Worlds 2025 Women SP: “She Works Hard For The Mone (So You Better GOE Her Right)”

[Jarrett]

LOL Alysa not even knowing Worlds was in Boston this year.

 

[Karen-W]

Alysa is soooooo chill. She has zero expectations for results or anything. Such a healthy outlook, especially going into the free on Friday.

 

[NinjaTurtles]

Alysa’s candor and ability to say “I don’t know” is funny.

“Would YOU have more fun with them here?”

 

[Hedwig]

Her getting a level 4 steps seems far from the most egregious overlooking of errors that happened.

I will say they seemed to be equally generous with pretty much everyone, which is better than picking and choosing who you nitpick I guess.

I think the strict ur calls are often too strict and make no sense. Either you see it with your basic eye and it is really bad, than call it or not. The q jumps often look fine with their flow and everything and often jumps that are a tiny bit ur have the best flow.

But I am pissed by the inconsistency of calling. Of it being the random pick of judges who decides if sth is called or not. And then those skaters who concentrated on rotation in practice are screwed over today

 

[Carolla5501]

Ashley needs fired from this volunteer post after this segment

You don’t think she’s getting paid for this? I bet money that Ashley is making money.

 

[kwanfan1818]

I don’t understand how she stuck with this technique.

Her coach doesn't seem to think it's a problem, so...

 

[Karen-W]

LOL - Alysa & Isabeau confabbing after Alysa says she needs to go shopping for a new dress for the gala because the one she has is too long & she won't have time to hem it... Any bets they gonna wind up shopping together?

 

[barbk]

NBC has Alysa's sp up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L69bHvkLk9g

 

[MsZem]

LOL - Alysa & Isabeau confabbing after Alysa says she needs to go shopping for a new dress for the gala because the one she has is too long & she won't have time to hem it... Any bets they gonna wind up shopping together?

IIRC Alysa wore Olivia Smart's RD dress for the gala at the Olympics, maybe she could do the environmentally-friendly thing and borrow or recycle again

 

[annie_mg]

My two cents on the SP (picking and choosing the skaters I have something to say about):

• Nina P's programme is one of the most beautifully choreographed programmes I've ever seen. I know her jumps are small, but her extensions and her intensity are beautiful and I don't think she's getting the appreciation she deserves. Probably because she isn't Belgium's #1?
• Chibe looks very juniorish to me, but I'm not sure that'll ever change, it's just how she is. She's 19, not 15, but she skates and looks much younger. I guess the judges don't care.
• Gubanova. I just want her to come back from this. So unfair. Mao Asada vibes.
• I actually loved Kaori's programme at the beginning of the season, but she has since lost any commitment to the choreography, as is often the case with her. Even her posture for her starting pose was not great (I remember making a similar comment about her starting pose last year, where she had no turn out whatsoever). I can't get behind her anymore, not when you have skaters who are much better performers.
• I'm trying to like Kimmy Repond, but it still looks to me like she hasn't mastered a way to use her long limbs. I felt the same about Kostner for most of her career. Kimmy also looks like she's really focused on following the choreo she learned, not like she's skating to the music and actually interpreting it.
• Alisa Liu is a natural born performer and skater. I could watch her all day. I'm thrilled for her.
• Isabeau did really well, but those jumps are ugly and to me they take away from the programme.

And as always, the German commentator was shocked about all the gifting that's going on, as if he's never watched an ice-skating event in his life.

It's going to be an exciting long programme!

 

[Vagabond]

 

[peibeck]

Schizas in SIXTH??? I expect an Executive Order soon canceling the rest of Worlds.

 

[danafan]

Schizas in SIXTH??? I expect an Executive Order soon canceling the rest of Worlds.

Hey Canada's a proud nation, especially now. You don't want to mess with us

 

[Karen-W]

Schizas in SIXTH??? I expect an Executive Order soon canceling the rest of Worlds.

Nahhhhh... Not when the US has women in 1st & 3rd.

 

[peibeck]

Hey Canada's a proud nation, especially now. You don't want to mess with us

That's what he's afraid of.

 

[honey]

Isabeau really came through with a clutch performance. Really good job from her! That can’t have been easy.

 

[peibeck]

IIRC Alysa wore Olivia Smart's RD dress for the gala at the Olympics, maybe she could do the environmentally-friendly thing and borrow or recycle again

If a costume goes missing from the Mathieu Caron exhibit I'll let you all know.

 

[Rukia]

I thought Chiba looked really junior too, but at least she was fun. I was actually more impressed by Repond than I thought I would be?? There was something very elegant and interesting about her movments. I thought Isabeau's jumps looked the worst I've ever seen them live lol. Petrokina's skating felt kind of small to me. I looooooooved Kaori. Her fw was probably my favorite thing of the day. Amber did a good job of keeping the energy after the axel mistake. Schizas looked to me just like she does on camera which is just not my thing. Ah well ready to go suffer through some potentially scary pairs I guess.

 

[Cachoo]

My two cents on the SP (picking and choosing the skaters I have something to say about):

• Nina P's programme is one of the most beautifully choreographed programmes I've ever seen. I know her jumps are small, but her extensions and her intensity are beautiful and I don't think she's getting the appreciation she deserves. Probably because she isn't Belgium's #1?
• Chibe looks very juniorish to me, but I'm not sure that'll ever change, it's just how she is. She's 19, not 15, but she skates and looks much younger. I guess the judges don't care.
• Gubanova. I just want her to come back from this. So unfair. Mao Asada vibes.
• I actually loved Kaori's programme at the beginning of the season, but she has since lost any commitment to the choreography, as is often the case with her. Even her posture for her starting pose was not great (I remember making a similar comment about her starting pose last year, where she had no turn out whatsoever). I can't get behind her anymore, not when you have skaters who are much better performers.
• I'm trying to like Kimmy Repond, but it still looks to me like she hasn't mastered a way to use her long limbs. I felt the same about Kostner for most of her career. Kimmy also looks like she's really focused on following the choreo she learned, not like she's skating to the music and actually interpreting it.
• Alisa Liu is a natural born performer and skater. I could watch her all day. I'm thrilled for her.
• Isabeau did really well, but those jumps are ugly and to me they take away from the programme.

And as always, the German commentator was shocked about all the gifting that's going on, as if he's never watched an ice-skating event in his life.

It's going to be an exciting long programme!

I loved what you had to say especially about Nina. And Liu has my favorite short program this year. It fits her so well. I am thrilled for her. I also enjoyed Sofia Samodelkina. She is fairly new to me but someone to watch imo.

 

[Alilou]

Madeline makes the final group!

Oh dear, not sure that pressure will be beneficial in the free.

I think it could take the pressure off her. It's not like she's aiming to medal; she's only aiming to make the top ten, and with this SP she's already ahead of the game.

 

[floridaice]

I'm trying to like Kimmy Repond, but it still looks to me like she hasn't mastered a way to use her long limbs. I felt the same about Kostner for most of her career. Kimmy also looks like she's really focused on following the choreo she learned, not like she's skating to the music and actually interpreting it.

I feel the same about Kimmy. It's taking her time to adjust to her more adult body and that is understandable. But she needs programs that help her with that and she isn't getting that type of choreo.

 

[Cachoo]

I think it could take the pressure off her. It's not like she's aiming to medal; she's only aiming to make the top ten, and with this SP she's already ahead of the game.

Great point. I think the pressure would be worse if she was sitting at ten or eleven.

 

[Andrey aka Pushkin]

I will never understand the Kim phenomen. In my books she is a mediocre skater and a decent jumper. I don't get her high placements.

What phenomenon

 

[TAHbKA]

What phenomenon

Her placing high, her medalling at worlds, her being in quite a lot of people's worlds medals predictions...

 

[thvu]

I’m sitting with @tony and he has Tim Goebel here with him chatting away. And then Brian boitano just came and joined them. #accidentalvoids

 

[zigzig]

Mone gets a q on her combo and Isabeau getting her combo called clean. Eeenteresting.

 

[genevieve]

I watched selections from the SP. Honestly I'm surprised that neither Higuchi nor Chiba are ahead of Liu, but I will with all of Boston if Alysa vibes her way to a World Championship.

Gutted for Amber and hoping she has some sort of miracle comeback.

Kaori

I liked the program from Isabeau. It's nice to see her in an elegant, streamlined costume without various ruffles, poufs and just extra fabric everywhere.

KMT was a surprisingly pleasant commentator

 

[honey]

Rewatched a few programs this morning and there were quite a few good ones.

Alysa’s short program is special. She should maybe start next season with someone new and go back to this for the back half of next season. Keeping it all the way might make it stale. But this deserves an Olympic moment.

Sure the toe wasn’t around, but neither was practically anyone else’s yesterday. So, I can’t really complain that much. I do think her free skate is a much weaker vehicle for her, but skating at home as the leader it might not matter if she delivers. Very interested to see how this plays out.

I don’t really get the comments that Chiba skates junior. I think she looks young but she doesn’t skate young. I wasn’t there live so tough to judge speed and ice coverage but all the ingredients in her skating are high quality and I thought she sold the heck of out the program. Shoulder shimmy aside, she looked comfortable with that and was able to pull it off. Similarly to Alysa, I also think her free skate is the weaker program (I just find it boring), but I could see her winning this.

I think Kaori will have a lot of pressure to redeem herself on Friday and it will be interesting to see how it goes. She’s done it before though clearly.

I was not surprised by Amber’s skate unfortunately. She’s just seemed overwhelmed and a bit out of sorts since she got there. She looked slow and tentative in a way she had not all season. I don’t really expect a huge redemption skate on Friday but would be thrilled for her if she could do it. I feel bad for her though. This was now or never to be a world champion and it slipped away.

Still giving props to Isabeau for getting that program out. It’s a beautiful program and she did the jumps to the best of her ability. I think the long could be a different story, but she handled herself admirably in the short in what had to have been an insane amount of pressure.

 

[Private Citizen]

Still giving props to Isabeau for getting that program out. It’s a beautiful program and she did the jumps to the best of her ability. I think the long could be a different story, but she handled herself admirably in the short in what had to have been an insane amount of pressure.

I'm amazed at how much better she looked than in Milan or even the DC memorial show. She may have really lucked out with Worlds being one week later than usual. Her coaches, whatever people may think of them (I'm not fans), seem to have timed her training very well.

The free skate may well be a different story, but encouragingly she didn't seem to have stamina issues at the Olympic test event. The mistakes were all early. Her program is constructed in such a way that she's done jumping by 2:30. Fingers crossed she can keep this positive momentum. Her jumps looked as good as they get, given her technique.

 

[PRlady]

After seeing her again live, I thought sadly that Isabeau could be a multi-year world champion if she’d been taught proper jump technique. In person the contrast between her jumps and everything else is so jarring.

Alysa skates like she’s out on a pond skating for herself out of love for movement and music. That can’t be taught. Some of the other skaters also inhabited their music -Mone loves that program no matter what anyone thinks - and to me it really differentiates between technical knowledge and a complete performance.

Both Nina and Niina look better on TV.

Kaori was just…businesslike. I miss her freedom and power and that aura of invincibility. Just not there this year.