KatjaThera

I love that, too. And that he's not the only big name skater to do so, remembering Tessa and Scott at FaOI last year, then doing single axels in other shows, too, after Yuzu got them going. Being acknowledged as a leader by his peers - especially those with more experience, too - is really another sign of just how great he is (and I believe not just as a skater, but as a person, too; it takes certain personality traits to actually be a good leader, beyond just being good at what you do.) (It's kind of amazing physically, as well. Yuzu is so tiny by comparison, but all these big guys, pairs guys and ice dancers, acknowledging him as the boss, one way or another, is kind of funny and amazing lol)

Yep we did ^_^ I don't actually follow tennis, but I sometimes wish we supported our top athletes the way Japan - and particularly Sendai - supports Yuzu. So, because of that, I'll support her, even whether she has great days or not

As I voted, my captcha word was 'spring'. Must be a sign! (for female athlete, I decided to just be patriotic ^_^; )

LOL Hotels near the venue are getting booked out

I remember the boots that were auctioned for charity and that Samantha Thavasa won and displayed and what great condition they were in. We all assumed they were probably new and he hadn't worn them much, if at all, but what if... (no, just kidding lol) To be fair to some of the other skaters, they might also still be growing, so changing boots might be necessary. I'm not entirely sure when feet stop growing, but I know even in my 30s sometimes one size is comfortable for a long time, and then it's not anymore and I have to switch to one size bigger or smaller. So I think feet are more iffy like that (though the margin for error between sizes is also probably smaller when it comes to skating boots).

HYK in Helsinki... I started crying about halfway through, then I couldn't really stop... not throughout the finale, not throughout saying goodbye to a few fellow PH satellites, not throughout the walk to the bus stop, not until I'd been waiting for the bus to the airport for some minutes and that was mostly because by then I was too cold to think of anything else. And I'm not really that much of a crier... but I feel like crying again just thinking about it

Everyone is celebrating Javi's return to Toronto

I totally agree about predictions - as they say, ice is slippery - but as far as athletes go, I believe they should set goals and plan. I still firmly believe one of the reasons why Yuzu won both his medals is because he set them - and especially Pyeongchang, which was his main goal since he was a kid; initially, the plan was to be picked to attend Sochi and do well, then win Pyeongchang, before he realized winning Sochi was possible, too - as his goals and virtually every decision he made afterwards was taken with these goals in mind. He never thought "Oh, I'll just learn 4T and then see what happens" or "I'll add a 4S as well and we'll see" or "I'll go to Canada and then take it from there". I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't even plan his ascension to seniors to be in the post-Olympic season, to literally give himself an Olympic cycle to learn and get to the appropriate level. (I remember watching his Time of Awakening DVD was a bit eye opening on the step by step towards getting picked for the Olympic Team. Which in a way is surreal, because it shows that he wasn't actually 100% sure he would get it until he did, even though by then he was already the top Japanese male skater.) But anyway, this overall attitude, while perhaps it created a bit of tunnel vision (thinking a bit about what Patrick said about medals in that interview, too... ) and made him reckless at times, I'm sure was essential to his successes. On the other hand, most other skaters didn't have this. Everything with Shoma seems more like: you just do your best and we'll see what happens. And his best is really good most of the time, but he never seemed to really have a direction. Except maybe a general Yuzu-way direction (to sort of paraphrase POTC). Where Yuzu went, they also pushed Shoma, sort of thing. Javi didn't really believe he could do it until he won his two titles and by then it was a bit late to properly aim for it, but he did aim for a medal and he got that, so I guess it did work, to some extent. And Nathan has seemed to wing it as well, though that's partly because of how young he is. He came into seniors just before the Olympics, so normally there would have been no chance. But then at some point they realized with all his quads, he actually stood a chance and started pushing him towards it, but I'm not sure how confident he was in it. He seems like a pretty realistic guy, who never got carried away by the hype surrounding him. And now, for Beijing... a new Olympic cycle has begun, one season is almost finished, but he's apparently still not clear if he is going to Beijing or not. So I have my doubts that he'd win there, even if he does decide to go, unless he decides faster. Boyang does seem to be aiming for Beijing, he started with the jumps, made a name for himself, then started working on the rest. Reputation-wise, he's definitely in the worst place, but if he really works hard and improves well, I believe he has a chance. The question remains just how serious he is about it. The whole TCC-no-TCC thing this Summer has really put a damper on it. Of course, we still don't know what happened, but whatever happened, IMO, it's not a good sign. If the federation stopped it, then the federation might end up holding him back from truly fulfilling his potential. If it was his own decision - as I remember there were some rumors, that he didn't want to leave home - then it might mean he's not ready to make sacrifices and that might again, limit how far he can go. As Yuzu very clearly said it, you can't succeed without making big sacrifices. So, looking at the current top contenders from a 'we know how Yuzu did it' perspective, none of them really fit the bill. As for the juniors, it takes a bit of madness to be in your early teens and decide you are going to win the Olympic Medal and actually be serious about it. Because being serious and just bravado are different things entirely. Bravado is about being cocky and confident and thinking you're better than all the others. Being serious about it is about being ready to work your butt off to be better than everyone else and make whatever sacrifices necessary to get there. I wonder how many teens are ready for such a commitment - especially now when the competitors keep getting younger and younger... (And sorry for the length and also if it seems OT, but as it's all done by comparison to Yuzu, I think it shouldn't be that OT... I always find this topic fascinating, personally ^_^; )

Pablo Alboran played live for Javi's Prometo during the ROI final in Madrid Wish I could have been there... Also, it seems Javi received the Super Javi Pooh that I saw in passing in Helsinki lol (can't find the tweet anymore, though)

Bringing back this thread a bit, because Gabby posted this: I know there had been concerns about her in the past and it's sad to have them confirmed. I do hope she's getting help and support now, especially as she took time off from skating. But it makes me wonder again how many skaters might have troubles like this (and not just ED; I know Javi admitted to having anxiety in the past, at least). Late reply, but thank you for giving us an athlete's point of view on this. I guess there might be a fine line between normally managing your diet and an eating disorder. I've never really had an eating disorder, though I have been struggling with my weight all my adult life. I guess the line is crossed when instead of getting benefits from the way you eat and what you eat, it hurts you and your performance. I doubt it is possible to perform at your top level while having an ED. Or is it? I understand skating with sprained ankles and broken bones when it's a now and never thing. But I doubt anyone would say they perform better because of the sprains or broken bones. So I'm not sure it's comparable. Athletes manage their diets in order to be in the best shape they can be. Is it really possible for them to be in the best shape they can be while having an ED? They might think they are, but are they really? So the cross to ED could happen while aiming for better performance. And they might not want to fix it because they still think it's the right thing and it helps them perform. That's not the case with performing with injuries. That's just pushing through it in order to meet a goal, but it's definitely not something they believe helps them perform. (Though then again, Yuzu did say his best performances happened when he was driven into a corner by hardships >_> But that's still not the same and it's more of a mentality thing.)

I've already seen people taking it as confirmation, so I guess that's what made me really want to clear it up. Especially now when people crave good news, they're likely quicker to believe that. I tend to be more careful lol. But I think it's very likely you'll turn out to be right lol

Oh, I agree that getting 4A in time for this season is virtually impossible. But I wanted to make it clear that he himself did not say "next season". And since this is Yuzu and we know he usually chooses his words carefully, I'm not sure he didn't mean it exactly as ambiguous as that. It could be he's leaving himself room so that, if by some miracle his healing goes even better than planned, then he can still try it. As well as leaving himself the option of not continuing next season. The chances of that are extremely minimal, but I'm not sure immediately jumping to the conclusion that that message is him confirming he'll continue for a season is good, either. Or maybe it's me not wanting to risk getting my hopes up for nothing ^_^; (It also reminds me of the 4Lz thing last season, when a lot of people were like "But he said he's not going to add the 4Lz this season!" and I would say: "Actually, he never said that. He just said he's not thinking about it, several months ahead of the season, which is not the same thing." So I tend to be extra careful with what he says and what he doesn't say ^_^; )

For some reason, I was sure the Dick Button, Plush and Javi program was Jan. 15th. Has it been rescheduled or is my memory off? Another month to wait for it...

Well, they said his challenges this season were 4A and 4T-3A. But in the message, which is new, he says literally "next year". Not next season. Next year starts next week. However, as he also says he wants to get back to training jumps, it's obvious he's in no condition of training 4A now, and it's unlikely he will soon enough to make it this season. But just to be clear, he said next year, not next season.

Figures he'd know what gold smells like... I have no idea ^_^;

That kind of hurt to watch in parts... but then ended on a "Boy is crazy..." note. Next year he wants to properly train 4A. Damaged ankle? Who cares about that? The boy is on a mission...

Oh, he's perfectly eligible, he's just not going to. It could be he was offered it and he refused. It didn't really make that much sense to do it, IMO (traveling to California, time and temperature changes, potential for re-injury and as Olys last year proved, keeping everyone guessing about his condition is the better strategy). Though it does suck for fans in the US hoping to see him there. Btw, OT, but it seems Daisuke was offered a Worlds spot and he declined. Yuzu could have done the same for 4CC. It's not his priority.

And officially no 4CC. It's like last season all over again, so we should all brace for what will happen at Worlds, I guess... (<- hopefully)

Anything you do publicly will be likely to be attacked in the same way, especially if it becomes popular, because then those claiming copyrights will find out about them. The easier it will be to find out who is behind it - by registering a website, or making a wordpress account in your name and so on - the higher the possibility of actual people being slammed with copyright claims and perhaps accusations of piracy. That's partly why youtube and video hosting sites are better, because they add a level of anonymity, especially since one can make a million accounts on google and re-upload whenever they get shut down. Also since youtube takes immediate action, it satisfies the copyright claimers. If however they find the real people doing this, it can get worse. Not quite the same thing, but some of you might be aware there used to be people uploading jdramas some time back, until the Japanese TV Stations found them and forced them to stop. Or occasionally people even getting arrested for sharing anime and such online. So, personally, I don't recommend starting websites or self-hosting copyrighted videos, no matter how unfair the claims might seem.

Regarding SBS claiming copyright on all videos, I suspect the contracts left a loophole that allows them to do so. The thing is, they probably bought the right to the footage itself to be broadcasted in Korea. Since the footage is basically the same over all broadcasters (the official ISU footage, with a few exceptions, who also have their own cameras), then they can claim copyright over that footage being broadcasted in Korea, even if the source is another broadcaster. (Since their copyright doesn't just cover their commentary or so, but the footage as well). So, if they have the right to broadcast WC17 in Korea and this loophole exists, then they have the right to demand any video that has the same footage, even if it's from Eurosport or NBC or CBC or whoever else, be removed. Of course, the better thing would be to ask that it be geo-blocked in Korea - ie not available for free in Korea, but it's probably just easier like this. They hardly care about FS popularity. What ISU needs to do is find a way to close any such loopholes, specifically demand that videos be geo-blocked instead of removed or add a clause about applying it retroactively or even for past broadcasts. Because unless SBS intends to rerun all these events it's utterly stupid to demand them removed, because it does not in any way affect them negatively. Quite the contrary. It's not like people aren't watching SBS live broadcast because they're watching it online, therefore affecting their viewing numbers. Instead, new fans might discover that "oh, look, SBS broadcasts FS! I'll check it out and watch the next competition there!" But I guess it's easier to just scream "Mine! Mine! Mine!" >_> Now about the videos themselves, I'm not a big fan of bilibili either, because of how much of a pain downloading from there is. Plus the interface. (Although there are some precious gems there that I will try to get my hands on now that you've shared ways to do so ^_^; So, thank you for that!) Wouldn't it be possible to do a more private, members-only platform to share the links and still use youtube, with coded video names and making the videos either friends only or unlisted? That'd be safer from a lot of points of view, at least until, hopefully, ISU really does something about this mess. Though I guess it wouldn't help new fans as much...

As someone who is in a "I want to learn more things but can't find a good method to do it" phase, I'm particularly fascinated by Yuzu and his studies... I wish he'd talk about it even more than he does! lol

It's entirely possible to do both, though. Like @SparkleSalad did, if you see something that you think is invading Yuzu's privacy, send the person posting a polite message, explaining the situation and nicely asking them to remove the footage. It's what Yuzu would do. Seriously, the way some fans reacted almost made me feel ashamed to call myself a fan and be grouped with them. Is that the image we want people who don't know Yuzu to have of him? Some skater whose fans go ballistic at the slightest thing? Do any of those fans think that if Yuzu were to see someone filming him, he would rush over and start screaming at them and calling them a spy and very rudely demanding that they stop? He most definitely would not. Maybe all of us fans should spend less time acting like defenders of Yuzu's privacy - and not only - and acting like we know what's best for him and preaching and more time trying to be as gracious human beings as he is. I think he might actually appreciate that more than people fiercely and aggressively defending him on the internet. Just IMO

Travel tip: if you walk from the subway station (Yaotome station) to Ice Rink Sendai and use Google Maps for guidance, it will probably take you on a roundabout route that is supposed to be faster, but isn't lol It is indeed shorter, but because it doesn't know where the entrance is, it will lead you to the back of the rink. So you still have to go around to the front and so the difference melts away. It will tell you to turn right after you cross the river and then take you on some smaller streets. My advice, instead, is to go straight ahead until you encounter a bigger street (it's a two way, 4 lane street, with buses and so on; you'll notice easily that it's bigger), then turn right and walk straight until you find it. It's hard to miss the whole sports complex to be honest, but for extra help, it's after 7eleven on the right lol (I've only been there twice, but for some reason the whole path is imprinted in my memory so well I could probably guide you in my sleep!)

There was an exhibition there in April, when the parade took place, too. I stopped by, though not on the day of the Parade, but a couple of days later. It's actually a really small place, on a commercial street sort of around downtown Sendai - pretty close to the JR station; IIRC, I walked from there to the JR station, despite the rain on that day. The pictures were really nice, though! And even just that big poster outside is more than worth it! lol So beautiful... Also, if in Sendai, do go to Ice Rink Sendai. The gallery there is also free entrance and it's really nice. I got super emotional there, especially as the Pandalion video from this year was playing on repeat on a big screen TV there. And of course, if you can skate, you can go in properly, too. I can't so the gallery was it for me lol

There was actually a few of us satellites who were interviewed by Yle as well, but I actually don't remember them asking us for our names, just where we were from, so maybe that's why they didn't use that footage lol (Not that I particularly wanted to see myself on TV, but that was actually part of a super fun period before the Gala, and a memento of it would have been nice lol) I'll definitely watch it more properly when I get home. Thank you very much for uploading!