The Winter Olympics open in Vancouver Feb. 12, at which point at least 5 percent of your daily PopWatch will be served on ice. 1992 figure skating gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi, who will serve as a special NBC Olympics correspondent for Today, has agreed to answer EW readers’ burning questions about the Winter Games’ most beloved sport. Ask a figure skater anything! Your inquiries need not boast equal parts technical merit and artistic presentation, though the mean judge from Russia will be much more amenable if they do.
I’ll get this party started: Is it mentally easier or tougher to land jumps if you’ve already fallen or wobbled once? Better to skate first or last? Why do today’s U.S. women insist on those fugly nude-colored skate covers when the classic leg-on-white color scheme is so much more attractive? Do you ever feel sorry for the roses fans throw down on the ice that you don’t get to pick up? Who was Tonya Harding kidding? Did you feel somewhat cheated that your medal was only like one-eighth gold? Because I would! That is bogus!
Your turn.
Annie on Twitter: @EWAnnieBarrett
Image credit: Junji Kurokawa/AFP/Getty Images
What do you do with all those flowers and stuffed animals that people throw onto the ice after a performance? Do you actually keep any of it? And what are the best and worst things that someone has ever thrown to you?
Re: the flowers and stuffed animals, they give them to local charities. Usually children’s hospitals.
Are they still permitted to throw flowers and stuffed animals on the ice at the figure skating Olympics? Haven’t seen any so far this year.
I heard it is not allowed to throw flowers on the ice any more. Why are stuffed animals better?
I second the above question.
Also- magic? YES.
What are your thoughts on Michelle Kwan never winning gold. How do you think that will reflect on her legacy to skating and how much does it just plain old suck that she doesn’t have a gold?
What American female skater has the best chance at gold (or any medal)?
Uh, none of them.
Based on Marks Rachel Flatt however the Nationals didn’t reflect their best skaters and i think Rachel got lucky. She is currently ranked 10th on the ISU circuit. Her personal best scores are in good contention for a medal but it doens’t look to good for the American women this year.
What do you think of Sasha Cohen’s comeback attempt? Publicity stunt or not?
I loved him in “Borat”. “Bruno”, not so much.
Favorite trick/move of all time? Ever have a chance to talk to a judge on a score you didn’t agree with?
I loved her recent skating special, Kristi Yamaguchi & Friends, featuring musical guest, the Backstreet Boys. I especially loved when she skated to their song, Straight Through My Heart. What was it like working with the Backstreet Boys?
Who is your favorite male and female figure skater?
Is your nickname “The Gooch”?
Also, it looks as though there is only so much one is able to do physically on the ice…what can be done to inject something new into your sport?
are you mentoring any current skater on team USA right now? Who do you think has the best shot at the gold medal?
What are the lamest required elements in a long and short program that all the skaters secretly hate but know they must perform (the spiral? etc?). Are there any quick tips you can pass along to help casual viewers determine the difference between major jumps while watching on tv (how can I tell an axel from another jump?). Do the judges watch warmups and practices and does that influence judging? Which country’s judges are notorious for voting for their own?
An axel is the only jump where the skater takes off forward and lands backwards – adding the extra revolution that makes it the most difficult jump.
what do you think of the new system in judging?
is the focus in landing jumps (i.e. the technical side of the sport) taking too much from the artistic side?
not at all, the focus now is more the artistic side, the system looks for dificulty entering and exiting the jump, for example if there is footwork or edgework before the take off. I great expamle is Patrick Chan of Canada that has alot of footwork into his triple Axel with the difficult take of it can get more points then a quad that has a long set up with no difficulty in the enterance.
What you speak of are transitions, and they are athletically difficult, and not necessarily artistic at all. They are scored under the PCS mark, but I have yet to see a competition decided on transitions. The system is supposed to reward the well-rounded skater. I see the jumpers being rewarded instead.
How hard is it to skate in those costumes?
Is the camel spin called that because it shows alot of camel toe?
Which competition do you think will be the most exciting this year? Mens? Ice Dance?
What’s your opinion on skaters who come back after a long period away just because there is an Olympics coming up? (Sasha Cohen, Evgeni Plushenko)