there is something about Amber Glenn that just makes you root for her, and it’s so hard to see her go through something like this. i hope she doesn’t beat herself up about this, she has so much to be proud of
I WAS SO EXCITED TO WATCH AMBER!! She has so much power going into her jumps, and she's a real sweetheart. I remember skating with her 2 years ago, and she just moved so beautifully and has only grown since then. I hope she can keep pushing through. Skating is so brutal, but so rewarding.
i was happy for Kevin Aymoz! I used to skate at the same rink as him and it was inspring to watch him practice and work so hard. I just kind of wish he had different coaches (for obvious reasons with the investigation of them) but still am very happy for him and his success. Also am soo glad Ilia Malinin is improving his artistry I was a bit worried he was going to be one of those people who just through themselves into a million quads to get points but I can see the artistry improvement and am so happy abou tthat.
Nice video. Good summary of Skate America. Ilia and Isabeau are in good shape, but they are both in a waaaaay more challenging GP in France this weekend. Here's hoping for great things there.
good morning! a few weeks ago i got a free Peacock trial, and i noticed Skate America was happening. i excitedly watched, first time following a skating competition in decades, after your channel reignited my interest! i kind of imagined your commentary in my head while watching, and can’t wait to hear your thoughts! have a great day! 🌻
I'm kind of baffled how the US skating community were almost scandalized of Eteri's presence and, at the same time, were willing to turn a blind eye for John Zimmerman's attendance.
This was the first competition I watched live, and it was sooo good. I loved Ilia's program and Leona's. Also loved Kevin's Bolero. It was just so in time with the music and I could really see what Inside the Music was talking about when he talked about the piece and the qualities that make it unique. So sad for Amber because her short was amazing.
PSA, you might not want to shoutout Kevin Aymoz's coach!! Silvia Fontana and her husband were involved in covering up pairs skater Morgan Ciprès's sexual abuse... (man sent illicit pictures to a 13 year old) which you covered on this channel on this channel a few years ago
@@watchmedo635 She's bad but isn't coaching minors. She also did not send the d#ck pics herself but you guys are acting like she's the man who sent it. She got punished, but did not send the child d#ck pics. That was Morgan.
Ilia is definitely in the building with my favourite SP and FS for him. Kevin's Bolero is my 2nd all time favourite. Loena and Isabeau were terrific and but Loena is my sunshine and it's nice that Isabeau seems to be becoming more consistent in skating flawless, wonder who will get a quad 1st? Amber poor Amber how will she break the curse? She can do it
Wtf??!! Eteri trains that guy since 2015!! Is not a new thing. Nika is with her as long as Morisi. I saw him with Eteri so many times before! What was that???
Amber won this competition for me. Not that she should have been first or even third. She had costly mistakes and that’s why she’s so low. But she fought her demons and succeeded for the first time in competition a jump she’s been perfecting for several seasons. That’s how you make a sport progress. She proved that with time and resilience anything is possible. Hard work pays off in the end, even if it takes time, sweat, and even if it costs you a place on a podium. People win medals everyday. But so few people can jump a triple axel. That was the best thing of the event by far. If you don’t challenge yourself, why are you even training that hard and competing for ?
I love your commentary!! There’s nobody else like you and I share your passion for skating. I used to skate, but then I moved 40 yrs ago to where there was no skating rink, although once I drove 2 1/2 hours to skate for a little while. But it just wasn’t practical after I got married and had kids. so I satisfy my love of skating by watching as much as I can. I watch on my iPad, and follow along with the live ISU scores on my phone. Lol! My favorite way to watch is with commentary, and my husband thinks I’m crazy when I say, I am listening to the figure skating competition. Because I can’t sit down and watch all of it, so I listen, and then I just watch the main ones I want to see. I hate that some of the TV presentations don’t have commentary. In that case, I have to watch on my phone, the live scores, so I know when the people I really want to watch are coming up. But I love the commentary, the back stories, the explanations, the details. I don’t get enough of that with today’s TV programming. So that’s one reason I love YOUR commentary. It’s just brilliant!!! 💕
When u talk about skate Canada, if u don’t mention the winners for ice dance and pairs I’m gonna be devastated. I know u don’t talk about those disciplines but they were Canadian at skate Canada and the programs were iconic!!!!!!!
I’ve seen she’s mentioned (not sure what the source was or if it’s even true) that boys are more difficult to “control” or pit against each other compared with young girls and it’s one reason she doesn’t seem to like working with boys.
21:20 IMHO I was convinced Amber just tired. This is so so common among single skaters in their older age or even among young ones but in the bad shape They just switch off at once
Agreed. Her toe pick jumps are not the highest and she is not the most tight in the air to begin with, but it all still works in the first half. Just after half time she falls in a 3 lutz which she underrotates by 0,5 turn! And it is clear that her energy level just dropped so much she cannot get enough elevation. It might be a result of adding the 3A at the beggining as it drains more energy than you would expect. Plus not enough endurance training. I'm convinced that had she not run out of steam, she would have had a clean(ish) skate
Amber Glenn is great and all but she's past her prime and doesn't skate clean. I don't really understand why they keep bringing her back when she never skates as well as the other girls.
Just letting you know in your video you spoke straight up facts about Amber. She needs to get off tiktok. She's a failure when it comes to skating clean
I was at skate America in person (saw woman’s short and men’s free) and it was literally one of the best experiences ever! (Even tho I was def shocked to see eteri 😭)
I kept thinking all through Isabeau’s programs that she really needs to step up her game. It might as well have been last year’s programs for all I knew. I hate her music and I hate her costumes. The long sleeves and the long hem line and the gaudy sequins. Ick. She is so cute and really has talent but she definitely needs a new creative team. And why isn’t she, as well as ALL of the ladies, doing triple axels? It’s ridiculous that they aren’t.
The women's event was awesome and devastating at the same time. I'm elated for Amber and her 3A, but gutted that she wasn't happy with the rest of the performance. Also delighted for Niina's historic medal for Estonia, though angry at the ISU for displaying the wrong flag 💀💀
im SO happy for loena and how well she's performing, and improving, not just the fact that her programs are enjoyable and fantastic to watch, not just the fact that she's finally a grown woman in womans skating, not a tiny russian child who will break horribly, but its the fact that her early career was so unlucky, with many injuries and disappointments, how she has finally started achieving the great things she deserves and the international recognition... im so happy for her and she deserves it all and more... she's a joy to watch, like you said, her skating is fun and showgirly, and thats something i relish. im so happy for her.
Kevin Aymoz made me literally weep with joy. Such an artist, so much passion, so much pure love for skating. May this peak last for a few years so we can enjoy his skating longer.
I think we cann all agree that the medals were the most horrible thing ever seen at GP. The colours looked like lemonade, and if it wasnt called Skate AMERICA i would have thought the medals were for some kind of low level texan competition...
“Shout out to the crowd” YES!! I was there in person and was so glad to be a part of it :) There’s honestly a pretty strong but underrated skating fanbase in North Texas.
The RU-vidr AverageRob has this awesome video w Loena Hendrix, where she teaches 2 athletic non-skater adult guys how to skate in 2 hours and then they compete 😂it’s hilarious and she’s awesome!
I was there!! Nika is actually quite sweet (I got a photo and spoke to him a bit. He and Vladimir Litvintsev were hanging out in a hallway at one point speaking with Russian-American skating fans, Eteri was nowhere to be seen with Nika outside of the rink. They were both genuinely nice boys.) But yes it was a jumpscare to see Eteri near the rink. ahah... The cheers were insane for everyone, we all went hard (welcome to Texas). Kevin got his flowers, Amber got all the love she deserved (I went to meet her after the Free and sooo many of us were giving her love and our congratulations on her 3A). It was a super positive and lovely event overall! Texas was the right place to hold it, the turnout was amazing.
We really thought that once Yuzuru retired men could go after the gold once again but Ilia entered the chat and said mine. At this point he's gonna be America's "eteri girl", he's gonna win everything there's to win and then we'll see what happens at Milan 2026...
Idk why but I really liked Vladimir Litvintsev in men's program. He was in 8th place after the short program but he had a greet free skate and ended up in the 5th place overall (just 0.01 points behind the guy Eteri coaches) and ranked 3rd in free skate.
@@alanawolf1556 Yeah at the start of this programme I was like: I like this one then just as I said that he fell😅 but the rest of the programme as entertaining (only thing is he wore a tiger striped costume to a lion king song)
@@BlueButterfly1134haha yes even with that silly outfit I was not prepared for the Lion King, but he redeemed himself so thoroughly with his good vibes & made it easy to forgive him 🐯🦁🐯
I actually love Isabeau’s SP! It was intriguing to me. Not a huge departure from her other programs but that’s why I love it- it still compliments her style. I’m glad I was able to see her perform this in person.
I didn’t even realize it was the same guy!!! Massive improvement (and this is coming from someone who loves a good man bun - Denis’ we’re horrible lol)
Paola, what can we do to get NBC to make skating coverage more accessible? Since they killed the Olympic Channel, any coverage is hidden on some odd channel (E! Really?) or hidden behind a paywall on Peacock. I'm so angry at the lack of ANY skating coverage this year I refuse to subscribe to Peacock for the anemic content they have this year. Previously, we had TONS of coverage, even my local Challenger events were streamed. Any big comps I may have missed were covered on Olympic Channel. At the very least, how do we get ISU events on You Tube? I don't understand why all the JGP events are available, but nothing for seniors.
when channels get broadcasting rights for tv, then it’s not available on youtube :( so since i’m in canada, i can watch skate america on the isu youtube channel but not skate canada! if u also want to watch skate canada, there is the skate canada dailymotion with all the programs + gala. it really sucks but there are ways to get around the barriers!!!
Another heartbreak (or you could say disrespect from the Americans) is putting up the Japanese flag for Niina Petrõkina. Are they that stupid? The furthest an Estonian figure skater has gotten and not even getting the flag right? I know all the girls just laughed it off but what a disappointment from the competition.
Yooo I wouldn’t have even recognized Denise if she didnt mention his haircut! 😂😭 his ponytail was so iconic, when he did that upright sit spin & it just flopped over on his head it was hilarious but also aesthetically pleasing. I normally think guys look better with shorter hair, but in his case-I actually miss it bein long 😅
First time at a competition and I’m only now starting to come down from the high! Kevin made me (& everyone in that arena) love…. LOVE Bolero!!! Fully converted. Amber nearly gave me whiplash w the glorious high followed by that gut punch low. I was scared when she got on the ice for the free warm up, looking washed out, no discernible makeup, an sad barrettes - if you can find video of those 6 minutes, look at her body language. Then look at Loena’s. I had hopes after her 3A (crowd rightly lost their minds) but good heavens the 2nd half was viscerally painful to watch 😭 She looks like she’s really hard on herself 😢
Nika has been training at Khrustalnyi since he was 15 (!). Now he is 21. I can recall the photos of him in Eteri’s group long before this season. There is also an information on Wikipedia in the section of “Programs”, it is stated that they were and they are made by Daniil Gleichengauz, Sergei Dudakov. There are actually articles in Russian too, proving that he trained at Eteri’s group since the age of 15. Perhaps, there were not translated to English though
Yeah, thanks! I was thinking the same! He is trained by her since 2015!!!! Last gran Prix that Russian was in, he was there too with Eteri!! Someone is not doing research! Lol
Eteri has been training Georgian figure skaters for years, Morissi retired from competitions this year. Just stumbled on this account by accident after ignoring it for 2 years, still the same stupid misinformed content.
I think I understood why WADA and the International Olympic Committee are bullying Russian athletes. Discriminating against Russia, they are trying to attract some of the best athletes and coaches to US.
I thought Russian athletes would have to get permission to leave the country and skate for another nation. Wouldn’t Russia put up a fight worth if their really valuable athletes wanted to compete under a different flag? Even if they got permission, wouldn’t it benefit the athlete to skate for a nation with a smaller skating pool, so as to ensure they can compete internationally? How does WADA benefit from Russia sending skaters elsewhere? How does ISU benefit? I have so many questions & would love to see some examples! Thanks!
@@alanawolf1556 Unfortunately, Russia is a democracy, and athletes are free to change the flag and betray the country that invested a lot of money in them. In Russia, sports schools are free, competitions are sponsored by the state, talented athletes have huge earnings, how should Russia fight for athletes even more worthily? And what is the point of guaranteeing yourself international competitions if you understand that you have avoided competition in Russia? WADA and IBU do not receive direct benefits, but all European institutions are influenced and act in the interests of the American government
@@Sergei_Igel No one is a slave. Let everyone be free. Are you a slave Sergei? Do you not deserve freedom to move and change coaches? Loyalty to a country does not equate to becoming its slave.
ok hear me out I want Isabeau Levito to do more personality enhancing programs like Kailani Craine. Isabeau obviously has an energetic funny persona off the ice but I want it to translate to her skating and having a really energetic, crowd pleasing short and free like Kailani would help it to feel less awkward watching her skate and it would help her to really feel her programs. Obviously her programs would have more difficult technical elements than Kailani's do but style wise I think it would help her.
Loving to see Ilias growth as a skater! The red outfit is also growing on me and thankfully since his parents are so involved in his career and with Raf the coach of the quad king himself - I don't think his parents would mess with the formula especially since Eteri hasn't proved herself with mens skating yet
I do 100% agree with you that Isabeau's "snake" program was not giving!!!! Like she needs to stay in that swan or at least ballet type of music/choreography. She is a great skater overall, but it just not giving.
What stood out about Isabo's performance was she used a song that was previously used by other ice skating dancers (Madison Chock and Evan Bates) who did a fabulous job with the song therefore she had a lot of pressure in order to perform it and make it more her own. It was great but it would have been better if she used a different song.
I started to rewatch ice dance competition and there are some good pairs out there. The rithmic dance with the 80's music is entertaining and the costumes are fun.
Skate America was held in the town right next where I live so I had to go and it was just so sad when Amber hit that triple axel but then just kept falling . Especially it being its her hometown too. After she hit that 3A I was like wow she's actually improved so much , but yikes it was just sad. I felt so bad for her.
why these male skaters and federations keep thinking that going to train with Eteri is any good?! HOW?!! she doesn't known how to train male skaters, period!!
I love Isabeau’s skating so much but I don’t relate to the snake theme. Glad she’s trying something different but no, I didn’t care for it. Long program seem to little depressing but I like the balletic theme. Would like to see something a little lighter.
Isabeau is overpraised. She did not have "a great" short program. She had an adequate program. Want to know why Isabeau seems to not "connect" with her own program? She doesn't have a good sense of rhythm. If you saw her on a dance floor, she probably is a little off on the timing of the music but doesn't have a clue that she is.
Please please please do some research into people before you praise them. Sylvia is not “gorgeous” she is not “beautiful” and she is not an “amazing coach” she is a monster. That woman was responsible for the sexual abuse of several young female figure skaters. She deserves to rot in prison. And Kevin is just as bad for training with her when he is aware of her heinous crimes.
As amazing as Kevin is... The first impression of Bolero woth black outfit and red gloves was the olympics' doping scandal of Kamila Valieva! (I don't know the history of Moulin Rouge in figure skating, though)
Hello Paola, recently stumbled upon your videos after retuning to figure skating fandom after two decades (thanks to Harley/Katys movie) and honestly I enjoy your smart and in depth commentary even more than the actual performances! Great energy , great voice . Keep it up!
