Well, we can rest assured that bullshit continues to reign in the world of figure skating. What I'm seeing here (see below) says that Kim Yu Na WON the free skate. NOT. I watched her performance, and I watched Asada's performance. I watched every performance for the last 3 groups (18 skaters). I'm no expert but I've watched figure skating for over 45 years and I've learned a few things about it in that time.
So reputation trumps actual performance for Kim. She didn't look too happy on the medals stand, I'm thinking she knows she got an absolute gift in that silver medal. If she's not thinking it, she SHOULD be. I've got nothing against Kim Yu Na, I think she is a magical skater. But not in this competition.
Kim sure as hell did not out-performace Mao Asada in the Free Skate nor do I think that she out-performed Mirai Nagasu. Asada has her shortcomings but she did a really fine performance in the Free Skate, I thought it was better than her performance at the Olympics. The American skaters were absolutely screwed. No way did Nagasu deserve 11th place ranking for her Free Skate - not after what I saw the other skaters did. It's all there, you will be able to watch it on video and judge for yourselves. I'm thinking the judges thought the Americans won an ice-dance medal and that's enough for this year, and since Nagasu is the "future of American figure skating" (and they are all hoping that Rachel Flatt leaves the sport and becomes a Nobel Prize Winner in science) they could screw them over with their scores. Which they did. Way to go, judges.
FPl. Name Nation Points SP FS
1 Mao ASADA JPN 197.58 2 2
2 Yu-Na KIM KOR 190.79 7 1 WAY OVERSCORED
3 Laura LEPISTO FIN 178.62 3 6 WAY OVERSCORED
4 Miki ANDO JPN 177.82 11 3 WAY UNDERSCORED
5 Cynthia PHANEUF CAN 177.54 8 4
6 Carolina KOSTNER ITA 177.31 4 5 OVERSCORED
7 Mirai NAGASU USA 175.48 1 11 WAY UNDERSCORED
8 Ksenia MAKAROVA RUS 169.64 5 8 OVERSCORED
9 Rachael FLATT USA 167.44 6 9 UNDERSCORED
10 Viktoria HELGESSON SWE 161.79 9 10
Here is the table for the Free Skate (top skaters):
Pl. Name Nation TSS = TES + PCS + SS TR PE CH IN Ded. - StN.
1 Yu-Na KIM KOR 130.49 66.45 65.04 8.35 7.75 7.95 8.15 8.45 1.00 #15
2 Mao ASADA JPN 129.50 67.02 62.48 8.25 7.40 7.95 7.55 7.90 0.00 #20
3 Miki ANDO JPN 122.04 63.64 58.40 7.35 6.85 7.60 7.30 7.40 0.00 #14
4 Cynthia PHANEUF CAN 118.04 61.48 56.56 7.20 6.65 7.35 7.15 7.00 0.00 #17
5 Carolina KOSTNER ITA 115.11 54.87 60.24 7.70 7.20 7.55 7.55 7.65 0.00 #19
6 Laura LEPISTO FIN 114.32 54.24 60.08 7.60 7.40 7.45 7.50 7.60 0.00 #22
7 Akiko SUZUKI JPN 111.68 58.96 52.72 6.80 6.10 6.85 6.55 6.65 0.00 #6
8 Ksenia MAKAROVA RUS 107.58 55.14 53.44 6.80 6.20 7.00 6.70 6.70 1.00 #24
9 Rachael FLATT USA 106.56 53.20 53.36 6.75 6.45 6.75 6.75 6.65 0.00 #21
10 Viktoria HELGESSON SWE 105.47 54.91 50.56 6.40 6.05 6.55 6.40 6.20 0.00 #16
11 Mirai NAGASU USA 105.08 49.04 57.04 7.40 6.75 7.20 7.25 7.05 1.00 #23
12 Jenna MCCORKELL GBR 98.78 51.82 46.96 6.10 5.40 6.20 5.80 5.85 0.00 #10
13 Sarah HECKEN GER 98.74 54.14 45.60 5.90 5.35 5.85 5.70 5.70 1.00 #7
14 Alena LEONOVA RUS 98.50 51.50 48.00 6.25 5.75 6.00 6.00 6.00 1.00 #8
15 Julia SEBESTYEN HUN 91.56 42.28 49.28 6.55 5.90 6.30 6.05 6.00 0.00 #18
16 Yan LIU CHN 91.33 47.65 43.68 5.70 5.45 5.30 5.60 5.25 0.00 #12
Liu Yan - that's the Chinese skater I mentioned in my earlier post today. I'm thinking keep your eye on her. She's got something special, despite the lousy costume. I think she's got that "IT" factor. Looking forward to seeing the competition heat up between her and Nagasu in the next few years. For the Russians, Leonova has more "it" than Makarova, but Makarova has a "prettier" presence on the ice. Leonova, ditch the "edgy" haircut, it doesn't do anything for you, trust me girlfriend.
Rachel Flatt should change her last name and lose 10 pounds. I know that sounds cruel - but I will bet you money that is what every single international judge who is looking at her thinks.
I love Miki Ando, but she peaked in 2007 and hasn't been back since. Today I saw more spark in her than in the last year - she was particularly flat at the Olympics. I think she should retire, I think she will be a fabulous coach because she knows what it feels like to "lose that loving feeling" for the sport. I think she should coach Nagasu after Frank Carol retires.
That's it until Nationals for me, in January 2011. Geez, I'm getting old, and I'm not liking it one bit.
Showing posts with label 2010 World Figure Skating Championships. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2010 World Figure Skating Championships. Show all posts
Saturday, March 27, 2010
2010 Worlds Ladies' Free Skate
I've been watching the live action on Universal Sports online since 8 a.m. and have seen all of the key performances thus far. Very interesting!
Kim Yu Na goofed up in the last part of her program, again on easy elements that she should be able to do while sleepwalking! and it's doubtful that she will make the podium unless the top 3 skaters really screw up. The last group is getting ready to skate right now (10:09 a.m.) - the 2 Americans are in it, the Italian belle Carolina Kostner and the Japanese powerhouse Mao Asada - stay tuned!
10:14 a.m. - Kostner has a great presence on the ice and is a lovely young lady. She has had some problems with her triple jumps but has not fallen (a big plus) and her home country crowd is behind her all the way. Awaiting scores - there is a break right now where an advertisement would normally be but there are none so I just have to wait for the blank screen to reappear! 10:17 a.m. - score for Kostner: 115.11, puts her into 4th place. Crowd not happy about that but she will finish in the top 10.
Mao Asada now up - with 2 triple axles planned. World champion in 2008 - let's see -- she landed both triple axles (the second in combination with a double toe loop?) cleanly - still not liking that costume though. 10:23 a.m. - looks like a perfect performance to me. Commentators are already crowning her at the new world champion, stating that she landed 6 triples and Kim Yu Na landing 5. Waiting for the scores --129.50 (a few points below her season's best). She is now in 1st place, 7 points higher than Kim Yu Na. Announced at 10:28 a.m. by the commentators - Mao's 2nd triple axle was downgraded.
Now Rachel Flatt skates. Rachel had a triple/triple planned but she doubled the second jump after a problem landing on the triple flip; now she has just popped another triple. Looks discombobulated. Score: 106.06, puts her in 6th place with 3 skaters remaining, so she will be in the top 10, but is not happy with her performance.
Laura Lepisto is skating now (10:33 a.m.) -- lovely presence on the ice and nice speed. Love the costume. She doubled a triple loop (Tara Lapinski commentating said she slipped off an edge). Very nice musicality, but she popped a couple of jumps. 10:38 a.m. - waiting for scores after a short break (arrgggh). 10:40 a.m. - waiting for scores -- 114.32, puts her into 3rd place, with 2 skaters left to go.
Nagasu up NOW. Oh my - she had problems on her 2 triple lutzes and fell on her double axle, but oh my, what a performer and the got the audience behind her. So now, 10:46 a.m. waiting for scores. Commentary by Frank Carroll in the kiss and cry - you're not dead! Score - 105.08 and they knocked her to 7th place. That's bullshit. Compared to the other skaters she did not deserve to be so severely downgraded. Looks like the judges are already setting up the Russian skater.
10:52 a.m. who just fell on a triple Salchow, otherwise clean program but not overly inspiring. Waiting for scores -- 107.58, in 8th place. That's okay. I do not think she outskated Nagasu, who should be placed higher than 7th. That's just bullshit.
11:08 a.m. - I made the mistake of trying to get to the ISU page to see the table of scores. Ach. It's been 10 minutes now and the page is still downloading.
Asada wins gold - well deserved and absolutely earned at this championship. I think Nagasu has better artistry and presence on the ice, though, as do several other skaters I saw today, including a Chinese skater who had a horrid costume but skated a lovely performance -- I'll have to hunt down her name.
Kim Yu Na won silver? - Not deserved, absolutely not deserved. Shades of the old scoring system, she was propped up.
Is that Lapisto on the stand for the bronze? Yep. Oh, Johnny Weir says she was grossly overscored technically. I think he's right. He said Miki Ando should have won the bronze, so does Tara Lapinski.
I will post the top 10 scores table when I can get it to open! I don't know where Nagasu ended up.
Kim Yu Na goofed up in the last part of her program, again on easy elements that she should be able to do while sleepwalking! and it's doubtful that she will make the podium unless the top 3 skaters really screw up. The last group is getting ready to skate right now (10:09 a.m.) - the 2 Americans are in it, the Italian belle Carolina Kostner and the Japanese powerhouse Mao Asada - stay tuned!
10:14 a.m. - Kostner has a great presence on the ice and is a lovely young lady. She has had some problems with her triple jumps but has not fallen (a big plus) and her home country crowd is behind her all the way. Awaiting scores - there is a break right now where an advertisement would normally be but there are none so I just have to wait for the blank screen to reappear! 10:17 a.m. - score for Kostner: 115.11, puts her into 4th place. Crowd not happy about that but she will finish in the top 10.
Mao Asada now up - with 2 triple axles planned. World champion in 2008 - let's see -- she landed both triple axles (the second in combination with a double toe loop?) cleanly - still not liking that costume though. 10:23 a.m. - looks like a perfect performance to me. Commentators are already crowning her at the new world champion, stating that she landed 6 triples and Kim Yu Na landing 5. Waiting for the scores --129.50 (a few points below her season's best). She is now in 1st place, 7 points higher than Kim Yu Na. Announced at 10:28 a.m. by the commentators - Mao's 2nd triple axle was downgraded.
Now Rachel Flatt skates. Rachel had a triple/triple planned but she doubled the second jump after a problem landing on the triple flip; now she has just popped another triple. Looks discombobulated. Score: 106.06, puts her in 6th place with 3 skaters remaining, so she will be in the top 10, but is not happy with her performance.
Laura Lepisto is skating now (10:33 a.m.) -- lovely presence on the ice and nice speed. Love the costume. She doubled a triple loop (Tara Lapinski commentating said she slipped off an edge). Very nice musicality, but she popped a couple of jumps. 10:38 a.m. - waiting for scores after a short break (arrgggh). 10:40 a.m. - waiting for scores -- 114.32, puts her into 3rd place, with 2 skaters left to go.
Nagasu up NOW. Oh my - she had problems on her 2 triple lutzes and fell on her double axle, but oh my, what a performer and the got the audience behind her. So now, 10:46 a.m. waiting for scores. Commentary by Frank Carroll in the kiss and cry - you're not dead! Score - 105.08 and they knocked her to 7th place. That's bullshit. Compared to the other skaters she did not deserve to be so severely downgraded. Looks like the judges are already setting up the Russian skater.
10:52 a.m. who just fell on a triple Salchow, otherwise clean program but not overly inspiring. Waiting for scores -- 107.58, in 8th place. That's okay. I do not think she outskated Nagasu, who should be placed higher than 7th. That's just bullshit.
11:08 a.m. - I made the mistake of trying to get to the ISU page to see the table of scores. Ach. It's been 10 minutes now and the page is still downloading.
Asada wins gold - well deserved and absolutely earned at this championship. I think Nagasu has better artistry and presence on the ice, though, as do several other skaters I saw today, including a Chinese skater who had a horrid costume but skated a lovely performance -- I'll have to hunt down her name.
Kim Yu Na won silver? - Not deserved, absolutely not deserved. Shades of the old scoring system, she was propped up.
Is that Lapisto on the stand for the bronze? Yep. Oh, Johnny Weir says she was grossly overscored technically. I think he's right. He said Miki Ando should have won the bronze, so does Tara Lapinski.
I will post the top 10 scores table when I can get it to open! I don't know where Nagasu ended up.
Friday, March 26, 2010
News coverage about 2010 Worlds Women's Short Program
Kim was obviously distracted. She had problems with a triple flip jump, missed a pirouette before messing up her spiral sequence.
"My first triple-triple was really good and I was ready to do my flip. I don't know what happened, my left foot was just shaking a lot and I just want to find out what it is," the South Korean told Italy's Rai TV.
She received no credit at all for a spin, under-rotated a triple flip and bungled a spiral. Not even her strong opening triple-triple combo could make up for that. Her score of 60.30 points was more than 18 points behind her record-setting performance at the Vancouver Games.
"I felt very good at the warmup. My first jump, the triple-triple, was really great. And then after that I felt I was ready to do a triple flip. It was really weird. I don't know what happened," Kim said. "It's the first time I missed the elements like that."
Phillip Hersh at the Chicago Tribune said Kim had problems on a triple flip jump, totally botched part of her spiral sequence.
This story just showed up in a Google News Search from The Chosun Ilbo (English Edition) dated March 27, 2010 - foreshadowing problems? - you decide:
Kim reportedly had a brief period of drifting after winning the gold medal at the Vancouver Olympics last month. Having "achieved everything," as she put it, she was in state of indifference and absent-mindedness, missing some practice sessions. "There was no physical problem, but I lost motivation since the Olympics," Kim said after completing her official practice in Turin on Thursday. "But I'm okay now that I'm here skating with the other athletes."
I am guessing the editor for The Chosun Ilbo English Edition had not yet heard the news about Kim's crash and burn during the World Short Program.
Added at 1:43 p.m.:
Oh my - this sounds awful - from Canada's The Globe and Mail:
Olympic champion Kim Yu-Na fell from grace in less than three minutes on Friday, looking almost disoriented in the women’s short program at the world figure skating championships.
Kim finished only seventh after under rotating a triple flip, falling out of a layback spin, slipping out of a spiral, fumbling her way through footwork and then looking rather confused in front of the judges, almost as if she forgot what she was doing.
The skater who is known to chalk up points as easily as breathing, found out how quickly you can lose points too. She got zero points for her layback spin and only a rudimentary level of difficulty on her spiral.
So what is with the judges' BIAS against Rachel Flatt? She skated cleanly and they STILL gave her a crap score in comparison to Kim who, from reading the various descriptions in the stories cited above, totally messed up her Short Program.
Mirai Nagasu in FIRST PLACE after Worlds Short Program
It's official - Nagasu in 1st, Rachel Flatt is in 6th. Olympic gold medalist Kim Nu Ya is in 7th place.
I had a chance to find out a little bit more about the scoring - not that I understand all of it, but you can see that Nagasu outscored Kim on the technical side a whopping 10.1 points! Side by side, their scores for program components were very close, with Kim edging out Nagasu 30.28 to 30.20 - only .08 a point separating them.
Here are the items that go into the Program Components (formerly "presentation") scores:
SS = Skating Skills
TR = Transitions/linking footwork and movement
PE = Performance/Execution
CH = Choreography/composition
IN = Interpretation
So - does this mean that Nagasu outskated everyone on the technical side - crisp edging, centered spins, elegant lines and amazing stretch and flexibility in her spirals, perfect take-offs and landings on jumps? Of the top 10 skaters, Nagasu has the highest TES (Technical Score), outscoring even the mighty Asada with her triple axel!
I'll be interested to read what the skating people have to say about this. I admit I'm shocked - not that Nagasu did so well (considering her break-out performance at the Olympics) but that Kim "fell" so far -- and that is absolutely ridiculous sounding, isn't it, since she currently sits in 7th place and that is VERY respectable. But those 10.1 points in total score that separate Kim from Nagasu - can she make them up in the Free Skate? Will Nagasu be able to hold it together and deliver a fabulous and technically sound Free Skate to fend off the skaters who will be aiming square at her to knock her off the podium?
The pressure both skaters will be feeling - unbelievable. Oy! When is the Free Skate? -- Just checked -- it's tomorrow 3/27.
I had a chance to find out a little bit more about the scoring - not that I understand all of it, but you can see that Nagasu outscored Kim on the technical side a whopping 10.1 points! Side by side, their scores for program components were very close, with Kim edging out Nagasu 30.28 to 30.20 - only .08 a point separating them.
Here are the items that go into the Program Components (formerly "presentation") scores:
SS = Skating Skills
TR = Transitions/linking footwork and movement
PE = Performance/Execution
CH = Choreography/composition
IN = Interpretation
So - does this mean that Nagasu outskated everyone on the technical side - crisp edging, centered spins, elegant lines and amazing stretch and flexibility in her spirals, perfect take-offs and landings on jumps? Of the top 10 skaters, Nagasu has the highest TES (Technical Score), outscoring even the mighty Asada with her triple axel!
I'll be interested to read what the skating people have to say about this. I admit I'm shocked - not that Nagasu did so well (considering her break-out performance at the Olympics) but that Kim "fell" so far -- and that is absolutely ridiculous sounding, isn't it, since she currently sits in 7th place and that is VERY respectable. But those 10.1 points in total score that separate Kim from Nagasu - can she make them up in the Free Skate? Will Nagasu be able to hold it together and deliver a fabulous and technically sound Free Skate to fend off the skaters who will be aiming square at her to knock her off the podium?
The pressure both skaters will be feeling - unbelievable. Oy! When is the Free Skate? -- Just checked -- it's tomorrow 3/27.
USA's Mirai Nagasu currently in first - Worlds short program!
Holy Goddess! I'm trying to work and following the rankings as they happen live at the ISU website (can't watch the programs on Universal sports because we cannot download the needed program to our computers) - Nagasu just finished her short program and scored a season best score of 70.40 -- dig this -- she knocked Mao Asada into second place, who has 68.08! Next up is Kim Yu Na.
Unbelievable! Stay tuned...
11:17 a.m. - OHMYGODDESS! Kim is in 6th place - she scored 60.30. Unbelievable! What the hell happened? No time to check element scores and stuff like that - I'm supposed to be working...
Rachel Flatt has yet to skate - can she bump Asada out of second place so the unheralded American teens land in 1st and 2nd after the short program? I can feel my hair turning grey...
11:19 a.m. - Akiko Suzuki finished skating and is in 17th place. Rachel Flatt is up next...
THE TENSION IS KILLING ME...
11:28 a.m. - WOW! Rachel knocked Kim Yu Na out of 6th place. She scored 60.88 to Kim's 60.30. Are people jumping out of buildings in South Korea at this moment?
Here's the stats for the top 7 thus far:
Pl. Qual. Name Nation TSS = TES + PCS + SS TR PE CH IN Ded. - StN.
1 Q Mirai NAGASU USA 70.40 40.20 30.20 7.60 7.15 7.70 7.70 7.60 0.00 #50
2 Q Mao ASADA JPN 68.08 37.12 30.96 7.95 7.25 7.95 7.65 7.90 0.00 #45
3 Q Laura LEPISTO FIN 64.30 34.98 29.32 7.45 7.10 7.20 7.40 7.50 0.00 #48
4 Q Carolina KOSTNER ITA 62.20 33.20 29.00 7.25 6.90 7.25 7.35 7.50 0.00 #44
5 Q Ksenia MAKAROVA RUS 62.06 36.90 25.16 6.50 5.90 6.50 6.25 6.30 0.00 #42
6 Q Rachael FLATT USA 60.88 33.80 27.08 6.60 6.15 7.25 6.85 7.00 0.00 #53
7 Q Yu-Na KIM KOR 60.30 30.02 30.28 7.95 7.45 7.30 7.70 7.45 0.00 #51
I don't know how many more skaters there are to go - there can't be that many -- they were already skating when I checked the news this morning at 6:30 a.m.
11:36 a.m. - THIS IS HUGE, HUGE! I don't see any deductions for Kim so was it her performance? Arggghhh, I won't be able to even check Universal Sports for replays until I get home tonight, unless something goes up at You Tube over my lunch hour...
Unbelievable! Stay tuned...
11:17 a.m. - OHMYGODDESS! Kim is in 6th place - she scored 60.30. Unbelievable! What the hell happened? No time to check element scores and stuff like that - I'm supposed to be working...
Rachel Flatt has yet to skate - can she bump Asada out of second place so the unheralded American teens land in 1st and 2nd after the short program? I can feel my hair turning grey...
11:19 a.m. - Akiko Suzuki finished skating and is in 17th place. Rachel Flatt is up next...
THE TENSION IS KILLING ME...
11:28 a.m. - WOW! Rachel knocked Kim Yu Na out of 6th place. She scored 60.88 to Kim's 60.30. Are people jumping out of buildings in South Korea at this moment?
Here's the stats for the top 7 thus far:
Pl. Qual. Name Nation TSS = TES + PCS + SS TR PE CH IN Ded. - StN.
1 Q Mirai NAGASU USA 70.40 40.20 30.20 7.60 7.15 7.70 7.70 7.60 0.00 #50
2 Q Mao ASADA JPN 68.08 37.12 30.96 7.95 7.25 7.95 7.65 7.90 0.00 #45
3 Q Laura LEPISTO FIN 64.30 34.98 29.32 7.45 7.10 7.20 7.40 7.50 0.00 #48
4 Q Carolina KOSTNER ITA 62.20 33.20 29.00 7.25 6.90 7.25 7.35 7.50 0.00 #44
5 Q Ksenia MAKAROVA RUS 62.06 36.90 25.16 6.50 5.90 6.50 6.25 6.30 0.00 #42
6 Q Rachael FLATT USA 60.88 33.80 27.08 6.60 6.15 7.25 6.85 7.00 0.00 #53
7 Q Yu-Na KIM KOR 60.30 30.02 30.28 7.95 7.45 7.30 7.70 7.45 0.00 #51
I don't know how many more skaters there are to go - there can't be that many -- they were already skating when I checked the news this morning at 6:30 a.m.
11:36 a.m. - THIS IS HUGE, HUGE! I don't see any deductions for Kim so was it her performance? Arggghhh, I won't be able to even check Universal Sports for replays until I get home tonight, unless something goes up at You Tube over my lunch hour...
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