wow they suddenly called URs.... what happened?  this is what i dont like with inconsistent tech panel, they called jumps as they see please. should have called them all from the start so it's all fair. no japanese ladies on podium, im sad now

sigh. more predictable bitterness from the judging, all I'm thinking now is that I'm glad GP is over and that the 2nd half of the season owes us for the mess that has been the first half

 

Two things that were most egregious to me:

• Watching the judges not only rob Wakaba on PCS (then again she got 67PCS for a totally clean skate in CoC what were we expecting) but on GOEs live, thanks to the new TES. What does she need to do to get +2s and +3s on her 2A (and even her 3Lz-3T which got almost the same GOE as CoC where she did it perfectly). Can she literally do any more than what she's already doing, apart from adding a tano arm and/or be a willowy delicate ballerina type skater. I'm so sad for her, it's so hard not to be disheartened when you're giving your all and being robbed on both fronts... I hope this just fires her up for JNats 
• someone explain to me kaetlyn getting 72PCS 

I was a total coward and went off to do housework rather than watch the ladies, which is most unlike me.

Yes, Wakaba's 2A is the best in the business... maybe do some Yuzu like entries into it? She is capable of it.

Guess it was too much to hope this could have turned out to be a turning point for Higuchi. At this point, she should probably just take a page off of Hanyu's books and literally wrest and pry those scores from the judges' weasely reluctant fingers. Take the decision off their hands, so to speak, and give them absolutely no excuse to not give her those GOEs (cos the pcs will follow accordingly). She can do it, too, if the improvement she's shown this season compared to the last is any indication. Shorten her setups and replace them with transitions and there should be no reason for them to keep her down. They can imagine transitions when they are none (at their discretion, of course) but they can't deny there are none when there are tons. With more of them, even if they kept lowballing her, at least it would be to a lesser degree. But it may also be what would encourage them to be more generous with her.

 

Good for Russia, I guess, considering all that's happened this past week.

2 hours ago, Sombreuil said:

I was a total coward and went off to do housework rather than watch the ladies, which is most unlike me.

then you were spared a bit of craziness

if this makes you a coward, then I don't know what I am Before Helsinki Worlds I completely cut out all figure skating-related stuff (like visiting FS forums and YT video surfing) for a whole week until I was positive Worlds had ended, so I could just check the final results. I thought I'd have a heart attack watching Yuzu losing anoother gold live (btw watching competitions where he's skating I always hyperventilate, I'm still debating if I can stomach to watch Olys live...) and I didn't watch live both Men NHK and Men GPF because I'd felt too sad about Yuzuru... so I guess I'm the most coward here. (and this is quite like me)

 

About Wakaba's 2A, I wonder if the strategy to go for a reliable layout has been really the best. Before the final, I would have said absolutely yes, but among top competitors that have higher TES cushion or higher PCS cushion or both, maybe she'd have to go for the BV of a 3A. Here she made two pops that hurt her TES a lot, and of course got the lowest pcs unlike for example Caro who can still score fairly high despite pops.

Wakaba tried to built a reputation through clean skates but apparently judges aren't so keen on her skating as on others'.

Of course we don't know how stable is her 3A, but if it's never been in the plan for the season I wonder why the heck her programs have been built as they are, with 2A as opening jump when Wakaba could move it to the second half and squeeze a little more points out of it in both SP and FS (sadly, it wouldn't be her team's first debatable strategy. We saw that her flip, while not called sometimes, is an unnecessary risk in the SP, when tech panel is strict about edges).

Also, I wonder why she removed the back counter entry into her 2A combo. She did it in COC and it was so beautiful. I'm sure Waka could do a creative entry and exit for that opening 2A, too, if she's gonna keep it double...

I hope the kuyashii will make for great skates at Nats.

 

 

Wakaba said her 3A is not consistent enough, and its so risky to do it this season. We saw what happen with Liza and Mirai. Rika Kihira has less pressure than senior ladies and she just landed 3A twice in international comps. Wakaba only have 0.33 pts more if she move 2A into 2nd half, it isn't worth much. The problem with her SP's layout is the 3F. I dont know why she did not replace it with 3lo.  

Lol I get it, Satoko's jumps only get called if she might bump a bigger ISU darling off the podium

If Evgenia was healthy and present today, would it possibly been an all russian ladies podium? 

I haven't watched the ladies' free yet, and just reading the comments here, maybe I'll just watch this one day when I am in the mood for venting and crying. 

Congrats to Alina and Masha! Surprised about Satako's scores (thought she would podium), pity about Wakaba, hope she'll gain a strength for Nationals.

3 hours ago, Xen said:

If Evgenia was healthy and present today, would it possibly been an all russian ladies podium? 

I haven't watched the ladies' free yet, and just reading the comments here, maybe I'll just watch this one day when I am in the mood for venting and crying. 

 

Had Zhenya been there + with fair judging, she most likely would have been an all-Russian podium, with Sotskova being in 3rd.The judging was fair today because even though Sotskova is not the most exciting skater at least she does the jumps nicely.

5 hours ago, LadyLou said:

then you were spared a bit of craziness

if this makes you a coward, then I don't know what I am Before Helsinki Worlds I completely cut out all figure skating-related stuff (like visiting FS forums and YT video surfing) for a whole week until I was positive Worlds had ended, so I could just check the final results. I thought I'd have a heart attack watching Yuzu losing anoother gold live (btw watching competitions where he's skating I always hyperventilate, I'm still debating if I can stomach to watch Olys live...) and I didn't watch live both Men NHK and Men GPF because I'd felt too sad about Yuzuru... so I guess I'm the most coward here. (and this is quite like me)

 

 

 

I watched Yuzu's free program at Helsinki, but none of the other men in the last group. I waited until the final score, got excited and then watched the rest. So you're not the only one.

OTT - apologies - Helsinki - I was meeting an old friend for lunch- couldn't put her off - don't know whether she noticed that I was suddenly massively more upbeat and cheerful after a trip to the ladies to check what was happening.  Couldn't wait to get rid of everyone so that I could watch and rewatch and wallow.....

9 hours ago, yuzuangel said:

Lol I get it, Satoko's jumps only get called if she might bump a bigger ISU darling off the podium

The way you phrase it...yeah, that sounds right. It seems that they never intended to have a Japanese lady on the Oly Podium. Wakaba and Mai both get picked on PCS as they don't have much to give away in tech panel calls- but PCS alone makes them not podium contenders. But Satoko will probably get targeted on calls, especially if she skated clean-this time it only happened in the long, but who knows, might happen in the short especially if the other podium girls are not squeaky clean. 

 

Whomever Japan sends to the ladies event- essentially needs to claw her way to a top 4 it seems. Ouch. 

Finally got around to watching the ladies. It was not as bad as I feared, but after the men's free, it doesn't take much. 

 

Love Maria's dress, it's gorgeous on her, and I actually found her skating very calming. Dare I also say I think osmond has improved her interpretation a bit? This was the most graceful of her swans so far.