Required Elements - Figure Skating Coverage

Susanna Poykio Retires

Finnish skater Susanna Poykio has decided to retire from skating, primarily because of lower back troubles. She has stated that she will concentrate on her studies. Poykio is an five-time Finnish champion.

about 3 hours ago LauraS 0 comments 0 recs

ISU Will Not Sanction Rochette; She will join Stars on Ice

by LauraS on Mar 16, 2010 8:03 PM EDT Comment 1 comment

Although the International Skating Union stated yesterday that it was considering sanctioning Olympic bronze medalist Joannie Rochette, the union has come to its senses and decided not to embroil itself further in its PR nightmare.

Rochette was breaking the rules by scheduling an exhibition performance for a television show ("Thin Ice") around the same time as the world championships, which she has decided not to compete in. According to CTV:

Rochette's decision to pull out of the ISU-approved competition, while remaining committed to the TV appearance raised the ire of the skating union, which said it might sanction the skater for her decision.

"If she's withdrawn from worlds, she can't skate the exhibition without risking the sanction," Skate Canada CEO William Thompson said Monday.

"If she'd done both, it would have been fine because she wouldn't have been favouring an exhibition over an ISU event. But if she decides to be out of worlds, she can't do the exhibition either."

On Tuesday afternoon, however, CTV's Richard Madan said Rochette's agent has since indicated that the ISU was unlikely to punish the popular Olympian.

"Her agent did confirm to me that the International Skating Union had backed down," Madan told CTV News Channel from Ottawa on Tuesday afternoon.

In additional Rochette news, the Canadian skater will be joining Stars on Ice in four Florida tour dates, according to the Winnipeg Press.

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Joannie Rochette Out of Worlds

by LauraS on Mar 15, 2010 9:10 PM EDT Comment 0 comments

Olympic bronze medalist Joannie Rochette has withdrawn from the upcoming world championships in Torino, Italy, according to ABC News. Here is an excerpt from the article:

"With everything that has happened over the past few weeks, I have missed a significant amount of training time," Rochette said in a statement. "That means I'm not prepared either emotionally or physically to skate well at these championships and once again challenge for the podium.

Rochette's mother Therese died the week Rochette skated in the Olympic games.

Rochette had planned to skate an exhibition performance in tribute of her mother for "Thin Ice" on ABC, but she may not be able to skate it. According to ABC:

"There is an ISU regulation in place to protect the integrity of ISU championships, which does not allow skaters to perform exhibitions where they have chosen to withdraw from an ISU event that conflicts or is in close proximity to the ISU event," Skate Canada CEO William Thompson said Monday. "ISU championships provide direct benefit to the skaters through television exposure and prize money. In this particular case, although it's a very worthwhile exception, with Joannie withdrawing from the world championships, we cannot issue the clearance for her to skate, without the ISU waiving its regulation."

Rochette will be replaced at worlds by Myriane Samson.

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GLAAD Versus Stars on Ice (UPDATED)

by LauraS on Mar 12, 2010 1:06 PM EST Comment 4 comments

We talked about the petition to get Johnny Weir on Stars on Ice the other day. Today, there is news that a Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) blogger is accusing the tour of not hiring Weir because he is "too gay."

Upon hearing that Stars on Ice decided not to offer Weir a spot because he is not "family friendly" (NOTE: Does anyone know where this quote came from? I have read it attributed to the tour and its sponsors, but I don't have the exact quote and I really want to find the origin), GLAAD blogger Lauren Mattias has responded:

To say that Weir is "not family friendly" would be a clear jab at his perceived sexual orientation. Weir is extremely involved with his family. He is putting his younger brother through college, and supports the family financially because his father’s disability prohibits him from working. Weir’s dedication to his family can be clearly documented in the Sundance series, Be Good Johnny Weir, which follows him and his family and friends through his life and career as a championship skater.

Weir responded to the controversy on Access Hollywood:

“I understand I am a little outrageous but I wish I could perform for the fans,” he continued.

But Johnny has a possible backup plan with another irreverent performer.

“Maybe right now, just artistically and creatively, I’d love to have my own show, with musical acts, like maybe getting Lady Gaga!” he said.

I would love to see him Stars on Ice. Although I am hoping this Lady Gaga collaboration comes to life at some point.

On the other hand, it probably hurts American spectators more than it hurts Weir for him not to be on Stars on Ice. He often participates in shows abroad and rumor has it they pay more. And those fans get to see him, but we don't!

UPDATED:
According to the Los Angeles Times, Stars on Ice denies that sexual orientation is the reason that Weir has been excluded.

"We are disappointed that there is untrue and inaccurate information being disseminated," Stars, which is sponsored by Smucker's, said in a statement. "Please be assured that the 'gender identity and sexual orientation' of cast members has never been a consideration in the selection of tour performers."

The article goes on:

"While Stars on Ice wishes it could accommodate many more talented skaters as part of our cast, the fact is we cannot sign every skater," the Stars statement said.

For whatever reason Stars decided not to invite Weir to perform, I find it an odd business choice. When I have gone in recent years, there have been a very high number of seats that remain unsold and I'd imagine Weir is a definite draw.

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Canadian Vaughn Chipeur Withdraws from Worlds

Canadian Vaughn Chipeur is out of the world championships with a torn ligament in his foot. He will be replaced by Kevin Reynolds.

6 days ago LauraS 0 comments 0 recs

Thoughts on Weir's Worlds Withdrawal

by LauraS on Mar 10, 2010 8:25 AM EST Comment 1 comment

As you've read, three-time United States national figure skating champion Johnny Weir has withdrawn from the upcoming world championships in Torino, Italy. Here are some of my thoughts.

The "duh" factor

Weir has been on television or in every other type of media every time you turn around. He's been interviewed by dozens of outlets, he's been photographed at numerous parties. Normally when skaters do this much media post-Olympics, they are not planning to skate at the world championships (in part because there has been no time to train). So, it was no surprise when Weir dropped out.

The uncool factor

I don't like that Weir stated in an earlier post-Olympics press conference that he was definitely going to worlds, and that it would be a statement to the world and the judges. And he added some unnecessary shots at other athletes:

Weir ended his comments with a vow: he won't play coy about his attentions. If he intends to compete next season, he will say so definitively, and soon.

"I'm not going to pull a Sasha Cohen or Michelle Kwan and say, 'I'm coming back, I'm coming back, I'm coming back' and then not do it," he said. "I mean, thank God, Sasha finally did come back. But I'm not going to do that to people. I think it's rude, especially to my fans. If I'm going to skate, I'll tell them I'll skate."

Now, I was happy Weir said this at the time, because I don't like to be teased. But Weir has now turned himself into a liar by backing out of worlds when he explicitly stated he would be there, which is way worse than being a tease. Not cool. I understand why he's withdrawn and I assume it's the best decision (no one should go to a world championship when they are unprepared or they don't want to be there), but maybe this is why skaters should not speak about others and only worry about themselves - everything you say comes back to bite you!

The understandable factor

Johnny Weir stated the following in his withdrawal announcement (via Entertainment Weekly):

"And while I am still embracing my Olympic memories and have the momentum to move forward, I have decided that it is not advantageous at this time for me to partake in the World Championships in Torino, Italy. After my sixth place finish in Vancouver, I believe that I must take time to reassess my strategies and goals. While I understand the importance of competition, I feel that a short break at this time would be personally beneficial to me. I know all may not share my stance, but I can assure everyone that I will be re-energized after I’ve had time to rework my technique. I want to be a better competitor and win medals for my country and I hope everyone can respect my decision to take this time off.

I would agree it's not advantageous for Weir to skate at worlds, as much as I would love to see him there (I think he actually would have had a shot at a medal). He skated his best performances of the year at the Olympics. He has been basking in the media's obsession over his being robbed of a medal (disclosure: I think Weir was underscored but I thought Takahashi deserved his bronze). It is unlikely Weir would skate as well at worlds as he did at the Olympics, and he has nothing to gain at this point...it's much better to have seen him skate amazing and assume political forces kept him down (which may very well have been the case with Weir) then to see him go on a month later and (potentially) not skate as well.

The "Is this it?" factor

Weir successfully rode a wave of "my skating is for the people, not the judges" momentum into the Olympics. This is a smart talking point that Weir has been pushing for awhile, as is evident to anyone who saw his mother say essentially the same thing in a recent episode of his reality series "Be Good Johnny Weir." I think it's very possible that Weir may be done with ISU competition, although I'm sure he won't turn down a good old retirement press conference when he makes that decision for real. UPDATED: In the U.S. Figure Skating version of Weir's announcement, they don't mention that Weir said he wants to continue winning medals. In the one above, he does mention that. Still...I am unsure that we will see Weir competing next season, unless he suddenly becomes much less in media demand than he is now.

Weir has stated that he plans on continuing to skate in shows, and I hope he does. He's such a beautiful skater that it will be sad if audiences don't get a chance to continue seeing him even if he quits competing.

So, I am kind of sad that we won't see Weir at worlds, but good luck to him on his other endeavors. And it is a great opportunity for Adam Rippon, who is viewed as the future of U.S. men's skating. Rippon recently won the Four Continents Championship, and hopefully he can follow that up with a successful senior worlds debut.

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Johnny Weir Withdraws from Worlds; Adam Rippon is in

I just read on Axels, Loops and Spins that Johnny Weir has withdrawn from the World Championships and Adam Rippon will take his spot. I will have a full blog post on my thoughts soon. For now, this is a great opportunity for Rippon!

8 days ago LauraS 1 comment 0 recs

Deja Vu: Lambiel Retires

Stephane Lambiel is officially retiring from competitive skating once again. A lot of skaters never "officially retire," so it's interesting that Lambiel has done it twice now. Thankfully, we will still be able to see him. Lambiel will be competing in Thin Ice on ABC later this month (which would have made him ineligible from ISU competition, anyway, apparently). Additionally, he will be in many shows.

8 days ago LauraS 0 comments 0 recs