U.S.Women [#9]: Now That's What I'm F*@&%!$ Talking About!

[Sylvia]

Mia Smith [J12 at Nationals; will turn 14 in June] won gold and Stella Vajda [J17; age 14] won silver in their international debuts at Denver Cup. Smith was impressive in her FS (94.29/141.46 total) yesterday, landing 7 clean triples: 3F+3T, 3Lz, 3S, 3Lz+2A+2A, 3Lo (received 3 bonus points). Both train at the Detroit Skating Club.

After the Junior SP the top 3 are Annabelle Wilkins [J13; age 14], Cleo Park [J11; age 16] and Anabel Wallace [S17; will be 18 in April] (WD: Kaya Tiernan [J8; age 16]). This is the international debut for both Wilkins and Wallace.

Today at Coupe du Printemps in Luxembourg, Deborah Liu [J9 at Nationals; will be 13 in April] 47.01 with 3Lz (+1.18), 3Lo+2Lo(-1.47) & 2A and Skylar Lautowa-Peguero [turned 13 last December] 45.89 with 3Lz (-1.77), 2A & 3Lo+2Lo (-0.82) currently are leading in the Adv. Novice Women SP.

Junior Women competing tomorrow are Sofia Bezkorovainaya [J6; age 15] and Hannah Kim [J3; 15 in July].

Coupe du Printemps in Luxembourg update:
Adv. Novice Women (19 competed):
GOLD Skylar Lautowa-Peguero 95.35 (6 of 7 triples clean: 3Lzb+3Tb -1.18, 3F, 3S, 3Lo+2Ab+2A, 3Lz, 3Lo)
SILVER Deborah Liu 121.50 1 2 (74.49 in FS)

Junior Women (26 competed):
5th Hannah Kim 146.74 (53.06 3rd in SP with 3F+3T<, 2A, 3Loq; 93.68 5th in FS)
6th Sofia Bezkorovainaya 143.75 (50.70 5th in SP with 3Lzq+2T, 3Lo, 2A; 93.05 6th in FS)
(FS protocols are not yet published online/still missing.)

Denver Cup International update (6 competed):
1st Cleo Park 160.49 2 1 (109.66 in FS with 6 clean triples: 3F, 3Lz, 3Lo, 3Lo<+2A+2A, 3F+2T, 3T, 3S+2T; 3 L4 spins; Damon Allen was by the boards for her)
2nd Annabelle Wilkins 150.83 1 2 (98.97 with 4 clean triples in FS: 3Lz+2T, 3F!q, 3Lo, 3Lo< fall, 3T<<, 3S+2A+2A, 3T+2T)
3rd Anabel Wallace 133.77 3 3 (87.52 in FS)

ETA that Cleo has confirmed a coaching and training location change from Anaheim, CA to Colorado Springs in her post:

Cleo Park on Instagram: "Grateful to @usfigureskating for the opportunity to compete at the 2026 Denver Cup International. A big thank you to all the coaches @tammyg92373, @leifurmb, @damonenrique, @coach.lgs, Tatiana ,and skaters at Broadmoor World

85 likes, 6 comments - cleo._.parkskater on March 15, 2026: "Grateful to @usfigureskating for the opportunity to compete at the 2026 Denver Cup International. A big thank you to all the coaches @tammyg92373, @leifurmb, @damonenrique, @coach.lgs, Tatiana ,and skaters at Broadmoor World Arena Ice...

www.instagram.com

 

[zigzig]

Alysa livin it up

Elton John’s Oscars Watch Party Attracts Alysa Liu, Dua Lipa and More

At his annual fund-raiser, the rock star hosted Keke Palmer, Donatella Versace and Brooklyn Beckham for a private Oscars watch party in West Hollywood.

www.nytimes.com

 

[pointbleu]

Coupe du Printemps in Luxembourg update:
Adv. Novice Women (19 competed):
GOLD Skylar Lautowa-Peguero 95.35 (6 of 7 triples clean: 3Lzb+3Tb -1.18, 3F, 3S, 3Lo+2Ab+2A, 3Lz, 3Lo)
SILVER Deborah Liu 121.50 1 2 (74.49 in FS)

Junior Women (26 competed):
5th Hannah Kim 146.74 (53.06 3rd in SP with 3F+3T<, 2A, 3Loq; 93.68 5th in FS)
6th Sofia Bezkorovainaya 143.75 (50.70 5th in SP with 3Lzq+2T, 3Lo, 2A; 93.05 6th in FS)
(FS protocols are not yet published online/still missing.)

Denver Cup International update (6 competed):
1st Cleo Park 160.49 2 1 (109.66 in FS with 6 clean triples: 3F, 3Lz, 3Lo, 3Lo<+2A+2A, 3F+2T, 3T, 3S+2T; 3 L4 spins; Damon Allen was by the boards for her)
2nd Annabelle Wilkins 150.83 1 2 (98.97 with 4 clean triples in FS: 3Lz+2T, 3F!q, 3Lo, 3Lo< fall, 3T<<, 3S+2A+2A, 3T+2T)
3rd Anabel Wallace 133.77 3 3 (87.52 in FS)

ETA that Cleo has confirmed a coaching and training location change from Anaheim, CA to Colorado Springs in her post:

Cleo Park on Instagram: "Grateful to @usfigureskating for the opportunity to compete at the 2026 Denver Cup International. A big thank you to all the coaches @tammyg92373, @leifurmb, @damonenrique, @coach.lgs, Tatiana ,and skaters at Broadmoor World

85 likes, 6 comments - cleo._.parkskater on March 15, 2026: "Grateful to @usfigureskating for the opportunity to compete at the 2026 Denver Cup International. A big thank you to all the coaches @tammyg92373, @leifurmb, @damonenrique, @coach.lgs, Tatiana ,and skaters at Broadmoor World Arena Ice...

www.instagram.com

https://cdp2024.online/2026/CDP/FSKWSINGLES-JUNIOR----FNL-000100--_JudgesDetailsperSkater.pdf

 

[Sylvia]

Merci @pointbleu!

Thanks for the gift article link @zigzig - @Cachoo also shared a gift link in Alysa's fan thread where there are many other photo/video links posted (Alysa and Madi Chock also attended the Vanity Fair after-party): https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/threads/alysa-liu-cheer-fan-thread.106483/page-14#post-6912255

ETA:

No surprise here - new partnership announced on St. Patrick's Day!

刘美贤 Alysa Liu on Instagram: "Some of y’all are about to get real Lucky! #luckycharmspartner To celebrate St Patrick’s Day, 25 people will win a custom Alysa Liu x @luckycharms box with a note from me on the back! �HOW TO ENTER: 🥣 like this post

39K likes, 1,982 comments - alysaxliu on March 17, 2026: "Some of y’all are about to get real Lucky! #luckycharmspartner To celebrate St Patrick’s Day, 25 people will win a custom Alysa Liu x @luckycharms box with a note from me on the back! �HOW TO ENTER: 🥣 like this post 🍀 make sure...

www.instagram.com

 

[Sylvia]

After yesterday's SP at Prague Worlds:

Amber 72.65 in 3rd (3A -0.11, 3F+3Tq -1.06, 3Lo +1.26 yay, L4 in steps & 2 of 3 spins):

Golden Skate on Instagram: "Amber GLENN 🇺🇸 72.65 “After the Olympics, I was pretty sick for a while. I didn’t know what it was. I was on a bunch of antibiotics. And you know, as an athlete, we have to be very careful with what we consume. In reality

7,882 likes, 37 comments - goldsk8 on March 25, 2026: "Amber GLENN 🇺🇸 72.65 “After the Olympics, I was pretty sick for a while. I didn’t know what it was. I was on a bunch of antibiotics. And you know, as an athlete, we have to be very careful with what we consume. In reality, I mean, we need...

www.instagram.com

“After the Olympics, I was pretty sick for a while. I didn’t know what it was. I was on a bunch of antibiotics. And you know, as an athlete, we have to be very careful with what we consume. In reality, I mean, we need something that I couldn’t take. So I was fighting a sickness for a while. Honestly, I’m just proud of myself for getting in and training and still being motivated to be here.

Today I just tried to stay focused as much as I could. There was the Axel, which was very forward, and I was kind of, whoa, whoa. And I was like, I’m not losing my balance. No, I’m not losing my balance. Then the flip toe came, and I was like, okay, reset. I’m going to do this thing. It was literally in my head all the time: “You’re going to do it.” And I got it done. I’m very happy with that.

About being nominated for the Skating Awards in many categories:

“thank you, everyone, for voting for me. It’s so exciting. Also, my coach Damon Allen is nominated. He’s so wonderful. He got me from messing up five triple axels in the warmup to being able to do it, so he’s great. It means a lot being nominated by my peers. I’m thankful to the fans that vote. I know in the end, it’s also kind of a popularity thing. The award I hope most for is for my coach to get it.”

Article by Phil Hersh:

Amber Glenn has shown grace on and off the ice. Is this her medal moment at World Champs?

Amber Glenn could win her first World Figure Skating Championships medal on Friday, live on Peacock.

www.nbcsports.com

Isabeau 72.16 in 4th (3Lz!+3Lo -0.17, 2A, 3F, L4 in final layback spin only):

Golden Skate on Instagram: "Isabeau LEVITO 🇺🇸 72.16 “On changing the combination: actually, my coach and I were thinking the same thing without even speaking to each other. I met her at the rink after my five days of travel back home from Milan, and

2,914 likes, 10 comments - goldsk8 on March 25, 2026: "Isabeau LEVITO 🇺🇸 72.16 “On changing the combination: actually, my coach and I were thinking the same thing without even speaking to each other. I met her at the rink after my five days of travel back home from Milan, and she showed me a...

www.instagram.com

“On changing the combination: actually, my coach and I were thinking the same thing without even speaking to each other. I met her at the rink after my five days of travel back home from Milan, and she showed me a list of different combinations and their point values, and we immediately both thought the same thing. I think I got a bit bored this season. I wanted to do something more interesting and raise the stakes for myself mentally. I’m so much happier and more motivated in training because I have something really fun to work for.

Looking back at the Olympics, I think one takeaway is that I played it a little bit too safe. I underestimated myself a bit too much, because when you expect less of yourself, you start performing that way.

On her travel back home from the Olympics:

“it took five days. So it wasn’t really the emotional high from the Games like for everyone else. I think what really killed my spirit was those five or six days it took me to get back to New Jersey because there was a storm on the East Coast, so flights were canceled. I was moving all over the place. I almost made it halfway to Alaska, where I was supposed to have a photo shoot, but in the end I didn’t make it on time. I first went to Atlanta, then to Denver, and in the end the photo shoot got cancelled. I hope we’ll still do it sometime soon. And then I finally made it home to New Jersey.”

On her thoughts when she landed the combination today:

“I didn’t really think anything. I was just satisfied that I was vertical, because actually, since I arrived here, I’ve been scarily consistent in practice at home. I was like, “Like this, I can win the Olympics.” And then I got here, and I would just go into a jump and suddenly I would be horizontal. So I was like, what happened here? I mean, even in the six-minute warm-up. So I was just throwing a shot in the dark and seeing where it would take me.”

Sarah 68.74 in 9th (landed 3Lz+3T, 2A, 3Lo; 2 L4 spins):

Golden Skate on Instagram: "Sarah EVERHARDT 🇺🇸 68.74 “I felt really nervous today. Even going into the first jumping pass, I was thinking about messing up, but then I was like, no, I can’t think like that. So I told myself to trust myself and do the

349 likes, 1 comments - goldsk8 on March 25, 2026: "Sarah EVERHARDT 🇺🇸 68.74 “I felt really nervous today. Even going into the first jumping pass, I was thinking about messing up, but then I was like, no, I can’t think like that. So I told myself to trust myself and do the best I can. After the...

www.instagram.com

“I felt really nervous today. Even going into the first jumping pass, I was thinking about messing up, but then I was like, no, I can’t think like that. So I told myself to trust myself and do the best I can. After the first jumping pass, I relaxed a bit, and after the last jump, I really relaxed a lot and tried to be present, smile, and show my program.

On preparing mentally as a substitute:

“I feel like I didn’t really wrap my head around it until I got here. When I was flying here, I was thinking, wow, I’m going to Worlds. It’s kind of a surreal feeling, but I’m so glad to be here.

On whether she was still fully in training:

“No, not really. I was told that Bradie wasn’t going to go, that she isn’t the first alternate anymore, so I started training a little bit more, but not as intensely. And when I was told that I was going, I had about two weeks of preparation. I tried my best to get into the best shape possible.

On going back to her old free program:

“I really, really enjoy that program. I told myself to just try it out and see how it feels. I started skating and doing the choreography, and I realized how much I love that program and how much I miss it. It feels very much like me.”

 

[Karen-W]

Well, the US women held onto their three spots but I'm sure there's a level of disappointment within the USFS that they're leaving Prague with no medal.

Kudos to Isabeau, though, for a third 4th place finish in 4 Worlds appearances. Remarkable record, to be really honest, that her lowest finish at Worlds is 4th, but it's a shame she couldn't add another World medal to her collection today.

Amber did Amber things and finished 6th, which is perfectly respectable, but it was a rough skate to watch. She'll always have her Olympic team gold and her GPF title. Sounds like she is doing okay, though, so if this was her last competition, so be it and may she be truly satisfied with her career.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2037638725715333145

Thank you everyone for the love and support I'm okay! If anything I'm mentally, emotionally, physically exhausted after a season of extreme highs and lows. I did what I set out to do 6 years ago.Land a Triple axel and go to the Olympics and nothing will take that away from me

Sarah had a solid program, though she lost some steam near the end, and wound up 11th overall. That does mean she'll be an invited GP skater next season, which is a great result and not much more than one can ask or hope for as the 2nd alternate with less than 3 weeks notice she'd be competing here.

 

[mtnskater]

I am happy the U.S. women did well enough to retain the three spots. But truthfully bummed that neither Amber nor Isabeau could maintain or improve on their positions after the short program. They are both right in there for the medals anytime they deliver.

Love the idea Isabeau decided to up the ante on her jump combo. Not sure it payed off, particularly in the free. She was in such good position, if she had just skated clean what she had trained all year like she did at U.S. Nationals, she would have medaled. Her free skate at Nationals is one of my all time favorite performances. However, 4th place is still really good. But for a former world silver medalist I know she wants more. Would love for her to work with Lori Nichols next year for choreography….and maybe a summer stint at Skorniakov/Malinina camp for jumps. I hope she stays motivated and competitive the next quad, because I love watching her skate

I had high hopes for Amber as I always do, but also thought she was the one most likely to be affected by nerves being in medal position. What a beautiful opening she had to the free program, really great. Wonder what happened in her mind? I hope she does continue. I’m not sure how many other up and coming skaters the U.S. has right now that look likely to replace Amber. Whereas Japan will likely fill Kaori’s shoes pretty easily with Mao Shimada coming up and the seemingly endless supply of talented motivated competitors.

Sarah has consistency but so much to work on for refinement and presentation. She needs a different choreographer. This year’s original free program was all wrong for her. Firebird is better, but not great for a skater with deadpan expression. I think Benoit might be a fit for her. And her coaching team needs to get her to extend her lines and her free leg/toe point. And get rid of the awkward back crack/torso move right before she skates Even with that, I was surprised her score was so low in the free. Jumps seemed quite good. Nina Petrokina seemed surprised too. But I haven’t looked at the protocols yet. Overall she has to be pretty happy with her debut here.

Hopefully, the Alysa we know and love will be back in the mix next year and skate through the quad too.

 

[Debbie S]

I think Isabeau needs a full-scale coaching change. Malinina/Skorniakov would be good but I doubt they would take on a direct competitor of Sarah's. But Isabeau needs to go somewhere.

I think Benoit would be good for Sarah. Shae-Lynn has done good programs for Ilia but he and his parents know who he is. I don't think Sarah or her coaches (or Shae-Lynn) have figured that out for Sarah yet. Benoit has done some good programs this year and he knows how to package skaters.

 

[Skaterbob]

Some may take this badly but Amber is one skater that I actually LIKE but want them move on from competition. Just the same old story very disappointing. I'm glad she got a medal for the SP and at the Olympics. I don't think there is much left she can accomplish.

 

[mtnskater]

I think Benoit would be good for Sarah. Shae-Lynn has done good programs for Ilia but he and his parents know who he is. I don't think Sarah or her coaches (or Shae-Lynn) have figured that out for Sarah yet. Benoit has done some good programs this year and he knows how to package skaters.

Yes! Benoit has had some epic misses. But when he hits with a skater he can really transform them. I think he really transformed Kaori back in the day when her programs were all wrong for her.

 

[jägerbomb]

Some may take this badly but Amber is one skater that I actually LIKE but want them move on from competition. Just the same old story very disappointing. I'm glad she got a medal for the SP and at the Olympics. I don't there is much left she can accomplish.

It might not be "politically correct", but I understand what you're saying and agree with it.

A world silver medal was hers for the taking, she nails the first half of the program, then falls apart in the second half.

I love her and her journey and what she stands for.... but I don't want to see more of this next season. Sadly, I don't think a Worlds medal in the cards.

 

[jägerbomb]

Love the idea Isabeau decided to up the ante on her jump combo. Not sure it payed off, particularly in the free. She was in such good position, if she had just skated clean what she had trained all year like she did at U.S. Nationals, she would have medaled. Her free skate at Nationals is one of my all time favorite performances. However, 4th place is still really good. But for a former world silver medalist I know she wants more. Would love for her to work with Lori Nichols next year for choreography….and maybe a summer stint at Skorniakov/Malinina camp for jumps. I hope she stays motivated and competitive the next quad, because I love watching her skate

It made sense for the short program, but made zero sense to attempt it in the long program. Baffling strategy from her team.

Frustrating. I agree, her Nationals LP was one of my favorite performances of the last quad.

 

[Allskate]

I hope she stays motivated and competitive the next quad, because I love watching her skate

I think she is incredibly motivated. She has repeatedly said this season that she wants to add more difficult content, like a triple axel, after the season is over but was prioritizing staying healthy for the Olympic season. She also said that she's happier when she's challenging herself. And I think she is going to be use what happened at the Olympics and Worlds to motivate her. It took her five days to get home from the Olympics because of the snow storms. When she got stuck with an extended layover in Atlanta, she found a rink to go to. So, I definitely don't think she's lost any motivation.

It made sense for the short program, but made zero sense to attempt it in the long program. Baffling strategy from her team.

Isabeau said that practices were going very well at home. She had a rough practice her first day in Prague, but she had a good practice yesterday, and Jackie Wong's practice report indicated that she did a very good runthrough of the long program this morning, including the lutz/loop. I saw some clips from practices where she did very good lutz/loops.

Plus, the judges have been pretty tough on her more recently. (I thought she was underscored in her Olympic short, and she was the only one with an edge call in the short program the other day despite the fact that she obviously was not the only one with edge issues.) She might have thought that she needed the lutz/loop in the long to increase her chances at medaling.

She has said that she thinks she played it too safe this season. At least until she made it to the Olympics, it actually made sense for her to play it safe after her injury - which was an overuse injury - and given that she wasn't as certain to get an Olympic spot as Alysa and Amber. Now that the Olympics are over, it seems like she felt compelled to add more challenge and difficulty.

But, she hasn't competed the lutz/loop the last two seasons (and had a growth spurt and injury since she did). And she hasn't competed it in this program obviously. Plus, doing a loop instead of a toe clearly is more intrinsically risky. So, it clearly was a big risk. She'll have plenty of time in the off-season to get it consistent and do lots of runthroughs of programs with the lutz/loop in there. It might make sense for her to do a flip/loop in the long program since she prefers the flip.

Sarah had a solid program, though she lost some steam near the end, and wound up 11th overall. That does mean she'll be an invited GP skater next season, which is a great result and not much more than one can ask or hope for as the 2nd alternate with less than 3 weeks notice she'd be competing here.

I'm really glad that Sarah finally did away with that dreadful "Poorer Things" long program. I don't think Shae Lynne is necessarily bad for her; it's just the "Poorer Things" program in particular that was bad for her. This season as a whole wasn't her strongest, but she was able to do the triple lutz/triple toe earlier this season. It's great that she got to experience Worlds, and I'm sure she'll benefit from the experience.

Some may take this badly but Amber is one skater that I actually LIKE but want them move on from competition.

I thought I read today that she has indicated that she is going to continue competing? I really do wish she could have just one competition where she was happy with both her short and long, but that may never happen.

 

[Allskate]

Love the idea Isabeau decided to up the ante on her jump combo. Not sure it payed off, particularly in the free. She was in such good position, if she had just skated clean what she had trained all year like she did at U.S. Nationals, she would have medaled.

I'm not sure about that. Nina Pinzarrone got surprisingly high scores. Over 215 points, and she beat Isabeau by over 8 points. Isabeau doing a clean triple flip/triple toe, even without a q, would not have made up that gap. Nina did not get a single q called in either program (even though I think that is questionable). The only time Isabeau scored over 215 this season was at Nationals, which was her best competition but also had inflated scoring. So, even if Isabeau had done a triple flip/triple toe instead and landed it cleanly and without a q and even if that had slightly increased her PCS (which was essentially the same as Nina's), I'm not totally convinced the judges and caller would have given her the bronze. I doubt that makes Isabeau feel any better.

It's so impressive that Isabeau has never finished lower than fourth at Worlds, but she sure must be frustrated finishing just off the podium so many times.

 

[Jonas]

I had high hopes for Amber as I always do, but also thought she was the one most likely to be affected by nerves being in medal position. What a beautiful opening she had to the free program, really great. Wonder what happened in her mind? I hope she does continue. I’m not sure how many other up and coming skaters the U.S. has right now that look likely to replace Amber. Whereas Japan will likely fill Kaori’s shoes pretty easily with Mao Shimada coming up and the seemingly endless supply of talented motivated competitors.

I wanted it for Amber, but even after the SP (with Isabeau practically tied w/her) I already knew the World medal wasn't happening. Kudos for hanging onto the small medal, but overall that program looked lethargic compared to the rest of the season - even including in Milano. The signs of physical fatigue wasn't a good omen for the FS especially when combined w/her track records at Worlds.

I think that Amber has another season in her if she chooses to do so. Currently, I don't see any US woman knocking her off the top 3 domestically. (I'm not convinced even Alysa is competing next season!)

Your thoughts...

 

[Jonas]

RE: Isabeau -- I'm sure she's disappointed in finishing off the podium. The missed 3Lutz-3loop cost her that second World medal, however, I applaud the strategy of incorporating the greater degree of difficulty here. I think she and/or her coaching team were thinking long term here. She's already committed to continuing competitively, so I think this was an investment in mileage.

Your thoughts...

 

[Karen-W]

I want Amber to retire. I said it in the PBP thread but it's not much fun watching her inevitable mistakes in either the SP or the FS usually bury her chances at medaling at the most important events. I'd rather see Bradie stick around for another season or two than Amber. Bradie at least is able to shake off mistakes in her programs & shows some fight. I don't see that with Amber's programs - one mistake generally turns into either a cascade of errors or a loss of attack & energy for the rest of the program (her Oly SP step sequence being a prime example of this).

I do expect Alysa to compete next season. She's been busy with her appearances all over the place this month but starting next weekend, she'll be touring with SOI and that is going to limit the celebrity/award show appearances - and by the time SOI wraps up at the end of May, she'll be able to take a nice vacation & then start working on next season's programs. We may not see her at an early Challenger like we did the past two seasons but she loves competing too much to not be back like she's already stated.

 

[jlai]

Despite Amber's issues, she is one of the best in the US and can now be counted on to have a top ten finish.
The US doesn't have a lot of younger girls waiting in the wings ready for that challenge, though Sarah is coming along.

 

[SkateFanBerlin]

I want Amber to retire. I said it in the PBP thread but it's not much fun watching her inevitable mistakes in either the SP or the FS usually bury her chances at medaling at the most important events. I'd rather see Bradie stick around for another season or two than Amber. Bradie at least is able to shake off mistakes in her programs & shows some fight. I don't see that with Amber's programs - one mistake generally turns into either a cascade of errors or a loss of attack & energy for the rest of the program (her Oly SP step sequence being a prime example of this).

I do expect Alysa to compete next season. She's been busy with her appearances all over the place this month but starting next weekend, she'll be touring with SOI and that is going to limit the celebrity/award show appearances - and by the time SOI wraps up at the end of May, she'll be able to take a nice vacation & then start working on next season's programs. We may not see her at an early Challenger like we did the past two seasons but she loves competing too much to not be back like she's already stated.

Hmmmm....uptrend someone pointed out that Kaori leaving doesn't chage much. Already there is Mone, Nikki, Jin and now Shimada. It's a numbers game. Under what circumstances could Amber score higher than these women?

Not sure about Alysa. Promoters will offer any $$ she wants. Plus all the endorcement money crashing at her feet. Will she give this up to spend 7 hours a day training? Hard to keep them down on farm........

 

[Wyliefan]

Who's Nikki?

ETA: Oh, did you mean Nakai?

 

[PRlady]

Despite Amber's issues, she is one of the best in the US and can now be counted on to have a top ten finish.
The US doesn't have a lot of younger girls waiting in the wings ready for that challenge, though Sarah is coming along.

Well, depends on your timeline. In ten years we will have a great crop, because of so many athletic little girls now wanting to be Alysa when they grow up!

I agree that we are thin in the Junior ranks. Maybe Elyce and Sherry will find their mojo. I worry about Sophie scooting back to Switzerland because of citizenship issues. But if both Alysa and Isabeau stay in for the quad, we’re in good shape.

 

[Karen-W]

Well, depends on your timeline. In ten years we will have a great crop, because of so many athletic little girls now wanting to be Alysa when they grow up!

I agree that we are thin in the Junior ranks. Maybe Elyce and Sherry will find their mojo. I worry about Sophie scooting back to Switzerland because of citizenship issues. But if both Alysa and Isabeau stay in for the quad, we’re in good shape.

Alysa, Isabeau and Sarah are all solid - and I expect Sarah's scores to probably rise again next season.

I don't see Sophie Joline scooting back to Switzerland - there are too many up-and-coming Swiss juniors for her to contend with. It will be interesting to see if she can develop the sort of consistency that wins at the senior level.

 

[Allskate]

RE: Isabeau -- I'm sure she's disappointed in finishing off the podium. The missed 3Lutz-3loop cost her that second World medal, however, I applaud the strategy of incorporating the greater degree of difficulty here. I think she and/or her coaching team were thinking long term here. She's already committed to continuing competitively, so I think this was an investment in mileage.

As I said above, I don't think it's clear that the combination cost her the medal; I think the caller/specialists/judges wanted to give it to Nina P and not to Isabeau.

Jackie Wong said that Isabeau did two very good lutz/loops in the six-minute warm-up for the long program. And I saw some clips of her doing good ones in practice. But, doing the lutz/loop in competition is different. You can't be at all hesitant before going into the loop and it seemed like she was. Earlier this season, Isabeau was more confident and aggressive with her skating. I don't think she was as aggressive here. I do wonder if what happened at the Olympics and what happened with the calling and scoring in the short program the other day messed with her head a bit. But, hopefully, it was just changing up the program and adding in the lutz/loop that made her a bit more nervous or hesitant. She can work on that over the summer and in the early season competitions.

I want Amber to retire. I said it in the PBP thread but it's not much fun watching her inevitable mistakes in either the SP or the FS usually bury her chances at medaling at the most important events.

It is frustrating seeing Amber not reach her potential. But, are we going to want everybody to retire if they chronically make mistakes and lets the nerves get to them and come in lower than fourth at the Olympics and lower than fifth at Worlds? Or does this just apply to Amber, who has a pretty consistent triple axel, has been National Champion three times, has won multiple GP medals, and has been GP Final Champion despite making mistakes? I don't think Bradie would have placed higher than Amber did at the Olympics or at Worlds, and Bradie had an opportunity to earn a place on the team but didn't even though Amber always makes mistakes in competition.

 

[Private Citizen]

I want Amber to skate at Worlds as she skates at Nationals, or vice versa. Either knock it out of the park and win a medal at Worlds, or bomb at Nationals and be off the team. This great at Nationals - bomb at Olympics / Worlds trend is so frustrating, I'm sure as much for her as for her fans.

Levito needs to take a four-year strategy and work a triple axel and/or quad into her programs if she's going to last until 2030. Her axel, toe loop, and salchow are her cleanest-technique jumps. The lutz-loop combo is never going to get big GoE. Neither is the flip-toe. She's never going to be able to GoE her way to the top the way Sakamoto can, and while her PCS is strong, it's not really differentiating. There's no way around an ultra-C element for her. She peaked too early in this cycle. She's not going to last through the next cycle without an ultra-C element.

As for Everhardt, I wish I could bring Elena Tcherkaskaia (RIP) back from the great beyond to do for Everhardt what she did for Nikodinov.

 

[Karen-W]

It is frustrating seeing Amber not reach her potential. But, are we going to want everybody to retire if they chronically make mistakes and lets the nerves get to them and come in lower than fourth at the Olympics and lower than fifth at Worlds? Or does this just apply to Amber, who has a pretty consistent triple axel, has been National Champion three times, has won multiple GP medals, and has been GP Final Champion despite making mistakes? I don't think Bradie would have placed higher than Amber did at the Olympics or at Worlds, and Bradie had an opportunity to earn a place on the team but didn't even though Amber always makes mistakes in competition.

Oh, I want all the skaters who are close to or pushing their expiration date with regard to their age causing a natural deterioration in their abilities to choose to go out while they're still at or near the top of their game. In that sense, I'm giving a side-eye to Kevin Aymoz, Lukas Britschgi and Turkkila/Versluis planning on sticking around at least one more season. I understand wanting to compete at a home Euros or Worlds but almost invariably one season leads to another and then, suddenly, we're at another Olympic season and we have a Jason Brown or Guignard/Fabbri situation where the degradation in their technical skills is too much to overcome.

I question a team like Reed/Ambrulevicius being on the fence now about whether or not it's their last season. They've had a good run this past Olympic cycle but are they delusional enough to think they're ever going to really be competitive for the Worlds podium? If not, maybe move on and focus on developing ice dancing in the Baltic nations, Saulius, and go help your sister in Japan, Allison.

I have a lot of respect for Shoma Uno for actually recognizing it was time to go when he finished off the podium at Worlds in 2024. I love that Kaori is going out while she's still on top. No sad decline for her as she tries to hang on through another Olympic cycle.

 

[Allskate]

Oh, I want all the skaters who are close to or pushing their expiration date with regard to their age causing a natural deterioration in their abilities to choose to go out while they're still at or near the top of their game.

This isn't what you said in the post I was responding to. (But, you'll take any chance you can find to get in yet another swipe at Jason.) And you said you want Bradie to stick around, who is actually older than Amber and has had more problems with injuries.

I do hope that Amber will stop competing if she starts having chronic physical problems. But, that's not the current situation with Amber and not the reason you gave in your post.

This is what you said:

I want Amber to retire. I said it in the PBP thread but it's not much fun watching her inevitable mistakes in either the SP or the FS usually bury her chances at medaling at the most important events.

This has nothing to do with age. Amber was actually less consistent when she was younger. If you're going to call for her to stop competing due to her chronic mistakes, then call on the others who are very inconsistent to retire because of their inconsistencies. How about Torgy? Or Adam Siao Him Fa. Or Kao.

 

[Karen-W]

This isn't what you said in the post I was responding to. (But, you'll take any chance you can find to get in yet another swipe at Jason.) And you said you want Bradie to stick around, who is actually older than Amber and has had more problems with injuries.

No, I did not say I wanted Bradie to stick around. I said "I'd rather see Bradie stick around". That doesn't mean I want Bradie sticking around any more than I want Amber sticking around. But, if one of them was going to stick around, I'd prefer it to be Bradie since she actually shows fight when things go wrong in her programs.

I do hope that Amber will stop competing if she starts having chronic physical problems. But, that's not the current situation with Amber and not the reason you gave in your post.

So, is the mental aspect of competing not just as important as physical injuries? Amber has not demonstrated that she has the mental strength to compete well consistently. It is a chronic issue with her and isn't much different than a chronic physical injury, like, say, Matthias Versluis' back issues. It's no fun watching a skater who, physically, can't do what they used to do - see Livia Kaiser this season - out there on the ice, pounding away and potentially causing further physical injury. It's also no fun to see a skater who has spoken quite candidly about the challenges she's faced with the mental aspect of competing come off the ice in tears or beating herself up and burying her head in hands while waiting for the marks - and we've seen that from Amber at her last two competitions, plus countless other times in her career. Both situations beg the question "why are you still doing this to yourself?" I get it when you have a goal of making the Olympics but once you've achieved that... Maybe have enough sense to stop putting yourself through that torture.

This has nothing to do with age. Amber was actually less consistent when she was younger. If you're going to call for her to stop competing due to her chronic mistakes, then call on the others who are very inconsistent to retire because of their inconsistencies. How about Torgy? Or Adam Siao Him Fa. Or Kao.

As if I haven't called out those guys for their inconsistencies in the past. I'd rather Torgy retire too, if I had my druthers (and I'll say the same about Max). I also expect Torgy to get pushed out by some of the youngsters rising up from juniors next season or the season after - and that's assuming he sticks around that long. I'm sure Kao will, like Wakaba & Mai, stay too long at the fair, and I'll grumble about it, but that'll be in the Japanese news thread probably. And if Adam doesn't get his head together next season, I'll be side-eyeing him too.

But, you know what Adam has that Amber doesn't have? A Worlds medal and a couple of ISU Continental Championship titles. Heck, Kao has more ISU hardware than Amber, come to think of it. And both Adam & Kao are younger than Amber (and Kao is younger than Ilia too) with already greater successes internationally.

 

[Lanie]

I love Amber, her determination, grit, and kindness, she just always strikes me as such a perfectionist who is so, so hard on herself. I wish she could just let go and enjoy because she's so special and has so many amazing qualities on and off the ice.

 

[peibeck]

Even while less than perfect, Amber has placed 5th and 6th at the only two Worlds she competed at. Hardly terrible results. She's not going to stick around for another full Olympic cycle, but if she wants one more year, I don't believe we here should begrudge her that.

 

[bladesofgorey]

Man, I feel like nobody making the "x athlete should retire because they finished off the podium in Worlds" really understands just how freaking difficult being a competitive athlete is. The fact that any of these skaters even made it to Worlds mean they are exceptional athletes and competitors. Skating is hard and that is proven time and time again by even the supposed lock-ins for podium placements. The win or nothing mentality is so strange to me. Like, people are losers who should be embarrassed once they are not at their personal peak and should retire to save themselves humiliation? SMH.