WOW. What an event! The men did not disappoint with their performances this weekend and it was quite refreshing, considering the men always seems to be the least consistent.
**IMPORTANT NOTE: I correctly picked the placements of ALL SIX MEN! This will probably never happen again, so I feel the need to acknowledge this moment. And honestly- the reason that I was able to predict so well was that THEY ALL SKATED LIKE THEY WERE EXPECTED TO! And bless them for that.** After what he did at NHK, watching Yuzu break his own World records was incredibly stunning. He just looks SO focused, so hungry, so prepared and so in control of every movement. Technically he was flawless and his programs this year so perfectly highlight every nuance of the music and his skating skills. He is by far the best of the best right now and it’s truly exciting to see him living up to every bit of his potential. I’m happy that Javier could put together a strong competition in Barcelona. He FINALLY landed that 3rd quad in his free skate and it couldn’t have happened at a better moment than at home. There was no winning this competition with Hanyu skating the way he was, but a second here over Uno and Chan means good things for Javi. He will not see any of these men at Europeans, so he should have an easy cruise to another European title before Worlds. I am so in love with Shoma Uno and his skating. He has *such* potential and a medal here was no small feat in this field. The Japanese nationals has such a deep men’s field, but Uno has truly established himself as a favorite for that second spot for Worlds. I expect we will see Uno again at Four Continents and I think it’s important for him to put down strong skates there against Patrick Chan to set him up well for a medal at Worlds. Kudos to Patrick Chan for pulling up in the standings with a great free skate. His jumping is still not where it needs to be for Worlds, but he certainly has time to improve that. I think Four Continents will be a biggie for him- he needs to skate well there to prove that he has what it takes to contend at the top. Comebacks are never easy in this sport, but Chan still has a quality to his skating that is hard to deny. If he gets the jumps, don’t count him out. I still love Dai’s short program and I am happy to see the judges scoring Boyang fairly- impressive technically, but needing time to grow and mature in PCS. This is the last time we'll see this entire group of men before Worlds, and let's not forget that Denis Ten posted a nice score at a smaller competition recently- will we see a repeat of his record performance at Four Continents? The men's field certainly is never short of story lines, but I am thrilled that the one to come out of Barcelona was simply great skating.
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November 2017
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