sweetwater

Interview with Mone Chiba by Takeshi Sakagami of Asahi Shimbun https://digital.asahi.com/articles/ASPCK71KSPCKUTQP025.html As this article is partially behind a paywall, I can't share a translation, but it says Mone is now practicing 4T, coached by Soshi Tanaka, who had been Yuzu's jump coach before he moved to Canada. It seems that at the moment, she can rotate but cannot control the momentum on landing. Looks like she didn't know that Yuzu was a great skater when she, as a little girl, was playing tag on the ice with him.

Cute And it is interesting how they work together remotely.

Interview with Shun Sato by Hochi Shimbun https://hochi.news/articles/20211116-OHT1T51179.html?page=1 A rough translation

According to her tweet, it is mcl ligament injury in her left elbow. I hope it heals quickly, too.

BS Fuji will air the highlights of JJNats on November 23, between 16:00-18:00 (JST) https://www.bsfuji.tv/figurejr2021/pub/index.html

@Paskud, I know how people in and out of this forum have been feeling about JSF's decisions regarding JGP and CS and why they are feeling that way. And as a Japanese who currently lives in Japan, I have already explained how the situation regarding covid here and how our governments' decisions would affect JSF's decisions. I don't see this discussion going anywhere, so I will try not to respond to this specific topic and bother you anymore.

As to point no. 1, you are right. I realized it after posting my previous post, so I have corrected my earlier post. And if you are talking strictly about junior women, the chance of anyone making use of senior JNats would be lower than for men as Japan has only two JWFC slots for women. As to points no.2, 3, 4, I had a different thought. Comparing the scores at regionals and sectionals, Rion has the second-highest average scores among Rion, Ikura, Ayumi, and Hana. So as you say, score-wise, this choice isn't obvious to everyone. But seeing their ages, Rion could be the one that needs WS points most because she is already 18. Although she can compete at the junior level for another year, seeing how younger skaters are developing, maybe it is time for her to move up to senior. In short, I am guessing that JSF used the host-country slots to support the older junior skater who is going to move up to senior and the one who has just moved up to senior. I feel bad for Hana, though. She was supposed to compete at Golden Spin, but its junior categories have been canceled. Hope she will get another chance in the second half of the season. Hope other girls do well this weekend, too.

The results in senior nationals also affect the allocation of international competitions next year, including the junior worlds, so to be able to compete at senior nationals is a chance. https://www.skatingjapan.or.jp/common/img/info/20210714_FS_Senkokijun.pdf

In case of others do well and win at junior nationals, maybe they can take a good rest and prepare for senior JNats in a better form. ETA (correction) : The winners of junior nationals automatically win a slot for junior worlds, so senior nationals may not mean anything for them.

Rika Kihira updated her IGS and thanked her fan/fans for sending her beautiful flowers. https://www.instagram.com/stories/rikaskate0721/2708626727490250638/

Misato and Takeru Komatsubara have withdrawn from Warsaw Cup due to Misato's ligament injury on her left arm. Yuhana Yokoi has also withdrawn to take part in GP France. Lucas Tsuyoshi Honda and Rion Sumiyoshi are going to compete in JGPF in December filling Japan's host country slots.

Let me share my translation of Yuzu's comment as well: Source (PDF of the announcement from JSF): https://www.skatingjapan.or.jp/common/img/info/21Rostelecom_Yuzuru Hanyu.pdf As to the "starting line," I think he probably means that he hasn't been able to resume training (that he is still rehabilitating.) Also, he doesn't say that he doesn't have pain in daily life any more. But good to hear that he is getting better to some degree. Praying for your full and speedy recovery, Yuzu! [NEWS]

JSF can select Yuzu as they did in 2017 if they decide that Yuzu will be back in competitive form by the Olympics. This is a full translation of the selection criteria I posted on the TJ thread this summer. I won't comment on the articles and the TV program mentioned above because I don't want to access the said articles, and I could not find a clip of the TV program. Even if I could, I would probably skip it unless it contains info released directly from Yuzu or his team.

It was fascinating that everything was connected with each other with the word, "healing" (I watched it with Japanese subs and am translating the word into English so it may not be the exact word used in the original or the English subs) I've always been feeling that it is the essence of the Onmyoji series by Baku Yumemakura. It is not a supernatural power that Seimei and Hiromasa solve a problem with. It is always a truth they find in a phenomenon, and with it, they release oni and help them recover their true self. I have had a habit of reading the series or the comic based on it when I am in bed and trying to recover from illness or an injury since long before I became a fan of Yuzu, so I was happy when he chose this theme and said that he imaged nature (plants, trees, flowers) reviving on his footstep while doing the Stsq, but I had never connected Seimei, 311, and figure skating as a sport in my mind, so it was a bit mind-blowing and touching to know that Max is seeing Yuzu as someone who is trying to heal the sport with the truth.

Sorry for being late to reply! Thank you so much for the message I have just DMed you back. It is not urgent, so please check it when you have time. I found the words in the pamphlet energizing too. It is really nice to have something to look forward to.

His bio says "序奏とロンドカプリチオーソ." It usually is the Japanese title of the piece by Saint-Saëns.

I am sorry, I found another mistake. Shae-Lynn is credited also as co-choreographer of the SP in the bio of NHK pamphlet. [NEWS]

Let me correct one of my last few posts: Yuzu didn't mention this piece in Aoi Honoo as one of the pieces he wanted to skate to. He named this piece as one of the examples of the music he liked along with Otonal that Johnny Weir skated to, Once Upon a Time in America that Evgeni Plushenko skated to. Then he said he also wanted to skate to some of these favorites. By the way, he mentioned this piece as "Rondo Capriccioso to which many skaters have skated." It is an interview given in January 2012. Interestingly, before sharing his favorite music, he stated that after refining his spins, jumps, and skating, he hoped to present his program to the audience as a piece of art that flows naturally from the beginning to the end of the 3 or 4 and a half minutes. As I haven't read the interview in the NHK pamphlet myself (I forgot to order it beforehand. Now I am tempted to go to Yoyogi only to buy a copy if they sell it outside of the venue), I guess I had better put my opinions on hold for the time being, but I am looking forward to seeing this SP very much! I have been thinking that Yuzu liked this piece as a piece of violin music, so it is a bit surprising if he skates to a piano solo version. But I can trust his decisions when it comes to his program music. If Kiyozuka san has helped him in any way, I can trust that collaboration as well, seeing and hearing how he has been supportive and sincere in and out of their collaboration for Haru yo koi. I just hope he recovers fully and fulfills his dream/dreams.

@Paskud The screenshot doesn't include much news except for the SP music. His bio says he was born on December 7, 1994, in Sendai, and is 172cm tall now. His training bases are Toronto and Sendai. His coaches are Brian, Tracy, and Ghislain. His SP is Introduction et Rondo capriccioso en la mineur, choreographed by Jeff Battle and Shae-Lynn Bourne. His FP is Ten to Chi to choreographed by Shae-Lynn Bourne. As his past results, it mentions WFC2021 (the latest comp) PC2018, Sochi2014, and WFC2014, 2017. The text under the bio introduces him as the king of figure skating who has accomplished the super slam and is still going forward with pride, saying he continues challenging himself for his ideal that is a performance that presents the height of the sport and its artistry, and that he is gaining respect from the skaters all of the worlds because of his such an attitude. It also mentions his challenge on the unprecedented feat of landing 4A in his third Olympic season, but unfortunately, I can't read the end of this text. ETA: I overlooked Shae-Lynn's name as a choreographer for the SP at first so I added it to the translation of his bio. This post has been tagged by yuzuangel as [NEWS].

I will get back to you later because I am on mobile phone right now. And the source I mentioned above was Aoi Honoo.

That’s a musical piece he once named as one of the pieces he wanted to skate to. It’s long time ago. I think I read it in Aoi Honoo or an interview published some time during 2012-2013 season. I will look for the source later. ETA: This wasn't accurate. He mentioned this piece of music as one of his favorites in Aoi Honoo, and said that he also wanted to skate to some of these pieces.

I wonder if this has been already shared. (Sorry if it has. My memory of these few days is a bit blurry...) At Miyagi Furusato Plaza in Tokyo, yesterday *Miyagi Furusato Plaza is a shop introducing local products of Miyagi in Tokyo. Look at the spelling of "Nekomasamune" in the poster. Some other photos They have been distributing the postcard version of 4A Nekomasamune for free since November 6. [NEWS]

I was referring to injuries and withdrawals mainly. In 2017, Patrick Chan, Daisuke Murakami, Joshua Farris, Tobias/Tkachenko withdrew from NHK. Yuzu was injured. Dice and Joshua could not come back from injury. Among women, Zhenya skated injured. Two weeks later at Skate America, Kovtun and Samohin withdrew before FS due to injury while Boyang competed injured. I think there were some more who were suffering an injury. The way the entry list gets updated again and again is quite a deja vu. The ticket situation now also quite resembles that of the pre-GPF period in 2017.

Nearly 5000 tickets got resold last weekend, and I guess some buyers are heartbroken to have heard this news. I really don't mind GPS this year stops imitating GPS2017