In figure skating, a radical proposal to reshape the sport (NBC Sport article)

[Sombreuil]

Oh I know that- but from the American point of view an ice princess is a much more attractive and an easier sell than a man or a pair or an ice dance team.  I don’t think Rusfed cares particularly about that - they welcome being on top in any discipline and I don’t think they discriminate between them.  USFSA prefers women, always has, and it wants good looking, graceful, princess types because historically that is what its public has responded to.  Whether that is still what they might respond to I’ve no idea but we know how slowly the powers that be adjust to change.  

[shanshani]

30 minutes ago, Sombreuil said:

Oh I know that- but from the American point of view an ice princess is a much more attractive and an easier sell than a man or a pair or an ice dance team.  I don’t think Rusfed cares particularly about that - they welcome being on top in any discipline and I don’t think they discriminate between them.  USFSA prefers women, always has, and it wants good looking, graceful, princess types because historically that is what its public has responded to.  Whether that is still what they might respond to I’ve no idea but we know how slowly the powers that be adjust to change.  

I feel like ice princess is no longer the cultural zeitgeist in America. Sasha's personality and packaging (if not her actual skating and performance skills) would probably be more marketable these days.

 

But I see your point. US fed would politick even harder for a lady than for anyone else.

[yuzuangel]

On 2/17/2020 at 5:11 AM, shanshani said:

I think the ISU realizes there are problems with the judging (for example they put out that video about common errors in PCS judging during the last off season, and they keep trying to change the judging system). But they aren't doing anything to actually hold judges accountable, so nothing changes. 

 

Back when the whole backloading controversy was happening, the main argument against backloading was that it produced an unbalanced program that was dull to watch. Well, if so, the judges should have deducted marks from CO, instead of having the ISU step in with another unnecessary rule adjustment. But that would require judges to actually put some thought into PCS, which they are of course loathed to do.

 

I think there are a lot of opposing forces at play here that the ISU has to work around, and they do a very avoidant job of it all. Like many of the judges work for their federations and for the ISU only in name, and if a judge votes against the grain, they stop being invited and funded by their federations. Maybe if the ISU angers certain federations then funding gets pulled or events (which are hosted on the federations' dime) are at risk. Plus, federations try really hard to stuff judging panels with clueless judges; it's quite interesting to see the variance in scores given to new skaters. Like panic from a flock of sheep before they receive a signal from their "leader" lol aka before they receive the narrative about that skater and how they're supposed to be judged. Maybe the ISU is so weak in its power that they honestly have no control over these things other than to nominally change the rules once in a while, which federations will vote for because the changes are too superficial to prevent them from doing whatever they want.