skateboy
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I haven't seen a thread devoted to this topic and thought it might merit discussion.
As we know, URs can be punished harshly, leading to possible downgrades, negative GOEs and a loss of points. Fair enough, but why aren't prerotations treated the same way? An example: Shoma Uno's 4Flip. I yield to no one in my admiration for Shoma as a skater, but this jump is for him is consistently prerotated more than a half turn (sometimes 3/4) and off of a flat blade. But when he lands it, it's flat back and he gets positive GOEs. Uno is not the only one who prerotates, of course.
I am not talking about small pre-"hooks," such as on a loop or an axel. This can be necessary to get the "oomph" that the jump needs and, besides, many skaters land fully rotated from the point the blade leaves the ice (after the slight on-ice rotation). So, in that case, there is no actual pre-"rotation."
For me (I used to judge roller skating competitions and was a longtime competitor), prerotation is more of a "sin" than underrotation. I'm not endorsing or forgiving URs, but a prerotation means that the skater has no real mastery of the jump, before it even gets off the ground. And it is even tougher to break that habit, than a tendency to underrotate.
So why is prerotation not punished at least as harshly as an underrotation?
Curious to know what you all think.
As we know, URs can be punished harshly, leading to possible downgrades, negative GOEs and a loss of points. Fair enough, but why aren't prerotations treated the same way? An example: Shoma Uno's 4Flip. I yield to no one in my admiration for Shoma as a skater, but this jump is for him is consistently prerotated more than a half turn (sometimes 3/4) and off of a flat blade. But when he lands it, it's flat back and he gets positive GOEs. Uno is not the only one who prerotates, of course.
I am not talking about small pre-"hooks," such as on a loop or an axel. This can be necessary to get the "oomph" that the jump needs and, besides, many skaters land fully rotated from the point the blade leaves the ice (after the slight on-ice rotation). So, in that case, there is no actual pre-"rotation."
For me (I used to judge roller skating competitions and was a longtime competitor), prerotation is more of a "sin" than underrotation. I'm not endorsing or forgiving URs, but a prerotation means that the skater has no real mastery of the jump, before it even gets off the ground. And it is even tougher to break that habit, than a tendency to underrotate.
So why is prerotation not punished at least as harshly as an underrotation?
Curious to know what you all think.
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