Sandra Bezic quits skating!

[bleu]

forever. You might want to look out for this program next week. Skating is officially on CBC.

http://www3.cbc.ca/sections/newsitem_redux.asp?ID=3074

[Beth2000]

what I don't get is why is this just now coming out? She left SOI after the tour was done last year. Even SOI announced that Christopher Dean would be doing the choreography for the skater's.

Not bashing you just wondering why it is now coming out. It seems it would have come out after the tour last year.

[11yrskate]

"mediocrity in professional skating."

I have to agree with her in all the years I have been around skating
this is a very dishearteding time. To much negative publicity in judging scandals, coaching indescretions and just in general overall poor behavior of judges, coaches and skaters has really effected this sport. Sorry didn't mean to get on a soap box, I am really glad to see someone with some character take a stand. It is a great loss to the sport.

[skaternum]

I'm not going to shed any tears about this. Her choreography had gotten to be same-old, same-old. She was still doing the sexpot female like it was 1996. Maybe we'll get a chance to see some new choreographers in the next few years.

[Sing_Alto]

I'm rather sad about this. Nobody can choreograph for Brian Boitano like Sandra can. Her work, on his behalf, has always been absolute perfection. I was hoping that they'd get together for another fantastic collaboration, but I guess it's not to be. :cry:

[loveskating]

Well, I'm just a fan...but I thought a lot about not having anything to do with skating anymore after SLC...then I decided that something that had given me so much in my whole life, so much fun, so much inspiration and delight...I shouldn't walk away from it when it is in trouble...even if there is little I can do about it.

However, as long as this "deamonize one skater and hype the other to tin god level" is going on, I will NEVER put money, time or emotions into my grandkids to skate beyond just fun...if they ever made it to the elite level, I wouldn't risk them being deamonized and humiliated in front of the entire nation and world...and their entire life ruined...that is NOT an acceptable career path.

[jcspkbfan]

Originally posted by Sing_Alto
I'm rather sad about this. Nobody can choreograph for Brian Boitano like Sandra can. Her work, on his behalf, has always been absolute perfection. I was hoping that they'd get together for another fantastic collaboration, but I guess it's not to be. :cry:

Nobody can choreograph for a lot of skaters like Sandra Bezic, I'm afraid. :( I may not be a fan of every single program she's ever choreographed (specifically not most of the ones where she tries to make female skaters look overly sexy and many of them just can't pull it off), but she was one of the best at creating programs that were both entertaining and technically difficult (and not just jump-wise) especially in the pro ranks. I think many of the programs Sandra created during the pro skating "boom years" helped a lot to dramatically decrease the "mediocrity in professional skating" she refers to and this definitely will be the end of an era. :cry:

I found Sandra's comments on eligible skating especially interesting since she hasn't exactly done a lot of choreography in the eligible world lately (the last eligible skating programs I remember her choreographing were Tara and Lulu back in 1998).

I'm very curious to find out what else Sandra has to say on Monday!

[Roma]

I have actually found her to be THE most biased announcer I've ever heard. I used to really like her choreography for men, but hated the sexpot thing she was always choreographing for the women. It actually turned me off of SOI because of it, and I haven't gone to SOI in years.

[jp1andOnly]

Originally posted by loveskating
Well, I'm just a fan...but I thought a lot about not having anything to do with skating anymore after SLC...then I decided that something that had given me so much in my whole life, so much fun, so much inspiration and delight...I shouldn't walk away from it when it is in trouble...even if there is little I can do about it.

However, as long as this "deamonize one skater and hype the other to tin god level" is going on, I will NEVER put money, time or emotions into my grandkids to skate beyond just fun...if they ever made it to the elite level, I wouldn't risk them being deamonized and humiliated in front of the entire nation and world...and their entire life ruined...that is NOT an acceptable career path.

So if you had a grandchild who loved skating and was talented and begged to skate you would ignore their pleas? Most parents dont go into skating thinking their child will go to the elite level. (ther are some but those are those wonderful skate moms from hell we all hear about)I know my parents never expected my brother to go beyond Canskate, but he became a national competitor. Even when we noticed biases towards other skaters and though the bills kept adding up, my parents allowed him to skate as long as he wanted to. He actually was the one who decided he had had enough of the compeitive world and it was time to move on. Would my parents do things differently..some I suppose. Would they not allow him to pursue his dream because of the not so nice things in the sport..of course not. Things like this happen in many facets of life. Ruining a kids dream just because you have a problem with it will probably emotionally and mentally damage a child more than someone supporting and guiding them thru the twists and turns in a sometimes not so glamourous sport.

[Alexa]

If this means that she will not be a commentator anymore, that is one thing I am definitely happy about.

As for choreography, I think it is a positive thing for SOI to have a new choreographer. I think so many of her programs were similar--especially for the women who have used her for choreography.

Though, I am confused as to why she would quit because of the scoring system, etc, since she has mainly been involved with pros for the past several years.

[loveskating]

I thought her Butterfly Lovers LP for Chen Lu was brilliant, really first rate. I thought the post 98 SOI work was brilliant, especially that clown number and all the swing stuff. That SOI show was a mini opera...and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The next one wasn't up to that level, but it was good nonetheless.

I like variety...my favorite choreographer is Tarasova...but I don't want everyone to do what she does (and she is no cookie cutter, either).

I liked Sandra as a commentator a lot at Nagano, however, at SLC, I did not.

[evereg]

So, what is Sandra doing now that she has quit skating?

[Beth2000]

Originally posted by evereg
So, what is Sandra doing now that she has quit skating?

Bashing Pro Skating :lol: Seriously, that is what she is doing. I liked Sandra at one time but, when she tried to turn the ladies at SOI into sex kittens that is when I quit liking her. Some of those ladies couldn't pull it off period.

[Lise]

After watching the interview last night, I remembered why I was a little turned off by Sandra. I also have to say that I didn't like the interview or the segment that much since they focused way too much on SLC and Jamie and David.

For those who did not get a chance to watch:


Sandra basically said that she was disappointed with SLC of course, and does not like the new code of points. She is being a full-time mom. The interview itself imo, was boring.

They then did a segment on COP. They spoke to JRo who said that she stayed in mainly for COP and Lori Nichol designed her program specifically for the new system. They showed skaters pratising for the show in Kitchener that took place, and tried to explain a little on the COP. They also mentionned several times about the fact that CTV is not showing many events and commented that Skate Canada International tickets were still available-something they found puzzling since tickets used to be hard to come by. Regarding the lack of coverage-it was due to low viewership and CBC mentionned that no one had the rights for Worlds coverage in Canada yet.The way they sounded, it did not seem possible that we will be seeing Worlds.

That's about it.

Lise

[sillyskates]

For those of you who watched the CoP segment, am I correct that, in the end, the average of only 5 judges will determine the actual score? I missed part of it, and the graphic on the screen showed only 5 judges remaining to produce the actual score. :?:

[Lise]

yes-5 judges will determine the final outcome high and low scores are thrown out.

[skatingfan3]

Skate Canada tickets used to be a sell-out because of skaters like Alexei Yagudin, Elvis Stoyko and Michelle Kwan. These skaters are not competing this year -- with Yagudin and Stoyko turning pro and Michelle skipping the grand prix events this year.

Deborah

[loveskating]

Originally posted by skatingfan3
Skate Canada tickets used to be a sell-out because of skaters like Alexei Yagudin, Elvis Stoyko and Michelle Kwan. These skaters are not competing this year -- with Yagudin and Stoyko turning pro and Michelle skipping the grand prix events this year.

Deborah

I'm not Canadian, but I bet not...since Michelle Kwan was not at Skate Canada last year...and MK wasn't there every year in any case...last year the place looked packed to me...at least when Sasha Cohen was skating and got a standing ovation up there. Also, it seems to me Canadians always support their own skaters, no matter how many medals they won or did not win.

But even if what you say were true, isn't that a situation that the skating business would very seriously want to avoid in the future? I would think so.

Personally, I suspect that what happened at SLC completely turned off the casual skating fans the world over...not to mention the parents of kids who might want to skate. What family in the world would subject their small children to a frigging SPY story, where the people in charge are supposedly totally evil, and where people's lives are ruined, and even where very great skaters like Anissina & Piezerat are humiliated, ruined and threatened with extradition and criminal charges?

And nothing has been done by skating to dissassociate itself from all that...if anything, there are intimations that the disgusting saga continues.