Some "analysis" of Men's competition ... In addition to being favored Adam Rippon's (who is American, as and he
) and "ignoring" the two qauds of Reynolds... his other comments are in place... 
SP
LIVE BLOG Skate Canada: Mens Short Program, Group 2:
http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/10/l ... rt_29.html
...
Artur Gachinski RUS
Sick before the event, seemed to be day-to-day even after he arrived. Good start to the season so far. Money by Pink Floyd yet again. Quad toe loop right away with a big step out, so no combo. He has the arm movements but he looks down rather than to the crowd. The triple Axel was big though, but then to show off he curled the edge rather than letting it extend and flow. Same with the triple loop. Sit/twist/ change/sit. Great Gig In the Sky now. Circular footwork has some nice movements in it but it again looks a bit heavy and there's a lot of arm movements that would come across much better if he'd look up rather than into space/at the ice. Flying camel and then a catchfoot almost donut is centered but on the slow side. Camel/change edge/ sit with variation/change / sit/y spin and thats a strong position. I want to like the Russians, but I feel like all of the skaters that come from Mishin all try to emulate Plushenko and with that comes little as far as the in-betweens and none of them have anywhere near the command Evgeny has, and that's a big part of what makes him successful.
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Love You Patrick, But Really?:
http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/10/l ... eally.html
More Skate Canada: Judging the Men, Part One:
http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/11/m ... t-one.html
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http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/11/m ... .html#more
November 1, 2010
More Skate Canada: Judging the Men, The Conclusion
Moving right along with the free skates of Patrick Chan, Adam Rippon, and Nobunari Oda.. I must be extremely motivated today..
First, your own results. Out of 316 votes in the last day and a half, 76% said that Nobunari Oda should have been the winner of the event. Adam Rippon was second with 12%, and Patrick Chan (the actual gold medalist) only received 6% of the vote. My "fun" option of choosing either Kevin Reynolds or Javier Fernandez as the winner even garnered 4% of the vote!
Below the break, my detailed long program scores and final results. No, I'm not a real judge. It's still fun!
Patrick Chan
4T 2 (Tough between +1 and +2 here, but I think the latter is acceptable. Nice flow in and out, and it covered plenty of ice)
3A -3 (This one is again a bit cheated, but I don't think it's enough to warrant an under-rotation)
3Lz 0 (Landed a bit backwards and really had to fight to stay solid as the free leg came around)
SlSt3 2 (Solid this time around)
FSSp4 1 (Good speed, good center, not remarkable)
--- Half-way point
3A+2T 0 (Again off balance and more towards the ball of the foot rather than a smooth run-out of the Axel)
3Lz+1Lo+2S 0 (Same issue as with the first Lutz here)
CSSp3 1 (Story of all his spins-- good)
3F 0 (Entry steps helped keep this at a 0-- no flow on the landing)
3Lo+3T (under-rotated) -1 (Just about the same cheat here as the Axel in the short, it got called this time. The second jump itself was also off balance and he couldn't hold the landing)
2A 0 (Balance issue, it was almost too big. Nice entry, but shaky jump)
ChSt1 3 (This is as good as a 2.0-value step sequence is going to get, I will admit)
CCoSp4 1 (Not a fan of the scratch on the change-foot.. travels and is average speed)
TES= 80.84
Judges had it at 83.18. Not far off, but I think some of them got a little +GOE happy with shaky jumps.
SS 8.50
TR 8.25
PE 8.00
CH 8.50
IN 8.00
PCS= 82.50
All obviously great, but I think his interpretation is still the area that lacks the most (unlike most others where it's the transitions)
Deductions= -1.00 (fall)
My total score= 162.34
Still amazing total for the small mistakes.
TOTAL COMPETITION SCORE= 230.94
So, I'd personally say he was over-marked by about 10 points in this competition.
Adam Rippon
3A+2T 0 (Had to fight for the Axel, and no height)
2A 1 (Spread eagles directly into the jump save it from being a 0, as he had almost the same jump as Chan-- slightly big)
3Lz 2 (Nice steps in, arms above the head, just a bit more flow out and it's a +3)
CiSt2 1 (He does this to a slower part of the music which helps mask the speed issues. Good, not amazing)
FCSSp3 1 (Nice positions, need more speed)
--- Half-way point
3A -2 (Big step-out on the landing)
3F+3T 1 (Flip has been better, but still good)
3Lz+2T+2Lo 1 (The last jump didn't have any flow, but nice transition into the three jumps, and all three had a hand over the head)
3Lo 1
CCoSp4 1 (Great positions, but it slows)
ChSt1 2 (Nice control throughout)
3S 1
FCCoSp4 2 (Nice donut position, fast and centered sit spin even if I don't love the variation, and a fast centered scratch-- good spin)
TES= 80.54
Just like the short, no complaints so far. Only a 0.19 difference between me and the judges.
SS 7.50
TR 7.50
PE 7.50
CH 7.75
IN 8.00
PCS= 76.50
Pretty consistent in my opinion across the board again. He really listens to the music, and I think that's his strong point. Skating skills almost there. Not far off from the judges, but they remained about even with CH and IN while I obviously went up a little.
My total score= 157.04
Not as good as Chan in the long, but I think the judges did a very good job of marking him as he should have been scored throughout the competition. At least there's one skater they did that for :)
TOTAL COMPETITION SCORE= 234.69
First on my scorecard by 3.75 points. A lot closer than you thought, huh?!
Nobunari Oda
4T -1 under-rotated (It was not called under-rotated, but I've taken a screen shot to again show what I believe to be enough of a cheat to call it that. Anyways, hand down here)
3A+3T 1 (Nice knee-bend on both landings, but the second jump was near the boards and really didn't cover any distance)
3F 2 (Now this was a really nice jump)
CiSt2 1 (Good, but just that)
CCoSp4 1 (Slight travel but nice positions)
--- Half-way point
3A -3 (Close on the under-rotation again but I think he got around far enough. Hard fall)
3Lz 2 (Brackets right into the jump and great flow out)
3Lo 1
3S+3T 1 (Again, the second jump kinda went straight up and down but good flow out as always)
2A 1 (Nice high jump)
ChSt1 1 (Not blown away.. he looked tired and labored, Still, better than just average)
FCCoSp4 0 (First half of the spin was messy and a little off balance coming out)
FSSp3 -1 (Had to go negative here. Traveled again and really slowed down)
TES= 76.72
Judges are at 81.87. Again, the technical panel didn't downgrade the quad toe and I did, so that's a difference of 3.10 points right there.
SS 8.00
TR 7.00
PE 7.50
CH 7.25
IN 7.00
PCS= 73.50
I think the judges more-or-less got it right with the components. I'd definitely only have him ahead of Rippon on the skating skills in this performance. The choreography with three jumps in a row and then five in a row, and the two weak spins at the end was questionable.
Deductions= -1.00 (fall)
My total score= 149.22
Again, most of this has to do with my calling the quad toe under-rotated. The actual judges had no decision in that. If you're curious, the score without that under-rotation call would be 152.32.
TOTAL COMPETITION SCORE= 228.22
Again, without the under-rotation he would have 231.32 total and would place ahead of Patrick Chan. However, I do think the jump should have been scored my way and that would put him third overall. You can look at the photo and make your own decision :)
Final overall standings:
1) Adam Rippon 234.69
2) Patrick Chan 230.94
3) Nobunari Oda 228.22
So, a pretty close competition in my eyes. As always, it seems like it might come down to those close calls on the rotation of jumps to determine the standings more than anything else. Remember, Chan had one in the short program and without it, he'd be extremely close to Rippon on my scorecard-- even with four falls.
cekoni!
OF THE BRIANS!' IN THE MAKING?
