Kwan Is Turin Bound; Cohen Wins 1st Title (Figure Skating)

[Scooter24]

Kwan Is Turin Bound; Cohen Wins 1st Title

ST. LOUIS - Without ever putting her blades on the ice, Michelle Kwan made the U.S. figure skating team heading to the Turin Olympics — with conditions. While Sasha Cohen and Kimmie Meissner grabbed the other two slots with a 1-2 finish at the national championships Saturday night, Kwan will have to prove she's fully recovered from a groin injury and capable of competing before she gets final clearance.

Kwan was picked after petitioning U.S. Figure Skating. And by a vote of 20-3, a selection committee gave the nine-time U.S. and five-time world champion a medical bye.
"I am very happy that U.S. Figure Skating approved my petition to be nominated to the Olympic Team. At the same time I can empathize with how Emily must be feeling because I was in a similar situation in 1994," Kwan, who was in California, said in a statement.

Kwan made it ahead of third-place finisher Emily Hughes, who was designated an alternate along with Katy Taylor.

(more)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060115/ap_on_sp_ot/fig_us_...

[Sannum]

1. Jesus

Michelle Kwan needs to do the dignified thing, hang up her skates, and let another skater have the spot. She has competed in one of the last six comps and came in 4th in that one. Going to the Olympics at this point is just an ego trip.

Gah.

[liberalhistorian]

2. I agree, this is bullshit,

totally unfair, and blatant favoritism. Emily Hughes EARNED her spot for Christ's sake, unlike Kwan. I had so hoped the committee would do the right thing, it's really very disappointing that they haven't. If I were Emily Hughes, I'd be raising hell and appealing it, pronto.

And Kwan needs to just hang it up. She's had her time in the sun and she has not earned her current Olympic spot. I'm sick of hearing how great she is, etc., etc. The reason she's never won a gold medal in the last two Olympics is because she washed out, plain and simple. A real champion is supposed to be able to handle the extreme pressure and under almost any circumstances, she always seemed to have excuses both times. And she did far better in the exhibit skates, when she wasn't actually being judged. That says a lot right there; again, a real gold-medal-worthy champion should be able to handle whatever pressure is thrown their way.

And she took away from Sarah Hughes' triumph in '02 because the focus was all on everyone feeling sorry for her and excusing her lackluster performance, and saying Hughes win was just a "fluke", etc., etc., and not giving her the credit she was certainly due.

Jesus, Michelle, just hang it up. You had more than your chance, your time is over, and Emily Hughes legitimately and fairly earned her spot.

[LisaL]

4. Exactly. Stealing a place on the team from a little girl-not classy

at all.

[Scooter24]

6. so was it classy for

Nancy Kerrigan to take the Olympic spot from Kwan in 1994? Kwan earned the silver medal at nationals that year at the age of 13.

I think she deserves this chance.

[Berry Cool]

14. Class had nothing to do with Nancy Kerrigan's spot in '94.

It had to do with the fact that she was the reigning national champion and you don't take a spot at Olympics away from her just because she had the misfortune to have a thug run out of nowhere and club her on the knee. You assess her later to see whether she's recovered and then make the decision as to whether she's good to go. To do anything less would be truly cruel.

Kwan isn't owed the spot because she had to give hers up in '94. But now that she's got it, I hope everyone uses wisdom of judgment in determining whether or not she is really in shape to use it.

[joeybee12]

17. Kwan at 50% would have still made the team over Hughes

not even close.

[rocktivity]

3. Cohen is the one who found herself standing next to Bush

during the previous Winter Olympics, and handed him her cell phone so he could talk with her mother. A heartwarming human interest story--except that:

a) Cohen and Bush had met with National Cattlemen's Beef Association earlier that day, and Cohen announced her debut as their youth market's spokesperson; and

b) It's highly unlikely that a total stranger would be allowed to stand next to a U.S. President, produce an electronic device, activate it, and hand it to him...but then again, that was BEFORE Jeff Gannon...

And you're right about Kwan: You've jumped the shark, honey--time to turn pro and cash in before you hit the big three oh! And whatever happened to Sarah Hughes?



rocknation

[Berry Cool]

10. Sarah Hughes is back at Yale

She was there a year, took a leave of absence to skate for a year with an ice show, then quit that and went back to school.

Hey, if we're going to hold it against Sasha for sitting next to Bush in '02, maybe we should hold it against Sarah that she chose to attend his alma mater! LOL.

[rocktivity]

15. I don't hold it against Sascha that she stood next to Bush

I hold it against Sascha that she PRETENDED to HAPPEN to be standing next to Bush when she took out her cell phone, dialed her mother, and gave it to him! Would the Secret Service have allowed a REAL stranger to do that? They tried to serve it up as touchy-feely human interest story, and the whole thing was a setup. THAT'S what I hold against Sascha Cohen--and I would hold it against her if it had been President Kerry, too!


rocknation

[Berry Cool]

23. But that kind of crap happens all the time.

It's kind of inevitable.

[Liberty Belle]

5. The real success story here is Johnny Baldwin & his pair partner,

Rena Inouye.

Johnny has been competing at U.S. nationals for 20 years, since he was 12 years old. He started out at San Diego Ice Arena, where my daughter skates. He never medaled in singles, but just kept trying. Then he started pair-skating and fell in love with Rena.

They just became the first pair team ever to land a thrown triple axle -- winning the U.S. National Championship and a trip to the Olympics.

Go, Johnny, go!

[SoCalDem]

8. When did the pairs skate on tv? I missed it..

I always seem to tune in for the GODAWFUL ice dancing and miss the pairs

[Berry Cool]

11. Unfortunately, the pairs AND the ice dance were bumped to ESPN2 this year.

You couldn't see 'em without cable.

I was pleased for Inoue and Baldwin--nice throw triple axel! But the skater who got my heart most was Matt Savoie in the men's event. I can hardly believe he's really going to the Olympics.

[Awsi Dooger]

7. Emily Hughes earned nothing

She stumbled, fell and looked clumsy doing it. Sorry, but she's just too fat. Dick Button tried to say the same thing at the end of her skate but wimped out and talked about needing more lightness in her program and jumps. Translation: she'll never be able to make the flurry of key jumps when she's not in ideal shape, because she's obviously not a top athlete to begin with, not on the level of sister Sarah.

As soon as Emily stepped on the ice tonight I was shocked at how soft and unathletic she appeared and sure enough that played out during her routine. Her takeoff angles were poor and led to the flubs. She's still in high school and maybe four years from now a more mature and toned version will be a star, but at base handicap she looks like a skilled skater but an overmatched athlete and in these days you need both.

Sasha Cohen was excellent early and late but had the predictable stumble on two jumps in the middle, especially one bobble. At least she managed not to fall on her ass this time. Her program has definitely improved and the lines are great with the leg lifts so those aspects are impressive deep into the presentation.

Without Michelle Kwan, this would be the weakest US women's team in recent history and you can't afford that when the TV ratings are already on shaky expectations. That's reality since they hold the Games during vital ratings periods. Kwan doesn't figure to medal but she deserves a spot on class alone. After all, the US gets three spots based on performance in previous events and Michelle Kwan was always part of those efforts.

[joeybee12]

9. Absolutely...you go with your best team...

...Emily Hughes only finished third at the World Juniors--she would have been lucky to have made it in the top 30 in Turin.

Basically, the US has Kwan and Cohen, then it drops off dramatically.

Kwan did nothing wrong, and I don't understand so much venom about this.

[Berry Cool]

13. Lucky to make it in the top 30?

I wouldn't go THAT far to knock Emily's chances.

First, I think only 24 skaters get to go to Olympics to begin with. Second, there are plenty of them who no doubt have fewer triple jumps and less consistency than Emily Hughes.

We'll get to see soon enough how competitive she is on the world level, anyway, as she'll be going to the world championships in March.

[joeybee12]

16. Yeah, an exaggeration, but she didn't really show anything that

says she really should go--if US women's skating weren't so weak right now, we wouldn't be hearing of Emily Hughes.

[liberalhistorian]

19. The venom comes from the fact

that this is blatant favoritism, that she did NOT earn her spot and that someone who DID legitimately earn that spot gets bumped just because Kwan wants one more chance to wash out again at the Olympics and because she just automatically expected to be able to get that spot regardless of whether or not she actually earned it. It's totally unfair, blatant favoritism, but it's something I've come to expect from American figure-skating officials.

Emily Hughes didn't do anything wrong, either, other than to actually legitimately earn her spot, unlike Kwan.

[Berry Cool]

12. Awsi, if you didn't see Emily's short program, you can't judge.

She looked fast, strong and powerful in her short. The long, not so much.

But saying "Sorry, she's just too fat" is cruel. It's true that she may not be able to maintain a build for skating at this level for as brief a window as Sarah had to, but only time will tell. (Sarah did start gaining weight right after winning her Olympic gold and was not the same skater in '03, which is why she quit and went to Yale in the first place.)

The TV ratings shouldn't have anything to do with who makes the US team, though. It should be decided solely on merit. I knew the US Figure Skating Association would give her the bye, but at least it's based on how healthy she can prove she is and whether or not she can skate a competitive program by Jan. 27 ot 28--not just whether she personally feels she is "good to go." If that were all it was based on, I'd worry more that she'd overestimate her ability to deliver just because she wants that last shot at gold so badly.

[liberalhistorian]

20. She's had her shot at the gold, twice,

and she washed out both times. Most people don't even get one shot at it. She needs to do the right thing here.

[liberalhistorian]

18. I'm sick to death of hearing about how great

Kwan is. If that were so, she should have been able to win the gold medal in either 1998 or 2002, instead of washing out. I can understand some excuses for one, but not both times. And, like I said above, a real gold-medal-worthy champion is able to handle extreme pressure and produce no matter what the circumstances are, no excuses! She washed out both times because she doesn't really have what it takes. If she did, she would have won the gold already. And she's hardly competed well these past few years, either. Emily Hughes earned that spot fair and square, it's that simple.

And was it fair that all the caterwauling and weeping and wailing over Kwan's failure to capture the 2002 gold medal took away from Sarah Hughes triumph? Was it fair that people still didn't take her as seriously as they should have and give her the credit due for her triumph just because they thought Kwan should have won? Kwan had her chance and she blew it. She's blown it twice, as a matter of fact. She needs to do the right thing, and hang up her skates, her time is over.

[joeybee12]

22. Oh honestly, are you Mrs. Hughes?

No one was caterwauling that Michelle lost in 2002--the gripes came from the Russians.

Sarah Hughes put together one--only one--brilliant performance in her career, and it was enough to win her a gold medal. That's not to take away from her performaance that night, but really, it was the only one in her entire career.

[northzax]

25. and, to be fair, she did it at the best possible time

If you have one almost perfect routine in you, you might as well throw it down in the Olympics, right? It's the flip side of Kwan, who has thrown out dozens of almost perfect routines, but can't seem to do it when the lights are brightest.

[joeybee12]

27. True, but Sarah had absolutely no longevity--just one night...

..Sarah always bombed out at the world's, Michelle did at the Olympics...some people just don't do well in certain venues.

[Berry Cool]

28. Sarah didn't always bomb out at the worlds.

Her highest placement was third behind Kwan and Slutskaya in '01...and that was with an excellent skate. Obviously nobody had a chance of beating those two so she did well to place third. She didn't go in '02, In '03 she was not in shape and didn't skate well. But from '99 to '01, she always put in a good showing. I think she was 7th the first year she went and she was only 13.

[SoCalDem]

21. Emily is NOT fat.. She is just not the anorexic-thin prepubescent-looking

waifs that the public has come to prefer.. I would like to see a new rule..

No boobs, no skate.. There is something terribly wrong with an 18 year old skater who weighs 90 lbs and looks like a 10 yr old boy with a ponytail.

These girls are "dieted & starved" so their normal growth is stunted..(just like gymnasts & ballet dancers) and it's not OK .. There will be a price to pay as they age. Their starvation diets during their peak growth years is doing a number on their bones..

[Berry Cool]

24. Well, some of them are naturally thin, but others have eating disorders.

Which is really sad.

As for the Kwan bye, I was not in favor of it for various reasons, but I knew she'd get it regardless. Now, I just hope everyone involved does the right thing...no wishful thinking. If Kwan is not good to go, she needs to know that and not kid herself. She's had two shots and sometimes you take two shots and you still don't make it. That doesn't take anything away from the rest of her career, which has been brilliant.

[SoCalDem]

26. The thing about Michelle, is that "she's good for the sport", and I think

the officials know that she will bow out, if she's not able.. I think she would prefer to refire without the gold, than to go injured and do poorly.. I think they trust her enough to do the honorable thing, and if she's healthy, the other skaters going are a bit "sketchy" at times, and might not medal anyway..