General Yuzuru Chat

[Yuzu_legend]

 

Everyone please say thank you to Max! 

To all our Italian native speaker, please feel free to correct the below (under spoiler because long but soo beautiful written !) google translation! 

 

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The last established world record of Yuzuru HANYU represents an important opportunity to propose in Italian a series of thoughts in random order published in magazines from other countries.
The video proves to be a perfect cross-section of the character. It starts with the champion who breaks a record and ends with a man of great humility who works to clean up the ice because the others will have to skate later.
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"On several occasions I have been asked to try to compare Yuzuru Hanyu with other skaters from the past and present, but I have always found myself in enormous embarrassment in responding.
I assume that what happened before 1984 I can't judge. So, my memories begin with the Sarajevo Olympics in 1984 and the controversial outcome of the challenge between Brian Orser, who was the moral winner, and Scott Hamilton, who won the race on the field.
Given this premise, it is not my intention to disrespect all the skaters who have taken turns on the ice and, in particular, the many champions that we have admired in almost forty years of history, but I remain firmly convinced that no one can be compared to Yuzuru Hanyu.
Talent, passion, love for his discipline, stubbornness are just some of the many peculiarities of this unrivaled champion, but I consider them the most important and the first that come to mind when I think of him and his path.
Obviously, talent is stuff for a select few, it is given to you by mother nature, but it is not enough to win. The talent, as if it were a small seedling, must be watered continuously so that it can flourish more and more luxuriantly. It feeds not only on training, but also and above all on the passion that makes you love your sport by pushing you to put it before everything and everyone. Yuzuru Hanyu, skater with an immeasurable talent, has always been characterized by an immense passion for skating that has led him to study silently to know every facet of the discipline starting from the results of the past up to get to any technical aspect passing through each regulatory fold. This study, despite the many successes, has never ended and you can be sure that if you ever ask him to talk to you about what is happening in the junior category at any latitude he would be able to hold a conference of days and days.
Class, talent and passion can grow and transform a promising athlete into a champion when they are accompanied by the obstinacy that allows you to go beyond any obstacle, but who has seen Yuzuru Hanyu at work since he was little more than a child knows well that his stubbornness and decision have never been lacking. From the outside it could have seemed delicate, indeed it was, but in reality it was always harder than a rock.
All these qualities listed in random order are part of Yuzuru Hanyu's DNA, best express his being and make it clear why he will always be accompanied by a magical aura.
In other sports, he would be called a "game-changer", the one who changed the course of history and made his discipline evolve over time. A sort of essential point of reference for all young athletes, who grew up trying to emulate it. Not surprisingly, on the day of his retirement from competitions, it will be necessary to distinguish between skating before Hanyu's career, skating during Hanyu's career and skating after Hanyu's abandonment.
To find something similar in other sports, you need to bother iconic figures like Michael Jordan in basketball. In fact, just as the young basketball players imitate Jordan's movements and his arrest and shooting, the skating apprentices try to re-propose every movement of Hanyu and those of a slightly higher level dream of performing the jump elements borrowing his inputs not to mention the transition steps.
Yuzuru Hanyu will go down in history as the highest ever expression of a complete, multifaceted skater, the only one capable of combining technical omnipotence with artistic excellence. An athlete who has always had the ability to question himself and never feel satisfied because as soon as he reaches a goal, his head has always been projected on how and when to go further. A fulfillment which however never concerned the result itself, but the difficulty of what had to be achieved on ice. Precisely in this sense, he has never set limits, working since he was a child to always add something more to his technical background, but without ever sacrificing the artistic part, a fact that in his concept of skating would represent a sacrilege. In his belief, there is no technical difficulty without an artistic component and there is no artistic component without a noteworthy technical gesture, which does not necessarily have to be called a jump with four rotations.

On several occasions, he could have sat down and contented himself, but he never did so by setting a series of objectives, often even difficult ones, and trying to raise the bar more and more.
This continuous search for extreme and technical evolution has been the cause of serious injuries, from which, however, like a phoenix rising from its ashes, it has always been able to recover, managing to get back on track even stronger and without ever abandoning the goals he had set before hurting himself. In essence, it was his great stubbornness that enabled him to defeat the pain and go beyond any challenge.
The story speaks unequivocally. We started with the two triple axels in the second half of the music, then it was the turn of the programs with two quadruple and eight triple jumps, the quadruples then became three, followed by four and nobody knows how far he will want to go and when he will feel truly satisfied. Probably, it will never be before making the coveted axel quadruple in the race.
It is true that other athletes have also managed to complete four or more quadruples in a program, but the difference compared to Hanyu consists in how these elements were performed and inserted within the choreography. A jump for Hanyu does not consist of a simple run-up, a number of rotations and a landing, there is much more before and after. By observing it, you perceive a sort of respect and veneration for each element that has always pushed it to enhance any leap making it as complicated as possible. In this regard, he never lacked the imagination, thanks to which he offered us an infinite series of elements of not easy execution preceded by entrances of rare difficulty, often not conceivable for other human beings, or of jumps performed without any warning and taken from nothing without apparent effort. Just, The effortless term that is so much talked about these times has never been missing in Hanyu's skating, indeed he is its main expression, as demonstrated by every jump starting from the triple axel.
Every time I have had the good fortune to admire it, what has struck me most is the attention to detail, which is often not told because the spectacular jump is more news, but which represents another reason for its greatness. The use and movement of the head, arms, hands, fingers, wrists, but also neck and back, are studied in every detail, even if honestly everything is now natural to him. Each part of the body moves in synchrony and in function of the music and, in particular, the elongated line of the arms represents something almost indescribable, worthy of any first dancer in the world, who, in turn, would certainly admire the harmony of the locations and purity of lines. All this is simply amazing for a skater and allows you to not wrongly bother subjects of the caliber of Ivan Vasiliev, Vladislav Lantratov or Daniil Simkin, undisputed excellence in the dance scene.
I remain firmly convinced that the question "what is figure skating?" there could never be an answer that does not contemplate Yuzuru Hanyu, simply an absolute champion and an invaluable patrimony for the discipline even though someone has not yet mysteriously understood it ".
Massimiliano Ambesi

 

[PoohandYuzu]

How are you all?  I have been quiet as I keep watching Yuzu’s documentaries, programs etc all over again, days and nights, while staying home most of time.  Not sure if it was shared but the following interview seemed to be one I missed before - it is very much relevant to the recent discussions about Yuzu’s food likes/dislikes, Sendai rink and his love /time spent there, and Max’s comments about his talents and determination etc etc.  Yuzu was already called the Prince on Ice and the future Olympian then

 

 

 

Actually I wont be surprised if it was revealed one day that Yuzu had actually bought the Sendai rink (or become one of owners), had his private living and bedroom there and skating alone in the middle of nights now, lol. 

 

 

Yuzu, adding to the request list if you are lurking:  you said okay to open Yuzuzu Hanyu museum should you become that famous in the future.  Can you please realise this soon given you have been Extra Famous and achieved so much already!  

 

Plus you need a storage place anyway!  Do want to see all your costumes, boots, handwritings, books, videos... in one place... More than happy to change my annual visits to Sendai then...

[FlyingCamel]

Haha I’m watching all of Yuzu’s programmes and interviews over and over again too... trying to get inspired by his spirit a little and become more productive in my college work and off-ice training! He’s such a role model 🥰

 

And OMG Max is really the biggest Fanyu ever, alongside Nobu and TAT 😂

 

Somehow TAT saying hi to Yuzu via instagram struck me as kinda odd... does he have a secret insta or something? If not why would she do that haha

 

and if this hasnt been posted already, Shibsibs shared Yuzu content too!

 

 

[yuzuchara]

  On 4/4/2020 at 7:44 PM, Geo1 said:

 

Yuzu would be with his family in Sendai.

 

Ice Rink Sendai is going to be closed to the public for two weeks from April 4 to April 19. Whether it opens again for the public on April 20 will be reconsidered at that time depending on the circumstances.

 

Ice skating classes will not be affected by the public closure from April 4 to April 19.

 

Given his stature and what he has done for Ice Rink Sendai, I would think that private arrangements would be made for Yuzu to practice on his own.

 

Yuzu will make sure that Ice Rink Sendai remains financially viable.

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Thank God. Talking about ice rink's financial, he just donated another 2,1mio yen for ice rink sendai in march 😆

[peach-blossom]

  On 4/3/2020 at 2:25 PM, Henni147 said:

What can you do, if you are forced to stay at home and have no WLAN/internet for nearly a week.

Well, I took the time to see what I've stored on my harddrive since 2016...  

 

This inspired me to edit this little (!) +22 minutes long clip of Yuzu's senior encore programs and costume swaps!

PS: Sorry for the unusually poor video quality. Originally I recorded it in 1080p, but there was not enough storage on my GDrive, so I had to convert it to 720p, but I hope, it's enjoyable nevertheless.

There are some real beauties in this collection and a VERY special bonus round at the end. I think, you will love it 

 

And now it's your turn:

1. Which encore performance from Yuzu is your absolute favorite?
2. Which costume swap is your favorite?
3. Which encore programs or costume swaps do you wish Yuzu to do in the future?

 

 

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Thanks for making this! I especially loved PW in etude, the contrast between the peppy modern music and the elegant costume was just 👌

 

I found a documentary of the 2013-14 season on youtube, does anyone have an eng sub version? Although I must confess that I still watched the whole 25 min video even without subs...

 

[Fay]

If anyone watches Sochi Men Free Program Replay, I threw up a thread to comment on the event. 

 

[monchan]

  On 4/5/2020 at 7:38 AM, peach-blossom said:

Thanks for making this! I especially loved PW in etude, the contrast between the peppy modern music and the elegant costume was just 👌

 

I found a documentary of the 2013-14 season on youtube, does anyone have an eng sub version? Although I must confess that I still watched the whole 25 min video even without subs...

 

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Engsub

 

Thread of Compilation of engsub documentaries/interviews overtime:

 

[Cynthia]

  On 4/4/2020 at 7:44 PM, Geo1 said:

 

Yuzu would be with his family in Sendai.

 

Ice Rink Sendai is going to be closed to the public for two weeks from April 4 to April 19. Whether it opens again for the public on April 20 will be reconsidered at that time depending on the circumstances.

 

Ice skating classes will not be affected by the public closure from April 4 to April 19.

 

Given his stature and what he has done for Ice Rink Sendai, I would think that private arrangements would be made for Yuzu to practice on his own.

 

Yuzu will make sure that Ice Rink Sendai remains financially viable.

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Could you all just clarify with me here if he has actually GONE to Japan? I am just getting mixed up here. Haven't been up to date with Yuzuru Hanyu in the past couple of weeks.

 

[Geo1]

  On 4/5/2020 at 4:50 PM, Cynthia said:

Could you all just clarify with me here if he has actually GONE to Japan? I am just getting mixed up here. Haven't been up to date with Yuzuru Hanyu in the past couple of weeks.

 

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Yuzu has returned to Japan.

[Cynthia]

  On 4/5/2020 at 5:38 PM, Geo1 said:

 

Yuzu has returned to Japan.

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Do you know when he has returned to Japan? How did you know about that?

[Henni147]

  On 4/4/2020 at 3:36 AM, amylance1215 said:

Omg where has this been all this time?!!! I was making crepes but had to stop to watch this!! Oh my heart... 

@Henni147 Here's another one from CiONTU if you ever feel like rounding out the collection of costume swap encores 

And thank you for always making such quality Yuzu videos 

 

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Initially I wanted to add all performances from CiONTU (also From Russia With Love, Mission Impossible and Sing, Sing, Sing), but then I realized that including all his junior encores would have expanded the video by +8 minutes and that would have killed my editor  

 

@sweetwater Thanks for the other Lotte footage. I didn't know that before. It has a smell of... Seimei? 

[Geo1]

  On 4/5/2020 at 5:47 PM, Cynthia said:

Do you know when he has returned to Japan? How did you know about that?

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Yuzu and his mother returned to Japan shortly after the closure of the Cricket Club.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Otm4RusESNU

 

[Cynthia]

  On 4/5/2020 at 8:56 PM, Geo1 said:

 

Yuzu and his mother returned to Japan shortly after the closure of the Cricket Club.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Otm4RusESNU

 

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Thank you for answering my question (although I don't know WHY that link was included). Simply put, I have been out of the loop for so long, so I just needed to get up to date about Yuzuru nothing else.

[FlyingCamel]

Seeing videos of skaters using inline skates/rollerblades I wonder if Yuzu will do the same? Saw the IG posts of Trusova and Donovan using them haha

[TallyT]

  On 4/6/2020 at 4:27 AM, FlyingCamel said:

Seeing videos of skaters using inline skates/rollerblades I wonder if Yuzu will do the same? Saw the IG posts of Trusova and Donovan using them haha

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Though being a sensible (well, sometimes) lad, I hope he won't be as blatantly stupid as Trusova and put up video while breaking quarantine/social isolation...