30 Days of Skating - Day 17: Least Favourite Skater

 As far as just the skating goes, Evgeni Plushenko. Don't get me wrong - I used to be a big fan of his pre-Torino, but starting that season I really lost interest in his skating. The arm flailing doesn't cut it as far as artistry and footwork go, and it's really a shame, because I thought in some years prior that he had at least some semblance of artistry in him, but from 2006 onward it was just jumping and flailing of the arms. Of course, Evgeni probably had some of those problems before that, but I don't think they were as noticeable. I'm sorry to say that he was pretty fortunate to get what he did in Vancouver; most skaters who had had that many scratchy or barely there jumps would have been placed lower than he did, especially if their programs were as empty as his transitionally (swiveling of the hips don't count as transitions or choreography ;) ). That said, Evgeni deserves a lot of credit for even making it to this past Olympics. It was certainly an admirable comeback after 3 years without competing.

This is one of his programs that I do enjoy.

Haha... that never gets old!
P.S. If you're a newer fan, you might not know about Phillipe Candeloro, a French figure skater who placed 3rd at the Olympics twice and had a penchat for taking his shirt off  in skating exhibitions. In the video above, Plushenko is doing a parody of that and other "macho men" skaters.