As the final Grand Prix event (aside from the Grand Prix Final itself, of course) of the 2017 Grand Prix of Figure Skating season, Skate America 2017 in charming Lake Placid, NY proved to be a fitting ending to an unpredictable and generally weird Grand Prix season: withdrawals galore, on-ice injuries, insects lurking about, surprising podium results, system malfunctions . . . never let it be said that figure skating is staid and predictable! For in this brave new world where even Evgenia Medvedeva falters during a competition–there is no certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain . . .
Anyway, here are twenty questions that came to mind during Skate America 2017:
20. Is Skate America YOUR pick for the worst men’s event of the 2017 Grand Prix season?
19. Did anyone else recoil at the terrible, key-smashing “version” (to use that word loosely!) of Moonlight Sonata Kaori Sakamoto used for her short program?
18. Which program did Lori Nichol spend less time choreographing, Boyang Jin’s Darth Vader Goes to a Cantina LP or Gabrielle Daleman’s Gladiator Lite LP?
17. Given Bradie Tennell’s consistency so far, is she the new Anointed Savior of US Ladies Skating to fans of US ladies figure skating this season?
16. Does anyone else feel old seeing all those skaters you watched compete years ago now sit in the kiss-and-cry as coaches? O hai Plushenko . . .
15. How much did Kaori Sakamoto’s stellar performances at Skate America this weekend throw a proverbial monkey wrench into the Japanese ladies’ Olympic team selection process?
14. Before this weekend, when was the last time a ladies Grand Prix event didn’t have at least one Russian on the podium?
13. Does anyone’s eyes also start rolling when the USFS PR machine goes into overdrive and feeds us yet another mention of Nathan Chen’s ballet prowess? It’s like we have to be constantly told that NATHAN CHEN DID BALLET AND IS TOTALLY ARTISTIC the same way we were constantly reminded that MICHAEL WEISS IS NOT GAY; HAS WIFE AND KIDS or EVAN LYSACEK IS A ‘WELL-ROUNDED’ SKATER UNLIKE THAT 6.0 FOSSIL PLUSHENKO.
12. Is anyone else sort of disappointed by Satoko Miyahara’s programs this season?
11. Is Sinitsina/Katsalapov’s free dance supposed to be a tribute to Mishkutenok/Dmitriev’s legendary LP from the 1993-1994 season? Blasphemous!
10. How would Edward Said have reacted to Satoko Miyahara’s music choices this season?
9. Whose untapped potential frustrates you more, Han Yan or Karen Chen?
8. Has Sergei Voronov successfully cemented his spot on the Russian men’s Olympic team with his bronze medal here at Skate America? As a former (doomed) member of #TeamMenshovforSochi, I can’t help but amused.
7. Is it a good idea for Savchenko/Massot to continue working to incorporate the throw 3A into their LP?
6. Which is preferable, birds flitting around in the stands (à la Trophée Éric Bompards of days past) or insects on the ice?
5. Did the ladies’ technical panel mistakenly assume they were at US Nationals instead of Skate America?
4. Should Duhamel/Radford have repeated their Adele program instead of their Muse program this season?
3. Does Karen Chen need a coaching change?
2. How does Ashley Wagner’s withdrawal here at Skate America affect the calculus behind the USFS”http://morozombie.blogspot.com/”body of work” criteria for choosing the US Olympic team?
1. Is anyone else thrilled that we’re going to see Wakaba Higuchi’s excellent Skyfall LP at the Grand Prix Final?