Evan Lysacek May Skate at Nationals
by LauraS on Sep 2, 2010 3:02 PM EDT
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Olympic gold medalist Evan Lysacek has not ruled out competing at the 2011 Nationals, according to The Chicago Tribune. Lysacek gave an interview this morning in which he cleared things up:
Clarifying his situation in a Thursday morning interview with the Tribune, Olympic figure skating champion Evan Lysacek said he will not compete any more in 2010 but left open the possibility of skating at the 2011 U.S. Championships and trying for the 2014 Olympics.
Lysacek said his chances of being ready to compete at nationals were ``50-50.''
The article goes on to report that Lysacek has been working a bit with Frank Carroll and that the skater is still in good shape. He also says that he may want to compete in Sochi.
I'm actually surprised; I thought Lysacek might skip the whole season and then kind of drift off into the nonretirement sunset, but it sounds like he isn't sure. He's obviously very competitive, so I'm sure it will be hard for him to miss a season of skating. Lysacek says he has left room in his schedule at the end of the year so that he can train for Nationals, just in case. I don't really expect to see him at Nationals..unless the other offers stop coming in.
Kim Changes Training Venues
by LauraS on Sep 1, 2010 9:22 AM EDT
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Yu-na Kim changed training venues in Toronto, according to Chosun Ilbo. Per the site:
Kim Yu-na has moved from the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club, where she had been training for four years, to the Granite Club in Toronto.
Shae-Lynn Bourne works at Granite Club, and she is choreographing Kim's short program this season. Kim is still a member of the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club.
The Worth of a Coach
by LauraS on Aug 31, 2010 7:37 AM EDT
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One of the most difficult things to do in sports is to figure out just how valuable a coach is. The Brian Orser/Yu-na Kim situation reiterates that difficult question, particularly with the revisionist history going on. Many are saying that Kim saved Orser's career by choosing to work with him (without acknowledging that, obviously, Kim saw something in Orser worth working with) and others think that Orser is taking all the credit for plucking Kim from obscurity, even though she was already on the skating radar when she went to work with Orser. How much credit should a coach get?
In team sports, it's a common thought that a coach gets a bit too much credit when a team does well and a bit too much blame when a team does poorly. Individual sports have a different dynamic, though. The skater is out there on his or her own, the game plan depends entirely on them, and they will often take all the blame when anything goes wrong. If a skater switches from coach to coach, we tend to assume the skater is fickle rather than blame the coach (or at least, I am guilty of that).
Still, you have to think there is a reason that Frank Carroll, Nicolai Morozov, and others so consistently produce champions. But it must also be acknowledged that not every skater they work with goes on to the ultimate successes in the sport. You have to concede that both Yu-na Kim and Adam Rippon made great strides after working with Orser. But there is no way to know how they would have done had they chosen other coaches as they matured (although Rippon was working with Morozov prior to Orser and not doing as well). It is also obvious how influential Tatiana Tarasova has been on Mao Asada's skating; not necessarily for the better. And this isn't even getting into the strictly choreography side of things.
I guess with each skater/coach relationship, it's a different situation. It's almost impossible to say what might have happened had Kim not worked with Orser. As a Yankee fan, I don't give all the credit to former coach Joe Torre for the team's dynasty in the late 90's...but I do feel awfully appreciative of the guy whenever I see him on television. And even though things ended terribly between him and the Yankees, I don't feel a need to bash his accomplishments or contribution.
It's obvious how important a coach is to a figure skater - but how do we measure just how important? And how important was Orser to Kim? Or Frank Carroll to Michelle Kwan, John Nicks to Sasha Cohen, etc.? Please comment if you have any thoughts.
Update on Mirai Nagasu
by LauraS on Aug 27, 2010 3:06 PM EDT
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While I have been under a rock, Mirai Nagasu has been nursing a stress fracture.
Nagasu will not be competing in the Japan Open team competition in October due to the stress fracture, per Kyodo News.
Icenetwork has a nice little story on Nagasu about what she is up to and how she is following Frank Carroll to Lake Arrowhead to train and she will be back on the ice stroking and getting down to business in September.
Nagasu has also shockingly broken the "cardinal rule;)" of skating and announced that her programs will be to "Witches of Eastwick" for the short and "Memoirs of a Geisha" for the free skate. Even though she is not competing for a little while, she announced the music awhile back. So.
I hope Nagasu has a quick recovery, but most important is that she's ready for Nationals and Worlds. I am excited about her short program; I could do without yet another Memoirs of a Geisha program, though.
Kim-Orser Controversy Jumps the Shark?
by LauraS on Aug 27, 2010 10:39 AM EDT
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The latest round in Kim vs. Orser (Smackdown 2010) is the news that Brian Orser (gasp!) leaked the details of Kim's new program to the media. The program will be to Arirang.
Universal Sports says this reveal is breaking a cardinal rule and that skaters typically do not reveal their music until right before their first competition. While I can see it was out of line for Orser to speak about Kim when she is no longer working with him (and not right for him to reveal her music if she wanted that a secret), as an aside, I must say that Universal Sports is being a bit dramatic. I knew pretty much everyone's music last summer, months before their first Grand Prix events. And that includes Kim. So let's not pretend these things are actually under wraps. Still, it is the skater's choice when to reveal it, not the disgruntled ex-coach...even if he just did it conversationally.
Kim's team is absolutely appalled and is sure that this is a malicious move. They are pouncing on this (and publicizing it) as a way to further escalate the drama and try to make Orser look bad. If AT Sports is so concerned about keeping the reasons for the split private, why are they exacerbating every situation by publicly expressing their displeasure? Why not just call Orser, and have a truce or something?
I also don't know why Kim's team was surprised that Orser finally announced that he had been canned (or that his contract was not extended...ostensibly the same thing). I mean...it had been weeks since he was let go. I think it's time everyone just chills out...maybe they can just ignore each other and Orser could (for the love of god) stop discussing Kim.
I am hoping that maybe Kim will announce a new coach or something soon so that we can move on from the Kim/Orser mess. No one is coming out smelling like roses.
Updates on the Kim-Orser Situation (Updated)
by LauraS on Aug 26, 2010 8:35 AM EDT
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It is terribly sad that the Yu-na Kim and Brian Orser situation could not have been just (seemingly) amicable parting of the ways, and had to degenerate into a he said/she said situation riddled with rumors. But there is so much attention to anything having to do with Kim that it's not too surprising.
Anyway, Phil Hersh reports that troubles appear to have begun when Kim formed her own management team, headed by her mother. He says that Orser was unaware that Kim scheduled the press conference to announce her competitive plans for the year and that she and her mother were not returning emails. When they told him his coaching services were no longer needed, he kept mum. Orser even contends that Kim has told him she does not know why there is a split, and he says the situation with Kim still training at the rink he coaches at is becoming "untenable." He also cites the rumors that he was approached to coach Mao Asada as a possible reason for the start of troubles.
Some additional information from the article:
In a statement Monday reported by a Korean newspaper, AT Sports said, "Ever since Orser was offered a job to coach another skater, we have had an awkward relationship. Since June, Kim Yuna has essentially been training alone."
Orser said financial issues had nothing to do with the split. He denied reports of having received a $1 million bonus after KIm won the Olympics.
"I'm the lowest paid coach at this level in the history of figure skating,'' Orser said. "I get $110 an hour, and that is what I charged her. I did make something from Korean commercials, but there was no deal between us for that."
Very interesting. If things really did take a turn following Orser being approached by Asada's team, then you have to think that's ludicrous. There's no reason one of the best coaches in the world would not be approached by other skaters, and he obviously shouldn't have been punished for that. I have to think there is more to the story that Orser hasn't revealed...right (like, did he consider actually taking Asada on while he was still with Kim)? I wish I had an inside source right about now.
For Kim's part, there was an interview with one of her representatives before the latest Orser-oriented article. She stated:
A. We (Brian, Yuna's mom, and Yuna) have already known one and another why Yuna has parted with him. We don't feel any need to inform the reason to the outside. Yuna's mom, Yuna, and Brian, all the people, have well understood this reason.
Q. He feels Yuna also does not know why. Is that true?
A. That's only a matter of Brian's feeling. Yuna already knows the reason why this relationship has ended. We always asked Yuna first.
Obviously, that is not helpful for us, stating we all know the reason but we won't tell. Perhaps just...no comment. And if Yu-na is telling Orser she doesn't know why he is no longer her coach, then that is a pretty unprofessional tack as well, especially if she does know why.
There is a lot going on here that we don't know and it's tough, because it's all rumors and each thing makes the other side look worse. I'm sure Kim will be fine with whomever she chooses to work with next. I really only worry if she will be able to motivate herself to care about a competition again. For Orser's part, he seems to be a great coach, and I can't say I don't love the idea of him taking on Asada next, since the Kim relationship has gone down in flames. I feel like that might be the extra motivation Kim might need to get out there and compete with some fire now that the Olympics are over. But, that is kind of a soap opera script approach. I think maybe Orser might do best to stay with some up and comers. It seems like that would make life a little simpler!
UPDATED: Here is an article from Yonhap News with further quotes from Kim, including:
"Do you really believe that I've been completely happy training for those four years, just as it seems to the outside world?" Kim wrote. "I don't want to tell you all about what happened, and I don't have to. It's all between us."
Sad. It's all very confusing. It also sounds like Kim is mad that Orser is commenting about her team, including her mom (and insinuating that the mother is behind the decision), but Kim is publicly accusing Orser of lying. Nothing good in this situation.
In More of Yesterday's Coaching News
by LauraS on Aug 24, 2010 11:01 AM EDT
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American National pairs champs Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett have announced that they will leave coach Jim Peterson to work with John Zimmerman and Silvia Fontana, husband and wife skaters. Zimmerman went to the Olympics with Kyoko Ina. The pair are staying in Florida.
I'm surprised to see them move on to Zimmerman and Fontana...I would think if they switched coaches it would be to a coach with more pairs coaching experience and a proven ability to get skaters to that next level that Denney and Barrett are aiming for. However, I assume one of the selling points was that Zimmerman and Fontana train in south Florida, so the pair would not have to go too far from where they used to train? I wonder what happened to cause the split with Peterson's crew. I guess it just wasn't working out.
Yu-na Kim Splits with Brian Orser
by LauraS on Aug 24, 2010 7:17 AM EDT
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WOW. According to several news sources, Yu-na Kim is no longer training with Brian Orser. UM??? Apparently, the relationship between the two has been icy (pun intended) since May, when another (unnamed!!!) skater approached Orser to coach him or her. News sources are stating that both Kim's representatives and Orser's are stating that the other initiated the split (corrected).
So, who is the mystery skater? I mean, is it Mao Asada? Or someone else of her caliber? It's obvious that Kim doesn't mind Orser training other skaters, but was this one skater too many (no matter who it was?)? Or an excuse to leave Orser and move on? I mean, I think Orser has proven himself as a coach, or he just knows how to pick the right students. But to have their relationship fall apart so soon after they happily worked together to win the Olympic gold medal is pretty devastating. I haven't felt this bad about a coaching split since Michelle Kwan left Frank Carroll in the 2002 Olympic season.
Kim has not announced a new coach.
UPDATED: Per AFP:
Orser said he was "surprised" that he would no longer be her coach, and said the split was not related to any plan to coach another skater, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
If it was not another skater, and Kim has just decided she no longer needs Orser, perhaps she is just preparing for her leave from competitive figure skating? If she doesn't plan on competing anymore it would make sense that she would no longer need Orser. However, that is obviously pure speculation. I just don't want to believe that they are parting due to another skater or animosity or something. That would be so sad.
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