a year ago to having them all back, and having better skating skills at the same time. She now has a much more durable technique that hopefully she will have many years ahead of her to develop into her artistry.

 

[olympic]

Young, big smile, flying through the jumps, blue-sequined dress in an Olympic year - reminds me of someone else ....

 

[VGThuy]

Is it because there's a young crowd here? Why are people so obsessed with how likeable Alyssa is. How the US public will support her? i.e. how she can turn this Oly year into cash?

I admire great athletes. I'm inspired by their obstacles and achievements. I'm a little envious because I could never do what they do. I hold in my memory the greats like Greg Louganis, Alexei Yagudin, Evelyn Ashford, etc. They remind me when the world is tanking what people can really do when they persist. Likeability is so much less than that.

Young? I’m now flooded with memories of the bright smile of Dorothy Hamill, the sheer photo-ready Peggy Fleming, and the crowd/audience-friendly showman Scott Hamilton, etc. Kwan’s likeability on top of her long career made her a name for a while as well.

 

[Brenda_Bottems]

Is/Was she fabulous?

More imperious than fabulous.

Is it because there's a young crowd here?

Yes,because this forum is the proverbial fountain of youth,dear.

-BB

 

[Foolhardy Ham Lint]

Young, big smile, flying through the jumps, blue-sequined dress in an Olympic year - reminds me of someone else ....

Elaine Zayak?

I'm kidding, of course. I immediately saw the comparison to Kwan, especially with the choice of dress colour and to some degree, cut as well.

 

[olympic]

Elaine Zayak?

I'm kidding, of course. I immediately saw the comparison to Kwan, especially with the choice of dress colour and to some degree, cut as well.

Errr .... I was referring to the other one in 1998, just that Liu has slightly better technique ...

 

[ЭPiKUilyam]

Elaine Zayak?

I'm kidding, of course. I immediately saw the comparison to Kwan, especially with the choice of dress colour and to some degree, cut as well.

I think they were talking about Tara Lipinski in 1998. Kwan was not skating around Nagano with joy and youthful energy. Almost the opposite.

 

[Coco]

I'm just comprehending that Alyssa was not born by the time Tara became Olympic champion. She is probably not even old enough to remember the end of Kwan's career.

 

[Karen-W]

I'm just comprehending that Alyssa was not born by the time Tara became Olympic champion. She is probably not even old enough to remember the end of Kwan's career.

Highly doubtful given she was born in... early 2005? Kwan's senior career was over before Alysa even turned 1.

 

[sk9tingfan]

Highly doubtful given she was born in... early 2005? Kwan's senior career was over before Alysa even turned 1.

She was born in August, 2005

 

[Foolhardy Ham Lint]

I guess I was a little confused when the OP said Olympic Year and not the Olympic Games.

With Alysa's build and presence, I still think she reminds me of the skate Kwan gave at the 1998 National Championships in Philadelphia. Tara reminds me of a Team Eteri skater.

 

[Vagabond]

Tutberidze doesn't allow screams in the Kiss and Cry.

 

[VALuvsMKwan]

Tutberidze doesn't allow screams in the Kiss and Cry.

Mama Pat would slap the Botox out of Eteri's face if she tried to stifle The Youngest Foo.

 

[olympic]

Tutberidze doesn't allow screams in the Kiss and Cry.

Eteri would find a better way to disguise a flutz, too

 

[Flip Jump]

I think they were talking about Tara Lipinski in 1998. Kwan was not skating around Nagano with joy and youthful energy. Almost the opposite.

I thought the OP was referring to Sarah Hughes in 02. So many teenagers in blue dresses!

 

[VGThuy]

Although figure skating warps our perspective of what young is, Yuna Kim was also a teenager (albeit an older one) who skated with energy and a smile in a sequined blue dress.

 

[Maximillian]

I thought the OP was referring to Sarah Hughes in 02. So many teenagers in blue dresses!

Also Tiffany Chin in 1984, one of my fave Olympic SP and LPs

 

[ЭPiKUilyam]

Eteri would find a better way to disguise a flutz, too

Eteri also wouldn't be screaming and squealing louder than her student and pulling her student down on to the floor with her to show how overdramatic she can be, either. I prefer Eteri's manner.

 

[olympic]

I’m the OP obviously, I meant Tara. Yu Na was composed and I would say less emotional. Ditto Tiffany