utsukushii3A

Well, I don't usually bother with introductions, so I suppose this is a good thread for my first post here! I've been a fan of figure skating close to my entire life. I was born in a Winter Olympics year, and no one remembers if my dad actually had me watch, but I definitely would have heard it, because he was always glued to the figure skating. He must have shown me another competition or some articles in the paper or videotapes or something, because I was very excited for next Winter Olympics and actually remember quite a lot given that I was only 4 years old at the time. So, I would eagerly await the Winter Olympics every 4 years. I didn't even realize there were other competitions, sadly. I never really followed any skaters closely, but my favorites were, surprise surprise, Evgeny Plushenko and Johnny Weir! I also started skating when I was 10. If only I had known earlier that there was a rink right by my house! In 2014, I was as usual glued to the TV for the Winter Olympics. I had never heard of Yuzu before. My first impression of him was that he has a cool name, and how is the ice not melting with someone that hot standing on it? Then he started skating, and I was blown away. He had EVERYTHING. Athleticism, artistry, style, energy, anything I'd ever wanted to see or wished I could do on the ice. I just couldn't wait until the free skate. I prayed so hard that he'd win gold. And when I saw it, it was the short program all over again. He just had it all, and what remains to this day one of my favorite costumes in the history of figure skating to boot. (Yes, I love the R&J2 costume, and it was my phone's wallpaper for a very long time.) EDIT: Ohhhh, I had forgotten about the team event! Yes, I first saw him in the team event and remember being very, very grateful that they'd created it, because that meant I could see him twice! I was very busy between 2014 and 2018, so I didn't watch any other figure skating, and I hadn't skated, myself, in years and years. But I hadn't forgotten about Yuzu! I was looking forward to him most of all, and yet again, I was mesmerized by his skating and prayed so hard for him to win. I started following skating online and looking up more about Yuzu. The more I read about him, the more I understood why his skating is so special: he's beautiful inside and out, and it shows on the ice. I also started skating again. I got back to my former level very, very quickly, and what was the first new move I did? Hydroblading, of course. Also, both of my parents love(d) him, too. He's the second non-American skater that my dad ever rooted for. (The other was Plushenko!) My dad passed away before Pyeongchang, and I like to think he was watching from Heaven. My mom will watch skating when I show her, but Yuzu is the only skater she ever asks to see. I said that I feel slightly sacrilegious saying that he skates like an angel, and she replied, "Why? He is an angel!"