Recent content by barbk

I just watched the segment of Liza Tuktamysheva @Ka3sha posted (and @Sylvia reposted)-- I'm glad she had such a beautiful opportunity. She has been my favorite Russian female skater for more than a dozen years. (Also, interesting and cool to hear Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah sung in Russian.)...

And some of the proposals (Two free programs!, 3 GP events for some skaters!) were tried previously...with issues. I'd be very curious about skater reactions to the notion of off-ice warmup instead of on-ice warmup. They already do off-ice warmup...but getting a sense of how the ice is NOW...

That was a gorgeous costume, but she was stunning in almost everything she wore for skating aside from that chartreuse and purple outfit when she won nationals. I think she was a lot like Kira Korpi or Madison Chock--women who could wear a bedsheet and make it look fabulous.

If men get split and dance gets split, I'd like to see Alysa do the team event. She seems the least nervy of the competitors on the big stage. If women get split, I'd go with Alysa for the short and Amber for the long.

Nope. I dream of Chock costuming Oona Brown so that she finally has a costume that works for her.

Indoor fireworks/sparklers are a terrible idea, and flammable material connected to other flammable material (like ceiling sound insulation) should never be allowed. The even bigger issue is that the doorways/stairways were far too narrow to allow rapid egress. Basements have no business as...

Putting Jason on the World team increases the chances of keeping an extra spot for 2027. And, his BOW is way better than anyone left off the team. National free program was his worst skate in more than a decade. I don't think that should imply that all his future skates will be like that one.

I thought solo skaters had to have citizenship in the country they're representing at WC/JWC/Olympics?

I was (and continue to be) ignorant of his social media, meltdown or otherwise. I still don't like that he bombed his last two trips to Worlds and would have cost the US a third spot had Brown not come through. He gets a lot of side-eye from me for that. OTOH, none of the men in serious...

What last night really showed...is that Malinin should NOT do both segments of the Team event. And, given Torgashev's meltdowns before, I'd be wary of him doing the SP in the Team event. The free skate has a lot more room for him to do better eve with a fall.

Is it more the callers at Nationals rather than the judges that are the issue? Strategically, I'd be looking to pick callers for Nationals that most closely match what would be expected of those who will do the role at the Olympics.

Oooh...Michael Hopfes of the incredible step sequences...but alas, not of the incredible jumping. OTOH, sometimes coaches who struggled with jumps are the best coaches. I hope so. I really enjoyed his skating. Glad he's still engaged in the sport.

I have very mixed feelings about the acceleration of citizenship for athletes when people going through the regular processing often have to wait weeks or months between passing the test and taking the oath and then waiting again to get a passport.

It will be very interesting to see the men given the questions for that third Olympic spot. I'm thinking that the women's comp may help with 4CC and Worlds-after-Olympics slot discussions.

Lovely routine. I especially like the oozy slink stretch near the start. She showed flexibility with style.