# This Week in Skating / A Season Preview with Lynn Rutherford

An episode of [This Week in Skating Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1621874792), 22 Aug 2025, 1 h 28 min.

Audio: https://audio2.redcircle.com/episodes/c424f1d1-ac1c-46be-bb88-09b104ee5e35/stream.mp3

Longtime figure skating journalist Lynn Rutherford joins Daphne and Gina to share her thoughts on the 2025-2026 Olympic season. Lynn was the Summer Sizzler show at the Skating Club of Boston where some Team USA skaters debuted new programs. You can follow Lynn Rutherford on X at https://x.com/LynnRutherford and read her articles at Skating Magazine. ----------------- This Week in Skating is hosted by Gina Capellazzi, Daphne Backman and Matteo Morelli is a cooperative project between Figure Skaters Online and Ice-dance.com. New episodes are available every Tuesday. Website: https://www.thisweekinskating.com Email: thisweekinskating@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thisweekinskating Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/thiswkinskating Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinskating Thread: https://www.threads.net/@thisweekinskating Patreon: patreon.com/ThisWeekinSkating Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

## Transcript

[0:00] \[SPEAKER_00\]: Hi everyone, I'm Vincent Jo.
[0:01] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Hi, I'm Kathy Reed.
[0:03] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And I'm Allison Reed.
[0:04] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Hi, I'm Ashley.
[0:06] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Hi, I'm Grace.
[0:07] \[SPEAKER_03\]: We're from the hidden apps.
[0:08] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Hi, I'm Martin Rezzi.
[0:09] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Hi, I'm Tutsi.
[0:10] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Hi, I'm Rebecca Girardi.
[0:11] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Hey, Philly Pambrazini.
[0:13] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Hi, I'm Linda Nuto.
[0:15] \[SPEAKER_00\]: This week in Skatey.
[0:25] \[SPEAKER_00\]: Welcome to this week in Skating, the weekly podcast bringing you the latest news from the world of figure skating.
[0:31] \[SPEAKER_00\]: Here are your hosts, Daphne, Gina, and Matteo.
[0:36] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Just a few days ago, Team USA skaters performed in the summer sizzler show at the Skating Club of Boston.
[0:42] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Some debuted new programs while others did show programs.
[1:06] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So we have asked Lynn to join us today to not only talk about the summer's sizzler, but also help us preview this upcoming Olympic season.
[1:14] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So we want to welcome Lynn to this week in skating.
[1:18] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Hi Lynn.
[1:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Hi Lynn.
[1:19] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Hi.
[1:21] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Thanks for having me.
[1:23] \[SPEAKER_02\]: We've been talking about wanting to have you on the podcast and we thought the summer's sizzler and previewing the Olympic season would be a good time to have you come on.
[1:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: absolutely, just put a trigger warning on it and I'm good to go.
[1:37] \[SPEAKER_03\]: So, before we really dig into the meat of the skating, can you let some of our listeners know, how did you get started in skating journalism?
[1:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Basically, I worked on newspapers when I was in college and when I was quite young.
[1:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But then my career took another turn.
[2:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I went
[2:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: to school for finance and I worked basically on Wall Street for many years.
[2:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Around, I'm going to say, a wonderful woman in Canada, Lisa Herdman, had started her own magazine spotlight on skating and I admit her, I believe it was at a four continents.
[2:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, she asked me, do you want to do some writing?
[2:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I said, I would love to.
[2:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's kind of how it started.
[2:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it progressed, you know, from there, to writing for U.S.
[2:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: figure skating, when I snap work started, I was approached to write for them.
[2:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And eventually, I started writing on many different sports for for team USA.
[2:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So
[2:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, it's kind of a second career that's taking me to five Olympics, countless nationals, countless skate Americas, many worlds, and I couldn't be more grateful.
[3:13] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And just like Daphne and I, this is not your full-time job.
[3:17] \[SPEAKER_02\]: You have another full-time job.
[3:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It is not my full-time job.
[3:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I do have another job.
[3:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I have a bit of flexibility, but all over the course of those years for the most part, I had another job.
[3:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: There was a time when I didn't, but I've been able to combine the two things and honestly, I repeat, I couldn't be more grateful.
[3:52] \[SPEAKER_03\]: That's kind of how Gina and I feel about the opportunities that we've had by being involved with IDC and figure skating as online and all the things that we're doing now with this podcast.
[4:04] \[SPEAKER_03\]: We just feel grateful for opportunities and the enrichment that comes with being part of this community.
[4:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Absolutely.
[4:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I've had a few people
[4:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: that believed in me that gave me some opportunities and you know that's been a fantastic experience and getting to know people in skating is fantastic talking to the skaters writing you know it's all been really one of the highlights of my life.
[4:37] \[SPEAKER_03\]: can you talk a little bit about skating magazine because people have thought that it either doesn't exist anymore that it's gone away or that it's it's not available like it used to be and so I thought it would be a great opportunity for you as a writer for that magazine to talk about kind of where it's at.
[4:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It definitely exists and it is posted online and what I've found
[5:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: sort of in my travels is a lot of people don't seem to realize it's posted online.
[5:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But it is.
[5:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: For example, this last issue I did an interview with Alyssa Liu and that should be posted shortly.
[5:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Recently, I did an interview on Scott Hamilton.
[5:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And some of the people that he's worked with throughout his career because he was honored by the ISU.
[5:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And going back a couple of months, I did a kind of a tragic but very necessary story about all of the people that were lost in the playing crash earlier this year.
[6:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: the parents, the coaches, certainly the skaters, and that is something that was inscating.
[6:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So just throw skating magazine into Google, and it'll bring you right to an online version.
[6:14] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Yeah, I still get the hard copy version, and it's now I believe quarterly right for Times Year.
[6:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It is.
[6:22] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So I want to talk about the summer sizzler show last week because we have it.
[6:28] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Those who were not in attendance haven't seen anything unless people post it.
[6:33] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So can you give us some of your impressions of the show and what you got to see?
[6:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I'll preface it by saying that the show will be available from getting club of Boston.
[6:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe this Thursday.
[6:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So anyone who would like can access it.
[6:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know what the music's gonna sound like with all this nonsense about music rights, but certainly it'll be available.
[7:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, my impression was it was a great show.
[7:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I was a little bit, I don't know if disappointed is the word, but
[7:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I was hoping shall we say to see fewer exhibition programs and more competition programs.
[7:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I thought perhaps more skaters would take advantage of the opportunity to get there maybe their short program or one of their programs out there.
[7:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And several did.
[7:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I will say that Jason Brown, to me,
[7:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: was certainly, if not the highlight, a highlight of the show, I thought that he looked very strong.
[7:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I thought that, you know, he went out there and I believe it's, he did his free skate say something.
[8:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he, he really looked sharp.
[8:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It looked like that program was really coming along well.
[8:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So Jason certainly,
[8:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: took his training very seriously, I believe, during the golf season.
[8:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And we did have a chance to talk to Jason.
[8:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And as usual, he's really pumped, really full of enthusiasm.
[8:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know what I can say about Jason that, you know, I haven't already said at Nazium, but I think that he is really out to prove, you know, hey, I'm still competitive.
[8:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm not just this great artist that, you know, is on everybody's nostalgia list.
[8:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I can get it done.
[8:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think he's very proud that he was able to secure the three spots for US men in Boston.
[9:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And certainly is looking to do it again.
[9:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he kind of reminded everybody, you know, I'm not just out there to look pretty although, of course, he does.
[9:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm out there to get on the podium.
[9:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that was a big impression that I had.
[9:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think Jason's going to have a strong season.
[9:26] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And today announced as short program is going to be river dance, which we all know as that twenty fourteen iconic program of his.
[9:35] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So I'm sure we're going to see
[9:40] \[SPEAKER_02\]: It's not going to be the same program.
[9:42] \[SPEAKER_02\]: It's, you know, that was a free skate.
[9:44] \[SPEAKER_02\]: He's doing it as a short program, but that's going to be a big, um, I think people are really going to get behind that program definitely.
[9:54] \[SPEAKER_03\]: A lot of nostalgia because people look back to that performance.
[9:58] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It went viral on the internet.
[10:01] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I still have people sending me that video.
[10:04] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Say, and have you seen this?
[10:06] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yes, I was in the arena when it happened.
[10:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I guess it's kind of putting a period on his Olympic career because I believe he did that in Sochi.
[10:17] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I guess it really helped up when a team metal with it and you know, which, you know, don't like to say never.
[10:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I don't think he would be going for another Olympics, although with Jason who knows.
[10:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: This is the right place to do it.
[10:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he certainly did it in Boston for, I believe, for his exhibition.
[10:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So yeah, so it's an opportunity to revisit that, update it, and use it as kind of a sign off.
[11:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So to speak.
[11:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I think that Jason is looking very strong.
[11:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think he had maybe some slowness rounding into form last season, but I don't think that's going to be the case this season.
[11:17] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that would be number one.
[11:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The second thing that I noticed was I believe green in Parsons are primed.
[11:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: for this season, I don't recall them ever sounding as confident as they did when I talked to them seriously.
[11:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They just seem to be fit.
[11:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They're very happy with last season, but they're in a much better place this season.
[11:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: because they were able to have that kind of comeback season last season after being booted off the world team.
[12:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And now I think it's just made them stronger for having gone through that experience.
[12:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I believe that they're going to be very strong.
[12:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think working was John Luke Baker has been a great fit.
[12:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They told me
[12:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, he did both their programs again.
[12:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They also worked with some dance people at University of Michigan, particularly on the sort of locking and tiding and whatever movements for their nineties rhythm dance.
[12:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they just feel this is going to be a great season for them.
[12:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that was interesting.
[12:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now, of course, I do not know what their music is and they did do an exhibition in the show.
[13:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So we don't quite know exactly what their plan is.
[13:06] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Yeah.
[13:07] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So I would be happy with them doing sunset boulevard.
[13:10] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I mean, that with him doing his little intro there, of course, that you're not going to be able to see that.
[13:16] \[SPEAKER_02\]: But I could see that as an Olympic program for them.
[13:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that they're very ambitious.
[13:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that they prefer a non-linear program that doesn't necessarily have a narrative where it's based more on emotion than story, if that makes any sense.
[13:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I'm not sure that maybe, since that Boulevard works better, in a show,
[13:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: but hey, my opinion.
[13:53] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I go back to that free dance they had in twenty twenty two.
[13:58] \[SPEAKER_03\]: There was something special about that and I agree with you, Lynn.
[14:01] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I think they prefer the programs that pull on emotion and technique and style versus a storytelling.
[14:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: That's my feeling, but they're very confident.
[14:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now I, you know, me being kind of a sledgehammer.
[14:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I ask them, you know, hey, how do you feel about perhaps the shibitani's returning?
[14:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they said, you know what, we're not thinking about anything like that.
[14:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We're only thinking about ourselves and we are just hyper-focused and we're very confident.
[14:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And of course, people will always say that.
[14:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I got the impression that they are just very satisfied with where they are right now.
[14:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that was kind of another big impression that I got.
[14:57] \[SPEAKER_03\]: They had a lot to deal with.
[14:59] \[SPEAKER_03\]: With the move to Michigan, I stand to Academy with Michael's injury.
[15:06] \[SPEAKER_03\]: So for them to come back and make the world team finish in top ten at Worlds.
[15:12] \[SPEAKER_03\]: That's a huge step.
[15:14] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And a huge confidence builder.
[15:15] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And sometimes it's those little things that do make you a stronger person.
[15:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I thought it was a huge thing.
[15:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I thought that it was shocking that they were not on that world team having finished.
[15:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Six, six, the season before.
[15:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think it's unheard of to have had that happen.
[15:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think it
[15:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: probably blew their socks off.
[15:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know.
[15:44] \[SPEAKER_04\]: Yeah.
[15:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Incredibly gracious about the whole thing.
[15:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I know Michael said, you know, hey, I was injured.
[15:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I wasn't at my best.
[15:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But they were not given in my opinion.
[15:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And of course, who knows the whole situation?
[16:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I would have thought that perhaps a little more grace would have been extended.
[16:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It may turn out to be a positive in the long run, because, you know, what don't kill you make you stronger.
[16:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, they had a good season last season, and they seem very on top of things right now.
[16:24] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, there's going to be a lot of competition for Olympic spots this year.
[16:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, there there is.
[16:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, I did talk to career in Ponomaranko.
[16:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And my understanding and certainly probably everybody else is,
[16:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: understanding is she is still waiting for her citizenship.
[16:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I keep sort of hearing that it is expected to come in good time and you know that they're certainly hoping to follow up on their fifth place finish in Boston last season.
[16:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now they were very courageous in my opinion.
[17:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They went out and did their rhythm dance.
[17:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: which I thought was great for them to get it out there.
[17:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it's extremely ambitious.
[17:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Do not ask me the music.
[17:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I should have taken note of that.
[17:19] \[SPEAKER_02\]: It definitely knows that.
[17:21] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I know the music.
[17:23] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I love the nineties music.
[17:27] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I haven't been really disappointed so far and I know it's not everyone's cup of tea.
[17:31] \[SPEAKER_03\]: But it's not my cup of tea.
[17:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's not my cup of tea.
[17:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: My cup of coffee.
[17:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: No, I don't hear anything else.
[17:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now it's here, so I got to deal with it.
[17:40] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, I'm enjoying it more than I did the eighties and the eighties is more of my music genre, but honestly, I'm really enjoying the nineties a lot.
[17:51] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And when I heard the music choices because I didn't see it, I've seen photos.
[17:55] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I'm excited to see it because I know that those two pieces, there's a lot of potential.
[18:01] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I did see one or two programs in my class that used the second piece of music they're using, which is Crystal Waters, a hundred percent of your love.
[18:10] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I've seen nobody using sweet dreams by Lubouche, so I'm interested in how that's going to translate.
[18:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, you know, as always, they're working with an incredible group of professionals up there.
[18:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: in London and in Montreal, including Sam Schwinnard.
[18:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think it's going to round into form.
[18:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I have to again appreciate that they put it out there.
[18:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now, they did present their free dance at Champs Camp.
[18:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And like many in Ice Dance couple before them, they were told it doesn't quite fit the bill.
[18:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: the experts did not think it put their best foot forward, perhaps didn't suit them.
[19:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they weren't just too disappointed about that when I talked to them because I think some people at the camp reminded them that this is kind of a right of passage.
[19:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And there's a lot of, I mean, you've had Olympic champions that have been told, you know, hey, we think another piece of music would be better.
[19:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Certainly, you know, over the years looking back on Merrill and Charlie had that experience.
[19:35] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yes, Madison and Evan had this experience, like four or five years ago had the same or told, I think it might have been their rhythm dance.
[19:43] \[SPEAKER_03\]: They were told.
[19:45] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Well, I gotta change it.
[19:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: My memory escapes me.
[19:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: This is again, quite a number of years ago.
[19:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe there was one season where they went through three rhythm dances.
[20:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: One of them, I don't think made it to competition, but they really had to adjust and change.
[20:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's kind of what champs camp is for.
[20:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think they have a really good attitude about it and my understanding, again, when I talked to them, was, you know, they've already decided what it's going to be and it's already in motion and, you know, coming along well.
[20:27] \[SPEAKER_02\]: That's good.
[20:27] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So because I think I would be if I was an athlete now finding out your program is not going to cut it and have to start all over again.
[20:35] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I don't know.
[20:37] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I would be really scared at this point in time, but I'm glad to hear that they have maybe something else in mind and are happy with that and are taking a positive attitude, maybe?
[20:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Absolutely.
[20:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't get the impression again.
[20:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: People don't really talk about their specific music.
[20:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I didn't get the impression that the whole thing needed to be scrapped.
[21:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that ideas and elements and, you know, choreography can be used and perhaps the whole thing is maybe reimagined.
[21:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, this is something that's gonna happen.
[21:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So,
[21:21] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It does.
[21:22] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I mean, as you said, they're not the first, they're not the last that this is going to happen to.
[21:28] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I mean, it even comes down.
[21:31] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I mean, the simplest things I've heard before are costumes get scrapped because they don't fit, but it goes all the way up to programmatic music choices, themes.
[21:42] \[SPEAKER_03\]: All of it can get scrapped.
[21:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Absolutely.
[21:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I'll add that
[21:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Occasionally, you'll get a skater that will say, you know, what I understand, what you're saying.
[21:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: However, I believe in this.
[22:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And this is the route.
[22:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm gonna go.
[22:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now, I don't know if any dance teams that would do that, but, you know, again, just scrolling through my memory banks, certainly, Johnny Wear, comes to mind.
[22:16] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yes.
[22:19] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I think you write, yes, singles.
[22:21] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I've, I've seen singles gators push back and say, nope, I'm going to go through with it.
[22:27] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I've seen ice dancers have programs that fans weren't on board with, but they've stuck to their guns.
[22:35] \[SPEAKER_03\]: But when it comes to officials, it's a little bit different because they're trying to guide teams in a successful direction.
[22:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yes, I don't think that anyone has ever made every ice dance fan happy.
[22:54] \[SPEAKER_04\]: No.
[22:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: No.
[22:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: No, no.
[22:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I certainly have it with my articles over the years.
[23:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know, it's just not going to happen.
[23:06] \[SPEAKER_04\]: No.
[23:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, ice dance fans are many and varied.
[23:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[23:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We all like different things.
[23:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that did happen.
[23:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But again, we will see what happens.
[23:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: There's a lot of competition in I stands, but those are the three teams that have had the greatest body of work over the last twelve months.
[23:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah, you're right.
[23:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Interesting though, just getting back to the shibitani's
[23:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: who of course did not perform in the show.
[23:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They are in the sort of pool of athletes to be considered by means of having won the two thousand eighteen individual bronze.
[24:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know that's kind of interesting because I knew I was coming on the podcast so
[24:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I did a little bit of research and I reviewed the documents that US figure skating has out about how they decide who gets the qualification for the Olympics, who gets the spots.
[24:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And yeah, it's body of work in the twelve-month period.
[24:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: but the ships who obviously don't have a body of work for several years are still in the athletic pool for selection based on their standing as prior Olympic medalists.
[24:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I found that, you know, a little interesting.
[24:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know, I'd also say having read the whole thing and the way it was written, yeah, their guidelines,
[25:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But honestly, you know, there's nothing hard and fast.
[25:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think there's a lot of wiggle room and the selection committee can pick.
[25:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Particularly since we have three spots can pick, you know, for the men for the dance, whoever comes out real strong at nationals.
[25:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: My two cents.
[25:34] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Well, were you a bit surprised when the shibutani is announced that they were coming back?
[25:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I was.
[25:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I'll preface this by saying that I know the shibutani is fairly well.
[25:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I certainly written a lot about them and watched them since they were children.
[25:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I'm thrilled that
[26:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We may have this, you know, the chance to see them compete this fall.
[26:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it nationals, it's a thrilling prospect.
[26:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I was surprised that perhaps they didn't come back last season.
[26:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, the two thousand twenty four, two thousand twenty five season.
[26:24] \[SPEAKER_03\]: That's usually the customary thing that athletes do is come back to season prior.
[26:30] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It's what happened with tests of virtue and Scott Boyer when they came back for, twenty eighteen.
[26:37] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Um, Alyssa, Lou came back last season.
[26:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah, you know, I, I would add that the shibitani's would not be making a hasty decision.
[26:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: or would not be doing something unless they really thought they could do it very well and express themselves and go out there and do meaningful work and do programs that they were proud of and very invested in.
[27:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So there's that.
[27:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I have been told, which I'm sure you have been as well, that they have been working for many months on, you know, with Massimo Scally, with Marina Zuweiva.
[27:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, we're just going to have to see it's just a big question mark in my mind.
[27:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm very excited about it.
[27:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I can't
[27:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: think of anything I'd like to see more, you know, this grand preseason, see what they've come up with.
[27:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But that was my reaction.
[28:01] \[SPEAKER_02\]: and we have them coming back, but we also have this new partnership of Lawrence, Furnier, Brogery, and Gillian, Cesarone.
[28:10] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And that one, I feel like too, I wasn't expecting it either.
[28:15] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And, you know, we were gonna be seeing their debut supposedly coming up here at French masters in Nebelhorn, but this kind of also throws a curve into what has been the top
[28:30] \[SPEAKER_02\]: you know, the top three of ice stands with chocolate base in Piper and Paul and then Charlene and Marco.
[28:37] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So here's another team kind of thrown in the mix.
[28:40] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Any, you know, your thoughts on them or in just the fact that we have another team kind of coming in the mix here.
[28:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[28:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Okay, here, here are kind of my unvarnished views.
[28:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: First of all, uh, with the French team.
[28:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe that they have said in interviews or at least he has said that he would like to really build a partnership and it is not just for one season necessarily that it would go on for another Olympic cycle.
[29:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So there's that.
[29:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: My feeling on both of these teams and I could be
[29:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: way out in left field is I wouldn't assume that judges are going to fall at their feet and kind of embrace or re-embrace them.
[29:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that Ice Dance Judging is cyclical.
[29:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think Ice Dance changes a lot, a season to season.
[29:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: particularly in the case of the shibitonies, what they did beautifully in two thousand eighteen, isn't necessarily what the top teams are doing, you know, seven eight years later.
[30:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that
[30:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: over the past several years, perhaps due to chalk and baits and fluents, but also those other teams you mentioned, the Italians, the Canadians, and I'll throw the British in there, and even the Spanish, sort of the ground is shifted to showy programs in my view, a little more extroverted, sort of,
[30:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: you know reaching out and grabbing the audience and also a bit showy lifts and that I would attribute to chalk and baits and the shibitani can do can do all that certainly their strength their greatest strength in my opinion is their technical ability their feet and their incredible cleanliness
[31:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So again, I think they're gonna tear the cover off the ball of the, of the rhythm dance.
[31:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And then it's going to be up to their material.
[31:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And what Marina Massimo, and also, they themselves who choreograph a lot for themselves and for others can come up with.
[31:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But it's gonna be interesting.
[31:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, the other thing I'll say is on behalf of sort of both of these returning teams
[31:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: the ages of the top ice dancers are really in that thirty five range.
[31:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So somebody that's thirty, which I believe is the age of sazerah.
[32:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, why not think of the future?
[32:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: If this is what he loves to do because, you know, hell, there are other people doing it.
[32:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, this will be Evan Bates.
[32:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Fourth, fifth, fourth, fifth Olympics.
[32:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Okay.
[32:21] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Olympics.
[32:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: That's great.
[32:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, great.
[32:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Hey, say Zaron could do it too.
[32:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I think that there's just a lot of ground shifting there.
[32:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And we're going to have to see, but it really is going to be interesting.
[32:39] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, I stance has definitely changed a lot in the last three years.
[32:45] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It's definitely changed even more than that in the last seven.
[32:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I recall what Brian Boytono said many years ago in nineteen ninety four.
[32:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He said, look, if they want to go to the Olympics, they can go out and beat me.
[33:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he's right.
[33:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And the other thing I'll add is I did see on various message boards, figure skating fan sites.
[33:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Oh, they're going to come back in the US is already putting them in all the promotions and they're going to get, you know, a lot of favorable treatment.
[33:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I wouldn't bet on that.
[33:25] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I think NBC invited to their little thing that they did, who they wanted to invite basically.
[33:33] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And why wouldn't you invite a former Olympic medalist to be part of that?
[33:40] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, having gone to that event several times, that is a hundred percent true.
[33:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know, hey, the shibitani's are going to have every opportunity.
[33:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But what I'm saying is I would not assume that judges, particularly I stand judges, are going to just
[34:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: sort of say, oh my goodness, these stars, you know, be it the French, be it the French, or be it the shibs are back, hurrah, hurrah.
[34:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that everybody's going to have to fight for it.
[34:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: A fair fight would be lovely.
[34:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Say, hurrah probably won't have to fight as hard as everyone else.
[34:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[34:27] \[SPEAKER_03\]: No, probably not.
[34:28] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Raining Olympic champion.
[34:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[34:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[34:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So it's a little different.
[34:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think the whole French situation is a little bit different.
[34:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But that's my my take on on the whole thing.
[34:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Certainly I talked to Choc and Bates and and certainly they're in extremely good spirits.
[34:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They, you know, talked a lot about working with Antonio Navara on there.
[34:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: free dance.
[34:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think what inspired them the most was that this was a genre that they have not yet explored.
[35:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: That's true.
[35:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah, and which is, you know, it's hard to find something they haven't done, right?
[35:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, you know, they're thrilled with how it's coming along.
[35:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, I can't say enough about them.
[35:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They've been incredible.
[35:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: ambassadors for the sport, incredibly professional, always personable, always accessible.
[35:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And again, I think they've really changed the sport, primarily with their lifts and also with their performance quality.
[35:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that's been a big factor in the shifting sands.
[35:53] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Every year they're coming out with something different.
[35:57] \[SPEAKER_03\]: If you look at everything that they've done in the book of what they've done, they've done a lot of different things.
[36:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Oh, well, absolutely.
[36:05] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, they didn't jump in and oh, yes, we're great at character driven.
[36:09] \[SPEAKER_03\]: So we're going to stick with that and not move away from it.
[36:12] \[SPEAKER_03\]: They have continued to push themselves each time.
[36:16] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And I feel like you have to, because otherwise, why would you stay in it?
[36:21] \[SPEAKER_03\]: if you're not pushing yourself to try something different because I mean, the one thing we haven't touched on and I feel like we're moving into an ice dance conversation, which is, or we've been having an ice dance conversation, and that's like my favorite thing, is that it used to be customary for ice dancers to retire between the age of twenty eight and thirty.
[36:48] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And now,
[36:50] \[SPEAKER_03\]: We're looking at thirty five, which is different.
[36:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Oh, yeah.
[36:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, absolutely.
[36:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, I asked Evan about that and he said that in all fairness, their longevity has really allowed them to build up this record because I think it's
[37:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: For me, anyway, I think it's important to note that they will probably in all likelihood retire as the winningist US ice dancers of all time.
[37:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he said, well, you can't really say that because you know, you know, Marilyn Charlie were fantastic.
[37:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, they didn't stick around as long as we did.
[37:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, you know, they're very modest, but
[37:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Everyone is different.
[37:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think what works for them is their couple.
[37:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So they're not being pulled in separate directions.
[37:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I want to go back to school, maybe the other person would like to continue.
[37:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Certainly the French couple had a parting of the ways.
[38:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I think that works in their favor.
[38:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And just the idea that they love creating and they love exploring.
[38:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I can't say enough about that.
[38:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I would also add that, again, at this Champs Camp show, Madison is building up a much larger clientele of skaters that she is working with on their costuming.
[38:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's really exciting.
[38:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So it's kind of all enveloping there.
[38:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And we'll see what the season brings, but certainly anything except Olympic gold could be classified as perhaps less than they would like.
[38:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: When you're the three-time reigning champion, as Scott Hamilton would always say, the pressure is tremendous.
[39:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you
[39:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: you really got to, you know, pace yourself and keep it going through it, through it, the Olympics and then we'll see about Prague.
[39:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that's what's going on in I stance.
[39:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Why don't we move along to pairs?
[39:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Because I will say that it has been confirmed that Audrey, Shin, and Belage Nage are going to
[39:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: go to China on behalf of US figure skating to fight for that third spot for Milan.
[39:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So we did not see them in the show, but I did hear or certainly we've been following on Instagram.
[40:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I haven't talked to them yet that they were really working
[40:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: to overcome the kind of disappointing performance they had at four continents.
[40:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they were just moving forward, perfecting their elements.
[40:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they must have really impressed the officials at Champs Camp.
[40:28] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Yeah, because this is their only second season together, only the second season for Audrey doing pairs.
[40:37] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And so yeah, maybe a little surprising to hear that they would be the ones going to get that third spot, but they must have, as you said, must have really showed the officials at US figure skating that they are ready this season.
[40:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We'll see what happens there, but certainly if they do qualify, which isn't a shoe end, they would, they would, I think, as Dick button used to say, they would be in good stead for gaining one of those three spots.
[41:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, I, I, I think they, they probably had a great summer.
[41:23] \[SPEAKER_02\]: What about our other teams?
[41:26] \[SPEAKER_02\]: You know, did you see Alicia and Misha at the show and maybe Emily and Spencer?
[41:33] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I'm trying to think of, remember, who was who performed in the show?
[41:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, yeah.
[41:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The Evo Mova Metrophonov
[41:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We're talking to the press and they had a lot of interesting things to say about their program for this season.
[41:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They're doing love story as a tribute to Gordieva and Grangkoth and Gordieva came, I believe she visited the skating club of Boston and spent some time with them maybe a day talking to them and going through the program and working with them.
[42:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, I found that very exciting.
[42:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: People evidently have us told Alicia that that she's reminiscent of Kacha, which of course is a brilliant compliment.
[42:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And she is a very elegant pair woman.
[42:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that was fascinating.
[42:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They skated, they didn't skate a competitive program.
[42:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They skated a
[42:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: exhibition.
[42:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, but that they looked fairly strong, they look strong.
[42:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The question becomes, is there any hope of her gaining citizenship?
[42:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it's something that I would have just thought, well, no, there isn't, you know, that she hasn't been in the US for a long enough period of time.
[43:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, the question keeps coming up and up.
[43:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Every interview they give,
[43:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they always say, you know, hey, we've got a team of people working on it.
[43:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, we can't say.
[43:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So it doesn't appear something that they've given up on.
[43:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, we're just going to be interesting to see.
[43:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm not an immigration attorney.
[43:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm sure somebody listening to this is.
[43:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But maybe there is a way, maybe one of the two Massachusetts senators.
[43:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Can get involved?
[43:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know.
[43:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They're certainly in my book.
[43:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They're the U.S.
[43:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Raney U.S.
[43:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: champions and the number one U.S.
[43:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: team.
[43:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We didn't see Danny and Ellie either.
[44:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I presume, you know, they were there.
[44:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I presume.
[44:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, he's been recovering from the foot injury.
[44:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I understand making a very good recovery.
[44:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So obviously, they're in the mix.
[44:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And the lodge and Audrey.
[44:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: What's kind of interesting is, is Chan and Hal because unfortunately, they lost momentum with his shoulder surgery a couple of seasons back.
[44:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I felt they were really climbing.
[44:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, I had a really kind of a swash buckling outgoing great personality on the ice and
[44:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, I'm hoping that they can regain that.
[44:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But they're going to have to pick it up.
[44:52] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah.
[44:53] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I don't think there's a lot of room for errors this season.
[44:56] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I feel like US figure skating can always do what they want to do.
[45:00] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Like they can make that decision.
[45:02] \[SPEAKER_03\]: But I think a team is not going to do themselves any favors if they have a bad competition.
[45:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, I would agree with that.
[45:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Again, I looked at the criteria.
[45:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they make it very profound that we don't believe that just one competition is going to define you.
[45:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We're looking for scores that grow after each event.
[45:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I think that showing that you're improving from event to events would be key.
[45:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: for Ellie and Danny, they need to build on her consistency with the throw triples because those were coming along a bit last season.
[45:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She did land several and if they were to get those nailed down, I think that they are a superb elite world class team because certainly their lifts
[46:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: certainly their choreography, all of the in-between's are in my mind, everything else is there.
[46:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that would be something to watch out for.
[46:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And again, not to repeat myself, but we'll see where a channel how are and if they can kind of recapture some of that or a lot of that, real spark.
[46:41] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Magic, you know.
[46:43] \[SPEAKER_03\]: The year they made the final was just such a breakout year for them and it was such a shame that he got injured when he did.
[46:51] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Well, he was injured.
[46:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The issue as I understood it is that he had had a troublesome shoulder for a number of years.
[47:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And of course, being an athlete, you push through that.
[47:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But what they're back and you know, they were already
[47:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: competed last season, this season, see if they can build on it.
[47:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And again, I think they need to focus on that spark.
[47:20] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah.
[47:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, but you know, and you know, there's interesting stuff happening with international pairs, because it was a lot of, a little bit of fanfare about Shui and Han returning.
[47:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She had had another partner, but for whatever reason, that didn't work out.
[47:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, my understanding from a great friend of mine that goes to China and is Chinese is it appears that, you know, they're not, they're perhaps not going to be in shape to compete this season.
[48:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that they were doing, you know, double twist, double throws this summer.
[48:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they weren't quite able to get up to the triples.
[48:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It is what I'm hearing.
[48:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know what of you are you.
[48:19] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I just hearing that as well.
[48:20] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Yeah, I've seen some, you know, stuff online saying that they're not in the condition to compete with everyone else.
[48:30] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Nothing has come out confirming that they're not going to compete or, you know, this is not going to work out for them.
[48:38] \[SPEAKER_02\]: But yeah, I'm what you were hearing from your friend there, Lynn, is the same kind of stuff I've been seeing online.
[48:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[48:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I would also add that I'm impressed with Shang and Huang, the younger Chinese pair.
[48:55] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think they got over a hundred and ninety points.
[49:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Their first senior B. And, you know, I think they're a pair for the future.
[49:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe, I was just going to add, I believe they're working with Aliona Sifchenko.
[49:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: certainly on their on their short program at least.
[49:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, not that you want to substitute anybody in for the reigning Olympic gold medalist.
[49:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They appear to be up in commerce.
[49:29] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I think we're used to with China having the same names like hearing the same names each Olympics.
[49:35] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It's
[49:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's just, yeah, I mean, they're going to bring, they may bring paying and tongue back.
[49:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know.
[49:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, you know, it's nice to have the, okay, a fresh and team.
[49:49] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[49:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, you know, we'll have to see.
[49:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I think it's going to be very competitive, even, you know, again, without a Russian pair.
[50:01] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yes, definitely.
[50:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: At the qualifier.
[50:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So,
[50:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: you know, hopefully, you know, again, it's a little bit of pressure for shit and nause, but, you know, again, I'm sure it was a careful decision.
[50:17] \[SPEAKER_03\]: You have to send us ready really.
[50:19] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I mean, if you're US figure skating, you have to look at who's ready to go and do this job.
[50:26] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Well, that's what they did.
[50:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So there we go.
[50:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, overall it's funny.
[50:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm going to say that
[50:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: the Germans are really on the upswing.
[50:40] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I would not be at all shocked if they didn't win an Olympic gold.
[50:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I don't know how your what your thoughts are on that.
[50:52] \[SPEAKER_02\]: They should have won the world title in my opinion in Boston.
[50:55] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So I would not be surprised.
[50:59] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, I would not be surprised either.
[51:02] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Miriam Kihara, have a beautiful skateboarding quality.
[51:07] \[SPEAKER_03\]: They're wonderful.
[51:09] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I just think at Worlds, Hassan Voloden, were just better.
[51:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I thought that they should have won in Boston, and the reason that they didn't was kind of their own fault, because they put that extraordinarily difficult carry lift at the very final
[51:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: seconds of their free.
[51:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's a risk.
[51:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they lost, I believe they lost a couple of levels and certainly enough points to lose the title.
[51:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And if I were them, I would maybe take a look at that.
[51:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I did ask her about it.
[51:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And she said, no, no.
[51:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's a very exciting lift and the crowd loves it at the end, so we're going to keep it.
[52:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So we shall see.
[52:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But they're my pick in Milano.
[52:11] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I agree to, you know, again, I was sad they should have won in Boston.
[52:17] \[SPEAKER_02\]: It was that
[52:19] \[SPEAKER_02\]: that left at the very end other than that, that program was outstanding.
[52:25] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And so yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if they're on top of the podium, you know, I always think about the Italian pair's teams as well, given that it is a home Olympics, so you have, you know, contain Machi, not so much, you know, gelardi and
[52:46] \[SPEAKER_02\]: ever seen he really didn't have a great yeah world at least yeah they did not have their best worlds but then you don't know the a known of Bakari in greasy you know them coming back this season after missing last season what they're going to be capable of but it has you know for the
[53:13] \[SPEAKER_02\]: last few seasons it's straight to me this strong Italians pair of teams that have kind of come out so could one be on the podium I don't know but yeah that's where I've been you know the past few seasons kind of been looking at yeah
[53:33] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Well, we can't close out pairs without mentioning D.N.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-
[53:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Last season, you know, obviously, not sensed, we all saw that they were really kind of losing a little bit of their energy by the time they got to worlds.
[54:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So if they can regroup and again, come out with the dynamite material, then I think that they're on the podium.
[54:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I will
[54:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, stick with my prediction of the Germans.
[54:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We don't like it.
[54:31] \[SPEAKER_04\]: All right.
[54:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, put me down for that.
[54:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, my, my picks are notoriously poor.
[54:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, you know, hopefully I'm not putting the, a Bosch on it.
[54:46] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Didn't they used to do that in skating magazine where they had everyone make their picks?
[54:51] \[SPEAKER_03\]: for the Olympics or something.
[54:54] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, I was not where somebody did.
[54:56] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah.
[54:57] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Oh, I did it a lot.
[54:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, I did it for maybe three or four publications.
[55:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know, my picks were not terrible, but when you consider that I'm supposed to be a figure skating certainly not expert by any means, but
[55:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: a specialist, shall we say?
[55:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The record was not that good.
[55:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Where I was really bad was the picks in ice network where we had to pick like a surprise or a breakout person or skater.
[55:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Unfortunately, you know, I really missed the mark there.
[55:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Although in my defense, I did pick Amber Glenn
[55:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: years ago.
[55:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Several times when she was a junior and when she was a young senior.
[55:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So she didn't quite break out when I thought she would, but she did grow cows.
[56:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's all the way.
[56:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yes.
[56:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's so sure as hell distinguished herself, you know, several years later.
[56:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's a really great segue.
[56:11] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I was going to sit and right into the women.
[56:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah, right into into into the women.
[56:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, again, the US is just doing fabulous.
[56:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They have three women in the top five.
[56:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: There's always a chance, but I would say that those three women are the Olympic team, barring injury or a real calamity.
[56:37] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Yeah, I would agree.
[56:39] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Um, did you get to see any programs from those top three?
[56:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, Amber did, um, you know, again, yes.
[56:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The answer is yes.
[56:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Um, actually, Amber did, I believe she, she did like a prayer in the show her her free skate.
[57:01] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Um, it looked
[57:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: really promising.
[57:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She did not perhaps skate great in terms of her jumps.
[57:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, it is a show.
[57:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's the beginning of the season.
[57:17] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that's meaningless.
[57:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But the program I thought suited her and I think was a good choice for her.
[57:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think she's
[57:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: you know, very very particular with her material and I think that that it's a good choice.
[57:40] \[SPEAKER_01\]: The same for Isabel who did her short, which is I'm going to probably mispronounce that this zubi zoo pro music from I think it's from the sixties, maybe the late sixties made popular by madmen my personal
[58:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: all-time favorite television show.
[58:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think it really suits Isabel.
[58:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's kind of in the same character as the Moon River short from last season.
[58:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It really brings out our personality.
[58:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She's a very feminine, very, can be a very precise skater, a very,
[58:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Just a very charming, effervescent skater.
[58:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I really like that program for her.
[58:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[58:39] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And now, Alyssa Liu in Norwood looked fine.
[58:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't believe put out any competitive program.
[58:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But having talked to her maybe six weeks ago or so,
[59:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She really is taking her time this summer.
[59:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She's taking time off or she took time off.
[59:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know, not a little time off.
[59:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She took, you know, weeks off.
[59:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She traveled a little bit.
[59:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She hung out with her family, hung out with her friends.
[59:17] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, that's classic Alyssa.
[59:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She's doing everything her way.
[59:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And who can argue with her?
[59:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Because she had a brilliant season last season.
[59:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I certainly, she certainly made a believer out of me.
[59:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I did not expect her to come back like that.
[59:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I certainly didn't expect her to win worlds for crying out loud.
[59:41] \[SPEAKER_04\]: So I'm not going to.
[59:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah, I mean, I'm not going to question her choices.
[59:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, she perhaps she said this to you on your podcast, you know, she really thinks of herself as an artist, more than an athlete, which is incredibly ironic, given that, you know, she kind of burst on the scene as this, you know, dynamic, twelve-year-old that was doing quads and triple axle.
[1:00:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yet, you know, she's very ambitious.
[1:00:17] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She wants to do
[1:00:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: three triple axles.
[1:00:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: This season she wants to put it in the short and she wants to put two in the free.
[1:00:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: We'll see if that happens.
[1:00:29] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Yeah, when she came on the podcast, she was very much like, she couldn't believe that people were already had programs, were already starting to compete.
[1:00:42] \[SPEAKER_02\]: It kind of was like, we were blowing her mind with the fact that, yeah, the season has started for some people.
[1:00:48] \[SPEAKER_02\]: So she's really just on her own timeframe, doing her own thing.
[1:00:53] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And I think that worked for her last season.
[1:00:57] \[SPEAKER_02\]: should just keep going that way.
[1:00:59] \[SPEAKER_02\]: And yeah, no one expected her to win world.
[1:01:02] \[SPEAKER_02\]: She didn't expect to win worlds, but I'm going to say she's one that could be on a podium at the women's event in Milan.
[1:01:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think any of the top three US women could be on the podium in the lawn.
[1:01:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They each have their, they're all different.
[1:01:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: They're their biggest strengths.
[1:01:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, they're all very different and they each have their individual strengths and I don't want to say weaknesses because I don't think that's the right word.
[1:01:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But they have their strengths and their things that they need to bolster shall we say.
[1:01:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, if the list can maintain this carefree attitude where she's not letting people tell her what to do, she's not
[1:01:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: paying attention to any naysayers.
[1:02:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She is having a great time and she's not getting caught up in the Olympic hyper pressure.
[1:02:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: That's going to be, you know, that's going to be, that's going to tell the story, I think.
[1:02:18] \[SPEAKER_03\]: She is great at blocking out the noise.
[1:02:22] \[SPEAKER_03\]: A lot of the noise, which is basically people saying, oh, she can't do that.
[1:02:27] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Oh, she's going to win everything.
[1:02:29] \[SPEAKER_03\]: No matter what the opinion is, she's good at like building like a force field around herself.
[1:02:34] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And it's just not something she's thinking about.
[1:02:37] \[SPEAKER_03\]: She's not letting it in.
[1:02:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[1:02:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, she's exceptionally honest.
[1:02:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: As are the other two women, certainly Amber, who's several years older.
[1:02:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, she always comes to you with a raw honesty, raw emotion.
[1:02:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, the challenge is, you know, to harness all that, keep it together, not let the pressure get to you again.
[1:03:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, in Amber's case, I think also stay healthy.
[1:03:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Because, you know, as she often says, you know, she's been doing this for a long time.
[1:03:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, she's got those aches and pains.
[1:03:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, exceptionally strong skater, capable of winning it all.
[1:03:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, Isabelle, I've already sort of covered, but, you know, just a lot of charm.
[1:03:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I, I see additional maturity already, just having, you know, senior at the show, the Summer Sisler.
[1:03:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Beautiful edge jumps.
[1:03:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, people critique her toe jumps, her technique there.
[1:04:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: If she can just sort of not listen to that and go out there and do what she can do and not try to deconstruct her jumps in a hotel room overnight, then she can be there.
[1:04:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I'm very high on the US women.
[1:04:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, I'll add, you know, hey, it's not that they're not other good women.
[1:04:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, it's just that it's going to be difficult to overcome, you know, when you're, when you've got three top five in the world, it's going to be difficult for a Brady to know or a Sarah Everhart to sort of leapfrog over them, you know, unless, you know, not good, which doesn't happen unless there's a, you know, an injury.
[1:04:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, certainly Sarah Evahart is an incredibly consistent competitor.
[1:04:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm going to guess that she and her coaches are working on a triple let's triple toe, that's a guess on my part.
[1:05:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I did talk to her at the show.
[1:05:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She's very excited.
[1:05:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She's worked with Chaline Boren again.
[1:05:12] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And she's a very self-contained, very see-seemingly, you know, very
[1:05:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: together, a young person.
[1:05:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She says that she's going to be enrolling in American University, not in the fall, but when it becomes a little more clear whether she's got a shot at the Olympics, she may enroll in the spring.
[1:05:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe spring semesters, that what they call it?
[1:05:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[1:05:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She's just been coming along great.
[1:05:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, Brady is tough.
[1:05:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Brady, Brady's, if she had a very good, she had some good moments last season.
[1:06:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And she's a tough competitor and just loves to skate.
[1:06:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it was great to see her have those moments last season.
[1:06:13] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I think that because it's been a long road back, it really shows how committed she is and how much she loves it.
[1:06:20] \[SPEAKER_03\]: skating because she's had setbacks and she has just continued to push through them.
[1:06:26] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And some people probably would have given up.
[1:06:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Oh, many people would have.
[1:06:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Now, I'm going to go out on a limb here.
[1:06:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I'm going to pick melanin as the top US man and a good, a good candidate for the Olympic team.
[1:06:51] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I don't know if I've heard of him.
[1:06:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, he's the kind of guy in my view that is never going to be satisfied.
[1:07:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Because we did talk to him a little bit at the Summer Sizzler.
[1:07:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he is still according to what he said.
[1:07:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's still very wedded to a seven quad program.
[1:07:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: which, you know, he's tried numerous times and he's done very, very well, but he hasn't quite made all the quads.
[1:07:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Let's say he's made five or six.
[1:07:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Sometimes they saddle his quads with this ridiculous cue that I think is absurd.
[1:07:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that his quads have been over reviewed by ISU technical panels.
[1:07:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I asked him about that and he said, well, I think you agreed.
[1:07:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But he said that it's his job this season, this Olympic season, to make it clear that these are fully rotated.
[1:08:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I think he's on a mission there.
[1:08:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think, you know, he probably really knocked the crap out of the, uh, Grand Prix.
[1:08:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: schedule because he wants obviously to get his Grand Prix events over quickly.
[1:08:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So we're not going to see him unfortunately in like Placid.
[1:08:28] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It's so wild to me.
[1:08:30] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And the US has a world champion that's not going to be in like plazaed.
[1:08:35] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I mean, it's gay to America.
[1:08:37] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It's wild to me because it seems like that's what usually happens.
[1:08:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, not only that, generally speaking, the US champions or it's gay to America.
[1:08:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's not the case at all this season.
[1:08:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So again, I think he would have been there had the schedule permitted.
[1:08:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Normally, you know, Skate America is obviously your first.
[1:09:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that the French Federation had difficulties getting their venue.
[1:09:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So everything was shifted.
[1:09:10] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I think we're going to see probably something new from him, probably unveiled at the Grand Prix final.
[1:09:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think he's got his method and he's sticking to it.
[1:09:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think he's going to do those two.
[1:09:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Certainly he's smart in that he's doing that warm-up at Lombardiga, right?
[1:09:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And then he's, you know, doing his, his Grand Prix.
[1:09:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And that's really the first segment of his season.
[1:09:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And then I think anything new will be brought out at the Grand Prix final.
[1:09:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, he'll take a victory lap in St.
[1:09:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Louis.
[1:09:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, he should be rounding out into excellent shape, knock wood for an Olympic title.
[1:10:03] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Well, and you have to think, if something is worked before, why would you mess with it as in your season?
[1:10:10] \[SPEAKER_03\]: If you know what you want to do and you've, it's all well thought out.
[1:10:13] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Why would you mess with it?
[1:10:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, sometimes you're trapped in mess with it.
[1:10:17] \[SPEAKER_01\]: If you don't have the juice.
[1:10:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Right.
[1:10:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, Elie Molin and can pretty much write, you know, I don't want to say can write his own ticket.
[1:10:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But nobody's going to give him a hard time.
[1:10:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So he was able to do that.
[1:10:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't think, you know, again, there's a embarrassment of riches in terms of the women.
[1:10:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, you know, Amber's the US champion, but she's not doing Skater America.
[1:10:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think that's probably her choice, or it might be.
[1:10:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And yet, we have the world champion.
[1:10:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So, but I think Mount Mallon is a kid that I call him a kid.
[1:10:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's a grown man, I shouldn't.
[1:10:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But he's
[1:11:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, I've got to go in on and he's got it all together.
[1:11:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he has a group of people helping him, not only Eris Ecarion, who's a long time, very capable, very knowledgeable, a figure skating entrepreneur, agent, show them in whatever.
[1:11:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: but he added a Cheryl shade to his team.
[1:11:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She is, I think, sewing up some brand deals for him.
[1:11:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: She worked with a whole lot of gymnasts and a lot of really well-known Olympians and Paralympians.
[1:11:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think he really wants to be in the public eye and he really likes that spotlight.
[1:11:55] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And I think that's something that's different with him than what we saw with Nathan Chen.
[1:12:02] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Nathan seemed like the spotlight maybe wasn't really what he had just other things that he was focused on.
[1:12:12] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And Ilya is much more of that rock star like vibe to me.
[1:12:18] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Like he wants this.
[1:12:20] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Like he's okay with it.
[1:12:22] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It doesn't bother him.
[1:12:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Absolutely.
[1:12:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, the only thing that you can say is, you know, if you talk about Ilya and his primary competition, this is going to be Ilya's first Olympic experience.
[1:12:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You never know when those rings are on the ice.
[1:12:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: how you're going to react, although I just think with Ilya, I have confidence that he's going to eat it up and love it.
[1:12:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But there is that.
[1:12:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you can't downplay that.
[1:13:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And one of his biggest competitors, the Japanese man, Yuma, has had a great Olympic experience in Beijing.
[1:13:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Um, he, he skated extraordinarily well, came away with the silver.
[1:13:23] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, that, that, that is going to be great experience for him.
[1:13:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Plus, um, his free skate to Taska is winning incredible accolades from basically everyone that's seen it.
[1:13:38] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It really is.
[1:13:40] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I, I obviously haven't seen it live.
[1:13:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So a video of it, it's incredibly impressive, beautifully done.
[1:13:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You can't say enough about it.
[1:13:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's probably going to take the PCS crown, unless Jason really reels it in, pun intended.
[1:14:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's at a big disadvantage, technically.
[1:14:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And this is kind of interesting, and maybe I'll get your thoughts on this.
[1:14:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: There's a rule that you can only repeat one quad.
[1:14:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And Yuma has two very dependable quad.
[1:14:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's working on adding the quad flip, I believe.
[1:14:31] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But you know, recently he went out there and debuted his program and he did, I believe he did futos in a sal.
[1:14:46] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, these days that really put some behind the eight ball when you compare him to mallin' and shall we say, shot her off and perhaps the Frenchman.
[1:14:58] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah, Adam, see how him fall.
[1:15:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yes.
[1:15:01] \[SPEAKER_03\]: You can't count out if he could just have, I mean, we've seen him at Worlds two years in a row, be low in the short program and come firing back in the free skate.
[1:15:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I'm gonna count him out because, you know, what you just said, we've seen him twice at Worlds.
[1:15:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And maybe he'll get it out of his system if he does the team event in Milano.
[1:15:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Maybe that'll work in his favor.
[1:15:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know.
[1:15:32] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But that's a tendency you can't afford to have.
[1:15:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But he's a certainly a brilliant performer.
[1:15:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But getting back to you, you know, this puts in behind the April, it really puts them at a disadvantage in terms of the technical score.
[1:15:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it's kind of a strange rule when you think about it.
[1:15:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know, I think what was it?
[1:15:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Two thousand seventeen or so, two thousand, when they started it, but it gives people, it gives skaters that have
[1:16:08] \[SPEAKER_01\]: three or five solid quads.
[1:16:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, they're always going to have an advantage.
[1:16:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But this even adds to their advantage because a guy that has maybe three quads, but two are really solid and he'd like to repeat them both.
[1:16:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He can't do that.
[1:16:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So that's Yuma.
[1:16:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I see him on the podium with this brilliant program that is going to set the crowd a light in my opinion and everybody's opinion.
[1:16:45] \[SPEAKER_03\]: It's a beautiful program.
[1:16:47] \[SPEAKER_03\]: There's so much potential in it.
[1:16:50] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I think it suits him really well.
[1:16:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It suits him beautifully.
[1:16:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I could even, I think he's almost challenging Shoma because it, you know, I could have even seen Shoma do it.
[1:17:02] \[SPEAKER_01\]: in a slightly different way.
[1:17:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But this guy, he rotates like nobody's business and just spins like a top in the air.
[1:17:13] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he's a fighter in my opinion.
[1:17:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, he was off his game in Boston, but in general, I don't think he's conceding gold.
[1:17:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: which you can't, you always have to think you can walk.
[1:17:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But you look strong.
[1:17:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, we'll see shot her off in like placid, but you know, he just absolutely blossomed last season.
[1:17:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, he's coming into his own at the right time.
[1:17:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, he's an excellent candidate for the podium.
[1:17:51] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think he pushes Ilia.
[1:17:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, he's done things that Ilia hasn't done.
[1:17:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Right.
[1:17:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: In competition anyway.
[1:18:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, there's plenty of stuff being done on TikTok and stuff.
[1:18:05] \[SPEAKER_03\]: With Ilya, someone doing something he hasn't done.
[1:18:08] \[SPEAKER_03\]: I feel like Ilya, that will definitely push him to do it and go beyond it because that's just who he is.
[1:18:17] \[SPEAKER_03\]: He's competitive.
[1:18:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He is.
[1:18:21] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I believe that Shadow off has that triple axle
[1:18:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yes.
[1:18:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And yes.
[1:18:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, I'll just throw that out there.
[1:18:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I wouldn't be totally shocked if we didn't see a quint this season, not at the Olympics, but someplace.
[1:18:37] \[SPEAKER_02\]: All right.
[1:18:39] \[SPEAKER_03\]: So that gets me a little scared at a quint, but the technical part of this board has continued to be pushed and pushed and pushed.
[1:18:51] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And so what is the next thing?
[1:18:54] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, you're quite quad combinations.
[1:18:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, again, I think shatter off has been shattering the glass ceiling here.
[1:19:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[1:19:04] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, the triple axle quad toe type deal.
[1:19:11] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, there are increasing acrobatic moves.
[1:19:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You have a raspberry
[1:19:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: People will probably develop the back flip more and do maybe do doubles and you know, in a two and a row.
[1:19:24] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't know.
[1:19:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I don't really know.
[1:19:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But well, maybe we do know actually.
[1:19:29] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But it, you know, I personally have been a person that embraces the kind of technical aspect of figure skating.
[1:19:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's a sport.
[1:19:45] \[SPEAKER_01\]: So I haven't been concerned.
[1:19:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: If that's the word about, oh, it's getting too technical.
[1:19:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: There's too many quads.
[1:19:53] \[SPEAKER_01\]: That's never really been something I've worried about.
[1:19:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Certainly the ISU does what we did not talk about is this third spot for the man.
[1:20:05] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I was going to ask you about that third spot.
[1:20:08] \[SPEAKER_02\]: It's the most unknown to me.
[1:20:09] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I mean, you have Ilya and you're we assume Jason is the second spot, but the third spot.
[1:20:17] \[SPEAKER_02\]: I've heard so many different things.
[1:20:18] \[SPEAKER_02\]: Well, you know, Andrew Chorgashev and we, you know, and there's Camden and then Max and it's yeah, that I just don't know.
[1:20:29] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And I don't think that anyone has made a strong enough case for themselves.
[1:20:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: for us to be able to say, if you step up, like, that's the reason why, as great as he is, that Jason, one of the reasons that Jason is still with us competing, because nobody has definitively marked themselves as, you know, hey, I'm the number two guy in the US.
[1:21:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And they've all had ample opportunity.
[1:21:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Again, I mentioned previously, you look at the criteria that the US has posted on its website for selecting the Olympic team.
[1:21:26] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it just seems to me that certainly there are some great guidelines and they give a lot of information.
[1:21:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: especially when it comes to a third spot like this, they can do what they want.
[1:21:41] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I think that, in a way, nationals is going to be even more important this season.
[1:21:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But if I were to make a bet, I am going to say that Turkish chef will perhaps prevail.
[1:22:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: despite the double disappointment of a couple of really for him, certainly, subpar grie skates at Worlds.
[1:22:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He, again, he came out in a good way in Boston by doing his free skate, by showing it the contemporary number that he did.
[1:22:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think it was a great idea to get it out there.
[1:22:37] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And it looked incredibly interesting, suited him.
[1:22:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he knows he's got to redeem himself.
[1:22:48] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I still think that he has the inside track.
[1:22:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He's on the podium at Nationals last season.
[1:22:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He tends to, in recent seasons anyway, skate well at Nationals.
[1:23:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, that's, that's my thinking.
[1:23:09] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, again, you know, Jimmy Ma won a medal at four continents.
[1:23:16] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He came out with a really interesting pre.
[1:23:18] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I thought it suited him well.
[1:23:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It was kind of a mashup classical.
[1:23:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe it was sorcerers apprentice.
[1:23:27] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And, you know, Jimmy's got his own style, big personality, a very popular.
[1:23:36] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Um, so I can't really count him out.
[1:23:38] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Um, certainly can't count out, uh, Camden and Polkin in all the way.
[1:23:42] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I'm not sure.
[1:23:43] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I haven't had the opportunity to talk to him.
[1:23:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, he's a guy.
[1:23:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: He was fifth in the world.
[1:23:50] \[SPEAKER_03\]: They've all had these moments of, it could happen at the right time.
[1:23:56] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And, but no one is saying, okay, I'm consistently going to make it happen over and over.
[1:24:05] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[1:24:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, look at the heavy competition other countries have, right, principally Japan.
[1:24:14] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, the Japanese women, yes, Sakamoto will be on the Olympic team, okay?
[1:24:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I think Monashibi, Shiba will be on the Olympic team.
[1:24:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I think, but there are three other women.
[1:24:35] \[SPEAKER_01\]: plus Mona that are going to be fighting for the spots and you know, may come down to who has a better triple axle there.
[1:24:47] \[SPEAKER_01\]: You know, people really want to see, you know, fans if that's any indication really would like to see what Kauba.
[1:24:57] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But, you know, Yoshida, what a knobby.
[1:25:00] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, you can't
[1:25:03] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And now, right, anybody, write them off there.
[1:25:06] \[SPEAKER_01\]: It's even fiercer.
[1:25:07] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And the Japanese men, you know, certainly Yuma is there.
[1:25:15] \[SPEAKER_01\]: But I, I'll never forget how.
[1:25:20] \[SPEAKER_01\]: A couple of seasons ago, he was still competing.
[1:25:22] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I believe is a junior, but he went to four continents in Colorado Springs.
[1:25:30] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And he was just brilliant.
[1:25:33] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Um, so if he's healthy, I would, you know, I would like to see him on the team, but, you know, you got shun and Sota could make a run at the team.
[1:25:47] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah.
[1:25:48] \[SPEAKER_03\]: At Kenosha to come, Sota was second to Yuma.
[1:25:52] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah, I mean, that was the, the performance of Taska that I've been flat in my guns about.
[1:25:58] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Yeah.
[1:25:59] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah.
[1:25:59] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I mean, I think he, you, you might one by a good margin.
[1:26:03] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Yeah.
[1:26:04] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Lynn, we're so grateful that you were willing to come on the podcast and talk about the somersis layer to talk about what the Olympics season looks like because it is upon us once again.
[1:26:17] \[SPEAKER_03\]: And yeah, we really appreciate it.
[1:26:20] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Can you let folks know where they can read your work like going forward?
[1:26:25] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Well, my work will be in skating magazine.
[1:26:28] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Actually, now I'm working on a cover story of chalk and baits.
[1:26:34] \[SPEAKER_01\]: I haven't counted, but I think this is my hundred and forty-seventh story on chalk and bates.
[1:26:44] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And you know what, I only wish I could do a hundred and fifty more, honestly.
[1:26:50] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And I'm also going to be doing some stuff on the US figure skating website.
[1:26:56] \[SPEAKER_01\]: And probably a few other places.
[1:26:58] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Excellent.
[1:26:59] \[SPEAKER_03\]: Well, we will continue to share your articles as they come out.
[1:27:03] \[SPEAKER_03\]: so we like to promote what's out there so folks in case they miss it because it's a lot to keep up with everything that's going on especially in an Olympic season and we should see you most likely in like class and then of course St.
[1:27:19] \[SPEAKER_01\]: Louis yeah I might go to a few other things but certainly those two
[1:27:24] \[SPEAKER_00\]: Thanks for tuning in to another episode of This Week In Skating.
[1:27:27] \[SPEAKER_00\]: Remember, you can keep up with us throughout the week by visiting our website at www.thisweekinscading.com.
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[1:28:00] \[SPEAKER_00\]: Until next time, have a nice week.

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