Ulrinis

Somehow my reply got lost: Same here. For me it's heartbreaking and healing at the same time. Although I have watched GIFT several times now, I can't look away even for a moment because every time I discover new meanings that I missed last time. So now after watching the interview we know that all these wise words had welled up in his heart and head and waited to be conveyed to us. He had to go through that dark tunnel alone. IMO it's rare that somebody says: I think most people know such situations - although it's true! When I'm in a desperate situation, I often think I'm the only one and feel isolated but Yuzu is right: We are surrounded by people who experience the same feelings. Sometimes it already helps to be aware of this. I hope many more people who haven't known him so far will watch and receive new strength.

This is so great, I‘m watching GIFT with German subtitles! Can’t believe it’s true because yesterday there was nothing when I searched for it. Imagine how many new fans Yuzu will get from worldwide streaming on Disney + due to people randomly stumbling over GIFT! I only hope it will be available for some time since I just can’t get enough … 🎉🙏🏻🎁🇩🇪

Agree. Five years ago he changed my family's life, gave a new meaning to it. Last year I thought this new meaning would be lost due to Yuzu going pro. However, instead of disappointing me he has remained a strong anchor during hard times. An anchor I thought I wouldn't have. I thought he couldn't be that strong but he manages to lift my spirits when I least expect it. And I still don't know how he does it. And I think this must be such a burden for him to always be there for us and give us what we need.

Couldn’t agree more. I didn’t know what to expect and had been worried a bit that this venue might turn out unsuitable for figure skating. I couldn’t watch live since suddenly my daughter had a health problem and needed to stay in hospital. So after a night of big fears and almost no sleep, her dad and I visited her on Sunday, sat on her bed and watched the show on her laptop. Apart from everything you said to describe it, dear @Geo1, for us it was also healing, soothing, feeling taken care of, feeling embraced. In the middle of all worries, doubts, bad company, anxiety, stress, frustration, exhaustion - an island of pure wisdom, beauty, sincerity. It was exactly what we needed and although we rewatched the whole show several times, I still couldn’t grasp every detail to memorise it as I would love to. I’m so grateful for this GIFT and looking forward to getting a glimpse of Notte Stellata hopefully next weekend. (And by the way, my daughter is well and home again. 😊)

Thank you! ☺️

Hi everyone, hope you are enjoying Yuzu’s GIFT. Unfortunately, unexpectedly, I had to take my daughter to the hospital yesterday (where she still is I’m eagerly waiting for good news). Therefore I finished buying the ticket only just, to watch the show later when she’s back home. However, I tried to start watching and it says: “Currently Ice Resurfacing “ without letting me into the livestream. Is that normal?

It’s amazing how much Yuzu has obviously been listening to his fans all the time, even when not communicating openly. He has brought many of us to tears when he announced projects we had hoped for. He really deserves this price for public relations.

Another advantage of several lottery stages: People can try several times and hope to be lucky next time. (Sorry if this has already been said, I’ve been away for a while, catching up the last dozens of pages now.) So disappointment could be minimised a bit, excitement among applicants staying at a high level for quite some time. And based on the number of applications the organisers considered adding more seats. A well thought out strategy, very Yuzu-like 😊.

Somehow my reply to@Geo1got lost. I was already extremely impressed by the 2017/18 stories but the memory of meeting Yuzu just left me speechless. Also the kindness of Ghislain ... It must have been difficult to keep this wonderful memory secret all the time.

Agree. When life gets tough for any of my family members, we always take Yuzu as an example for dealing with tough situations and this really helps.

So wise again. Sets many of us considering our own decisions again, right? My decision to follow him in 2018 and step into the unfamiliar grounds of internet, social media, ticket fight and tight travel schedules for my family has been quite costly but by no means would I ever regret this decision. Looking back, these adventures were the absolute highlights in our lives during the last quad. 😊

The 2018 costume reveal was something special for me, too: It was my first time ever trying out a livestream link (I hadn’t been active on the internet at all, never watched YouTube videos etc. before discovering Yuzu at PC Olympics). All I could say was “Wow...!“

Wow, so many impressive stories! Yes, life as a fanyu brings unexpected situations and opportunities, once-in-a-lifetime encounters, new friends and so much to tell one’s grandchildren. Thank you for sharing! 😊

Yes, I remember watching this. However, I didn’t know it represented all of his winnings.

Thanks for the background facts. I guess the number of people aware of this is still too small ...

Same here!

Although I had read that Yuzu had donated much after winning each OGM, this almost leaves me speechless. How do other athletes and Olympic champions deal with this question? Is it common to donate ALL? Does this differ from country to country?

How did you manage to get this message shown in English? On my IPhone the members-only messages appear only in Japanese. BTW joining for me was much easier than expected. My credit card payment details were already in place. Probably due to my other channel membership which has been running for some time now. Although I had not used my phone for setting it up back then. And it said 9,99 € without any extra cost.

This is what I am wondering about, too. A livestream that would remain available for members - I saw such things in my other YouTube membership. If we could have this for PROLOGUE I’d be in heaven.

Yuzu is doing a great job as an ambassador of Japanese culture and music. After rewatching the video yesterday, my daughter said she had had “Change” in her head all day. Maybe the song will make it to her personal play list. (Needless to say that Yuzu had turned us into X Japan fans after his co-operation with ToshI.) And “Dreamy Aspiration” shows he knows what he means to us ...

Same here. This video came at the right time for me. We are so blessed to have Yuzu to brighten up our lives. How can we expect to deserve this - a human being who has found out he brings so much joy and peace to thousands of people and therefore keeps providing it. We can’t expect him to dedicate his life to his fans and sometimes I feel guilty but it’s like an anchor, a therapy or medicine, so I can’t let go. Like some others already said: I’m not going anywhere!

Agree - the western music examples you picked have become masterpieces with Yuzu's skating. I'm not against Yuzu using western music. For me, what makes the difference is that we attribute these pieces to Yuzu since they have not become typical figure skating music.

Exactly! I also love how he didn't bother to please the judges with his music choice when he was still competing. And now there is no need for it at all anyway. There is so much beautiful Japanese music of different genres worth being heard overseas and Yuzu has already contributed to spreading it several times before. Like he also reminded us in his latest video.

Unpopular opinion maybe: I belong to those who would NOT recommend tango or Queen to Yuzu. Not exactly because it's not my cup of tea and I've heard some songs too many times in figure skating competitions. The reason for me is that Yuzu is unique and so is his music choice. Of course he had used famous melodies when he was younger and one may argue that even after his second OGM he had skated to Origin and Otonal which had been used by other skaters before. In this case it was on purpose as both were tribute programs. However, even Rondo, which was popular among figure skaters already, was not used by Yuzu in its original form but he asked a pianist he had co-operated with to play it especially for him, to arrange it to express his personal feelings. I'm a big fan of Yuzu skating to Japanese music. We've seen that Seimei and Ten to Chi have found their ways into the ears and hearts of overseas fans easily. I trust him to chose something very special for his new program(s).

Now that more than half a year has passed I am even more amazed at what Yuzu achieved in Beijing. The mere fact that a third consecutive OGM was within his reach is absolutely overwhelming. Even if we ignore the lowballing, injures and bad luck. His beautiful 4A which he bravely attempted knowing it would cost him the podium was watched by the world - and broken down to single shots it can still be examined. As for all the circumstances he had to fight with during his competitive career - you couldn’t make this up and it will stay in people’s minds. And the good thing is: The best is yet to come! Maybe it’s different in other sports but so far I don’t know any athletes who developed further after ending their competitive career. I couldn’t be prouder of Yuzu and I’m really looking forward to seeing him skate again. 💪👏