[201] The program included seven solid triple jumps, including two triple Axels, and good footwork and spins. [198][199] Golden Skate called Weir's free skate a "hauntingly beautiful routine",[200] and reporter David Barron called it "emotional" and stated that his performance "won the crowd to his side". Weir continued to train with Hill and with Tarasova in Simsbury for the 20042005 season. [3][19], By the time he was 12, Weir was performing single Axels, which he learned after a week of lessons; by the time he turned 13, he learned all the single and double jumps, as well as his first triple jump, the salchow. He called his performance koshmar (the Russian word for "nightmare"). He came in third place in the free skate after Lysacek and Savoie with 142.06 points and a total of 225.34 points. He changed to faux fur for his costume at the Olympics, denying that it was in response to the threats, although he wore fur at a news conference for the U.S. men's team. [102][103], At the World Championships, Weir "did not fare so well". He had a shaky landing on his triple flip, but his circular and straight-line footwork sequences were well-done, and he performed three level four spins. Weir trains at the Ice Palace in Hackensack, N.J., where he is a figure of awe for aspiring Olympic skaters; 14-year-old Selin Kang said she was upset that one of her role models could face discrimination for being himself. How does that happen? Valieva is a phenom who already led the Russians to gold in the team figure skating event and is favored to win the individual competition this week. He won the event, taking in 64 percent of the fans' votes, via in-stadium voting, telephone, and the internet. The Russian Anti-Doping Agency . He is a two-time Olympian ( 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics ), the 2008 World bronze medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, the 2001 World Junior Champion, and a three-time U.S. National champion (2004 . In October 2013, Weir retired from competition and joined NBC as a figure skating analyst at the Sochi Olympics. 1:07. In his profile, he says he's a sports commentator at NBC and his. 10 Johnny Depp - French. [68] Weir had "the heavy burden of defending a title for the first time",[69] but he was able to control his nerves and win his second Nationals title in a row and the first repeat U.S. Nationals championship since Michael Weiss in 1999 and 2000. [64], Weir came in second after Plushenko at the Cup of Russia, the first time they competed against each other after the implementation of the IJS. He is a US Olympian. Weir popped both his Lutz and loop jumps, but successfully performed his triple Axel-triple toe loop combination and four other triple jumps. He did not include a quadruple jump but completed a triple lutz-triple toe loop combination and had higher-scoring spins than Lysacek. [63] Weir later said that his win in Paris "signaled my ascendancy on the international stage". [162][161][25] Four days later, he was the only American to perform in a charity skating show in Seoul, performing with South Korean champion Yuna Kim; while there, he was hospitalized with the flu and lost eight pounds in one day. [124], Weir was not able to successfully defend his title, coming in third overall; Lysacek came in first place, and Bradley came in second place. At first, they received a great deal of resistance from U.S. He may have been more fluent in Russian than Olympic Committee officials, but Weir translated what they said to medal winner Aleksandra Trusova. He earned 217.70 points overall; the gold medalist, Brian Joubert from France, earned 15 points more than Weir. Their connection only came after both had retired from the sport and partnered on the small screen in. Hill trained Weir in pair skating to strengthen his skating and to focus on skills other than jumps. Nationals. His planned triple toe loop became a double jump, and he left off a double toe loop on his next two combination jumps. "I strongly disagree with this decision," Lipinski told NBC's Mike Tirico. [44] He had to compete in the Eastern Sectionals again, coming in first place despite a fall and securing a spot in the U.S. He also had boot problems to overcome, but felt that he had done well. Weir was also an accomplished rider;[13] by the age of nine, he had won several equestrian competitions and competed in the Devon Horse Show with his Shetland pony, Shadow. ", "They're athletes, they're there to compete," the president said. [67][68][70] Although he finished slightly behind Timothy Goebel in his short program, without a quadruple jump and having a less-technical program than Goebel, he was the favorite going into the free skate. His footwork was difficult, but as the AP also said, he "appeared to just be going through the motions with it". He also downgraded another triple jump to a double, and failed to complete a three-jump combination and double-jump combination late in his program. [97][102] Reporter Gwen Knapp stated, however, this his artistry was best in the field. At the 2000 U.S. Nationals, he was the only competitor in the junior division who attempted a triple Axel in his short program, but despite falling, the judges put him in first place. [30][31], Weir was ranked 18th-best in the world in 2001. NBC has correctly used LeDuc's pronouns on social media. [176] At the Rostelecom Cup (previously Cup of Russia), he came in fourth place overall, after placing third place in the short program and sixth place in his "error-filled"[177] free skate, with a cumulative score of 198.55 points. [46] Weir's short program was not the most difficult, but he had "a clean and elegant skate"[48] with a triple Lutz-triple toe combination, a triple Axel, and a triple flip, all landed successfully. Lysacek's total score was 169.89, which was the highest score, by almost 19.5 points, earned by a male skater at the U.S. Nationals, and over 50 points more than Bradley's final score of 219.21 points. Weir was praised for being one of the few figure skaters who spoke his mind, even when he knew it would get him in trouble with federation officials and judges. Born in 1984 in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, Johnny Weir was 11 years old when he first learned to skate. Although Weir was born in the US, he became interested in Russia as a result of his passion for figure skating. "I can speak Russian," he says, "I can speak French. [73][74] He began the season, which reporter John Blanchette called a "minor calamity",[75] with "a series of disappointing finishes". [89][90], At the 2006 U.S. Nationals, Weir was the first male skater to win three consecutive U.S. titles since Brian Boitano almost 20 years previously. Johnny Weir. In his free skate, he earned 152.75 points, a new personal best score. He qualified to compete at the Grand Prix final, where he won the bronze medal. His two Grand Prix wins made him eligible to compete at the Grand Prix Final in Turin, Italy, where he came in fourth place. In 2001, he won the World Junior Championships. [223][224], Weir had two coaches in his competitive figure skating career, Priscilla Hill, who was, unlike many figure skating coaches, was "nurturing and gentle"[225] and Russian Galina Zmievskaya, who had a different approach to coaching than Hill. Figure Skater Johnny Weir is Overhauled and Confident", "Weir Fired up to Win Fourth U.S. National Title", "Recharged Weir Determined to Take Back Skating Title", "Fit to be Tied: Scoring Anomaly Spices up Lysacek-Weir U.S. In 2015, Weir went to Chicago and locals noticed his Bumble profile pop up on their feed. His technical scores ranged from 5.3 to 5.7 and his presentation scores were as high as 5.8.[53]. (He designed the costumes they wore for their free dance that season. Weir first became interested in figure skating when he was 11-years-old, after seeing Russian phenom Oksana Baiul take gold in the 1994 Olympics. Figure Skating Hall of Fame", "ISU GP Rostelecom Cup 2012 Men Short Program Results", "ISU GP Rostelecom Cup 2009 Men Results", "ISU Grand Prix and Junior Grand Prix Final Men Results", "XXI Olympic Winter Games 2010 Men Results", "ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final Men Results", "ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2008 Men Results", "ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2006/2007: Skate Canada Men Results", "ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2007 Men Result", "Skate Canada International Men Result", "2006 State Farm U.S. Part of the reason for his return was his popularity in Russia. He earned 146.20 points in the free skate and 220.25 points overall, beating his runner-up Timothy Goebel by over 20 points. After Valieva's performance Tuesday, the broadcasting duo were curt in their analyses of her skate. [224] He was teamed up with sports commentator Terry Gannon and fellow figure skater, Olympic gold medalist, and good friend Tara Lipinski; their instant comedic chemistry and harmony was a success and they have worked together ever since. The two-time Olympic figure skater and current NBC analyst loves everything about the country: its language, its people, its history,. February 15, 2022, 11:35 AM NBC figure skating commentators Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir, both former Olympians in the sport, did not shy away from the controversy surrounding Kamila Valieva. Not only is he a two time U.S. Olympian and three-time US national champion, but also a pop-culture icon. [135], He worked on including a quadruple toe loop in his programs, and on making his triple Lutz and triple flip bigger. They noted a jumping pass and stayed mum . He came in second place in the short program by less than one point behind Lysacek, and came in second place overall, with 225.20 points. (Watch the video below.) Figure Skating's Skating Magazine. He came in fifth place in the free skate, but his short program, which was the third-best with 83.51 points, kept him in medal position. He stepped out of his first triple Axel and fell again on his second, injuring his knee to the point that he had to withdraw. In 2014, he made just $65,000 for his . He received two injections an hour before performing his short program. [19] Also when he was 12, he began training with Priscilla Hill, who had coached many skaters and won national medals as a competitive skater. [137] According to figure skating reporter Elvin Walker, Weir demonstrated a desire to win and a new passion for skating throughout the season, skating with an intensity he lacked in previous seasons. He was the youngest U.S. National champion since 1991, in 2006 the first skater to win U.S. Nationals three times in a row since Brian Boitano in the late 1980s, and the first American to win Cup of Russia in 2007. Weir had Russian coaches most of his career, is fluent in Russian, and has spent time training there . He worked with choreographers Faye Kitariev and Viktor Petukhov to compose a Russian rock opera based upon Svetlana Pikous' song, "Yunona I Avos. [71] His "respectable free skate"[72] pulled him up to fourth place. He had received "very serious threats"[192] from anti-fur activists for wearing fox fur trim on the left shoulder of his free skate costume during U.S. Nationals. He is a two-time Olympian (2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics), the 2008 World bronze medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, the 2001 World Junior Champion, and a three-time U.S. National champion (20042006). [180][182] He successfully accomplished all his triple Axels in both programs. [130][132][133], Weir began the 20072008 season with "a clean slate" and was "all business". The drama surrounding Kamila Valieva exposes a sport that has lost its way. He also said that the move taught him discipline and independence. [204] At Rostelecom, he withdrew after the short program after re-aggravating his ACL, which he had injured a month earlier in practice during a fall. [54] He toured with Champions on Ice the summer of 2004, with Cohen, Irina Slutskaya, Elena Sokolova, and his "skating hero",[55] Evgeni Plushenko. He admitted that his Grand Prix season was "disastrous"[121] and that he had not been skating well going into the 2007 U.S. Nationals in Spokane, Washington. [19][25][42][45], Weir came into the 2004 U.S. Nationals in Atlanta with "something to prove". Figure Skating sent him to the Olympics because of the documentary and series' popularity rather than on the strength of his skating performances. Champ Johnny Weir Doesn't Mind If He Upsets a Few Federation Officials; the 19-Year-Old Simply Wants to Have a Good Time", "Johnny Weir Collects a Perfect 6.0 and Claims Gold", "Weir Improves His Prospects by Adding Quads", "2004 US Figure Skating Championships: Highlights", "U.S. His next elements were a circular step sequence and a triple flip "that was lacking in crispness". Sections. [25][27], Weir won the Junior Eastern Sectionals in 1999 and 2000. [220], Weir did not register for a qualifying event that would have made him eligible for the 2014 U.S. Nationals, ending his bid to compete in Sochi. Johnny Weir held a press conference Wednesday in Vancouver to address remarks made by two veteran sports commentators during the Olympics suggesting that his fabulousness (our word) is a bad . area. [155], Weir started off the 20082009 season, when he was ranked seventh-best in the world, struggling with skate boot problems; his blades were not aligned properly on the new skates he purchased over the summer and did not have the time to break in replacements. I know about Chanel. During his interview with CBSNews.com, Weir asked if he could deliver a message in Russian directly to the Russian people; "Hello Russia. [71] The first half of his program was strong, with five triples in a row, but his foot pain caused him to change his circular step sequence, which resulted in a slip during the sequence and a fall during his opening triple Axel. [25][29] He was the tenth American to win at Junior Worlds and the first American male skater since Derrick Delmore won in 1998. ', "Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski are Bringing 7 Suitcases to the Kentucky Derby", "Here's What Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir Wore to Kentucky Derby 2018", "Tara Lipinski, Johnny Weir Join NBC's Super Bowl Team", "Johnny Weir is a Eurovision Superfan and It's Paying Off", "Inside Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir's Rise From Olympic Figure Skaters to Beloved Commentators", "MTV 'Cribs' Featuring Greenville Home of Olympic Figure Skater Johnny Weir Airs Wednesday Night", "Johnny Weir Tells Us What He Wants in a Dream Home, and It's So Not What We Expected", "Johnny Weir, Tara Lipinski & Tanith Belbin to Join NBC Olympics in Sochi", "Johnny Weir on Rachel Zoe and Reality TV, His Music, Memoir and Yesterday's All That Skate Show", "Chicago Cubs Celebrate Induction into Inaugural Class of National Gay & Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame Tonight", "Johnny Weir, Sandy Schwomeyer Lamb, Gale Tanger make U.S. [80] Weir was aware of the impact it would make on the public and in the figure skating world, and that it could harm his reputation with the judges;[81] he later stated, "Gender bending would take me into a whole new and very taboo area, where I would stand totally alone". Figure Skating assigned to Weir that season was "the second tier" Finlandia Trophy. The ISU has postponed their decision on whether Junior Worlds will be held due . Controversial Russian star Kamila Valieva's turn in the Winter Olympics' women's figure skating short program Tuesday was greeted on American TV with the sounds of silence. Weir considers Russia to be "the most magnificent place in the world," as he put it in an interview with CBSNews.com. He made several mistakes, finished in 10th place, and decided that he was not in good enough physical condition to participate in the free skate. He used music from "Poker Face" by Lady Gaga, someone he admired, for his short program; she provided him with versions of the song without lyrics. John Garvin Weir[1] (/wr/; born July 2, 1984)[2] is an American figure skater and television commentator. [189], Weir came into the Olympics "a legitimate medal threat",[176] although he did not anticipate winning a medal and suspected that it would mark the end of his competitive career. [17] Weir was an honor roll student at Newark High School, where he graduated in 2002, and studied linguistics at the University of Delaware before dropping out. He struggled completing a combination spin during his short program and told reporters that he had difficulty with his spins and that he almost tripped during his step sequence. He now fears that he may never be allowed back in the country to see friends and relatives, and to compete at the Sochi games in six months if he makes the U.S. team. [192][194] He also held a press conference to respond to "offensive" remarks made by two Canadian sports commentators about him. [4] He often designed his own costumes or worked extensively with his designers and later was known for his fashion choices as a broadcaster. Weir, 37, was a few years behind on the circuit, competing for Team USA in 2006 and 2010. [209] Weir announced his withdrawal from the 20112012 season in June 2011, explaining that he was unable to adequately train for competition because of his "many obligations",[210] but expressed his intention to compete in Sochi. He earned 74.26 points. He was instructed by Yuri Sergeev, a dancer for the St. Petersburg Ballet, taught himself the Russian language, conversing with Zmievskaya in Russian, and compared himself to Russian skater Evgeni Plushenko. [107] He also appeared in an episode, in which he called "my entertainment TV debut",[108] of My Life on the D-List with comedian Kathy Griffin, in which he taught Griffin how to skate. [13][21], Weir competed in both singles and pair skating during his first year of competition; Hill paired him with Jodi Rudden to help him focus on other aspects of figure skating, such as spins, stroking, and artistry, rather than on jumping. Figure Skating . [186][188] Weir, along with first-place finisher Jeremy Abbott and Lysacek, who came in second place, were sent to the 2010 Winter Olympics; they were considered the strongest U.S. Olympic men's team since the 1980s. [114] He came in fifth place in the free skate, with 121.38 points, over 40 points less than Joubert's free skate score, and came in second place overall, with a total score of 196.28. Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski weren't about to stick to skating as Kamila Valieva of the Russian Olympic Committee returned to the ice, cleared to compete by the Court of Arbitration for Sport . [35] He felt confident going into the free skate, but hit the rink wall 23 seconds after he started, catching his blade between the ice and wall while doing a "simple crossover". Time training there triple Axel-triple toe loop became a double, and has spent time training there Valieva. 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