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KatjaThera

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  1. At times like this I'm happy for Yuzu's 'hikikomori' (not seriously) lifestyle. Kind of hoping he'll stay safe in Toronto for a while still. If he goes to Japan, he might not be able to get a break from doing promo stuff, even if it's behind closed doors... I do expect Stars on Ice to be canceled shortly, too, so he shouldn't have any other obligations for a while... I was sure he wouldn't retire, especially not when this season ended as it did, but it is reassuring to have him confirm it beyond any shadow of a doubt.
  2. Personally, if there was a business trip that happened pretty much every year and that I usually accompanied another co-worker on and then found out from another co-worker that this time he was chosen to go and not me, I'd feel pretty upset. And insulted that nobody thought I was worth informing. Of course, if I were close to the first co-worker, I'd also be hurt, because it's natural, when someone gets chosen over you, without any explanation. But that's not really the biggest issue. If none of the other stuff had happened, I'm sure Brian would find it much easier to accept Yuzu choosing Ghislain. If Yuzu had told him why in person, if he'd been informed of the decision as soon as it was taken, if the Ghislain passport mess hadn't happened and if fans hadn't attacked Brian like they did, it would have been more of an "oh, well" moment. On top of that, Brian has gone through things like this before with Yuna. When she and her team made decisions and Brian had to learn of them from other sources. In that case it was even worse, as he learned from the media, but by any standards, it's unacceptable that your main coach doesn't hear of your decisions from you. I wouldn't be surprised if Yuzu expected JSF to inform both coaches and JSF thought Yuzu would inform them and the mess happened. Like I said, I think they haven't properly ironed this out yet, because Yuzu has more important things to focus on now, but hopefully they will after this season ends and/or before the next one begins. And really, online bullying is a reality. You can't dismiss it as "being concerned about what random people said". He tries and he has always advised his students not to look at online comments - something Yuzu himself ignores, as he has admitted he reads what is being said about him online and is aware of the hate he gets; maybe he should never mention that, either? Even though it's very real and very vicious and you seriously need very thick skin not to be affected by it - but I guess this time he looked because his intention with posting that picture was to calm things down and probably wanted to check if it worked. I also suspect he got DMs as well and those were probably worse and they might have all blended in. Yuzu and Brian's communication in the things that really matter - training - seems fine. Everything else is peripheral and not as important, but I do hope they will clear that up as well. If Yuzu has any issues with Brian, he can address them himself, to be honest. He's straightforward enough to do that and he is an adult. He doesn't need fans fighting all his battles for him. We don't really have proof that Yuzu lurks here, but he has pretty much said he does read twitter - probably especially Japanese twitter - and is aware of fans watching FS online internationally and is probably more aware of what fans say and do than we expect him to. Generally, he seems to know everything there is to know, FS related - and actually not really, he always seems very tuned in to current worldwide affairs, too - from fandom stuff to other disciplines, including juniors.
  3. I'm not saying we have to agree with everything Brian says or that everything he says and does is perfect and correct and he can do no wrong. But lately, no matter what he says, people always find something to be offended or upset by and it's getting tiring. It's like everyone is looking for proof that Brian just doesn't like Yuzu and doesn't care about Yuzu and he, like the rest of the world is out to get Yuzu. Even this interview, it's very interesting and the details about TCC's approach to coaching is great IMO, and Brian does praise all his students in it, but all some are focusing on is that he mentioned the Nathan and Yuzu rivalry. So what if he did? It does exist. Even if it's fake and only exists because of the judging, it does exist. And Nathan is a great skater. Not great enough to be Yuzu's rival, at least yet, but still. Brian isn't telling lies, he's just withholding some of the truth. It's his style, he's never complained about scoring and judges. He was quite put-off when Javi complained about it at Euros in 2019, too. So it's not like he's just refusing to defend Yuzu, like some are trying to make it seem. It's just his take on things. Yuzu is an adult, if he feels like complaining, he can do it himself. In his very discreet, very polite and, at times, very cheeky way, he already has. Brian won't. I'm sure Yuzu knows that already and he probably prefers to comment on judging in his own way than to have Brian go off on it, anyway. Also, imagine what would happen if Brian would one day start complaining and then his students would suffer consequences for it. He'd get crucified all over again. I'm also not entirely sure why people seem so convinced that Brian praising Yuzu to the media would count much. If the ISU is really as anti-Yuzu as many think, Brian could start the Church of Hanyu and it wouldn't change anything. If judges are simply incompetent, it also won't change anything, because it won't suddenly make them competent. And I'm also quite sure that Yuzu wouldn't like getting extra points just because his coach told the world how awesome he is. Which, by the way, he actually does do. And while Yuzu is one of the best spinners, most fans agree there are better ones, so, yes, his spins can get better. And we all joke about him never practicing spins at competitions and we're all marveled when he does, so it's not like we're not aware of it. If we're aware of it, so are most people in the business - if they care; and if they don't care, they won't care if Brian starts saying Yuzu's the best spinner in the world, either. Just IMO. Nathan isn't at the top because of media exposure. It's because of fed influence. The media just fits the fed influence, to make it appear to make sense to the unknowledgeable public. That public doesn't really matter. People who know Yuzu's true worth are far more numerous anyway. Brian's propaganda would be worth nothing without fed influence and even if JSF suddenly became pro Yuzu, they wouldn't have the power to fight of US fed. So it's pointless. I'd rather they all stay true to themselves and their principles. Quickly addressing the comments about Yuzu's lifestyle, I don't think Brian has issues with it, per se. I suspect he is probably somewhat baffled by it, because while it's not strange by Asian standards, it's not a common thing by Western standards. But more so, I think it might remind him of the Yuna situation. And as back then, Brian seemed to feel that the real problem came from Yuna's mom and her influence on Yuna, he's probably a bit put-off by having another top skater with the same arrangement. Maybe it's subconscious, but in a way, it'd be natural. I'm sure the whole Yuna situation was probably traumatic for him and I'm sure Yuzu has given him many Yuna flashbacks over time. This might be why he's slightly fixated on that and he keeps mentioning it. But I doubt he has any serious issues with it. It obviously works for Yuzu and I think it's one of those individualities he and the whole team respect. As long as they don't try to drag Yuzu out or tease him about his lifestyle, I think just mentioning it is fine. I think by now they have all accepted that's just who he is and how he is and they respect his choice and leave him alone. Which brings me to understanding. While I suspect there are parts of Yuzu that Brian still doesn't really understand because of the language barrier, I also think he understands more than we think and definitely more than we do. I also think Yuzu understands Brian very well and is very aware of his shortcomings - as his comment about Brian sometimes speaking without thinking proves. I think by now Yuzu also knows that he has to be straightforward to get what he wants and what he needs from his coaching team. And I think he often is straightforward and we can see that in the KnC moments. It's somewhat un-Japanese yes. But has there ever been any Japanese skater previously discussing judging issues - even jokingly - in the KnC with their coach? Yuzu has done it twice this season. It's obvious he's quite open and direct with his coaches now. I'm sure the GPF issue was a miscommunication. I can imagine a scenario like Yuzu asking Ghislain if he was free to join him, Ghislain saying sure, Yuzu saying ok, I'll ask them to get you the accreditation and then asking his team to handle the rest and along the line, someone forgot to inform Brian, or everyone thought someone else would do it, while Yuzu just focused on the competition and then Ghislain probably telling Brian the day before that he was getting ready for Turin and Brian being all ???, hence awkwardness. I also think Brian is probably still upset because he might not have discussed the issue with Yuzu. After GPF, they had JNats soon after, and it was more important for Yuzu to focus on that than to discuss details like that, especially since in the end, the practices and everything between them was normal. Then JNats happened and Yuzu needed a break and then preparing for the next step was more important, and then training for 4cc and then preparing for Worlds. I suspect they might not discuss all of that until after Worlds or whenever they'll have their big talk about future plans. And I think that is to allow Yuzu to focus on the important stuff, while they do everything just as normal. But they will probably have an open conversation, to understand where the miscommunication was, why and how to make not happen again, as soon as they can. Or at least I hope they will. Anyway, I agree that Brian can appear tone deaf at times - Boston and the Denis Ten incident was the one that annoyed me the most, tbh - but I think even then, he usually means well, he's just probably not the best at communicating. But as long as he comes through when it matters and is always by his skaters' side and support them in their decisions - even when he might not agree with them, see 4Lo and 4Lz - I can forgive that. To me that counts much more than what he says and doesn't say. People nowadays just seem to focus only on the negative and, as Brian often says, that's bad energy.
  4. Thank you very much for translating, Fay! So many people love hating Brian nowadays and it really bothers me. Reading this interview, I feel again, that TCC is probably the best training place in FS right now, where skaters' individuality is respected, their needs are always taken into account, their skating gets developed with the goal of improving their SKATING and not just racking up points and they are taught to take responsibility for their choices. I think because of that, Brian might sometimes let skaters go with what he suspects is a bad idea, just for them to learn by themselves that it is a bad idea. Which I think is a good approach. He advises his adult skaters, but lets them make their own decisions, whether they are good or bad. I like that, personally. Also, Brian is a coach, not a spokesperson. He's probably not the best at communicating, but one thing is that he always seems honest. Perhaps too honest, in that he will tell the press the same stuff he probably tells his skaters - like about things they need to improve. I like that honesty, personally. It feels like it's a real person and a real coach talking and not some PR machine. I also recently read a thread on the Yuna leaving Brian scandal, because I would often see comments about how awful Brian was to Yuna after she left and it was a tiring experience, but the conclusion was that there is a lot of revisionist history, because the only bad thing Brian did, really, was reveal her music and I have no doubt that was just one instance of Brian getting carried away in talking about how awesome her new program was. Though some did seem utterly convinced he did it on purpose to sabotage her. Yuzu said it himself: Brian sometimes doesn't think before speaking. There are people like that and it doesn't make them bad people. Javi had his moments like that, too, and he's still generally quite loved. Brian instead has often been the target of so much hate... Yuna fans hated him after the split, Yuzu fans hated him when Yuzu first moved to him, then they hated him for Boston, then they hated him for GPF'19, now they're hating him because he's not speaking up for Yuzu against judging issues... I'd honestly never wish to be Brian Orser. And to think that despite those things, which are really NOT that big a deal, he's still an important part of the team that brought Javi to the top of the World and supported Yuna and later Yuzu to Olympic Gold. But sure, a few words he says - or doesn't say - count more than the countless hours and days he's dedicated to all of them. Personally, I'm more worried about the Yuzu 'team' that we often hear about. What is this team? Who is in it? Shirota? The ANA megane-guy? Who else? What exactly is their role? It often seems like it's Yuzu who makes the decisions and this team as the first line of support, while Brian and TCC are a bit on the outside, being told things on a must-know basis. Brian learning he's not going to GPF the night before leaving is not acceptable, IMO. I'm not sure it was up to Yuzu to tell him - my guess is not, he was probably focusing on his competition, and someone from his team was supposed to communicate - but either way, unacceptable. Someone really dropped the ball there. I'm sure Brian would have been ok with it and perhaps even touched since Yuzu said it was also partly to give Brian a break from traveling, but that it wasn't communicated to him is an issue. And it's not the first time Brian doesn't know what Yuzu's team is up to. Yuzu himself seems as close to his coaches as ever, perhaps even more so than before, so I doubt the communication issues are on his part... But since communication was the main problem in the Boston mess, it concerns me to hear they still exist. Thankfully, though, we all saw at 4CC that Yuzu still deeply cares about all of his coaches and is still very close to all of them. So, hopefully everything will be just fine until the very end...
  5. The argument of dominance often seems to come up, even when discussing GOAT status - it's why some people still think Dick Button is more of a GOAT than Yuzu, because he dominated by far. The problem is... it's easy to dominate when you're the only really good skater around - or, like in Dick's case, have the means to continue training when others don't. It's much harder to dominate when you have strong rivals, BUT winning against strong rivals - especially different strong rivals - is much more impressive, IMO. (Regardless of whether they're strong skills wise or strong because of political backing.) So the dominance aspect is always a bit meh for me. Yuzu didn't really dominate at any point, in the classical sense - except now, sort of, because the gap between him and Nathan and the rest is fairly big, but then there's Nathan... - BUT he has been strong enough to never finish lower than 2nd over the past 6 or so years, and against different strong rivals. Which IMO is at least just as impressive as if he'd won everything by a landslide over 6 years. Also, IIRC, Plushenko has won 7 European titles, for which there is no real equivalent Yuzu could win - 4CC isn't really the same thing, no matter what anyone says - and he also has several Worlds titles, I think? And National titles? But aside from Yagudin, I'm not sure how many strong rivals he had at the peak of his career - genuine question, as I wasn't following FS then, but aside from the stuff with Lysacek and Yagudin, I haven't really heard of other rivals for Plushenko. IMO, what matters more, if we most compare with Plushenko, is what Plushenko himself has said (IIRC): that Yuzu is better than him. Even just because the technical level is higher at this point, but probably not just because of that.
  6. Just for the record, but my comments on sports psychology and therapy had virtually nothing to do with the interviews. I didn't even watch the subbed versions, because I watched them when they aired and it was enough. It's perfectly natural he would have been so upset then, it was definitely one of the lowest moments of his career and he was utterly exhausted on top of it (which also causes the low, combined with the judging/scoring etc.) That interview didn't make me worry for him, just hurt for/with him. There have been other things in the past that made me worry for him, but not this, not really. I know Yuzu is strong and I have no doubt he can pick himself up, because he's been through harder stuff and because I generally think most people are stronger than they think. However, if in this process he needs or just wants extra help, then I wanted to make it clear that he should feel free to get it. Hence my comments, after seeing a couple of people here saying that he doesn't need therapy and is self-sufficient enough. Especially knowing that mental healthcare is still somewhat of a stigma in Japan. (And actually, also because of some of the attacks towards Yuzu by his antis lately.) I'm happy those comments here weren't meant to be all that serious and we all agree that seeking/not seeking, accepting/not accepting the help of sports psychologists/therapists doesn't make a difference to how strong Yuzu actually is. He's just as strong either way.
  7. I honestly still find it hard to ask for help. But I agree. As for Yuzu, I know he takes his own mental health seriously and obviously focuses a lot on it - he knows how important it is, and in some ways, it's his only 'weakness' (though I personally like that about him, that he's no robot and that his circumstances matter). And I think it's great if he can make it without any outside help. My point was that I hope he knows it's a viable option that says nothing about how strong/not strong he is. If people always talk about how strong he is, he might feel extra pressure to be strong. If people say "Nah, he's strong, he knows what he's doing, he doesn't need a therapist", then he might feel like he needs to live up to those expectations and that if he were to see a therapist, it might disappoint people. On top of that, as far as I know - I hope I'm wrong, though - in Japan, mental issues are still largely ignored and seeking therapy isn't very common. It's not here either. I've heard people younger than me here, intelligent students, not random people on the street, say that anti-depressants are just placebo and depression is just people feeling sad and not putting enough effort into feeling better. I hope it's not like that in Japan, but you rarely hear people in Japan talk about these things and how they deal with them. That's why I want to insist that if Yuzu ever feels the need to see a sports psychologist or to see a therapist, then he should. At the end of the day, even if you can do something on your own, if a little bit of help makes that easier, why not take it? Maybe he already has, for all we know. I agree it's none of our business, but I hope fans are aware that sometimes supporting someone or praising them can give the impression of expectations and turn into pressure instead. Yuzu should do whatever he feels is right for himself and we should try to ensure he feels he has the freedom to do so and isn't limited in any way by our expectations.
  8. Honestly, I'm not a fan of this attitude. The idea that strong people don't need a therapist. So if you need a therapist, then you must be weak? As someone who saw a therapist for years and is now on the verge of needing one again, I take offense at it. That said, I wouldn't be surprised if Yuzu would not consider a therapist, while at the same time I hope his studies of psychology as part of his university studies have made him more open minded. I'm sure he knows the importance of psychology in his sport and I think he's probably aware of his own trauma stemming from the earthquake experience. Then there's the stuff he said at Continues. This all makes me hope he is far more open minded about it and is willing to ask for and accept help on the harder days. TCC has sports psychologists on call precisely to help the athletes. Asking for and accepting help in tough times, to help clear one's mind does not mean that person is not strong. I REALLY hope Yuzu knows that. He's been through so much stuff I just hope he gets all the support he needs.
  9. I think it depends what kind of merchandise you're looking for. Magazines you should find in most of the bigger bookstores, like @Ladysci said. Depending on where you're based, I'd also add the Libro at Asakusa Rox 2 (it's one of my favorite go to places for magazines, although there have been times when they didn't have the latest Yuzu stuff). In some bookstores, you can also probably find all the Yuzu-related books - the 2 Aoi Honoo, Yume wo Ikiru, the 2 Team Brian books and all the others about him or the quote collections and such. Also photo books. I remember I found and bought Yuzuru (the first photobook) at a bookstore at Nakano Broadway (forgot what it's called, but it's on the 2nd floor, I think, and it's the only one that actually looks like a bookstore). If you're into anime, manga, JPop idols (particularly Johnny's) or even JRock, then I definitely recommend Nakano Broadway. It's a whole experience lol (Although I think it's possibly not as popular and successful as it was a few years ago... when I went last year it looked like some shops had closed and generally seemed a little more deserted. But the Johnny's Mandarake - that also had other 'ikemen' items, too, like a bit of JRock and a lot of Golden Bomber items and such - and the JRock Trio were still there, so I was happy lol) For Ghana, you can find regular Ghana chocolate in probably just about any combini, but you likely won't find any of the particular Yuzu designs, as I think those might have been for online store sales only (not sure about the Valentine's Day design, though). Some of the more residential combini might still have Yuzu design Xylitol bottles or Bathclin, but honestly, those you can only find with a lot of luck, so there's little point in spending time searching for them. Beyond that, if there are no campaigns, it's hard to find Yuzu stuff. There's definitely more to do in Sendai, but getting there is hard on a budget. (The JR Pass is generally a life saver, but not really worth it for just a return trip to Sendai).
  10. I'm not entirely sure, but I think the girl he was rumoured to marry was also affected, whether followed by the tabloids or by overzealous fans, I'm not sure, which is what made this particular thing worse. I'm guessing as long as it only affects himself, Yuzu can probably shrug off a lot of stuff, more or less easily, but when it starts affecting other people... There was also a press conference for one of the ice shows he did that January and he was asked about it (I remember someone saying it was actually Nobu who asked, to give him an opportunity to clear things up, but again, not sure; maybe I'll search for some of those videos later) and from the way he answered, it was obvious how upset he was about it. So yes, while I think he did try to add a funny twist to it, because it was definitely not the kid's fault, that's not the tone he usually uses when talking to kids. He's usually very soft and calm when talking to kids. But it was still entirely appropriate and that many people find it fun/funny shows he did manage with the light-hearted twist.
  11. The one with the kid asking when he'll marry was in 2016 and it actually always makes me cringe. It was right after tabloids ran a story that supposedly Yuzu was going to marry a former classmate and it seems the rumor spread so much even kids heard about it and asked him about it... or at least I think the timing of that question at that time is too on point to be a coincidence. Yuzu was really mad about that rumor and it upset him a lot, so any reminder of it is for me.
  12. I think one of the things that contributes to the Cricket Club's positive attitude towards' skaters' individuality - and individual goals, because not everyone has to be an Olympic Champion - is the fact that they have many skating programs, and not just train elite skaters. There are beginners, there are adults, there are seniors, there are people who just skate for fun or people who started skating later in life and it's unrealistic to expect they would reach the same level as the elite skaters. All of these skaters are coached by the same team that oversees the elite skaters, and they are all given proper attention and treated equally. That I think helps the coaching team better realize and understand how people are different and they have different levels and different standards. But it's not like "oh, you'll never win a gold medal in international competition, why am I wasting my time on you?". TCC is not a club for elite skaters, it's a club where elite skaters also train and I think that makes a huge difference. I'm not sure how many of the other top coaches in FS also train at these other levels (or at least at so many of them). I do sometimes think, though, that Yuzu and Javi have made TCC even better, as all the other skaters have learned from their camaraderie. I wonder if that existed to such an extent at TCC before them... Even if it had, they probably did take it to another level, and now we see Yuzu, Jason and Jun, who almost shared a podium together, being super friendly to each other. The Cricket Club Brothers saga continues, even if some of the characters have changed! (And those Cricket Club pictures at the Saitama Banquet were so incredibly precious!) That's also why, whenever I end up liking a new skater, I find myself wishing they would move to TCC I wouldn't mind if one day, TCC would oversee the coaching of all skaters... just imagine the quality of skating we'd get, too! (Although there are apparently skaters who aren't very compatible with the TCC attitude... I half wanted to buy Adam's book just because I was curious to see what - if anything - he had to say about TCC...)
  13. Oh, I know all of these. I guess Yuzu has just spoiled me, because he's always very open about how decisive he is, even putting it in words - without ever becoming arrogant. So I kind of expect someone with a similar attitude on the ice to have a similar attitude off the ice as well lol Hence, the gap I mentioned. For all that we sometimes joke about the gap between Yuzu whose glare could kill, before competitions and Yuzu the cutsey kitten rolling around on the ice, in all of his 'incarnations' Yuzu is very open and unapologetic about being very hungry to win - whether against rivals or himself. Maybe I actually appreciate that even more because it's not very in tune with Japanese culture - IMO, it's admirable, daring to be like that, although the hatred he all too often gets for it, is the price to pay, I guess - and that he's actually always been so. It's not like he's now a nation's beloved son, so he can get away with it. He's always been like this. Although I know it is unfair to expect others to be like this, too, especially ladies (given the way women are still expected to behave in Japanese culture).
  14. I agree that him going to TCC was probably the best decision of his life. Brian, Tracy and Ghislain and everyone else there are just perfect for Yuzu. Then again, I think they're perfect for a lot of skaters. They did so wonderfully with Javi, helping him reach potential that I'm not sure how many people saw was there, and I think you can see it with Jason and Evgenia as well, skating wise, but also attitude wise. TCC isn't just a training place, it's also a sort of home away from home for skaters, where they are treasured and nurtured and always pushed to become the best version of themselves they can be and encouraged to make their own decisions. I do sometimes wonder how Yuzu would have developed if he'd stayed in Sendai, but I'm not sure Ice Rink Sendai and Nanami-sensei had the resources to take him to the next level. But I also agree that in general, coaches who are too domineering and uncaring of the skaters' personality are bad for the skater, while at the same time coaches who aren't strict enough and who coddle aren't good either. I often find myself thinking that Boyang and Misha and possibly Roman might need slightly stricter coaches. Admittedly, I don't know anything about their actual relationships with their coaches, but in the KnC, there's a slight feeling of them being coddles when things don't go right. I know a lot of people have issues with how Brian reacts when his skaters have bad skates - he received a lot of criticism for his "I don't know what to say" to Evgenia this season - but I prefer that. It's honest, it's matter of fact and afterwards it will probably become: "Ok, that obviously didn't work. Let's think about what we should do next." Which is infinitely better than a "Oh, you poor thing! Just rest for now and you'll see, everything will be alright!" sort of thing. Finding a balance between too strict and too coddling is probably the hard thing to do for coaches and I'm not entirely sure how many coaches have managed to find it. But TCC have for sure, IMO. That said, I don't think Yuzu would work well with either of those extremes. He'd butt heads badly with a domineering coach. Some people joke about Yuzu and Eteri, but I'm 100% sure they'd be at each other's throats in 3 days. Or Yuzu would drive her so crazy she'd kick him out after 3 days. Similarly, with a coddling coach, he wouldn't feel challenged and would probably either go crazy doing whatever he wants, or simply decide he needs something else. As for his personality, I think he has always been very strong and opinionated. Even saying, as a child, that he wants to win two Olympic Gold medals. His personality I think is generally more assertive than your regular Japanese person, although I think he makes up for it in politeness (or perhaps his parents have educated him such, to make sure his politeness counters his assertive personality). But that assertiveness is something many of his haters pick up on, too. I believe there's also quite a contrast between the way Yuzu speaks about wanting to win and what winning - and losing - means to him and the way other skaters speak. I think Yuzu's attitude is perfect and I also think it's essential to achieve this level of success and overcome all the obstacles he's overcome. I also wonder now if this is one reason I'm not fully warmed up to Rika - and other Japanese skaters. Rika seems so meek in interviews, her voice is so soft and her words so polite and even when she loses she's smiling and projects an "oh, well, I'll just have to do better next time" attitude, but then she goes out there and her skating says something else and the gap confuses me lol I will always cheer for the Japanese skaters, but I admit it feels like something is missing when I can't feel that burning passion for victory - or for bettering oneself - that is so obvious in Yuzu everytime his skates touch the ice. Even in ice shows and exhibitions, you can feel his passion for doing the very best that he can, and I don't really get that as much from most of the other Japanese skaters. But that's perhaps because they're more typically Japanese and not so demonstrative with their feelings... (and wow, this turned out rambly... sorry )
  15. Maybe no skincare is Yuzu's skincare lol I don't use much in the way of skincare products either. I use a light peeling or moisturizer if it feels necessary and last Summer I did use a Sekkisei UV protection lotion, but to be honest, most times when I use stuff like this, I end up breaking out in zits. I also rarely use makeup and never foundation or powder or so. So I think my skin just isn't used to the chemicals of skincare products. As such, I think it generally looks better without any, though not as perfect as Yuzu's and it has ups and downs (there are days where it gets fat and days when it gets dry, but most of the time it's quite ok, I think... or at least I'm ok with it lol). But if Yuzu never really uses much either, that's possibly why his skin looks so good. People put too much stuff on their faces nowadays, I think...
  16. It's not the first time media - especially Western media - make it sound like Yuzu was affected by the tsunami and it bothers me every time. His story is plenty dramatic as it is, with the ground shaking hard enough he couldn't stand, crawling out of the rink on all fours, the rink feeling like it might collapse, although it didn't, but it did get badly damaged, his home being damaged, which is why he had to be in the evacuation center for 4 days, before moving elsewhere (probably a temporary home, then living without electricity, gas, water etc. The tsunami did strike Sendai, but the outer parts of it, nearer the coast, I think, and the devastation was incredible, but it didn't reach the inner parts of the city, like where Ice Rink Sendai is. Simply checking a map, you can see Ice Rink Sendai is really far from the coast. That said, whenever I see "barely had time to evacuate the building" I wonder if they might discuss the ceiling... I think I remember in an interview with Takeshi Honda, he pointed out where he'd been on the ice by saying he was under the part where there was a chunk of the ceiling missing. Which always made me wonder if that chunk fell during the earthquake, because that would really make it a true near miss... It doesn't take a tsunami for the whole experience to have felt like near death, tbh.
  17. It was a mistake on the translator's part. Yuzu said he did think, in the past, about doing programs like Winter and Don Quixote - implying they'd be tributes, and I don't know if any other skaters Yuzu looks up to, other than Javi, have done programs related to Don Quixote - and while for Winter, he clearly said he thought of it as a child, Don Quixote was left somewhat vague - it might have been also as a child, or a more recent thing. But either way, he made it clear these thoughts were in the past. The translator did say in the future, though, and that was perhaps the biggest mistake in that press conference. Personally, I doubt he will be doing any tributes again any time soon, considering how Otonal and Origin went.
  18. I defeated it I guess I have somewhat obscure tastes But it's cool they have much Yuzu
  19. 13/14 should count, too, because he didn't do 4cc, but he did olys, which is more demanding lol
  20. He is incredible. I admit, I was a bit worried about his mental state going into this. I can't even imagine how hard the end of 2019 must have been for him, how painful those results, and then again how hard it must have been to give up on Otonal and Origin. Both programs meant a lot to him, so I can imagine it must have been an extremely hard decision to take. Him being down would have been totally understandable - if not ideal, going into a competition. But instead, he seems to have attained a revised version of his "Zen mentality" from after the Olympics. He seems to have remembered what's most important to him after all - skating as himself, in his way, by his standards. And he seems to have decided that THAT is actually more important than winning. That it's not worth sacrificing any of that for the sake of winning. Unlike the previous zen phase, though, he still does want to win. But he wants to find a way to win while still staying true to himself. The fact that he's not so adamant about 4A anymore. The way he's like: "I want to do it, I feel like I'm almost there with landing it, but I can't say 100% that I'll do it, but that's fine." There's no feeling of urgency in his actions and decisions, I think. And all this points me towards him not considering retirement at the end of this season after all. I think he might have reached a point where skating as himself, and doing his best by his standards, truly is more important than the scores he's given. On the other hand, it's easier to stay true to such a mindframe when you're still winning, despite scoring issues. If he lost, the kuyashii might become super strong again and drown out the zen, but hopefully not. Bottom line for me is that while some of his comments and decisions felt like maybe he was actually getting ready to call it a day, his latest comments feel more like he's considering this a new beginning and still feels he has more to give to the FS world and is planning to stay for as long as that still feels true. But then another interview might come out tomorrow that might feel like the opposite again lol. But there really doesn't seem to be much urgency in him and there's no way he'd retire and leave things unfinished. He'd feel some urgency to accomplish some more stuff before retiring, I think... maybe... While I get your point and focusing on 4A would make some sense, I'm not sure Yuzu thinks like that. To him, even his 2 OGMs are a thing of the past. Precisely because he's won everything, it's natural to keep on winning. Just because he's won everything in the past doesn't mean anything for the future, only that if he's really that good, he should be able to rightfully keep on winning. Some such thing. My current thought is that he might work in incorporating 4A, when it's ready, in the total package of HIS brand of figure skating. So as to increase the technical, but without sacrificing the rest. I think he did lose sight of that a bit with Origin, especially, but also Otonal, when he pushed the combination back into the second half. Probably not at all helped that he couldn't properly grasp the spiritual side of the programs, as it wasn't really him. Now, he seems to want to keep the spirit intact, focus on what he wants to express and increase the technical around that. Probably more gradually than with Origin, too, though 4S-3A-3F-spin sequence isn't really gradual by normal standards lol It won't be easy and it might take time, but it's what, to me, it seems he might be into doing right now. Rather than just land 4A and adios. But I could be entirely wrong lol
  21. Personally, I've always found there's a difference between handsome and beautiful. Handsome is when they conform more to the masculine ideas of looking good. When you can see the testosterone. Beautiful is when it's more genderless. To me, at least. So while I would agree Robert Pattinson is handsome (though that's mostly based on seeing him in The King; I actually couldn't believe that was him, but he was really good in that role! Though Timothee Chalamet still takes the top spot for both acting and looks for me, in that movie lol), I would call Yuzuru and others, beautiful. Then there are some who can be both, depending on hairdos, for example. Since I mentioned Timothee (my new non-Yuzu favorite lol), he is beautiful with his natural longish curls, but in the King, with his hair cut, he leans more towards handsome, as it emphasizes the more masculine aspects of his face. As with most things, before you can debate something, you need to establish the definitions. Define beauty, in this context, and then you can argue if someone is beautiful or not. I think someone mentioned it before, that since science is involved, they probably did mean beautiful=most symmetrical face. But that's a very loose definition and not entirely accurate, especially as humans are beings in motion, and not motionless objects where perfect symmetry matters. Yuzu's face isn't perfectly symmetrical, but you don't notice that unless you look at a still picture of him. But the real human is never entirely still, so who cares? lol That said, a Japanese actor I like, was once told he has a very symmetrical face and truth is, he was really good looking! (Nowadays he mostly has facial hair, which I'm not a fan of and has put on some weight. But as an actor I still love him lol) Anyway, Yuzu can be drop-dead gorgeous (though I admit I don't ALWAYS find him to be so; his skating always is, though lol), so that's that lol
  22. Honestly, I don't believe fair, unbiased judging exists in figure skating anymore, not really. However, I do believe that if there is anyone who can beat the system and become so good as to win even despite that, to make it impossible to underscore him to the point of losing to his rivals, that is Yuzu. And in some ways, he's been doing this throughout his entire career. The odds were rarely in his favor and the politics were never in his favor. It's just that the powers that be have a better weapon now, because Nathan's consistency is his saving, and they're far more shameless because the rules give them more freedom to be shameless. But I do believe Yuzu might still be able to win DESPITE this. Remember, the H&L historical record is still the most underscored world record ever. And he still forced them to give it to him. I think he can do it again, but really everything needs to fall into place just right and I think that might be what Brian meant, too. They can't help the judging, but Yuzuru can become even better, possibly to the point where he can still win, despite the politics. He will probably need at least 4A on top of his other quads, though. The only question is whether Yuzu is willing to try pushing himself that far again, with everything that implies... I wouldn't blame him if he decided it's not worth it.
  23. Personally, I think the problem with Otonal and Origin is that they were conceived at a time when Yuzu was somewhat aimless, after the Olympics. While he was going through his zen period and had no real goals aside from 4A, so he had the possibility to do two programs that were less focused on the technical in a points-winning sense. And he assumed he would have the time to develop and perfect them like that. Only the zen period ended quickly, and then he had to scramble to tweak them to become more points-winning focused. And more technical. And for over a year he's been trying to have his cake and eat it, too: keep the original spirit of Otonal and Origin, as very artistic, very intricate, very detailed programs, but also increase the technical, add more quads and win with them. I believe, while very different from H&L, Origin has the H&L complexity that requires a long-term delicate polishing in order to bring it to its best possible shape. But Yuzu has been under so much pressure to win, to not lose to Nathan, that he couldn't give himself the time to focus on that polishing. He's basically been running after two rabbits and it backfired on him. So I think he needs to take a step back. And I think, unless he has decided he's finally had enough - which would be totally understandable and I'd fully support it - it might only be temporary and, if, instead, he's decided to go for Beijing, after cleaning his palate with Seimei and hopefully something entirely new next season, he might bring it back for the Olympic Season and properly tame it. But he needs to regain his power, control and confidence as a tamer of wild programs, first and for that I fully support his choice to step back. Origin is a beast and he can't tame it half-heartedly, as he's been trying to do, split in two, between increasing technical to try to beat Nathan, and developing the program as it'd meant to be developed.
  24. I think it's hard to estimate how taxing Origin with 5 quads was, because he admitted he'd only done 1 RT with 5 quads before trying it at GPF. It was reckless and was never going to be likely to work out. BUT he did land the 5 quads cleanly, he just ran out of steam for the last 3A-3A. It's not impossible to imagine with enough training and conditioning that he'd increase his stamina enough to land that, too. Although it is an insane program, if anyone can do it justice, even with 5 quads, it's Yuzu. But I really think bringing back Seimei (and Chopin) is more psychological than physical. Even though he had planned 5 quads Seimei for Olys, it won't be easy to switch to 5 quads Seimei now after he's spent a year and a half working on Origin. However, emotionally, Seimei gives him more confidence, while Origin has left him in a bad place. I wonder if he would have been able to do Seimei again after Boston. I think sometimes, programs leave such a bad taste, that he needs to take a step back from them and reset himself. I think Boston Seimei might have been like that. LGC might have been like that - the last LGC was the WTT'17 utter disaster, after all - and it could be JNats Origin was like that. The previous two were end of season performances, but Origin was mid-season. Hence the mid-season change. And no other program makes as much sense to change it with as Seimei.
  25. While the report itself was nothing new, it did kind of make the decision make more sense to me. He really sounded so depressed about the first half of the season... While the comment seems somewhat out of context, regardless of the context, to hear him say he became afraid to skate and afraid to perform in front of people hurts. If he needs Chopin and Seimei to recover his joy and love of skating, then I'm 100% in favor. He can recycle whatever he wants, any of his programs, he can recycle other skaters' programs, he can skate around in circles, as long as he truly feels joy in doing it. That's really all I care about at this point. And I think he is truly a master at the game, because I can't really believe it's a coincidence that we got two brightly smiling Yuzu pictures right before that painful bit aired. It's like he's saying "Yes, that's where I was, but I'm fine now. Trust me." And maybe what Brian said about him taking a while to get his competitive mind on was him struggling a bit with the decision, maybe feeling guilty for giving up on Origin (for now at least) and worrying about the narratives. But Brian said he's doing well and he was smiling brightly with Nam, so I think he's found a good place again. I'm looking forward to seeing a Yuzu with his full confidence back! I also think he is physically stronger than ever and if everything does fall into place, I think there is still a chance that he won't give judges a choice but to give him all the gold. Either way, I trust him and support him, no matter what.
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