micaelis

Final listing is in and Stephen Gogolev did not make the cut for the JGPF but he is listed as the first of three substitutes so if any of the top six drop out Stephen's in. Good going for Canada's very young candidate to some day replace Patrick Chan.

The ultimate could be Shoma nodding off in the middle of a jump and Yuzu having to rush out and catch him before he crashes. Of course we need a Yuzu with super-speed then but he's capable of so many other things super-speed should be a cinch.

Phantom of the Opera GPF 2014 Because in that particular performance Yuzu resurrected a season that up until then had been an unmitigated disaster. Had he not fallen late in his FS he would have broken the FS record (which he did anyways the next season, and twice, for that matter).

As someone who has a serious interest in ballet extending back over half a century I agree that there is a tendency to call a skater 'balletic' simply if he or she has had some (usually minimal) ballet training. Actually, I would have to say that except for upper body and arm position it is very difficult to transfer ballet to ice, simply because skaters can glide and dancers can't. That simple difference means all the difference in the world. To me the attribute of 'balletic' is more appropriate if by that one means a close coordination between music and motion and a focus on the movement of all parts of the body in the choreography. If that is the case then 'balletic' would be an appropriate adjective even if the skater has had no formal ballet training. In short, figure skating is dancing on ice, dancing with its own particular aesthetic and the skaters who realize that are the ones who are usually well up in the PCS points. As far as why 'balletic' is the term most often used rather than associating figure skating with some other form of dance, I think it is because ballet is the one dance form most closely associated with aerial work and also a dance form with its own highly evolved and catalogued system of movements, just as in figure skating. In the end, though, one has to say that of all those skaters currently in the elite category Yuzu is the most balletic. His choreography is always the densest and most detailed of all the current crop of male skaters and it is reflected in his PCS numbers. Whether he has had ballet training (I'm not sure here) is irrelevant. The fact is that Yuzu is a skater who has mastered the aesthetic of ice skating and whether that is 'balletic' is also irrelevant. I'm reminded of a statement made by a young and super-gifted ballet dancer in a novel I've been working on when he declares his intention in his dancing - I want to make my body sing. Yuzu, by that standard, is the best vocalist around.

I'll make one prediction - If Yuzu lands a full-blown 4A in a competition (and he's the first to do so) he'll receive a standing ovation even while he's still skating (I just hope he can keep his focus right then).

Gold is meaningful but breaking records is not, not when right now there are no records to be broken since we're under a new scoring system. For this season and next, also, records are by and large irrelevant. You need a span of time for records to acquire real significance. This, season, for instance, every time a skater scores higher than any other so far this season, he is breaking a record. By Beijing time we can start talking about records with real significance and speculate on how long Yuzu will hold the record book with the new system (I genuinely expect him to dominate this record book in the same way he dominated the last one). As far as gold is concerned, I think that Yuzu's intentions are to start up again his string of GPF victories, recapture his Japanese championship, finally get gold at 4CC and then nail the season with a gold at Worlds. Whether those intentions are fulfilled is one of the great questions of this season since we all know that Yuzu generally skates so close to the edge that we can't assume he'll emerge unscathed. That's one of the reasons we so like him. We can NEVER assume he'll win even though the odds might seem overwhelmingly in his favor. Yuzu's biggest opponent is himself and generally when he's missed gold it's because he didn't skate clean while somebody else did.

Everybody seems to be missing this, and I know I've got this thing for him, but nobody seems to be looking at Yuzu's training mate, Stephen Gogolev, who according to Brian has all the six non-axel quads in his arsenal. If that is indeed the case I really do think he's in the 4A sweepstakes even though he's skating on the Junior level. At least right now, though, he's out of the running until JGPF since he's already skated his two GP qualifiers.

I think it's safe to assume that from his multiple sponsorship deals Yuzu is even now comfortably wealthy. He does not lead a life of lavish luxury so his daily expenses are probably fairly low. He's not a fashion freak so we can assume his closet is far from full. He does have his skating expenses but in comparison to his commercial income they are probably far from onerous. The one thing everyone here should realize is that Yuzu's worth as a public spokesman for product lines will not end with his retirement. Yuzu's position in Japan far transcends being simply a very successful figure skater. He is very much a role model for young Japanese and it would seem he devotes a considerable amount of time to public appearances in schools, senior centers and other such venues. In fact he is, at a very young age, acquiring the lineaments of an elder statesman (statesman without the elder part). I have to say that one of the things I've observed of the whole Yuzu phenomenon in Japan is that Yuzu commands much more than the adulation of his fans, and that even outside the figure-skating fandom Yuzu garners a great deal of just plain respect. There are many Japanese who are not figure-skating fans who still immensely respect Yuzu for being the responsible public figure that he is. It is that factor, more than any other, when joined with his athletic achievements that is responsible for his People's Honor Award. If Yuzu should continue living his life the way he now does Yuzu's commercial viability will probably continue well beyond his skating years.

Yuzu has a long history of recycling programs. Recycling gloves is quite believable.

There's already been a bit of speculation on the topic but I thought I'd focus more intensely on the following question - With this very long interval between AIC and Helsinki what do you think Yuzu hopes to accomplish during these upcoming weeks? My feeling is that he wants to do stamina training since he said after AIC that he just wasn't up physically to handle his new programs. The other element, I think, is to work to insert whatever surprise aerial work into his programs and get them so he handles them confidently. I don't think he was planning on the stamina training but this last weekend was a wakeup call for him on that issue. The jumps he might debut I've a feeling were the major part of his plans for this long layover from competition.

I'm praying he stays healthy way beyond this season. If he does, just imagine what we'll see by the time Beijing rolls around!!!

Perhaps the biggest news that emerged out of the Autumn Classic was the revelation that Hanyu was practicing a quad toe loop/triple axel combination and appeared ready to insert it into his free skate. Though he did not execute it in the free skate, the mere fact that he contemplated it caused a buzz. Had the Sendai native pulled off the difficult combo, he would have been the first skater in history to achieve it in competition. [Jack Gallagher in an article in Ice Time (Japanese Times)] Nobody seems to have picked up on the above. The source here is reliable and I'm presuming he's not confusing this with Yuzu's very public pursuit of a 4A. So if this is true, does it mean that Nessie has some company and that the lake might be more crowded than assumed? What other tricks is Yuzu contemplating? Is there a quint coming down the line also?

What he wants is a repeat of his 2009/10 season when, according to one commentator, he 'won everything in sight'.

Johnny Weir several seasons ago said that 'Nobody can beat a perfect Yuzuru Hanyu'. It was true then and it's still true today. One also has to remember another comment made during that period, when a remark was made about Yuzu's lack of real competition when he said, 'He's skating against himself. What's harder than that?' The thing is that Yuzu wants to win but he wants to win on his own terms. He doesn't want to create programs simply to win points. He wants programs that approach choreographic perfection and by cleanly skating those procuring the wins he wants. In short, Yuzu wants to earn his wins by perfectly skating perfectly choreographed programs. What's harder than that?

ACI Thoughts Short Program - A Hanyu/Buttle production is always great and this one is not a disappointment. Not quite as good as LGC but that was the two at their best. The costume, though, I do not like. The colors are just not strong enough and the exposed chest was not a plus. If he had some pectoral cleavage to show without the flesh-colored mesh it would have been great but Yuzu doesn't have pecs, though his torso is nicely V-shaped. Costumes that highlight that feature of his are amongst my favorites. Free Skate - Not quite a classic in terms of content but Yuzu's got six weeks to put in improvements. I think it might do to have more arm action in certain parts. I do have a feeling that Yuzu's been looking to use that six weeks layover before competing next to alter and polish his programs. Basically at ACI I think we probably saw works-in-progress (not that that is not the case with all his programs) but this time probably moreso. The costume, though, I loved. It's his best since POTO2 which is my all-time favorite. The way it hugs his torso is why I like it so much and the coloring is like bejeweled tree-bark. By and large I think we saw Yuzu not in his best form this weekend but at least he didn't falter as much as he did in last year's ACI (excluding his record SP). But his win this year was narrow over Junhwan, who for the first time let the world know he's serious about joining the elite ranks. This year might be a breakout year for him. As for Yuzu, he'll probably look at this weekend's near miss as a motivator for him during the next six weeks to alter and polish his programs. In Helsinki things start getting serious.

The bronze medalist's neck seems even longer than Yuzu's.

When putting together his programs Yuzu doesn't make mistakes. Besides, the last part of the music was not really music to jump to, more music to power a large number of stepping and choreographic moves jammed into a very short time. Jeffrey has been responsible for so many of Yuzu's short programs over the years and we can see why here. In putting together a program like this I think Yuzu is making it very clear he wants to skate for excellence and not for points, as he has implied in recent statements, and he is willing to skate out of the box in pursuing that goal.

Congratulations to Brian! After ACI short program Orser skaters have top three positions, Yuzu at the very top, of course.

I had trouble watching this. The tears kept blurring my vision. How far he's come and yet he's still the same.

Does anybody know if they are going to televise the official practices? If so, does anybody know when they are?

After a strong start in Bratislava Stephen Gogolev faltered in Canada ending up in fifth place. Whether he'll be able to go on to the JGPF will depend on how others do in the remaining legs of the JGP. I began to think, however, on how those who are competing against him view him. He is, of course, the youngest in the field and I'm sure the others know of his command of the quads and his record going into this season. Yet they also saw this weekend that he can be beaten, but just like Yuzu, he can be beaten primarily if he falters, as he just did. There is one thing, however, that struck me as I was contemplating this weekend's performance, and that is he must be the envy of all those around him, since I am sure word has spread that he actually trains (and not just simply shares a coach) with Yuzuru Hanyu. He must already be fielding questions from his competitors wondering what Yuzu is like. In a sense Stephen is like Robin, having to deal with questions about what Batman is like. Stephen's situation, then, I think is quite unique and also challenging, since he is skating under the shadow cast by his legendary training mate. That's just another piece to add to the complex of factors he's dealing with in his first season on the Junior level.

With the old scoring system now history Yuzu's old records are carved in stone. A new record-book is beginning. In this first season new records will quite likely be set and broken repeatedly in all the earlier competitions. GPF will be the point at which things start getting sorted out and European, 4CC and Worlds will finalize the record book for the season. Next season will see fewer new records set and yet fewer in the season after that. I expect Yuzu to own the record book after this season and to be strengthening his hold in each successive season. If he hangs on to Beijing he should have a lock on the record book. Incidentally Beijing will see a new book beginning for Olympic records. I don't think anybody will really be taking all-time records seriously until we get to Beijing. For records to be meaningful they have to be viewed in the context of a meaningful stretch of time. Thus this first season will be largely symbolic.

Considering the way his arms are, might 'sogging' do? They certainly look soggy.

It's getting close. Just think, a week from now at this time we'll know WHO is leading after the Short Program.

I seem to be feeling very talkative this morning. Here's a an observation I've made before but it's something I feel is pertinent and that is Yuzu has a real motivator training right beside him at TCC, and that's Stephen Gogolev. I can't imagine that seeing this kid of 13 jumping all the quads except the Axel does not have an impact on Yuzu, does not get his competitive blood boiling. Even though the opportunity for their meeting in head-to-head competition is two seasons away I'm quite sure that Yuzu is already looking towards that event. We know how well-developed his talent for orchestrating his career well down the road is. Yuzu sees in Stephen himself at the same age, that is a skating prodigy, and he knows that that Yuzu Junior is hurtling straight down the ice at him. Yuzu knows his skating skills are much superior and that his sensitivity to music much more highly-developed, but all the same I'm very sure he's very aware of his training mate, so aware that his primary fear of anyone getting a 4A before him is skating right there at TCC with him.