Where do you draw the line in figure skating between what is a competitive program and what is an exhibition?At NHK Trophy I was somewhat critical of Florent's free skate...pointing out that at many points in the program he gets so caught up in the showman aspect of the performance that he forgets to skate.
A reader e-mailed me today, having watched his performance on television this weekend and wondered what in the world I thought was wrong with the program. Scott wrote: "That program was amazing. I saw on Twitter you didn't like it. I though he should have won the competition. What in the world did you find bad about that program?"
First I must say I love Florent to pieces and I think what he does on the ice is amazing. He's a gifted dancer. But I also have to call a spade a spade. And while he is a gifted dancer...the sport is figure skating. Take a look at the video below:
While his program is great and he hit the jumps, you really shouldn't be burning 40 seconds standing and doing Black Eyed Peas or Michael Jackson choreography. It's entertaining, it's fun, the crowd ate it up, but I think it sets the bar too low for a competitive program.
That's why I was critical of Florent at NHK Trophy.
