* machine translation, inaccuracies may exist
Info: https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/4774754382
Source: https://weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404595791158182157\
Interview date: September 2010
(Since this article contains quite a lot of commentary from the journalist, those portions have been summarized and are enclosed in parentheses)
(Regarding the buzz created by Johnny’s tweet about designing a costume for Yuzuru)
Johnny designed the costume for my free skate, and he also gave me some great pointers on my performance during our ice show rehearsals. Since I still couldn't communicate very well in English, we relied on gestures to communicate. During the show's finale, he'd pat me on the shoulder or crack jokes with me. He was so kind to me! (laughs) I think he quite likes me. I even heard that he mentioned on Twitter that I'm one of his favourite skaters... I was absolutely thrilled! Did I tell him, "I really look up to you"? Of course I did!
(Being acknowledged by the person he admires)
Plus, Plushenko seems to like me quite a bit, too. When we participated in Dreams on Ice (DOI) together, he took good care of me and often came over to talk to me. He even gave me one of his footballs. Although I say he talked to me, sometimes he'd speak to me in Russian, which left me completely bewildered (laughs). But I could more or less understand what he was saying. He also gave me pointers on my quadruple jumps and Biellmann spin during breaks in our ice show rehearsals. I think that was during Prince Ice World (PIW). Since we were practising at the same time, he saw me attempting a quad and came over to give me some advice, like how I should adjust my landing. He also gave me advice on my Biellmann spin, suggesting that I bend my leg first before pulling it up with my hand. But, you know, Plushenko got scolded by his wife! (laughs) She told him not to teach me those things!
(Was it because she didn't want a potential rival four years from now to get any better?)
Maybe so! (laughs) Apparently, she told him not to teach me too much, so he'd only teach me when she wasn't around! (laughs)
It really feels like a dream. To have people I've always looked up to give me advice and praise me like this... I'd never experienced anything like it before. It's truly a dream—or rather, it's beyond even my wildest dreams. It's something I never could have imagined happening. To be honest, I was completely taken aback. And even having had the chance to interact with them so closely, I've come to realise just how extraordinary they both are. Both of them are so considerate, even when they come to participate in ice shows. They're not just attentive to me, but to the other skaters around me as well. They observe us objectively, understand our skating, and offer us very precise and appropriate advice about what we need to work on. When I take their advice, thinking, "Ah, so this is what I should work on!", and show them how I skate, they offer me further guidance. They also praise the things I've worked hard to accomplish. They really are remarkable skaters.
(It's not just the top skaters who take a keen interest in him. Choreographers also hold him in high regard. Even international judges and various other people involved in the sport have gone out of their way to offer him advice, all in the hope that one day he'll be able to present a kind of figure skating that nobody has ever seen before. They believe that "if anyone can do it, it's you.")
Yes, Antonio seems to be particularly fond of me. He praised me quite a bit at the ice shows in Niigata and Fukui. Antonio also performed at the Fukui show himself, didn't he? I thought he was truly amazing. It's very rare to get the opportunity to see flamenco performed live. Having the chance to witness such a wonderful, authentic performance made me think that I'd love to incorporate something like that into one of my programs someday. Going forward, whenever I have the opportunity, I'd also like to absorb and learn from all kinds of different influences.
I participated in quite a lot of ice shows during this year's off-season, which gave me the opportunity to observe the strengths of various skaters firsthand, practise alongside them, and work together with them to put on the shows. I also got to participate in group number rehearsals, something I hadn't had the opportunity to experience before, and that was incredibly fun. Then there was the Japanese national team training camp. Japanese skaters really have such high technical abilities. Everyone is so technically skilled! For example, the smoothness of Kozuka's skating, and the technical skill required to execute the steps at Akiko Suzuki's speed... All of these things have been incredibly helpful to me. In short, this year has been all about learning and absorbing so many different things from all kinds of places!
(Having met so many people and learned so much from them, what kind of skater would you like to become? A prince-like skater, like Johnny Weir? An otherworldly skater, like Evgeni Plushenko? Or perhaps a "beast" or an "emperor"?)
First of all, I'm definitely not the "beast" type (laughs). Hmm... I'm not really sure what type I'd be, either. But if I had to choose, perhaps somewhere between the "otherworldly" and "prince" types? People have said that I resemble both. Some say I'm like Johnny Weir, while others say I'm like Plushenko. And those two are the skaters I look up to.
But, when all is said and done, I want to become "Yuzuru Hanyu."
This year I'm moving up to the senior ranks. No matter how you look at it, even if you're a "champion", being a junior champion means people still tend to underestimate you a little. But this year, I'll finally get the chance to compete against the very best skaters. I really want to show what I can do on that stage. Rather than trying to become like someone else, I want to show everyone who Yuzuru Hanyu really is. That's how I feel.
(Although what kind of skater Yuzuru Hanyu will ultimately become remains to be seen, at this point he already has clear goals in mind, encompassing both technical and artistic aspects.)
Yes. First of all, the quadruple jump is something I absolutely want to challenge myself with, so I hope everyone will pay attention to that. Deep down, I hold the belief that "in men's singles, being able to jump a quad is what really matters!"
That said, after watching the Olympics, I can understand and accept the result. Although Lysacek didn't attempt a quad at all, all of his jumps were of such high quality that they earned positive grades of execution (GOE). Unlike me, he also clearly took off from the inside edge on his 3F, so there were no deductions to be made. My own flip is basically just a Lutz! (laughs) And in that particular competition, Evan's performance was really a pleasure to watch. I thought it was a program that was perfect in every respect, even without a quad.
As for Plushenko, some of his jumps looked a little laboured. Although he landed a quad, some of his jumps were difficult to award positive GOE for. So I can understand why, despite including a quad, his overall evaluation didn't improve as much as expected. Although the outcome in Vancouver was what it was, and landing a quad didn't receive particularly high recognition... I think that by the time of Sochi, landing a quad while also delivering a performance like Evan's will definitely be necessary to win. You can already see this just by looking at the top Japanese skaters today. Takahashi, Oda, Kozuka, Mura and Machida... Almost all of them can land quads. What's more, there's no interruption between their jumps and their other technical elements. I really admire that kind of technical ability, and it's something I want to emulate.
In fact, when I practise alongside the other Japanese skaters, my quad tends to be in good shape, too. When I participated in Stars on Ice (SOI) in the spring, I was practising alongside the three skaters who had competed at the Olympics, and after practising together for a while, I found myself able to land my quad. It was the same at the Japan Open in autumn. Watching Takahashi and Kozuka perform their quads gave me a clear mental image of what a perfect landing should look like, and my success rate improved dramatically. That being said, I can land about four out of five attempts only when I'm in good form. "When I'm in good form," mind you! Still, I want to work hard to make sure I can maintain that good form without letting it slip.
My goal is to master the quad by the time of the Sochi Olympics, so that I can earn positive GOE, while also making sure that the rest of my skating receives high marks. To achieve this, I want to work on improving the areas I haven't quite mastered yet, while continuing to take on big challenges.
(As a performance-based sport, what kind of figure skating does he want to present?)
Figure skating... It still feels like a sport mainly for girls, doesn't it? I want to change that. My goal is to make figure skating something that appeals to men as well. I want people to see that it's not a sport exclusively for women. Of course, Takahashi has already achieved that. In many respects, Dai has quite a lot of male fans, too. I've actually received letters from men myself! It's a little unusual (laughs), but I'm really happy about it. I genuinely hope that more men will come to watch figure skating.
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yuzurujenn ·
