“Is it a beauty contest or should we look for skating skills?” Betina Popova about Davis/Smolkin placing above the Taschlers at the Nepela Memorial
Translation of Betina Popova’s comment about performance and scores of Diana Davis and Gleb Smolkin at the Ondrej Nepela Memorial.
original source: Okko Sports youtube channel
Former Russian ice dancer and now a choreographer Betina Popova commented on the judging at the the Ondrej Nepela Memorial. Popova shared her opinion about the scores and skating of former Russian and now Georgian ice dancers Diana Davis and Gleb Smolkin. Here’s the translation of Betina’s commend made for Okko Sports.
Davis and Smolkin secured the second-place finish at the tournament despite Dina’s fall on the twizzles. The third-place went to the Czech team, Natalie Taschlerova and Filip Taschler.
“I’m not a judge, and I don’t give scores, but in my opinion, the Taschlers’ performance was better. They showed speed, momentum, power, and ease in executing elements. As for the aesthetic aspect, Diana and Gleb win here. Since figure skating delicately balances on the bridge of ‘What matters more?’ I think it comes down to who was on the judging panel. It’s just the personal taste of a specific judge. The next time, a different panel will be judging, and the situation will be different.
Regarding Diana’s fall, it should have been reflected in the components, and it was. I don’t remember on which turn she fell. The third twizzle is an additional feature, not mandatory. If you fall on the first or second twizzle, everything goes awry. If it happens on the third, it’s not as critical. At most, one level may drop, and it could receive negative GOE.
Of course, in ice dance, falls don’t happen, but we see that this stereotype is breaking more and more each year. We need to look at other criteria. Diana and Gleb’s lifts appear significantly easier due to their physiological characteristics, and they receive higher GOE for them. Tashclers’s lifts look havier.
Let’s be honest: the weight of the female partner. I know that for many foreign judges, this is a serious concern regarding Natalie. She skates brilliantly, she’s charismatic, vibrant, and knows how to present herself. They have an amazing connection in the pair, but everyone acknowledges that she has excess weight, and it affects them.
In my opinion, it shouldn’t be like this. For example, people run. Whether you’re overweight or not, if you cross the finish line first, you’re the first. But in our sport, questions arise. In my opinion, Natalie skates better – speed, edges, flow, and the breadth of their curves are superior. Is it a beauty contest or should we skate powerfully?
I’m not saying Diana and Gleb skate poorly; they are improving from season to season, and I like this duo. But at this competition, their performance with the fall wasn’t as powerful as it could have been. They can skate better; this wasn’t their maximum. Meanwhile, the Taschlers had a relatively clean performance. Are we looking for beauty or skating skills?” – said Popova.
Related topics: Betina Popova Sergei Mozgov, Diana Davis Gleb Smolkin, Natalie Taschlerova Filip Taschler
Diana Davis is the daughter of the Russian coach of all the powerful RUSSIAN TEEN GIRLS. That has a lot to do with this couple getting high
scores even with falls.
Diana DavisIs thr daughter of the Russian coach of all the powerful RUSSIAN TEN GIRLS. That has a lot to do with this couple getting high scores even with falls.
But you know that the Taschlers were only on the 4th place after the short programme. In due to their great free programme they gained the 3rd place.
But you know that the Taschlers were only on the fourth place after the short program and in due to their great free program they could gain the 3rd place.