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I think valse triste worlds is one of their best skating performances. So clean, for one! And filled with musicality as you said. And they were still such babies! 😭

It really was, they were just so good already, and they were skating a more complex program than most of what we see currently...

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Every day I am tingling with excitement for program announcements. When people?! Give us something (please)!!!!!

Agreed, it's almost July, some of them will start competing in about a month

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Anyone else counting the minutes until the new skating season starts?

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Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir (CAN)

2007 World Championship Free Dance (95.38, SB)

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sigh. no more free livestreams from Ontario. charging $20 to watch sectionals in november 🙃

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But what competition is Nik even talking about him being en route for, if it happened in July? I can't find anything that FB/S were competing at at that time

If I remember correctly, there are all kinds of local Canadian competitions during that time (usually starting mid-July through August). It doesn't have to be something big and super official for it to be considered as competition, only need for it to be under the wings of Skate Canada, I would assume.

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I have to think that Nik did not see it coming either because I can’t imagine that Laurence would’ve started with Cizeron otherwise.

Anyone who hires him to coach is still taking a risk.

I mean I assume that he was hoping for it since his representatives were the ones who initiated the process, to my understanding. And while I saw a lot of criticism online about Skate Canada, it's not really related to them since the arbitration wasn't about the sexual assault case but about jurisdiction and due process. So basically, he's "out" (for now) over a technicality.

My biggest concern is that now Skate Canada won't be able to prevent him from coaching; even so, he might be able to sue them over discrimination if they try to. I hope that, at the very least, pending an appeal, he won't be able to coach minors if not at all. I will say though that Skate Canada might need to re-evaluate the process in which they make the skaters sign on agreements given what was described there (asking them to sign legal documents on route to a competition without a real way to get legal counseling) is basically what made them more vurnuble to this entire situation.

As for skating, I guess they knew that even if he will get his suspension overturned, there will still be appeals and a longer process until completion, plus, while he is suspended he wasn't able to really train or be coached (if I remember correctly) so not much choice there but to accept retirement.

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I have to admit, I did not see this one coming

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2018 Olympics Ice Dance Event Rewatch

As mentioned before, I spent my current sick leave watching some skating, and specfically I watched the 2018 Olympics SD & FD events (top 10 only) and I was honestly really surprised by how different ice dance look now, and for the most part not for the better. Some of the takeaways were about specific teams and some about the programs and structure of the programs, and just how much ice dance is suffering from the new outline of elements.

The Programs

Breaking down the FD for example:

2018: includes 9 elements - twizzles, 3 lifts (one can be combo), 2 step sequences, spin, 2 choreographic elements.

2025: includes 10 elements - twizzles, 3 lifts (one can be combo), 2 step sequences but one has to be a one-foot, spin, 3 choreographic elements (inc. the intoduction of assisted jumps and choregraphic steps).

On paper, it doesn't sound like a major change, however imo it resulted in FDs that are much less musical and fluid and much more structured and repatative and you can clearly see that start and finish point of each element and the transition between them. You can clearly see when a team is setting up a one-foot sequence or when they are stopping in order to start a character step sequence. There's no real flow anymore and no real way to effectively structure a free dance (even a good one). Watching some of the FDs in 2018, while not all were as well crafted, it did feel like the flow made much more sense, and the choreography and transitions (also something that we see very little of now) felt more cohesive. I also attribute it to not being able to stop during the FD for the most part, in retrospect, adding the ability to stop mid-program also hurts the flow.

In the RD it's overall slightly less noticeable since we still have 5 elements, the midline, lift, and twizzles remain the same, the partial step sequence is mostly the same, and of course, we lost the pattern for the weird character rhythm steps. The last change is the most crucial one, as we went from all teams doing the same element and needing to hit their edges to get the levels and be compared apples to apples, to a level 1 element with massive GOE potential. That part alone is catastrophic and results in the veteran teams scoring big in the RD for no good reason whatsoever.

The Skaters

When it comes to the skaters, things are more complex. Overall, to my surprise, I think that for the most part, the basic skating level of 2025 worlds top 10 is higher than the level of the top 10 at 2018 Olympics, outside of the top 4 at both. It was surprising to watch teams like C/L, B/S, W/P, and G/P back then and realize that they were worse than I remembered. C/L were a team I adored (and still do), but they were running on ice and generating all of their speed with their toepeaks, B/S were given horrible programs from Zhulin, and in general looked worse than a team that finished 12th at this year's worlds. W/P looked sloppy and outdated, their twizzles were messy, and their overall basics weren't even at the level of a young team like current L/L. I truly didn't remember how kind of bad they were? Obviously though, the top 4 were a different story and were, for the most part, much better than the current top 4 in almost every parameter.

The GOATs

Having rewatched the programs, the first thing that stood out for me was how shameful the scoring in the SD was. With all of my sympathy to Gabi's costume malfunction, P/C's last three elements deserved +1 GOE at best, yet some of the judges gave them +2 and even +3. Their twizzles were A MESS, they nearly collided and Gabi was wobbly, yet three judges gave them +3 and the rest +2, they botched the end of their partial step sequence, yet six (!!!) judges gave them +3 and the rest +2 (for reference Tessa and Scott nailed theirs and got only one more +3 compared to P/C), and Gabi nearly feel in the lift yet six judges once again gave them +3. P/C had visible errors that were noticeable even to an untrained eye, and they should have scored 76 at best, them getting almost 82 for the very messy SD they had and outscore Tessa and Scott in PCS remains one of the most shameful political scoring I've seen.

But focusing on the positive, both SD and FD from Tessa and Scott were in a league of their own. Yes, I have a bias for sure, but I'm not talking about their execution of it. The amount of transitions and lack of crossovers is what really stood out for me. When you watch Moulin Rouge, if you are highly familiar with ice dance, you'll be able to break it to its elements, but for a general viewer, it's much harder. They set the tone from the first second, their stationary lift is complex with super difficult entry and exit, and for the most par,t if doesn't even feel like a lift. It's theatrical, and on the music, and by the time they finish their twizzles, perfectly on the correct note in the music, the entire theme of the program has been set. They move from element to element easily and with flow, they don't stop (aside from in the spin), and they have so many transitions you can barely find the elements.

And lastly, it's their close hold for me. In both the SD and the FD they skate so close to each other that I was legit shocked to see it. I got so used to skaters not being able to skate so close to each other that I forgot it's possible. I don't think I've ever seen any team that skates as close to each other as they did. There are many things I'd like to see come back to ice dance, and close hold is right there in the top 3.

To Summarize

The changes that have been made to ice dance are bad for the sport, though the skating level of the young teams only increases (so we can only imagine how good they can be while skating in close hold and with patterns and fewer choreographic elements). Oh, and Tess and Scott are by far the GOATs.

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Do a mega post!!! The people want a mega post!!!

It's WIP :)

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Am I sick at home today? Yes, I am. Am I using it to watch the 2018 Olympics ice dance SD and FD events? Yes, I do. Do I have a lot to say about it (LOL)? Oh boy, yes, I do.

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Given how critical I've been over FB/C and the Shibs comeback for an Olympic season, it's only fair I'll comment on Sui/Han's comeback.

I will be honest in saying that it does feel different when it's a team you like that is coming back. I'm still very much not a fan of them coming back only for the Olympic season and I do support the rule that you can only be eligible for the Olympics if you skated the season prior to it (unless an injury impacted the ability). What's different with Sui/Han is that they are not taking anyone's spot given the Chinese pairs field is nonexistent + they will need to go to Chinese Nebelhorn in order to earn a spot. Them not hurting any Chinese team who skated this quad does make a big difference in how if feels to me. Another part is questioning if it's even their choice. I think none of us will be surprised if at some point we will learn that the Chinese government (through the Chinese federation) is pushing them to come back (especially Han who officially retired and has struggled with back injuries for a long time). One can hope it is their own choice to come back). And lastly, unlike the rest, their comeback is likely to push the sport forward, their vision of incporeting dance level skating in their programs is still an absolute favorite of mine. Overall I'm very happy (even if somewhat conflicted) to see them back.

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wdyt will happen at GPF? Who qualifies?

C/B and G/P for sure. Then it will really depend on the placements and scoring of the rest of the teams but it will be 4 out of: FB/C, Shibs, F/G, G/F, L/L, and CPom. Dark horse are S/D who gets a lot of help from CoC but need to survive Finlandia.

I'd say FB/C has an edge because they have a real shot at winning GP France with the friendly home-ice judging assuming they don't fuck up. So with 1st + likely 2nd at Finlandia I'd say they have the best shot at the third spot.

The other 5 teams are likely to have a combination of 2nd + 3rd place finishes, so it will be close and might depend on scoring. L/L and CPom also have a home-ice event advantage that can help them with scoring and placement. F/G and G/F go against each other twice, so they will end up hurting each other's chances. The Shibs are a question mark, time will tell.

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So excited for a new season of skating! If Worlds taught us anything last year, I think the programs are really going to make or break teams. I feel like that is the message they were sending with the placements of G/F, LaLa, and even F/G (sixth in the free) last year. Poor L/B are getting dumped for politics, but everything else seems like if you have good programs and skate lights out, you have a chance. Bring it on!

I agree, I think given how the scoring have been going, BV barely makes a difference and it's mostly about vibes and GOEs. So good material and packaging will go a long long way for some of the teams. the top 2 can do meh stuff and mostly get away with it, G/F are going to be DONE if they show up with shit material and packaging again, after this season I feel like they used all of the passes they ever had. F/G are also going to need a banger, they've heavily stagnated, and their Beyoncé program didn't get much love. L/L need steller material and new lifts, they can be 4th or event 3rd if they knock it out of the park. CPom needs to continue getting great programs and get their levels like they have done this quad, it will be key for them, if they can prove they are fresh and exciting and also technically strong they can keep the Shibs away. And S/D will need to somehow outdo Dune so that should be interesting, anything other than getting it right again will hurt them IMO.

For the comeback teams and those impacted by them, the Shibs must come out of the gate looking fresh and doing new stuff, which I honestly doubt they can. FB/C will do lyrical-contemporary there's no doubt there, but they are going to need to up their game from the shows because they looked very meh there.

Bring it on!

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thoughts on us ice dance first:

usfs did good protecting bock and getting them easy wins, and are also carefully shielding cpom from shibs and fbc. Duking it out with Lala twice is not optimal for cpom's gpf chances, but not the worst from usfs' pov either. G/Pa, zingnik, and shibs are being told to fight it out amongst themselves for who wants the third spot and who wants to win Oly year 4CC. Bratti/Somerville got two assignments, in addition to being named to the National team and being second alternates for worlds over the Browns, USFS seems to be backing them for next quad. I hope the Browns get the host spot, of the teams that don't have two yet they seem most promising, but maybe W/T will get it since theyre on the national team?

C/B legit got the most comfortable assignments they could have possibly gotten. They avoid FB/C and the Shibs, they go to events with fields that basically guarantee that even a big mistake will still keep them 1st, unlike last season. They will need a G/F level disaster (the one they had last season) to lose an event.

I agree it's overall good news for CPom that USFS are keeping the Shibs away from them and basically telling the Shibs, Z/K, and G/P(2) to fight it out. I agree B/S are getting support but I think overall it makes sense given they finished 3rd two years ago and also got bronze at a GP event last season (something Z/K for example have failed to do, though they are considered a bigger deal than S/B at least in terms of potential). Does it mean B/S will get backing for the next quad? I'm not sure, I would imagine (taking the Shibs out of the equation) that the top 3 should be CPom, G/P(2) (assuming the stick around), and either Z/K or B/S. But time will tell.

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Realistically speaking, if Green/Parsons don't make the Olympics this year, do you think they'll continue? Caroline is young, but Michael will be 30 and he's already had a double torn labrum.

I hope they will continue. I think they have a lot more to give and are just finding their identity now. They also have so much more growth ability.

Age wise, they should be ok so it will come down to health and the US dance landscape, I would imagine.

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Still mindblown by how big of a bloodbath Finlandia is going to be. So glad most of my faves are not going there because YIKES.