2023 Grand Prix Final - Free Dance: “China In Your Dance”

[tony]

So none of it is glaringly horrible, but she’s on very shallow edges through almost everything. In the one foot, to my eye, he kinda wobbled on the very first entry change of edge. They have him at L4 right now but I don’t agree.

ETA- Watching in slo-mo, I really don’t think his L4 should stand.

But more than anything, there’s just so much non-skating in this program and when there is actual skating between the elements, it’s just setting up with very basic skating. That really needs to be reflected in the composition.

 

[Karen-W]

Haaaaaa... Mark is reading PCS criteria after FearGib's program. Go ahead, FSU armchair judges, argue with him!!!

 

[PRlady]

Listening to Mark explaining their marks

 

[victorskid]

The FD scores for the first group (no change in the standings)

1​	Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON	GBR	126.03​	70.67​		55.36​	9.29​	9.43​	8.96​	0.00​	#3​
2​	Laurence FOURNIER BEAUDRY / Nikolaj SOERENSEN	CAN	120.75​	66.61​		54.14​	9.14​	9.11​	8.82​	0.00​	#2​
3​	Marjorie LAJOIE / Zachary LAGHA	CAN	118.89​	66.59​		52.30​	8.79​	8.75​	8.61​	0.00​	#1​

 

[Frau Muller]

I enjoyed LaLa the most, among first group.

I don’t mind if I don’t have to watch F/G’s Rocky FD again. Yuk.

 

[skatingguy]

Piper Gilles/Paul Poirier
Coach: Carol Lane, Juris Razgulajevs, Jon Lane
Music: Wuthering Heights (soundtrack) by R. Sakamoto

 

[airgelaal]

Let's make Barbara happy today

 

[Holy Headband]

I know I harp on this as much as I harp on the camel spins of junior men, but seriously, why are so few of the lifts in ice dance actually beautiful nowadays?

 

[leilaofpaper]

I know I harp on this as much as I harp on the camel spins of junior men, but seriously, why are so few of the lifts in ice dance actually beautiful nowadays?

Level 4 requirements.

 

[skatingguy]

Piper Gilles/Paul Poirier
Coach: Carol Lane, Juris Razgulajevs, Jon Lane
Music: Wuthering Heights (soundtrack) by R. Sakamoto

OFTW2+OFTM3 (Piper to 3 after review)
Straight Line Lift 4 + Rotational Lift 4
Choreo Character Step Sequence
SyTwW4+SyTwM4 - Paul looked slightly dicey in the first set
Dance Spin 4
DiStW3+DiStM2
Curve Lift 4
Choreo Dance Lift
Choreo Hydroblade Move

They certainly perform the program, but I'm not sure I really understand what's going on in the story they're telling. Level issues today again on the steps. Also Paul's first twizzle looked problematic, and that may be reviewed down a level.

128.41 = 1st Place
213.58 = 1st Place

 

[tony]

Her twizzle was up on the toe during the one-foot, don’t know if they started exactly together either so I think her L2 will stay. Can’t judge the other step when the camera is from up above but he’s the one low there, and it looked to me like they were slightly off positioning at the end of it because that choreography where they faced each other looked super clunky. She sometimes gets dragged around and barely lifts her free foot off the ice, too, but that’s always been the case.

It’s a beautiful program, just still lacking the magic they’ve had for me in other programs.

 

[Colonel Green]

I love this program.

 

[Gris]

I feel this is better than their CoC skate. But I still think they skated this best at SC.

 

[miffy]

I know I harp on this as much as I harp on the camel spins of junior men, but seriously, why are so few of the lifts in ice dance actually beautiful nowadays?

I think it’s still better than early CoP when we had all the upside down in a split lifts and those naughty looking ones

 

[skatingguy]

Charlene Guignard/Marco Fabbri
Coach: Barbara Fusar Poli, Roberto Pelizzola
Music: The Theory of Everything

 

[skatingguy]

I think it’s still better than early CoP when we had all the upside down in a split lifts and those naughty looking ones

The foot to the head feature days.

 

[Holy Headband]

Level 4 requirements.

But some couples still make them look nice, like L/Q, the boring Finns, etc. I think IAM are just bad at it overall! But I take your point that the rules don't encourage imaginative choreo.

 

[miffy]

The foot to the head feature days.

Diva Navka cutting her hand open to get the feature & win Worlds

 

[Gris]

G/F’s OfSt is the most effortless one by faaaaar.

Give them all the points!

 

[tony]

The opening choreography is absolutely stunning for the Italians. And they gather and maintain so much speed while weaving through complex edges and unexpected direction changes in between the elements. I never worry about them but I do think they had a problem (him) on the Twizzle final features of their one-foot.

This IS the best team in the world on quality of elements, skating skills, and composition IMO. Performance, maybe they aren’t the most outgoing team with the biggest fluff to get high choreographic move GOE, but it’s all just so wonderful.

 

[Colonel Green]

Choreo kiss GOE will be high.

 

[tony]

Best skating skills comfortably. How long have I been ranting? Always on an edge, never a flat. How long have I been ranting?

If they are comfortably the best in the PCS category, it shouldn’t be .12 higher or whatever the judges decide today.

 

[Wyliefan]

Choreo kiss GOE will be high.

I would expect no less of Italians.

 

[skatingguy]

Charlene Guignard/Marco Fabbri
Coach: Barbara Fusar Poli, Roberto Pelizzola
Music: The Theory of Everything

Choreo Assisted Jump
SyTwW4+SyTwM4
Curve Lift 4 + Rotational Lift 4
CiStW4+CiStM3
Dance Spin 4
Choreo Character Step Sequence
OFTW3+OFTM2
Choreo Slide Move
Stationary Lift 4

Beautiful skate. Musical, emotive, and an exceptional quality of movement. Questions about the levels One Foot Turns as this is the 2nd competition in a row that have struggled with the levels of that element. Also, whoever is directing the broadcast please don't pull away to an overhead shot ever, thank you.

129.69 = 1st Place
215.51 = 1st Place

 

[airgelaal]

Judges, you better not disappoint Barbara.

 

[skatingguy]

Madison Chock/Evan Bates
Coach: M.-F. Dubreuil, P. Lauzon, R. Haguenauer
Music: Time, Breathe, Eclipse

 

[Holy Headband]

Hard to believe G/F lost to F/G just a couple of weeks ago. It feels like a half-remembered nightmare.

 

[PRlady]

I couldn’t see any errors today at all. The choreo is introspective and won’t ever get the audience going, but that’s who they are.

 

[Andrey aka Pushkin]

It's funny how they do everything in their power to make Chock spend as much time in the air as possible.

 

[tony]

I don’t hate the first minute of this program at all. It’s actually pretty brilliant. But then it just loses me and there are so many stop and go moments where he’s just doing most of the work. Coming after most of these teams, they just don’t have the push or speed, they don’t have the complexity in between, and they aren’t able to gain speed on their changes of edge and direction like the Italians do.

None of it matters when the GOE is as high as it is here, and their PCS surely will be approaching 10s too.