2012 World Figure Skating Championships thoughts/opinions?

I didn't get to watch it live - didn't want to pay for online streaming and, of course, none of it was shown here in Australia. :| I watched a lot of it on YouTube afterwards though.

I absolutely loved Alena Leonova's short - I'm not usually a fan of Leonova, or anything to "Pirates", but she skated her program amazingly, energetically, and I adored the choreography. Mao's SP was disappointing, but not unexpected. I think Ashley was a bit underscored in the SP and didn't deserve 8th - the opening 3F wasn't great, but there wasn't anything wrong with the rest of the program. Kostner's short was a bit meh for me, as was Murakami's.

In the ladies free, I think Kostner skated magnificently (I've never really been a fan of her but I think I've been converted - her FS kind of wowed me). Suzuki's program was a bit boring in my opinion, no idea how she scored higher than Wagner for her PCS. Ashley's free was amazing as usual - I just adore that program no matter what small mistakes there may have been. Mao was disappointing but again, she's very inconsistent so even though she's one of my favourite skaters so I wasn't expecting much. Leonova's free wasn't really memorable and I didn't even watch Murakami's because I despise that music so much.

I didn't watch many of the mens' programs - couldn't be bothered, and where's the excitement in following an event in which you know Patrick Chan will fall and then wildly outscore his competitors for no apparent reason? But overall, I think he KIND OF deserved to win. His free was so overscored though How did he beat Hanyu with that botched 2A AND a fall, when Hanyu's program was almost clean (aside from that little fall on his steps)? And @K, I agree that Gachinskiy was crazily underscored in the SP - sure, he doubled the combo at the start, but surely he didn't deserve 16th?! Disappointing.

Saddest moment: Alissa Czisny's meltdown! I could barely watch her FS with the 5 falls - but I'm amazed at her courage to keep on going, and that she still went for all her triples!

Funniest moment: Bazarova/Larionov's fall on their ending pose in the short - kind of nasty of me to laugh, but it was rather funny.

I'm too lazy to post my favourite programs right now, may do it later. :)

I really just have to mention Yuzuru Hanyu. His free skate was absolutely breathtaking. He had the fluke fall on the transitions but I really think it added to the emotion of his performance. I was so happy to see him make the podium at 17. He has such a beautifully clean and consistent quad and with practicing so much less than other skaters at his level. His program literally brought tears to my eyes which has never been something that I have experienced from a program that I was not a part of. It was pure beauty and perfection. And then of course he was adorable during the awards ceremony!

I thought Daisuke Takahashi should have won but I was happy to see the Patrick Chan was not as far ahead as he usually is even with mistakes. When Chan blew that last triple axel I knew it would at least be closer. Had Daisuke not fallen in the short I really think he could have won. I have never seen a figure skater skate with so much swag before. He just popped off every jumping pass as if he could do it in his sleep. I really liked his music and choreography this season and was happy he at least got the silver like expected against Chan.

I am rather sick of watching Brian Joubert perform the same 6 programs over the last 12 years or so. But he was very impressive in his free skate. I do think that he was placed where he should have been.

Alissa Czisny had a horrible skate in both programs and it was heartbreaking to watch. Personally she is not my favorite skater because she tends to give up after the first or second mistake and she is very inconsistent. But she went for every jump in her free skate even though she was unable to complete any of them particularly well. I hate to say it but I think the USA should have sent someone else to worlds based on how poorly she skated for the majority of the season. She sort of got lucky at nationals and skated clean. It would have been nice to have seen Agnes or Caroline go.

Overall the ladies were full of surprises. I was so happy to see Alena Leonova skate her short program so well! I have loved that program and the energy she puts into all season (even though POTC is terribly overused). Kanoko Murakami skated beautifully and is fun to watch because you can see the joy on her face. I wanted her to medal but not as much as I wanted Ashley on the podium. I was extremely upset that Akiko Suzuki got third and not Ashley. I don't really like Akiko at all I really have no explanation of why I feel this way.

I did not watch pairs or ice dance because I was too busy with homework and I am more into the men's and ladies this season.

I was a mistake-ridden event with a lot of freaky falls. If this happened last year with worlds being delayed and all I wouldn't have been surprised.

For the men, I pretty much agree with placements although I was cheering for Daisuke. Patrick Chan is the most consistent with the quads - it's just the little mistakes. I think they were careful not to inflate to scores so much with all the backlash he's been getting lately. So happy for Yuzuru Hanyu! My favorite program was definitely his FS, even with the fall on the footwork. Love this kid! He's absolutely adorable, especially at the medal ceremony. Speaking of the men's medal ceremony, check out the booing. On the other hand, too bad Brian Joubert didn't medal in his home country because he skated very well.

The ladies event with technically weak. Carolina Kostner winning was expected. I do like her skating a lot, but I still think her content isn't enough. My favorite program of the ladies was Kanako Murakami's SP. Actually it's been one of my favorites all season. Her jump set-ups aren't pretty but they're nice when they're in the air. Alena Leonova was good, but I don't really like the character skating, at least not to that extent. I agree that Ashley Wagner was underscored, although I'm happy for Akiko Suzuki winning the bronze. She's been around (she's 27!) and has paid her dues. Too bad Mao Asada fell apart because she's the most talented skater out there. Alissa Czisny's total meltdown was so sad. Not unexpected, but I really like her and wish she could just perform to her potential. Retirement could be on the horizon because she is getting old, although I don't want to see her go out like this.

I've only watched the men and ladies so can't comment on pairs and dance.

i would've liked takahashi to place infront of chan (not a big of Chan's).

He looks clumsy throughout his jumps and his spins are inferior to many of the other skaters (i.e. Takahiko Kozuka) but his transitions are faster and have more flow so i guess thats why judges give him 1000 program component points. and Yuzuru Hanyu's freeskate was my favourite this season so im happy for him :)

but Kozuka's 11th place finish was disappointing

Really happy that Savchenko and Szolkowy won and that T and T claimed bronze but i was disappointed than Jian Tong [from China] fell on his triple toe in the freeskate.

I'm also disappointed that the Junior wolrd champions, Sui Wenjing and Han Cong, were placed as low as 9th. they had 2 quads but they were barely recognized. One commentator actually thought their twist was a triple .. I mean Zhang and Zhang won silver in Torino for falling on the quad sal. Thought they should've placed higher.

Ice Dance - Every season I like Meryl Davis and Charlie White'sprograms more than the Canadians so that was disappointing. I didn't actually watch this event though because I already knew who was gonna win which medal (along with the majority of the skating world)

Womens- not a fan of anyone in this event but i was really disappointed by Mao's many mistakes in her wjhat could have been amazing freeskate. kostner deserved gold!

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Random Moment: When the crowd booed and whistled at Chan multiple times after his freeskate and during the medal ceremony

Surprising Moments:when Sui Wenjing and Han Cong missed their lift and when the commentator said Narumi Takahashi was 20 years old.

Worst Moment: everytime Kozuka made a mistakes and seeing that he was 13th after the short.

"Relief" Moment: Savchenko and Szolkowy's win

Maybe you weren't impressed by Chan's performance but the judges were. I have been following figure skating for many years and what impresses me this year about patrick is his ability to consistently land the quad. He did 2 in his long program with 1 done in conjunction with a triple.( Takahashi did one) He has always had the artistry and perfect form but his skating and performance has steadily improved. One little slip and fall is nothing when the rest of the program is excellent.

Maybe you don't know how judging is done. Every part of the program is given a number. A quad counts more than a triple and a triple more than a double. Every part of that jump is dissected by the judges and marks taken off for everything that is not in a perfect jump. Extra marks are given for difficulty in the second half of the program and for jumps done in combination Footwork is rated and spins. How complicated is the footwork and how centered is the spin. What is the body position and how many position changes are they. There is more but you get the idea.

Many people who are not in the know still think a fall is a failure. A fall can happen and a person can still win. It depends on the content of the program and how well it is executed.

Next time you watch figure skating try and pick out the flaws and see if you can pick the winner

I was so happy for Takahashi and Tran. I was pleased with the pairs podium and the dance podiium, though of course, I would have liked to see Davis and White win. I was very pleased with the ladies' podium. If Wagner hadn't been so far down, then she would have been on the podium, but she was too far behind Suzuki, who is fabulous. I love her, and I'm so happy for Carolina and Alena. I was happy for Hanyu, and I love Takahashi, but... I hate Chan. I understand why he wins, but I still hate him.

You were/are lucky, ...OR one of these rich, skating, kids who can afford all these expensive figure skating related things (I AM NOT JEALOUS, JUST ENVIOUS AND SOMETIMES [I] WISH I WAS IN YOUR SHOES/'SKATES' {HA-HA} AND HAD YOUR RESOURCES-I hope that you'd take that in the humorous intent meant it to be; I'm NOT angry (N)or jealous of/at you...). Meanwhile check-out this link:

http://www.youtube.com/user/NikaQuest/videos

I discovered it from a reply to my E-mail-frustration that there was NO. regular. Over-The-Air (OTA) televised figure skating DURING the actual event; the ONLY listed schedule was on NBC one [1] week AFTER the event. I saw this link and it provides, most (IF NOT EVERY) event, with Russian language commentary, during the competition (time delay and the occasional freeze motion-due to satelite broadcast-noted); Regradless/BUT STILL I could see all the skaters I wanted. Here it is Sunday (4/1/12) and I still haven't seen everything because I can now take my time and NOT rush through everything.

Again, please note that I am NOT angry that you have a better source than me to watch the figure skating; I only envy you and hope that the rest of us (occasional, recreational, NON-competitive and Adult skaters and fans) can find/have a reliable "TELEVISED" figure skating source AGAIN soon.

Wow, Dowinggram, way to be patronising. Don't you dare talk down to Riley, she's a very high-level ice dancer and she knows what she's talking about. You're the one who doesn't seem to know what they're talking about. "His ability to consistently land the quad..." Uh, I don't know who you've been watching, but it's not Patrick Chan. He's spent more time on his backside on the ice this year and last year than anyone else. Sure, he's consistent - at FALLING!

Like it or not, a fall is a failure. It is a failure to adhere to the most fundamental principle of figure skating - staying on your feet. You should not be able to win with a fall unless everyone else does too. And once you fall twice, there's no way you should be able to win. Three times is just...bye bye top ten. It ruins the flow, the presentation, and obviously there's some kind of technique flaw going on since he can't stay upright consistently.

Chan's Worlds was not like, say, Gachinsky's Worlds. Gachinsky had a rotten Worlds and also fell, but for Gachinsky this is a blip on the radar. For Chan this is something of a permanent feature.

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It was on quite late at night here, particularly pairs/ladies...I only JUST made it through the men's SPs before I crashed into bed and there was no chance of making it the whole way through the LP because I had to get up early for work this morning...and if I'd known what would happen to poor Artur, I wouldn't have bothered watching... ;_____;

Was I the only one who thought he was scored insanely low for his SP? Yes, he popped the quad toe, but he turned it into an okay double toe-double toe, and the rest of his program was wonderful, he really kept his cool. Why is it that he was seemingly punished by the judges for doing what he had to do to stay on his feet? Others who fell were ahead of him.

I felt so awful for him in the long program though. I really like this LP of his, but those two falls at the start obviously hurt. All I wanted to do when he finished was hug him. He's only eighteen and he had the entire weight of Russia on his shoulders, all that pressure to keep two spots for the men. :( Now Russia only has one spot for the men next year, and next year is the most important Worlds of the Olympiad. Which means poor Artur will probably cop it next year too since the RFSF isn't going to want to send Plushenko to the Canadian Worlds and expose him to an opportunity to be low-balled.

I thought Takahashi was stunning, particularly in the SP, and for me, he's the World Champion.

But, of course, it was Mr. Fall-a-lot who magically and mysteriously won. I heard that the crowd booed when they found out who won. Smart crowd. It's not a good look at all for figure skating to have the "world champion" being someone who falls doing simple stroking. Yes, there were a TON of skaters who weren't clean yesterday, but Chan is perpetually not clean. Please, please, please let the judges come to their senses before men's figure skating is destroyed and turned into a laughing stock.