2013 World Women's Preview with PJ Kwong
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The Skating Lesson Podcast Transcript TSL: 2013 World Championships Ladies Preview with PJ Kwong Jenny: Hello, and welcome to The Skating Lesson podcast! I’m Jennifer Kirk, a former US ladies competitor and a three-time world team member. Dave: I’m David Lease. I’ve only ever done a layback spin in my socks in my kitchen, but I am a figure skating blogger and a current adult skater. Jenny: In this video, we’re gonna talk about the ladies event at the 2013 world championships, previewing it with Canadian journalist PJ Kwong. [PJ Kwong enters] Jenny: Let’s start with the reigning world champion, Carolina Kostner. Long program that has people talking this season. PJ, what is your impression of her long program, and coming in as the reigning world champion, how do you think she’s gonna handle that pressure? PJ: I think she’s gonna be world champion again. I love that Bolero program. I don’t think I’ve seen a better women’s program in I don’t know how long. In fact, it’s on my favorite – oh, let me just watch Carolina again. Even though she didn’t skate like perfectly at Europeans, I just think that it’s so innovative and so creative. I love it. And I think that everybody – she’ll have to skate. That’s the thing. There can’t be any mistakes. But if she skates like she can skate it, I think it’s hers to lose. That’s what I think. Jenny: Dave? I agree. Dave? Dave: Well, I wonder if she’s doing enough content in the short program to – I don’t think she’s gonna win the short program. I think she’ll be maybe third or fourth after the short, but I think based on all the skating we’ve seen this year, I could see her after two programs being the champion. We had a discussion about – how do you feel about the stopping in the middle of her program? She kind of takes a breath… PJ: I like it because to me, it’s not like figure standing, you know, when we were talking about Amodio where he just seems to take a break. This to me is like theater – it’s woven into the program somehow. So I don’t see it as a – it doesn’t break the mood. It doesn’t break the continuity for me. It feels [audio cuts out], so it doesn’t bother me at all. There are other people that I know that it does bother, but for me, it feels like it’s part of the whole thing. Dave: Did it bother you that she was world champion without doing a full arsenal of triples or at least a triple lutz last year? PJ: Well, she had help getting to the top of the podium, right? So, you know, at the end of the day, she who has the most points wins. So that’s the way it has to happen, right? So there are times that we’ve had – we’ve all been to world championships and seen world championships where you think – what? But at the end of the day, people are ranked. So I’d love for Carolina to have the best possible skate she can. I mean, when I met with her in the fall, she was talking about taking a break and find her reason to love skating again. And I think that’s she’s done that. So, you know, she’s one of those people that I really hope has just a sensational outing – I hope the same for Mao Asada and Akiko Suzuki in particular. I just really want them to have the skate of their lives. The results go where they may. But for them to really to do it, especially Mao. I mean, she’s a sentimental favorite of mine, you know, she’s been through so much. I’d love for her to just really be able to just leave her mark that way this year. Dave: Yeah, I think with Carolina, it’s interesting. I wasn’t a huge fan of the beginning. I thought she was very gangly and awkward for many years. And I think a lot of Americans were introduced to Carolina in kind of a fighting way. There was – everything was very controversial at the 2005 worlds. A lot of Americans felt that Michelle was dinged in the short and perhaps not rewarded, and it was a very close result in that free skate. And Carolina kicked our ice queen off the podium. And I think that she will never be forgiven by a lot of Americans, and I think that I honestly believe this because all of Michelle Kwan’s rivals have been perceived as villains in the US media. You look at anyone who ever dared to beat her. And I go back to – that’s how we were introduced to Carolina, and then she fell a lot. But she’s seemed to have a transformation over the last few years. I think that if she performs like she’s capable of, I’m very interested. Now, she’s up against Yu-Na Kim. And I wanna know what you both think about Yu-Na Kim’s comeback. She’s obviously physically outstanding. I wonder about her reasons for coming back – if she’s pressured to be the star in Korea, if she needs to keep competing to keep that alive because she skipped Four Continents. And yes, her fans are going to say that she was doing the Special Olympics with Michelle Kwan. We also know that people do not do charity shows for free at her level. And she made a decision not only not to do that event, but then she didn’t do the recent Challenge Cup that Carolina did. So, I’m wondering – does Yu-Na really wanna compete all the time? And if you don’t wanna compete, can you possibly be in the mental state to win? I don’t know Yu-Na personally, but I think it’s interesting – is she all in? Because I don’t get the vibe from Yu-Na Kim that she’s all into skating, all into competing, and this is where her heart is. What do you take, Jenny? And then go to PJ. Jenny: I agree, Dave. I don’t think it was a smart choice to do such few – so many few events. This season, we saw her at pre-nationals, and that short program. Falling skating into her combination, then popping the lutz. She did skate a really good long program, which was really impressive and great to see. And I think when she is on, she is the best in the world. She really has her jumps, speed. I like her long program this season. Don’t love the dresses – I don’t like the V in the short program, and the long program just I think is a little dowdy. But that shouldn’t affect her marks at all. Just a personal thing. But I think that someone like Carolina – what we’re seeing from her is she’s doing the hard work as a skater which is going to these events that you don’t want to go to, putting the jumps out there. I loved seeing, just back to Carolina, loved seeing the triple lutz in the long program, triple flip-triple toe. She’s upping the ante technically. Last year, the triple jumps she did in her long program were magnificent, but I felt that I was watching a junior ladies’ long program as opposed to a senior lady, just technically. So I think someone like Carolina – if she can handle the pressure coming in as the world champion, the reigning world champion, she’s my pick for the title over someone like Yu-Na Kim. I think this may be an unfortunate wake-up call for Yu-Na if she comes to this event, and you cannot go in and compare a world championship to show skating. It just doesn’t – the way it feels as an athlete is completely different. And we saw her struggle a couple of years ago when she tried to do that, and I don’t see this year being any different. What do you think, PJ? PJ: Do you know, I have to agree with you. I think – here’s what I admire about her. I believe that the Korean federation would like very much to be a strong presence at the Sochi Olympics. They’re not going to be able to do that unless Yu-Na comes and gets two spots for them. So I admire her willingness to pay back the sport and the country that has done so much for her, so I think that that’s a very admirable quality. I think that she hasn’t had enough competitive experience, which is why if she were to take the title, it would be on the strength of other people’s mistakes, and a flukey, excellent performance. Flukey – and I don’t mean that in a disrespectful way. What I mean is, if you haven’t had a chance to really compete, then you’re kind of out of practice for that whole thing. Like, we all know that, right? Like when I get back to the beginning of the season, it’s like, “okay, how do I range all the stuff in my head again?” So, I think that she may be out of practice and competing, and everybody else has been doing the work this season.