Article - Fair hearing? Pairs judge to feel like fair game

[adrianchew]

From the Chicago Tribune...

http://chicagosports.com/content/story/0,1984,179683,00.html

[quote:3fc1890bae]Cinquanta's response was a huffy retort to what he thought was an attempt to impugn the ISU's honesty and credibility. He maintained an outside body would not have sufficient knowledge of figure skating to carry out such an investigation. Five minutes later, Cinquanta, who has a speedskating background, admitted, "I do not know so well figure skating."

In eight years since becoming ISU president, Cinquanta should have learned more about the sport that is his federation's cash cow. He somehow feels he has learned enough to devise a new scoring system for figure skating. [/quote:3fc1890bae]

[sk8crazy]

I'm wondering what the figure skaters can do to make the situation better. I'm assuming that Cinquanta's position with the ISU is secure, so what now? What would they have to do to get the ISU's attention?

At the very least, I think that figure skating needs it's own branch headed up by someone from the sport who would have almost the same power that Cinquanta has over it now. I agree with Scott Hamilton's comments at SLC about how figure skating and speed skating should not be governed by the same body. It just seems like an impossible situation. Hopefully it will work out for the better one way or another.

[Schmeck]

Thanks for the link, Adrian! (i've been saying that so much, I might have to make it my sig line :wink: )

This article expresses exactly how I feel the whole event will be dealt with - and I have this awful feeling that the reason the hearing is focusing on just a small part of the problem and not bringing in other complaints is so that it can remain manageable and more easily swept under that lumpy rug in Cinquanta's office!

[sk8crazy]

Does Cinquanta know that just ignoring something doesn't make it go away? There's lots of things about all of this that I-as a fan-don't really want to hear, but I think it's important that everything that needs to be done is done. The pairs scandal has been painful for both sides and I certainly don't want to have to go through all of that again and much more importantly I don't wnat the skaters to waist their time and sweat in a system that disregards them.

As bad as dragging it out into the sunlight all at once would be in the short term, isn't that better than small vague glimses that we get at just about every competition? It's like ripping off the band-aid, the quicker the better.