Who does that element the best?

[loveskating]

[color=blue:e02ea14f46]Trying to think of good off season topics here...which skater(s) do you think do certain elements the best or among the best?[/color:e02ea14f46]
3 axel: Ilia Kulik, Alexi Yagudin

Split Falling Leaf: Michelle Kwan

Russian Split: Sasha Cohen, Ilia Kulik, Todd Eldredge

Front Catch Spin: Sasha Cohen, Rudy Galindo

Camel Spin: Maria Butereskaya; Alexander Abt

Spiral Sequence: Sasha Cohen, Michelle Kwan

Layback: Sasha Cohen, Angela Nikodinov, Sarah Hughes

Twizzles: Pasha Grishuk and Jamie Silverstein

Agree? Disagree? Additions? Other elements?

[adrianchew]

4-sal: Timothy Goebel

Throw 3-loop: Jamie Sale/David Pelletier

Detroiter/Head Banger: Isabelle Brasseur/Lloyd Eisler

Backflip: Scott Hamilton, Surya Bonaly

3-Flutz: Sarah Hughes

Quad/triple/double: Evgeny Plushenko

Doughnut On A Stick Spin: Oksana Baiul

Spread Eagle: Brian Boitano

[Patrick Brunk]

......................

[loveskating]

To Patrick Brunck:

Interesting. The vision of anyone skating with NO edges makes me think of most people at public sessions at rinks...that is truly a chance to see skating on the flat of the blade all the time.

Surya skates on the FLAT of her blades most of the time, maybe even on an entry to a spin, thus her movements are choppy and her positions less than flowing or elegant...and there is a relationship as anyone who has skated at all knows that on the flat of the blade, you cannot do all that much with the rest of your body. That is one reason you see Surya digging her toepick in the ice from behind so much...to get some speed while still on her flats.

Sasha Cohen is ALWAYS on her edges or moving to an edge except for spirals on the flat...she has tremendous speed and flow...very crisp turns, on center...an incredible fan spiral or fan spiral into a skid which is on a very deep curve...you CANNOT do that from the flat, its impossible. Her ie spiral is on a huge curve, solid as a rock...can't do that on "no edges".

In any case, I guess it does't take much to tell the difference between Sasha and Surya...its rather obvious.

To see animations of many of Sasha's elements, including her fabulous edges, go to http://www.skatingonice.com and select Sasha Fan Center and choose "animations"...

[aygltd2]

Patrick- Uh, do u know what u're talking about? Sasha is WONDERFUL!! I agree with everything loveskating said about her.

[Show 42]

Maybe Patrick was just "clowning" around. Skating + edges=Sasha. Enough said.

[Tigger]

Actually Adrian, I think Tuffy and Doug had the best Headbanger. Isabelle flails her arms out and to me, that shows not a lot of confidence in Lloyd's ability to keep her head from slamming the ice. Tuffy on the other hand kept her arms to her sides, had a gorgeous line for the thing and Doug kept moving across the ice while doing it w/a lot of speed. So, for me they win this debate hands down. Sigh...Gosh, I miss those two.

Delayed single axel...Brian Orser. That is truly a thing of beauty. Sad it's going to disappear once he hangs up the blades. :(

Platter lift...Jamie and David and Barb Underhill and Paul Martini. It's an out and out tie between those two. Both Barb and Jamie had/have exquisite line in their respective position of the lift.

[loveskating]

So agree Adrian, about Boitano's spreadeagle...also Paul Wylie is right up there as to the spreadeagle, IMHO.

I think maybe B&S's throw 3 loop is a bit better, however, due to ice covered into it and height, ice coverage and air position.

3 sal/3 loop: Irina Slutskaya, Sarah Hughes
3/3 loop: Tara Lipinski

3 Twist: Sale & Peltier; Zhen & Xiao; Barezhnaya & Sik

[Marco]

Hi I am new :)

Well I must say ChengJiang Li of China or Anthony Liu of Australia have the best, although not the most consistent, quads. Tim's 4sal is still taken off with both feet (ike B/S throw 3sal) and not entered with as much speed or has as much height as ChengJiang Li's. About Anthony Liu's 4toe, the speed he entered it with, the tightness of rotations and the height he gets are absolutely mind-blowing!

The best 3sal3loop should go to Kurt Browning! (94 Olympics, from a spreadeagle) The best 3loop3loop goes to Tara ofcourse, and the best 3flip3loop goes to Eric Millot of France.

I/Z, S/P and G/G have the best 3twists.

[melanieuk]

3lutz - Julia Sebestian
3flip - Viktoria Volchova

[leap of faith]

death drop - Brian Boitano
layback spin - Angela Nikodinov (Sasha's starts nice but her leg position goes into the broken tree branch)

3sal/3loop - Kurt Browning (that spread eagle entrance is awesome)

spiral sequence - Michelle Kwan (that inside to outside edge is awesome with the extension)

split 3 twist - well B&E win with the lateral, no on else could do that.
Jamie and David's is quite nice. I find Elena crashes hard and sometimes is not completed rotating.

throw single axel - Barb and Paul, simple but it floats.

[loveskating]

[quote:0e3476b1f6="melanieuk"]3lutz - Julia Sebestian
3flip - Viktoria Volchova[/quote:0e3476b1f6]

I'd rather see Vika's flip but to be truthful, she does take off on it from the wrong edge a lot...she "lips" her flip. She is so gorgeous jumping, who cares, but by the rules, she ought to get a deduction when she does that.

[loveskating]

[quote="leap of faith"]
layback spin - Angela Nikodinov (Sasha's starts nice but her leg position goes into the broken tree branch)

This is partly a question... :?: Sasha varies her layback, IMHO, and from what I was told. that counts. The ISU rules do not give points for the classic vs. the "non-classic" layback on the technical mark, I'm told...but speed, centering and variation/innovation do get points technically. On the layback per se, I was told that the arch of the back gets points, and Sasha has the best arch of the back of all of them, IMHO.

Can you clarify the rules?

[Xiaoxue]

Backward outside death spiral - Barb Underhill and Paul Martini

Throw Double Axel - The Wirtzes

Throw Triple Salchow - Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze

Split Triple Twist - Sale and Pelletier

[texasdancer]

layback: Sasha and AP

[Shae & Vic Forever]

Sale & Pelltier have THE absolute best throws bar none. I dont think I've seen them miss a throw even once in the 4 years they've skated together. They have so much confidence in each other.

B/S do the best side by sides I think.

The best triple lutz goes to Annie Bellmaire.

And of course, Shae and Vic for hydroblading...nobody can do it like them! 8)

[ggyy]

Russian split: Rory Burghart (sp?) -- Her split is out of this world!

Camel spin: Ilia Klimkin (in both directions)

[shine]

Yes Wofice, let's just say that Sasha is the most perfect skater in the world. She has the deepest, smoothest and amazingest edges, she is fast as lightning; the quickness of her blades are unmatched in the entire figure skating history; she has the best spiral, the best layback, the best SashaCurl, SashaSkid, SashaSpiral and the best split jump we've ever seen and no one in the world has even 1% of her beauty. She has no weakness whatsoever and anyone who says that she needs improvement in anything is just insane. She can do no wrong and will soon be crowned St. Sasha.

[pmadison31]

Kurt Browning gets my vote for the best overall footwork

[Patrick Brunk]

......................................

[Aussie Willy]

I agree about Julia Sebastian having the best 3lutz out of all the women.

Other elements:

Best open axel - Robin Cousins

Best Russians splits - Toller Cranston with Sasha Cohen close second

Best butterfly - Ilia Klimkin - it is so light

Best reverse camel - I think either Klimkin or Robin Cousins

Best 1 1/2 flip - Robin Cousins

Best cantilever - Doug Matisse

Best backflip - Robin Cousins and Surya Bonaly

[Cruella de Kwan]

Best Ina Bauer goes to Paul Wylie...without a doubt!

MaryJo

[md2be]

Doug Mattis...yes YES! Best cantilever ever (except Edmund Nesti who used to train in Lake Placid in the late 80s with me..he had one to DIE for and was hot too!). :)

[yogurtslinger]

Who does the best MikePike?? :wink:

[RoseAugust]

Robin Cousins - seamless and smooth

I know these things aren't technically elements, but in my mind they are. It's been a long time since I've seen Robin Cousins, but he remains my all time favorite male skater because he always seemed so seamless and smooth between elements. His skating always took my breath away because of that.

[Aussie Willy]

[quote:0dba70ab74="yogurtslinger"]Who does the best MikePike?? :wink:[/quote:0dba70ab74]

Well actually Nancy Kerrigan used to do a damn fine backward Mike Pike into a 2lutz. And if you have seen Intensity on Ice there was a great picture of Cher doing a Mike Pike.

Actually most of the kids at my rink do really good Mike Pikes.

[HazyRigby]

I never really was a fan of her skating, but Tara Lipinski has one of the best sit spins I'd ever seen. Nice and low, good positions.

[Aussie Willy]

Hazy Ribgy - I know what you say about Tara's sit spin, but personally I really hate that low position. I just think it looks ugly, but that is not just saying it about Tara, more about anybody who gets down that low (or maybe I am just jealous because I can't get really low in my own sit spin :wink: ). Nah I still don't like it.

Actually I would have to say Todd Eldredge has the best sit spin- both forward and back.

Scott Davis used to be pretty good too.

[HazyRigby]

I guess it depends on what your definition of a *good* sit spin is, then. :)

I think of the low position as a much harder way of maintaining the spin, so I am always impressed when I see someone doing it that way.

[Aussie Willy]

[quote:9f11d5caf1="HazyRigby"]I guess it depends on what your definition of a *good* sit spin is, then. :)

I think of the low position as a much harder way of maintaining the spin, so I am always impressed when I see someone doing it that way.[/quote:9f11d5caf1]

I don't think getting lower on your sit spin necessarily makes it a better spin. I think when you reach that point you can kind of just sit there - getting up is the problem. However I agree that it does look impressive, simply because I cannot get that low.

However if I was going to be really impressed by a sit spin, I think achieving a different arm positions such as Lucinda Ruh, or putting the head on the knee and holding your leg (a Canonball spin) is much more difficult than getting your butt close to the ice.

I have a friend who can get really low like that on the sit spin. I will ask her what she thinks.

Oh to add another best element:

Broken leg spin - Toller Cranston (and my friend does a really good one too)

[memememe76]

Does anyone remember the German team a few years back, they did the most amazing SBS spins.

[Shae & Vic Forever]

[quote:65a955d508="memememe76"]Does anyone remember the German team a few years back, they did the most amazing SBS spins.[/quote:65a955d508]

Wotzel & Steuer?

[purplecat]

That would be Peggy Schwarz and Mirko Mueller. Yes, their SBS spins were a pleasure to watch! :)