Confessions of an Olympic Figure Skating Fan!

[blue2helix]

How many closet figure skating fans are out there?

I had a great time last night watching the women's short program with my wife. This after listening to my brother in law talk about how it really isn't a sport.

It felt great to see these hard working, admirable young women skate their hearts out for their countries, and refreshing to have something positive to root for as an American.

[liberalnurse]

1. Me.......

I thought Irina was boring......down to her costume. She lacked artistic passion and was mechanical...just adding points.

Sasha was elegant and mesmerizing. Emily shows power and promise and the little Kim will definitely be a household name next year.

[The Backlash Cometh]

15. Did Sasha wear her Project Runway outfit?

I thought Santino's crazy design was right in there with some of the ballroom stuff we saw. Even Nick's was okay. But they did right to get rid of the guy who showed off too much too-too. These designs have gone long.

[seemunkee]

22. No, I doubt if she would in comptetion

I believe she said she would wear it at an exhibition. They do one after all the competion is over so maybe then.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

2. Figure skating fan here and never closeted about it. Sasha Cohen

makes me cry from the sheer beauty of her craft, and yes, they are Remarkable athletes!

[Deep13]

3. Cohen ruled the rink.

Just unbelieveable. Flawless, artistic and powerful. Hughes was impressive too, but I understand that the routine was not as difficult as some of the skaters who scored higher. Still, an impressive performance. That Russian woman in pants was really impressive too.

Don't you just want to throttle the announcers sometimes? "A disappointing performance from ...." What about that remark about the 29 yr.-old skater from Ukraine where one of them said that she had a lot of practice time, but she might want to think about her routine instead of just practicing it. Then he backpedaled and said he hope the remark wasn't "unkind". Um, it was. How about the Japanese skater who scored third place. She did an excellent program and in response the woman announcer said that the skater does not have a lot of natural ability. Christ!

[nickinSTL]

5. I agree...the announcers were jerks

They didn't even acknowledge how good Arikawa was.

There's this big deal that Slutskaya and Cohen are .03 points apart...but the fact that Arikawa is less than a point behind them got completely ignored. Makes me hope Arikawa takes the gold. Though, really, Cohen and Slutskaya are both good enough to earn it and I certainly don't hope they have a bad night. Cohen has great ability, and it's hard for me not to like Slutskaya. 27 and with health problems and still able to maintain a positive attitude and compete at the highest levels.

[hippiechick]

20. I am SO SICK of Dick Button !!

He's gotta be close to 100 years old and even in his prime, didn't do a triple ANYTHING ... so for him to sit there and tsk tsk these kids ... I just wanna box his ears. :mad:

He's such a damn diva!

[blue2helix]

6. The announcers definitely were a little rough

But after a while, my wife and I treated their comments with a sense of humor. The skaters were incredible.

[Deep13]

8. That's how we were.

We made parody remarks like, "Well that was a sub-standard routine from (...) who now leaves the ice in order to take a series of dead-end jobs eventually leading to an alcohol-induced spiral to skid row. Up next is..."

[blue2helix]

10. Fun with Announcer

"That front leg lift wasn't quite high enough, ideally her leg should cross over behind her head and shoulders, extending all the way over until it touches her backside... that will be a minor deduction."

[tigereye]

18. snort

great way to deal with all the negativity.... sometimes the announcers and media are so two- faced as they manage to turn a complment into a rip....

[JVS]

25. I hope that Slutskaya is able to win

It's time for her to get Gold, retire, and pass the torch to a new generation of younger, hotter figure skaters. The Glory days of Oksana Bayul must be restored!

[Deep13]

4. "...talk about how it really isn't a sport..."

Is it because it doesn't necessarily divide people into winners and losers? They all get a ranking at the end, but no one "loses" a game.

[blue2helix]

7. Yes - I know all the arguments (sport vs no sport)

I have just resigned myself to enjoy it and give these athletes their due and am much happier for it. Certainly, only a few people in the world are capable of achieving what they achieve on the ice rink.

[Deep13]

9. My favorite move to do while skating is...

...clutching the railing so I don't fall. I wonder how many points I get for that. Also, I do the double-Klutz with a perfect ass-bounce landing.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

29. Anyone who thinks that skating shouldn't be in the Olympics

has obviously never watched skaters in training.

Two of the shopping malls in Portland have rinks with skating schools, and after you've watched some young boy or girl fall down twelve times while attempting to do a single jump or stagger out of a spin, you know that this isn't something just anyone can do.

[wildhorses]

11. LOVE IT!!!

and if your BIL thinks it is SO easy...let's see him give it a twirl

[miss_american_pie]

12. I never was in that closet

It must be a gender thing, but I've never had to hide. :hi:

[Arkansas Granny]

13. I'm a fan, but I've never been in the closet about it.

Sasha Cohen was wonderful last night. She represented our country with beauty and skill. Kimmie Meissner is really going to be someone to watch.

I'm really disappointed that Michelle Kwan was unable to compete. She has given us a lot of pleasure with her performances over the years.

[Deep13]

19. We got to calling Emily Hughes the "Kwanstitute."

:woohoo:

[kwassa]

14. I just like young women skating backwards in tiny little outfits

Yeah, I know, this makes me a dirty old man.

These buff and beautiful young ladies. Legs for days.

[Deep13]

16. A thin, spandex panel between them and disaster.

:evilgrin:

[JVS]

26. That's why I'm taping it. My dirty old man friends and I are going...

to sit around drinking beer and smoking cheap cigars while watching it.

[flamingyouth]

17. I love it too.

I stayed up to watch every skater last night. I especially love to watch the ones from the smaller countries, and I hate to see anyone fall or stumble. :(

But I also get a thrill seeing the Americans skate, and I was really proud of the American team last night. :woohoo:

[hippiechick]

21. The Turkish girl was great!

I didn't catch her name - she was the very first skater - I was really happy for her! :woohoo:

:applause:

[flamingyouth]

23. Yes, she was!

I felt nervous for her, having to go on first like that! But she did a great job. And how about that 16-year-old girl from Georgia - she was fantastic! :applause:

[Arkansas Granny]

24. Like you, I hate to see any of them fall. I watch just for the sheer

beauty of the performances. If the US wins, that's fine with me, but regardless who wins, if everyone puts in a good performance we all get to enjoy it, and the one who wins has really got to be a great skater.

[JVS]

27. I liked Elene Gedevanishvili

[GalleryGod]

28. I Love ex-ten-sion !

[Deep13]

30. Hardly anyone can do that on dry ground.

ouch!

[applegrove]

31. Too much falling going on. I mean when the ice dancers start falling -

it is time to watch ski jumping or something safe like that.

[bumblebee1]

32. I'm somewhat in the closet.

I'm out as a figure skating fan to my husband. The rest of my family and co-workers don't know about it. I didn't get to see the dance final and the ladies short program due to working a second shift job. I wont get to see the long program on Thursday due to the same reason. Maybe I'll get to see the highlights with my cable systems ON Demand feature. I hope Sasha can put together two solid, clean programs.

[flamingyouth]

33. I hope Sasha can do as well Thursday as she did last night.

She was awesome last night. I ended up taping it all last night, but then I wound up staying up after all, even though I didn't get enough sleep... oh well, what can I say, I'm a fan and it only happens every four years. :D