It Figures

PJ Kwong is one of the highlights of this world championship. Her personal observations are always correct, and always very respectful to the skaters. What a treat to have such a knowledgeable and entertaining reporter. Well done, CBC

Thanks CBC. Didn't really care when you showed the Worlds, just as long as you did. So I lost a little sleep. And yes it was difficult watching the live on line coverage with the tiny picture, but at least I could watch. Felt like I was there. I do hope you do the same for next years worlds in LA. Some coverage is much better than none. Unless you had cable in the USA (ESPN), you only got 3 hours total coverage on the main network. So we are truly lucky. And a good show by all our competitors!!!

P.J.
Once again, thankyou for the great coverage
and commentary on Country Canada.Although
the Main network covered in off-hours, a great job was done by all.
It was wonderful to see it all especially the
performances by our Canadian team.Jeffrey's Gold, Tessa and Scott's Silver and Jessica and Bryce's Bronze Performances were Spceial moments in Skating History!

I would have to disagree with some of the comments regarding the new marking system, why should skating be about 1 jump? In the old system if you landed the Quad and no one else did, you won. There was no emphasis on a well exicuted, difficult program with intereting coreography, exciting spins and beautiful spiral sequences. What fun is there in seeing one person win the world chamionship over and over again because they can land a quad? I think it is more exciting now as there are several people who can win the title.
The enthusiasm for figure skating has dwindled at the municipal level, Figureskating is undoubtedly overshadowed by hockey, a sport that many parents hope their kids can be professional at and make the big show. Even local media coverage of Figureskating, at least where I am from is mediocre at best. Figureskating consistantly in my area gets the lower hand when it comes to obtaining ice time and media coverage.

Congratulations to Jeff Buttle for his courageous exhibition after many setbacks. A wonderful example for our youth and future competitors at the Worlds and 2010 in Vancouver.

With response to Colleen Hanscom who asked why CBC isn't broadcasting figure skating in Prime Time any longer.........this was the point I made in my early post. While I am happy for Jeffrey and all the Canadians who did well at this years worlds, a glaring fact remains. Figure Skating is most definitely in its darkest years. There is a governing body that won't address the corruption that is rife within their organization. There is a marking system that is both cumbersome and complicated, turning off fans. There are no true "stars" in the sport similar to what we had in the 80s or 90s. And...most important of all......there is a dwindling audience. CBC only agreed to cover worlds as a last minute decision. I was disappointed because I was hoping that CBC would send a strong message to the ISU that their product currently is NOT worth broadcasting. The fact that CBC broadcast the Worlds (for the most part) at midnight and at 4AM EDT, proves one thing. There is NO audience for this sport in Prime Time any longer. CBC is a business, and they certainly won't put on a show in Prime Time when there's no audience which eqauates to little to no sponsorship.

Wonderful commentary throughout the championships from PJ Kwong. Informative yet unobtrusive. She didn't once interfere with the enjoyment of the performances. I also truly appreciated the opportunity to see all of the skaters, which you normally don't get unless you are there in person.

PJ you did a great, understated job on the live, unedited commentary on Country Canada. I was *so* please to be able to watch as much of the events live (and PVR them all) to see the results ASAP. I've never been good waiting for the edited version 6-8 hours later. So thanks to you and CBC for the extensive coverage.

Our team did us proud in every respect, but I do want to point a (short little) finger at one Canadian competitor: Jessica Dubé. At nationals this year she again competed in both singles and pairs--and I cannot but wonder if that contributed to hers and Davison's crash-n-burn in the short in Vancouver.

I think that Skate Canada and/or Own the Podium should make hers and Bryce's funding contingent on her focussing on pairs. Skating isn't like bobsleigh or cross-country, where athletes do the same technical sport as part of a team: pairs skaters need to develop impeccable timing, lifts and a cohesive performance. If they're 3rd at worlds now, imagine where they could be by 2010 with that focus.

In 1990 skates (Yamaguchi, Galindo) skated both pairs and singles competitively at the international level. Not 2008.

Well done to ALL our skaters!

I have always thoroughly enjoyed listening to Tracy commentate. I was also impressed with Kurt this week. It is so nice having commentators who give great insight into the sport and who are so positive!! I hope they continue to do so for a long time to come.

P.J.,
What an awesome week of skating!
I was so excited to see your name....it always brings a smile to my face, as I always remember your funny stories and your fabulous personality. You announced many of my competitions growing up. My mom often judged with your mom. I'm glad to see that you are doing so well.

Congratulation to Jeffrey Buttle on his gold medal performance! Thank you CBC to broadcast this year world figure skating on CBC-tv and on the website. I really enjoyed it, hopefully CBC will keep broadcasting it as there are many Canadian figure skating fans out there.

I'm so surprised to read all these comments and thanks for such great coverage of Worlds. I couldn't find any until Saturday morning when I thankfully got to watch the dance and men's finals. Was then happy to be able to go to an American channel to get a replay of the women's finals. It has been my tradition for a number of years to set this week aside, free of engagements so I can enjoy the skating from 8 to 10 pm. Who can stay up until after midnight every night and then go to work. I'm one who was very disappointed in the lack of CBC coverage at a time I could watch. From where did that scheduling decision come? In spite of my disappointment though, congratulations to all the skaters and commentators who did such a great job. Saturday was a good day for me.

I thoroughly enjoyed the full coverage of the World Figure Skating Championships presented on C-Can and, in particular, Ms. Kwong's commentary throughout the events.

I am, however, completely dismayed that our Country of Canada is so ready to listen to a poor loser, "Joubert". Jeffrey Buttle's performance was magnificence itself, not a foot wrong and the difficulty of his footwork and patterns far exceeded the difficulty presented by Mr. Joubert. By the way, the difference in the marks on a perfect triple/triple combo vs. a quad and only so/so double toe is negligible and, in fact, according to the mark line-ups shown yesterday, if the triples are perfectly executed, the difference would only be about 0.5 marks - this only if the quad/double toe were perfect.

Mr. Buttle is an outstanding skater and representative for Canada as the winner of the Gold Medal at these world championships. If you are Canadian reporters, reporting on something great in Canada (for a change) then do so and don't listen to ideal chatter from a spoiled little boy.

Congradulations, Jeff!
Check out the mens personal best stats on isu.org:
1 Daisuke TAKAHASHI JPN Four Continents Championships 2008 17.02.2008 264.41 S
2 Evgeni PLUSHENKO RUS XX Olympic Winter Games 2006 26.02.2006 258.33 S
3 Jeffrey BUTTLE CAN World Championships 2008 23.03.2008 245.17 S
4 Nobunari ODA JPN NHK Trophy 2006 03.12.2006 244.56 S
5 Brian JOUBERT FRA World Championships 2007 25.03.2007 240.85 S
I was pleased to see that Jeff had posted the third best score. I think that says it all.
Icy

J Crawford, are you crazy? You keep talking about how boring and robotic skating has become but the other commments posted don't reflect that at all. Most of us are loving every minute and amazed at the artistry and creativity. Tessa and Scott's free dance was so emotional it brought tears to my eyes and I watched it 4 times. Jeff is totally fluid, relaxed and artistic. Our pairs are dramatic and exciting. You couldn't have chosen 2 more inappropriate words to use than boring and robotic. Are you blind? I would be totally embarrassed to use my real name if I were you, making such idiotic comments.

Congratulations to all of our skaters. Having three pairs in the top 8 is amazing. I enjoyed the dance more than ever this year. Jeff was awesome, and added to that a 9th place for Patrick, made this the most enjoyable World's to watch in a long time. Brian Joubert's whining didn't impress me at all. I could almost see it if Jeff had just squeaked by him in the standings, but Jeff left him in his dust. Just how much does he think the quad should be worth, anyway?

P.J. WOW! I certainly hope the public & the Skating Fraternity appreciate WHO you are and WHAT you do. Your "marathon" commentary was amazing. One of the best Worlds and overall skating in a long time. GO CANADA ! Keep up the awesome job.
Later....

Jac

I'm so grateful for PJ Kwong and Country Canada for such terrific coverage of the world's. PJ's commentary was excellent and informative. I could then enjoy the "highlites" on the main network later at night, enjoying Tracy & Kurt's insights and background as well. All in all great coverage. It's wonderful to have Canadian contenders in every event again. Canadian skaters are always cutting edge and seem to have the unique ability to create magic with their performances. Well done to all the skaters and especially to Jeff Buttle who I've been following for years. I also love the new system with the judges evaluating the performance skated, not considering the reputation or ranking of the skater or "saving" marks for later skaters.

Thanks PJ, I have just enjoyed a fantastic visit to Worlds during the past week. Thanks too to Country Canada for all the live telecasts during this skating season I phoned my friend in Sweden to tell her I was watching Worlds live,she could not believe it! Please we need to see more live skating like this I agree with the comment about the Grand Prix events we need to see them all

Well, it is clear that Canada's training system for ladies skaters cannot produce champions.
The distance between our number on (fifth place) and the second (14-th place) indicates no depth in the sport. What a difference between Jeffrey and Patrick.
All girls 10-12 with aspirations in figure skating need to take ballet to get, posture, flexibility, technique, balance, and strength.
With all these comes self-confidence and work ethics.

I concur with all the comments about PJ Wong's commentary and articles. What a wonderful resource to the fans who want to see more and know more. As for Joubert's remarks about Jeff doing and the judges rewarding "simple and clean". What Brian will realize when he has had the chance to think about what happened is that he made two serious strategic errors. The first was to pay attention to the competition to see which skater had done what so he could downgrade his program and still retain the title. Champions don't need to do this. They skate the program they trained. If he wasn't confident doing three quads he shouldn't have had them in his program. The other mistake he made was to underestimate Jeff's ability to lay down a great skate and rack up the points with clean, strong jump combinations and exquisite footwork and spins. I dare say Joubert will not make that mistake again. If he's mad at anyone it should be himself.

Thanks to Country Canada and to PJ for doing such a great job and for broadcasting all the competitors at the Worlds. Well done - and keep broadcasting the event in its entirety.

I think what Jeffrey Buttle has accomplished is an amazing feat. He has attained something that only a very few have and congratulations to him!! My only concern is that not too many Canadians will see his winning long program performance because it was not telecast on CBC television and that's a definite shame.

I enjoyed the skating on CBC but I do not have Country Canada and I would have liked to have seen the other 2 dance couples skate. They were good enough to go to the worlds and the people back home should have been able to see them.

True sportsmanship - Jeff Buttle who has always worked hard, never made excuses for results below expectations and who is a great role model for not only young skaters but for all of us - Gracious in defeat and in victory.
Watching his LP was magic, I held my breath and the magic was didnt even realize that over 4 minutes had passed. It was a complete package woven together.
His sheer joy in winning was evident at the medal ceremony - and he was respectful to his fellow competitors, the fans, the media and to his country - singing O Canada too!
Congratulations Jeff and thank you CBC for the coverage

Jeff Buttle's win proves there's so much more to great skating than doing a quad. In fact quads should be down-played because of the toll they eventually will take on the body: Alexi Yagudin and Tara Lapinski both have undergone hip replacement surgery. Pleshinko of Russia has undergone knee surgery. Skaters who spend all their time trying to land a quad are cheating themselves.

Great, unobtrusive commentary by PJ. I think it's so rude to talk all through a skater's performance (as Tracy & Kurt did). I would much rather be able to hear the music and just be 'in the moment' with everyone in the arena, and not have to listen to a step-by-step commentary on the TV. I think CBC must be afraid of dead air, and they think every moment of TV must have someone yak-yak-yacking. I like what Tracy & Kurt say - just not while the skater is skating, thank you.

I enjoyed the skating coverage--it is particularly nice to see some of the lower ranked skaters.
With all the negative comments about the new scoring system, I would like to say that I really like it. It doesn't matter who is in a competition--a skater's personal best means something--to the skater and viewer alike. I think the skaters actually get to take away something from a competition that they can use to improve their skating. Gymnastics no longer marks out of a 10 point scale and has a very complicated code of points--everyone is not forever going on that they no longer can see a gymnast score a set of perfect 10s.

I just want to thank CBC and CBC Country Canada for all the wonderful coverage they provided for all of us. This nervous parent was especially thankful for keeping me in the loop. It was almost as good as being there. Thank you P.J. for all the hours you gave to this event. Your calming demeanor helped to keep me sane. I hope this kind of coverage continues.

An addendum to my previous post, and a response to Joe's comment - regarding costuming in figure skating, in general. I have long felt that "costumes" must be addressed - they are, for the most part, "over the top." There is TOO MUCH material!! There ARE skaters who dress according to the rule "simple is best" (Jeffrey Buttle,for example) but they are in the minority. The abundance of frills, buttons, taffeta, stripes, hearts, ruffles, sequins, laces, shiny material, feathers, multicoloured material and tassels, in a competitive environment, obliterates the skaters' line, and the performance assumes a kind of circus, show quality that is not taken seriously. Competitive Figure Skating is a sport. Often the ice dancers' blades get caught in the materials they are wearing, resulting in disaster! If I were a pairs skater, I would be very wary of competing with material flying in my eyes, obstructing my view. I wish that skaters would reassess their outfits, and consequently accentuate their line and athleticism via their skating. I remember Rudy Galindo's outfit at the 1996 USA Championships - a wonderfully streamlined simple, black, one piece suit. His skating spoke for him - he won gold that year as well as bronze at World's.

I agree that Worlds this year were remarkable in all of the disciplines! It's always a let down when someone medals by default. No doubt about it~the skaters earned their rewards & it's about time!

This was the first time that I decided to watch online & I have to say that I was very pleased! As much as I enjoy the commentary of "most" of the past & present TV commentators, PJ's was right-on-the-money & kept very objective! Great job!

This years World Championships were spectacular. These worlds were the best that I have seen in many years. I am very proud of our Canadian skaters. It is wonderful to see their hard work finally paying off. Thank you CBC for broadcasting it. I wish that I could have seen the Grand Prix events this year besides Skate Canada. I was disappointed that they were not broadcasted.

Having been a skating fan for many years,I can only commend PJ Kwong for her clear,concise and unobtrusive commentary during the skating coverage. I too enjoyed the extended coverage, which allowed unedited viewing of all the skaters. Thank you to all the team!
Needless to say, what a finale it was!!!!

I am just ecstatic that Jeff Buttle has the world title! I could just tell by his quiet confident demeanor this week that the title was his. On the other hand, I was very disappointed by the comments of a sore loser, Brian Joubert. If and when figure skating is only about who can do a quad, I will quit watching. Jeffrey has the whole package and was rewarded for every element and finally the judging system has it right. Do not give any more points for quads and ladies please, no triple axels, let's not go there. Skating is about jumps yes but also spins, footwork and artistry! Eat some humble pie Joubert! Buttle reigns supreme.

Thank you to PJ and Country Canada for the figure skating marathon. I have never watched so much figure skating or ever enjoyed it as much! While minding my little grandchildren we threw stuffed toys onto the floor in front of the TV for our favourites...Jeff Buttle, Tessa and Scott, Dube & Davis, and Joannie. PJ did the best job imaginable...honest and unbiased with something positive to say about everyone...after all every skater is out there trying their best and has fans cheering for them. Great job skaters and broadcasters!

I want to thank you for making the entire World's Championship available on Country Canada. It was wonderful to view the entire field instead of a few competitors chosen because of time restraints.

The commentary of P.J Kwong was excellent, understated and not interferring with the programs while being informative to the viewer.

To Jeff Buttle, years ago I attended a Canadian Championship in Hamilton where I saw a young Jeff Buttle in a checked suit, skating novice. I said to myself, you will be a champion one day and now it has come true. I am so happy for you. Congratulations.
Irene Roberts

I think the coverage of Jeffrey Buttle is great but what about covering the Canadian Title holder? Patrick Chan -- after scoring a seasons best on his short program it would be good to learn how he skated in teh long program -- to have a sense of how the future will look with Buttle and Chan continuing to push each other before Vancouver.

What a brilliant SP and LP skate by Jeff Buttle! I'm alway impressed by his incredible skill set but even more so by his class and character in the press, even in defeat. When he lost the Canadian title in January, the smile still didn't leave his face on the podium. Jeff never took away from Patrick's magnificant LP in Vancouver. Contrast to Joubert's comments following tonights results. Joubert is blaming his loss on the judging system and commenting that Buttle's skating is simple and safe. As a result, I've lost respect for Joubert right here. Not only does he show no class or character in the moment of defeat with such pitiful comments but he refuses to look at himself in the mirror. Some of the reasons that he didn't earn higher marks were apparently because he took off on the wrong edge on some jumps and he didn't earn higher than level 2 or 3 on some spins? Hey Joubert - why didn't you attempt the quad sal like you planned? I hope that we never see Joubert riding on Kurt's coattails into the lucrative Stars On Ice because I'd rather see classy people like Jeff Buttle - yes those skaters with the COMPLETE skating skill set while also having the decency to show character and intelligence when they speak about their fellow competitors and their sport.

Well PJ,

You forgot to mention that Jeff did an Alexia Yagudin this year. How? Jeff was second in our Nations but won Worlds. Hmmm, seems to me that if Jeff does this trick a few more times, he should win the Olympics too. OK, Yagudin was much younger when he won the 2002 Olympics but you can't under estimate ones heart and soul.

You know it's OK to be wrong once in a while but it's really honourable to admit that you were wrong. Thanks.

I hope Patrick Chan keeps getting better and continues to try to push Jeff as hard as he can. It's good for Patrick because it gives Patrick the practice of being the one who will be the one on which we count when Jeff moves on to the professional ranks. For Jeff it's good because Jeff knows that he can no longer take winning Canadians for granted being that with out Patrick competing there, Jeff was almost guarenteed a win by just showing up at the rink. Not anymore. This sets both of them up well for Worlds and the Olympics.

Congratulations to both Jeff and Patrick!

Thanks for commenting during the live coverage PJ!

First, let me thank you again this time for the excellent coverage both you and CBC Country Canada gave to this event (with the exception of the technical malfunction during the Israeli dancers, of course.:)

Speaking of technical malfunctions, you made a point of mentioning costume malfunctions at one point in regards to a wedgy, saying "we have the technology" to prevent such a thing from happening. Yet you kept suspiciously silent about the obscene display given by an ice dancer in the final flight of the freedance. Contradictory, no? Some of us still remember ISU getting after Anissina for her attire at Skate Canada in Red Deer in 1994, with an accompanying rule change about costumes. Since then we've seen tassles dangling in obscene places and what comes very close to G-strings accompanied by wide displays thereof.

Won't someone think of the children?

But I'll end on a positive note. Your type of commentary is exactly the kind I like to have, especially as it originates from such an obviously intelligent, thoughtful and very well-informed person. Would that CBC main channel could come up with something similar. In the meantime, thanks so much for all of your good work. Take a well-deserved rest now. You've certainly earned it!

Jeffrey Buttle is in a class of his own; the quad (in any form) cannot surpass his artistry, maturity and athleticism on the ice. It is great to see him free of the quad shadow, allowed to demonstrate skating excellence; his win has been overdue. Jeffrey casts a spell, as do Virtue and Moir and Dube and Davison - something rarely evident with other competitors, and, a skill that is not able to be measured.

This has been the best in 30year,Tracy and Kurt were absolutly great.Even though I had to stay up till 0200,it was very worthwhile Thanks CBC,Kathy

excellent job commentating, a pleasure to hear and informed and not biased. thanks

Congratulations to a very worthy Canadian skater ! Your hard work has finally paid off.
Good luck in Vancouver !!

PJ...good for you for your optomism about a sport which is in its darkest years. The fact that CBC used to broadcast the World Championships during the week in Prime Time, and now broadcasts the event at all hours of the night, speaks volumes. Figure Skating has tumbled to a sport that no one really takes seriously any more. It's a sport without any true "stars", and one that instead of cleaning all its corruption, decided to just re-jig the marking systems into a cumbersome and boring presentation, that has turned fans off. The skating has declined each year to a point where no one could ever remember many of the skaters who win from year to year. The years of Kurt Browning, Katarina Witt, Gordeeva/Grinkov and Torvill and Dean are dead. It's a sport of quite boring robots who jump and hop and bring nothing to the sport. Remember 6.0s across the board? Now its 145.74 - and only because the ISU didn't have enough guts to terminate the corrupt rather than dispose of a marking system that did work fine. It's nice that PJ still finds excitement from this years Worlds, but PJ...you ask those at CBC why the Worlds is broadcast in the middle of the night now instead of 8PM in Prime Time, and all the answers to the current crisis in Figure Skating will be sorely evident.

Jeff Buttle was absolutely brilliant at the World Championships this year. It is so amazing to see this truly great classical skater finally get the honour he truly deserves-- "a World Championship!" Congratulations Jeff! You elevate skating to the highest levels of artistry, athleticism and style. Thanks for making all of Canada proud today.

I have been enjoying an "orgy" of figure skating this week thanks to CBC Country Canada. In particular, I enjoyed the intelligent, succinct and honest comments of P.J. Kwong. What a treat!