LOL cultural differences my ass.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
Grand Prix Assignments Pt. 2!
The second half of the 6-competition series kicks off with the NHK Trophy of Japan. The pairs event has some big names, including P/T, S/S, K/S. T/T will also be there to challenge if one of those teams withdraws (which is likely due to past injuries that at least one of those teams will be injured). The mens event will be an exciting preview for the Japanese Nationals, with Kozuka and Takahashi fighting it out for gold. Tomas Verner will also challenge for a podium spot. If any of these three falter, all three American men there - Armin, Ross Miner, or Mroz could take the bronze.
The ladies competition in Mao Asada's to lose, assuming she is back to her old form by then. Leonova will also be there, but she is still wildly inconsistent even though she skated clean at worlds. Agnes Zawadski may have her best chance of landing on the podium here, but she will have to fight off judges' favorite Kiira Korpi and skate a solid LP to have any chance.
The dance event is full of up-and-comers, with the Shibutanis, I/K, and W/P. The Shibutanis might win, but the Russians may have an advantage in the short dance which does not suit brother and sister duos as well as last years' did. Also, the Shibs may be tired out from CoC one week before.
TEB brings us another exciting mens event, where 7 men have realistic chances to land on the podium: Chan, Brezina, Amodio, Joubert, Oda, Lysacek, and Rippon. Right now, Chan is the favorite, but Oda is known to do well at the beginning of the season - if he doesn't Zayak. If Lysacek actually returns, he will most likely podium. If not, any of the men listed above will claim a medal. The pairs event should be another easy win for V/T, and B/L should also do well. Who knows, maybe E/L can beat out D/R for the bronze.
The ladies event still has 2 TBD spots, but the three spots on the podium will be fought for between Kostner, Murakami, Lepisto, Elizaveta, and Czisny. They are all fairly inconsistent, with the exception of Murakami, so it's hard to predict who will win. If Elizaveta puts out two solid programs with the technical content she is capable of, she could very well win the grand prix of France, but that can also be said for Kostner and Czisny. Lepisto is still a question mark. The ice dance event should be interesting, with V/M going in as favorites for gold, and P/B for silver. I/K and C/L will most likely challenge each other for bronze.
The last competition before the GPF is the Rostelecom Cup, formerly Cup of Russia. The ice dance event will be headlined by D/W. W/P should challenge for a podium spot, but will have to fight off B/S and R/T as well as one other Russian team. The ladies event will be a display of new talent - only 4 skaters are 20 or older - Lacoste, Korpi, Asada, and Leonova. The latter three will have to hold off up-and-comers including Sotnikova and Zawadski for podium spots.
The mens field is probably the weakest off all mens field in the GP, but there are quite a few men at about the same level to challenge for the podium spots. Young talents Hanyu and Gachinski could win if their on, as could Abbott and Verner. Having two different quads in their programs could really help Fernandez and Brezina here, as the field is pretty much wide open. In pairs, S/S are the favorites, but there is still a TBD Russia spot that V/T could take, which could make the competition VERY interesting. K/S will challenge for a podium spot. The bronze is up for grabs to whoever skates the best - maybe G/E.
The ladies competition in Mao Asada's to lose, assuming she is back to her old form by then. Leonova will also be there, but she is still wildly inconsistent even though she skated clean at worlds. Agnes Zawadski may have her best chance of landing on the podium here, but she will have to fight off judges' favorite Kiira Korpi and skate a solid LP to have any chance.
The dance event is full of up-and-comers, with the Shibutanis, I/K, and W/P. The Shibutanis might win, but the Russians may have an advantage in the short dance which does not suit brother and sister duos as well as last years' did. Also, the Shibs may be tired out from CoC one week before.
TEB brings us another exciting mens event, where 7 men have realistic chances to land on the podium: Chan, Brezina, Amodio, Joubert, Oda, Lysacek, and Rippon. Right now, Chan is the favorite, but Oda is known to do well at the beginning of the season - if he doesn't Zayak. If Lysacek actually returns, he will most likely podium. If not, any of the men listed above will claim a medal. The pairs event should be another easy win for V/T, and B/L should also do well. Who knows, maybe E/L can beat out D/R for the bronze.
The ladies event still has 2 TBD spots, but the three spots on the podium will be fought for between Kostner, Murakami, Lepisto, Elizaveta, and Czisny. They are all fairly inconsistent, with the exception of Murakami, so it's hard to predict who will win. If Elizaveta puts out two solid programs with the technical content she is capable of, she could very well win the grand prix of France, but that can also be said for Kostner and Czisny. Lepisto is still a question mark. The ice dance event should be interesting, with V/M going in as favorites for gold, and P/B for silver. I/K and C/L will most likely challenge each other for bronze.
The last competition before the GPF is the Rostelecom Cup, formerly Cup of Russia. The ice dance event will be headlined by D/W. W/P should challenge for a podium spot, but will have to fight off B/S and R/T as well as one other Russian team. The ladies event will be a display of new talent - only 4 skaters are 20 or older - Lacoste, Korpi, Asada, and Leonova. The latter three will have to hold off up-and-comers including Sotnikova and Zawadski for podium spots.
The mens field is probably the weakest off all mens field in the GP, but there are quite a few men at about the same level to challenge for the podium spots. Young talents Hanyu and Gachinski could win if their on, as could Abbott and Verner. Having two different quads in their programs could really help Fernandez and Brezina here, as the field is pretty much wide open. In pairs, S/S are the favorites, but there is still a TBD Russia spot that V/T could take, which could make the competition VERY interesting. K/S will challenge for a podium spot. The bronze is up for grabs to whoever skates the best - maybe G/E.
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