U.S. Women [#7]: Make Me a Believer!

[honey]

Isabeau has a Red Bull sponsorship per her Instagram. Good for her, get those $$$ girl, but Isabeau and Red Bull are not exactly a natural fit in my mind .

 

[kwanfan1818]

They may be trying to target young women, and she’d be a natural for that.

 

[honey]

They may be trying to target young women, and she’d be a natural for that.

I’m sure that’s what they are going for, but Amber or Alysa would seem far more typical red bull athletes. And it’s not to say that Isabeau isn’t just as strong and fierce as any one else sponsored by red bull, but she is certainly outside the box a little bit.

I’m sure we’ll see some more sponsorships and endorsements coming in the next few months. Exciting times for them!

 

[kwanfan1818]

Which is why Levito would appeal to young women who don't see themselves in far more typical Red Bull athletes.

 

[Private Citizen]

Disappointed to see Levito promote energy drinks.

I guess skaters are not actually ripe for endorsements right now, but it's a small step up from Jack Daniels or Marlboro .

 

[Taso]

Disappointed to see Levito promote energy drinks.

I guess skaters are not actually ripe for endorsements right now, but it's a small step up from Jack Daniels or Marlboro .

I thought the smell of financial desperation made you tick?

 

[Allskate]

Isabeau has a Red Bull sponsorship per her Instagram. Good for her, get those $$$ girl, but Isabeau and Red Bull are not exactly a natural fit in my mind .

I’m sure that’s what they are going for, but Amber or Alysa would seem far more typical red bull athletes.

I've been watching the SOI pics and videos Jason has been posting (lot of pics and videos of Isabeau and Amber) and wondering about Isabeau's Red Bull jacket and hat.

I had been thinking that Red Bull would be more a fit for Ilia with his quads and raspberry twist and back flip. But, I can see them wanting to expand their appeal and market. In any event, it's great to see figure skaters getting sponsorships. It's also cool that this is a brand quite different from Prevagen.

 

[sheetz]

Gracie used to be sponsored by Red Bull, too, so it's not their first figure skater.

 

[Aceon6]

I have some tag lines for Red Bull and skating, but I do not see Isabeau as an example of “Red Bull gives you wings”

 

[Willin]

I feel like Ilia would be better than any of the US women for the red bull brand, but Alysa seems the most Red Bull of any of the women...

 

[Coco]

I have some tag lines for Red Bull and skating, but I do not see Isabeau as an example of “Red Bull gives you wings”

I don't know, any triple jump seems like it would go with that tagline.

 

[Allskate]

I have some tag lines for Red Bull and skating, but I do not see Isabeau as an example of “Red Bull gives you wings”

Maybe they're thinking of these kinds of wings:

Isabeau Levito of the United States poses for a photo after performs...

Isabeau Levito of the United States poses for a photo after performs the Gala exhibition of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final at National Indoor Stadium on December 10, 2023 in Beijing,...

www.gettyimages.com

I love that the American skaters are so supportive of each other. Amber and Jason helped Isabeau do the photo of her in the Red Bull merch:

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[Badams]

Good for Isabeau. Make some bank, girl. Strike while you can. Tomorrow, I will drink a red bull in honor of Isabeau.

 

[Impromptu]

Not sure where (if?) this fits, but I noticed that Collegiate Champ and national competitor Wren Warne-Jacobsen is a columnist for the UMN student newspaper: https://mndaily.com/staff_name/wren-warne-jacobsen/

 

[olympic]

WOW. Alysa and Amber scored 150 and 148 respectively in the LPs at the WTT! Unbelievable! The US women are really back and I haven't felt like this in a while, but I'm really looking forward to Nationals next year.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

WOW. Alysa and Amber scored 150 and 148 respectively in the LPs at the WTT! Unbelievable! The US women are really back and I haven't felt like this in a while, but I'm really looking forward to Nationals next year.

And that is with Amber getting sus PCS!!

 

[olympic]

I am thinking both have scoring potential between 225-230 internationally when they execute? Bradie has scored around 220 prior to YKW and Isabeau is probably around 215. Seriously. An abundance of riches.

 

[SkateFanBerlin]

It`s the first time since Kwan that I`m pretty sure a US woman will medal at the OLYs. Even with Sasha it was not for sure. Gracie was still new. Then, the baby-Russia craze (still the 4 top scores). This time we have ladies who have beat other leading ladies.

 

[olympic]

It`s the first time since Kwan that I`m pretty sure a US woman will medal at the OLYs. Even with Sasha it was not for sure. Gracie was still new. Then, the baby-Russia craze (still the 4 top scores). This time we have ladies who have beat other leading ladies.

True, the biggest obstacles will be Kaori: For better or for worse, she is consistently JPN #1 on the biggest stage, and whomever the RUS neutral athlete is. No one knows anything really but per the guidelines, is Adeliya Petrossian a possibility ?

 

[Karen-W]

True, the biggest obstacles will be Kaori: For better or for worse, she is consistently JPN #1 on the biggest stage, and whomever the RUS neutral athlete is. No one knows anything really but per the guidelines, is Adeliya Petrossian a possibility ?

Word in the Russian AIN thread is that it will be Petrosian. I re-watched her FS from RusNats yesterday and I don't think she'll be a factor, even if her 4T and 3A are still there by the Olympics. She'll get buried on PCS because she's not all that engaging as a performer, IMO.

 

[kwanfan1818]

I didn't find Radionova or Lipnitskaia an engaging performer, either. And the judges cliques that have been in place for decades haven't changed much, aside from mandatory retirements, nor the Russian roots of many, no matter how many former SSR's they represent.

 

[honey]

If Peteosian gets only one chance in front of international judges (fake Nebelhorn) before the games, then I think her PCS will probably be somewhat accurate. If things change and she gets a couple challengers and maybe a GP before the games, and delivers every time, then her PCS is going to be significantly higher by the times the Olympics rolls around. We’ve seen this movie a thousand times. Those who deliver again and again consistently are rewarded in PCS whether it is deserved or not. But if she doesn’t get the chance to show that consistency to international panels all season then I think her PCS will be kept in check. Or more in check than it would have been otherwise. JMO of course, but that’s how I see this playing out.

 

[Debbie S]

She'll get buried on PCS because she's not all that engaging as a performer, IMO.

Neither were any previous EteriBots. I hope her PCS will be scored accurately but I don't have much faith.

 

[Karen-W]

Neither were any previous EteriBots. I hope her PCS will be scored accurately but I don't have much faith.

Sure, but Egadze doesn't get any benefit of an Eteri PCS bump. I know he's not Russian, nor is he a teenage girl being doped up with God knows what to stave off puberty, but, I'll hold out hope until we see whether or not the Russians are allowed back for more than just the OQE & the Olympics.

 

[kwanfan1818]

FWIW, I don't think of the Olympic Qualifying Competition as the same as Nebelhorn: besides those qualifying, Germany was allowed multiple entries, and there was incentive to compete even as a non-qualifier: more recently, higher CS points, before that, regular international WS points, early Fall check-in from the judges, the prestige of medaling at an international, etc. While there likely always will be outliers under the new qualification rules, where a nation with a deep field either has someone not qualify for the free or earns an extra spot, or unexpectedly doesn't qualify at Worlds -- Zhou, a former World medalist and Liu, newly senior in 2021, for the 2022 Olympics, and Reed/Ambrulevicius this year -- most of the competition will be apples to apples, or at most, three-tiered: those who had no qualifiers with the World minimums, the teams that barely made the minimums, and those who have a shot at one of the few remaining spots, or, more-or-less, the first few groups at Euros and 4C's.

At 2021 Nebelhorn, which was an outlier in itself, Zhou (1) and Fa (2) -- not yet quite His Fa-Ness -- Lee (5), and Sadovsky (8) would have been there to earn an extra spot, but Kondrutiak (3), and Frangipani (4) would not have, nor would Turkey have had two entries (10,11). And that's a year when CAN, FRA, and KOR unexpectely dropped to one for Worlds, when it's possible that their #2 would have qualified for the FS in Stockholm, earning spots outright, which would have put others on the cusp into the qualifier.

For Ladies in 2021, only one skater, Paganini, had underperformed at Worlds and was at Nebelhorn. This year, it will be Gubanova, so that was closer to a level competition for a qualifying spot.

In Pairs, Hase/Seegert (1)wouldn't have been there, nor Hocke/Kunkel (4), who qualified a spot in Stockholm. Nor would Conti/Macii (10), because ITA had already qualified two at Worlds. That is nearly 20% of the field at Nebelhorn. The rest were there to earn one spot, including Wang/Huang to earn the third spot for CHN.

In Dance, Mueller/Dieck (2) had already earned a spot at Worlds. They were the only ones in the Top 10 who were not eligible to earn a spot, so, again, a level competition.

 

[Karen-W]

Yeah, I don't like the nickname "Chinese Nebelhorn" for the Beijing OQE at all. It's not the same as Nebelhorn in any way, shape or form. Skaters are going to be in Beijing for one reason and one reason alone - to earn an Olympic spot. There won't be any of the benefits that come from competing in a Challenger (especially now that medaling at an early Challenger can move someone already on the SB Top 75 list higher up the list with a better score).

I do think the men's field is going to be more similar to 2021 Nebelhorn with both France & Korea sending legitimately competitive skaters to earn an additional spot - Economides is #29 on the SB list & likely to have two GP assignments, Pitot is #40 and Hyungyeom Kim is #45 - and KOR wouldn't need to send a man to the OQE had Hyungyeom not pulled a Vincent in Boston; plus if Gorodnitsky is healthy again, he's likely to get the nod over Vinokur for the OQE assignment. Realistically, between Russia's AIN, FRA, KOR, & ISR each having a man there, I feel like the rest of the men are scrapping for just one spot.

Women - don't forget that Loena will be there too; so it's really a fight for two spots with Russia's AIN, GEO & BEL nearly guaranteed their spots just by showing up.

Pairs - There's Russia's AIN, USA & CHN. Name me another team who hasn't already qualified a spot who, realistically, is going to Beijing other than for first spot on the Olympic Alternates List.

Dance - Again, Russia's AIN and ReedAmbru, which leaves two spots up for grabs. That will be an interesting competition because I do think there are several teams who could take it - HarChan, YoMori, TaliLafor, ValKaz, maybe IgnaSzem or ReiMaj could also be in the mix.

 

[kwanfan1818]

It's not that I don't think the skaters who are being sent to earn spots are not competitive: they just, in general, aside from Hendricks and Gubanova, haven't been championship podium contenders and are usually trying for Top 10, like Gorodnitsky, or their inconsistencies show, and they can place in the teens or miss the free altogether. In that sense, a Zhou, Jin, Oda, Gubanova, or Reed/Ambrulevicis are outliers, while either Economides or Pitot and Kim are not. While I think the AIN skaters will be strong, because they've been unseen for so long, I don't think they are necessarily going to place like a Zhou or Liu did right off the bat, except for the Pairs, especially if one of the top two teams qualfies as "neutral." By Beijing, it might be a different story for AIN skaters.

 

[mtnskater]

Alysa and Amber’s free programs were fabulous at WTT. Congrats to Amber for really hitting and not ending her season in a slump. Her triple axel is like a basketball swoosh…so so impressive! Really happy for her.

Alysa comes out and pretty much repeats the same performance from Worlds. Amazingly unaffected by her unexpected win there. She is an incredible gamer and incredibly consistent, even in the gala skates. Look out!

Sad the season is over, but so excited to see which three U.S. women come out on top next year!!

 

[SkateFanBerlin]

Ugh.... so sickened to see Russia - the great cheaters - back in, in any form. I`ll look at the Russia thread to read about all of it. It was such a refreshing breeze to have a couple years without this hanging over our heads.

 

[sk9tingfan]

Alysa, age 10- Intermediate Ladies Nationals:

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