Four Continents Championships 2017 review: men
The final part of my review of Four Continents Championships 2017 is about men’s event, like a cherry on the cake….Yes, Koreans knew what they were doing putting men’s competition last.
I guess for me it was a Maraschino cherry)
I don’t know why, but I got up at 4 am and watched first warm-ups….remind me never do it again) The only positive impression was Korean guy Sihyeong LEE in a fabulous jabot. He was so happy after his performances!
I didn’t even recognized Michael Christian Martinez at first! In stead of touching Romeo in beautiful costume a brutal guy came on the ice…..in Joubert’s costume…..and with Joubert’s choreography….Well, at least he still has his biellmann spin.
Han Yan, I hate you! Sorry my rudeness. You gave me hope in the short program and then destroyed all hopes in the free program in a very cruel way! Where is the guy who charmed me at Junior Worlds? Where is the guy with a mind blowing triple axel? Where is that guy?!! Sadness, sadness, sadness…..
Misha Ge was concentrated on jumps, skating a bit restrained. The result on the scoreboard turned out pretty good, almost skates of his life….but considering his announcement of possible retirement I really wanted to cry.
Taking into account recovering from an injury, Jason Brown probably did everything he could. With Nathan Chen rising high and high, Americans may be not worry for keeping three spots, but anyway I wish Jason improve till Worlds. Because this season I love everything about him: his programs, his hair and even his costumes.
Boyang Jin‘s Spiderman makes me laugh, especially the shoulders’ move) I don’t know what is most funny: the move, the reaction of Chinese team in front of whom it was done or the fact that it was choreographed by the well-known choreographer for a solid amount on money. I think Lori Nichol has something personal against Chinese single skaters. Boyang’s shoulders, Han Yan had couple of ridiculous moves, Zijun Li’s final pose this season….So the only thing that saved Patrick Chan from something like this is Canadian passport.
Speaking about Patrick…..I knew that I’d need something alcoholic to handle men’s free program. That’s why I decided to consult with an expert in Patrick’s free program. I asked Eric Radford what drink goes best with his music and Patrick’s skating. Eric was kind enough to answer and suggested red wine. So I had a glass of red wine with a hint of plum. I was relaxed, the wine was delicious….so whatever…..I even wasn’t angry or sad because of that FP)
I’ll definitely need to consult with Eric before Worlds) What else he can suggest…maybe to watch men’s FP in a bath with some relaxing aromatic oils?) Oh, I wish I haven’t been so emotionally invested in someone’s skating.
Looking at Shoma Uno it was clear that he came with such good sporting hunger, anger and determination in his eyes. Tiger. Small, but with dangerous claws and fangs. What he did at official practices! And a quad loop was pulled out like from magician’s sleeve. Alas, this time a hysterically screaming woman scared not only me, but also Shoma himself, so he fell on the first axel and didn’t cope well with the second one.
Strange but true, this time I liked Yuzuru‘s short program more than free. Apparently, I got used to it. Or Yuzuru changed the tonality from pseudo sexuality to charming insolent. The second one suits him. Free program didn’t impress me. Elements, elements, mathematical calculation where to do what …… Wow did not happen. There was no involvement into the music. Losing to Chen was a bit surprising, but what to do, he did mistakes and now there are such rivals that you no longer can do mistakes and remain first.
Well, the US figure skating federation smelled some blood) Soon we will see a situation, familiar to bitterness to fans of one skater. Chen‘s PCS will grow from competition to competition … ..and at some point they will no longer depend on the quality of his performance. History tends to repeat itself, but this time we (fans of that one skater) will be a wingside viewers, we’ll sit and eat pop-corn, saying “Ah, we told you once this would happen”. Nathan, of course, is a talented boy, with fantastic jumping ability. His SP is great, but in the FP only Borodin works for PCS. America got a real chance to take Olympic gold, so I’m excited to see the battle of the figure skating’s titans America vs Japan.
It’s hard to believe, but World Championships is just in a month and every discipline is going to be damn exciting to watch..
Related topics: Boyang Jin, Four Continents Championships, Han Yan, Jason Brown, men, Michael Christian Martinez, Misha GE, Nathan Chen, Patrick Chan, Shoma Uno, Yuzuru Hanyu
There are not only jumps in Yuzu’s program, check this transition analysis http://chibura.tumblr.com/post/154115680890/transitions-in-mens-free-programs-at-gpf-2016?vt=4.
Thanks. I saw this, but I still prefer quality over quantity. Not only in men’s skating.
For me almost all Yuzuru’s FP looks like one endless Romeo and Juliet that started in 2012 and haven’t finished yet. Well, maybe last season’s FP stands out. He has great short programs, but his FP don’t impress me much, especially when mistakes come.
So this is a bit of a long comment but the best men were here so I have a lot to say…
I’ve learned that getting up too early in the morning makes me grumpy, so I don’t get up to watch skating anymore. Well, except pairs. Anyway, I figure that the best skaters perform later, so if you really want to watch the skaters in the first group, watch them on YouTube after the event.
Han Yan is just the kind of skater who makes you too nervous to watch. He can be great, he can be awful. Like Denis Ten – loads of talent that comes and goes between competitions.
I had no idea Misha was thinking about retiring! Clearly I have no knowledge whatsoever on the skating world…anyway, I wish him the best with whatever he wants to do in life.
“This season I love everything about Jason Brown.” Well welcome to the club, girl. Oh, those jumps! Those spins! That gorgeous spiral! He has a special place in my heart of course – I think I would marry him if I were old enough. If he can keep skating like this at Worlds, we’ll have three spots and then dear Joshua Farris can go to the Olympics. And I still pray to see Jason in the Grand Prix Final.
Boyang’s Spiderman is adorable and makes me smile on a tough day but he’s 19, not 10. I feel like I’m watching a quirky exhibition program. I’d like to see some manly skating out of him soon.
Oh Patrick…it’s a shame. Sometimes worthy skaters don’t get on the podium and you feel terrible for them, but there’s nothing you can do about it. Those are the times I reach for the chocolates.
Well the tiny Tiger didn’t hit his axels, but I still think Shoma has a great chance at shaking up the event. He’s not even that far from Hanyu – I predict the next year will show where he’s headed.
I understand you about Yuzuru. I’m not a huge fan of his, simply because his scores are outrageous and make it hard to be a Patrick fan, but his short program seems to suit him now. I say leave the sexiness up to Javier and leave the charm up to Yuzuru. Don Hanyu certainly seems to have the charm with the Russian junior girls…so apparently he put that in his program and it somehow worked. (Though he’d be much more charming in a less ridiculous costume!) The free has always bored me – just jumps, jumps, and more jumps. So to me he doesn’t deserve much higher PCS than Nathan.
Speaking of the man, Nathan Chen’s PCS just keep snowballing. The same thing happened to Tarasova/Morozov this season – “nearly clean skate, nearly clean skate, clean skate, and wow look, we beat Stolbova and Klimov on PCS!” Clean jumps tend to give a certain energy to a performance, and the judges apparently think that clean jumps and skating skills are linked. I’m happy for Nathan, because finally we Americans have a golden boy! But I want to see real skating skills like Jason’s, and if the judges keep feeding Nathan his PCS, he’ll never have the need to grow as a skater.
Still a month until Worlds. I wish they would get on with this quad bloodbath already.
“I had no idea Misha was thinking about retiring!”
He had some health problems that bother him( From the positive side, I’m sure he’ll have bright life after the sport, he’s pretty demanded in ice show, he can develop as a choreographer.
“Oh Patrick…it’s a shame. Sometimes worthy skaters don’t get on the podium and you feel terrible for them, but there’s nothing you can do about it. Those are the times I reach for the chocolates.”
How clever I was to consult with Eric!) Because Mr. Chan’s performances are a test of strength for my nerves.
“I say leave the sexiness up to Javier and leave the charm up to Yuzuru. ”
Why everyone says that Javi is sexy?)) Probably he’s not my type)
I’m sure a cool guy like Misha will have a long career as a choreographer or show skater. People like him, and he seems creative enough.
I don’t think I even need to say more about Patrick.
Well…of course Patrick is everything…but let’s just say that God was having a good day when he made Javier :)
“Well…of course Patrick is everything…but let’s just say that God was having a good day when he made Javier :)”
No, it’s not what I meant) Javi is handsome guy, with lots of charisma. But I see him rather as a cute guy than a super sexy one. He reminds me of my classmate)
Yeah, that’s a good way of putting it. He’s kind of that super cute guy with the roguish smile and the charming talk that you can’t help liking.