General Yuzuru Chat

[Yuzurella]

  On 7/2/2022 at 6:22 PM, birnasan said:

Continuation of the Yuzu-Javi interview in the FaOI Shizuoka pamphlet, automatically translated with deepL. The first two questions are the same as in the Kobe pamphlet, the rest is new. I have enjoyed this interview very much. 

As always, I don‘t speak Japanese and this is not a proper translation.

 

! Do not repost outside of Planethanyu !

 

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YUZURU HANYU & JAVIER FERNANDEZ

 

 

Fantasy on Ice has not been held for the last two years due to the spread of the new coronavirus. This time, there were already three stages, starting with the Makuhari shows from 27 May, and Shizuoka will be the final venue for the event. The two of them have been thrilling audiences with their wonderful performances at this year's shows. We spoke to Yuzuru Hanyu and Javier Fernandez, who have participated in previous Fantasy shows as main performers and have been inspiring each other to work hard since the summer of 2012, when they became teammates as athletes, about the attraction and difficulties of ice shows.

 

Q: It's been three years since Fantasy on Ice. You have already finished the shows in Makuhari, what was your impression of the start of this show?

 

Hanyu: Fantasy on Ice is a long tour, from the first performance to the last day, but this time, from the very beginning, I could feel the enthusiasm of the audience, to the point where I was like, "Is this the last day already?". So I was happy about that. It wasn't just about my performance or everyone else's, it was more about the feeling of togetherness that only Fantasy on Ice can bring, and I felt that in the connection with the audience.

 

Fernandez (hereafter Javi): I agree with what Yuzuru said, the energy coming from the other skaters and the audience was amazing. Also, I thought there was a lot more excitement in the air than usual, because we haven't had a chance to skate in front of an audience for a long time and we haven't had Fantasy on Ice for a long time. And I think for a lot of skaters, it's also challenging in a way. I hadn't skated like this for almost three years, so it's taken me a while to get back into it and of course I'm tired. But I think it was a good experience and a good comeback.

 

Hanyu: I heard that the corona situation in Spain was very tough and difficult, how was your life, Javi?

 

Javi: The situation in Spain was not good for a long time, so I couldn't skate as much as I wanted to, and we had to do a lot of things to fight infection... I had to deal with many complicated things in my daily life and in my practice sessions, so it was really difficult. But I am very happy and excited that life is gradually returning to normal. I feel like I finally have my life and what I used to do back.

 

Q: Having experienced such a situation, I'm sure you were both really looking forward to Fantasy on Ice for the first time in three years, but I would like to ask you about your thoughts on ice shows. How did you both feel the difference from competitions when you performed in ice shows for the first time, not only in this Fantasy? How have your impressions changed as you have gained experience, and how do you feel this has led to your personal improvement?

 

Hanyu: To be honest, I liked ice shows more than competitions from the beginning, and I was very happy that people would watch me. So when I skated in this spotlight for the first time, my memories of having fun are more intense than my feelings of nervousness.

However, as I gain more and more experience, I realize that I have to give a good performance, or if it's a collaboration, I have to make sure it's perfect. In that sense, I think I don't enjoy it as much as I used to. But that has also led to good performances. I don't skate just for fun and for myself, but I also need to connect with the audience and skate with responsibility for what I want to express. Now I feel that I can skate with a strong sense of responsibility as a skater in an ice show.

 

Q: Are those feelings, techniques and expressions transferable into competitions?

 

Hanyu: Of course they are. But the tension during a competition is quite different from the tension during an ice show. Of course, there are limitations, such as the small size of the rink, but more important is how to communicate to the audience. In a competition, the main thing is communicating to the judges, so there is a big difference. So, it is important for me to convey my feelings in all directions, 360 degrees at the same time. Of course, in the past, I didn't think to that extent (laughs).

 

Javi: I don't remember my first ice show. My first ice show was probably a small show in Spain, because the kids in the skating clubs are still doing small shows now. But to add to what Yuzuru just said, I was really looking forward to it because the show had a different atmosphere from the competition. There are special effects like the lighting, so I think it's great to be able to enjoy that.

However, the lights always flicker in a show, so I had to get used to that and there were many things I had to learn. But I think it's a great experience for all skaters to perform in a show. Everyone wants to be seen by a large audience. We want people from all over the world to see us and fall in love with figure skating.

 

Hanyu: Also, in an ice show, you have to show your uniqueness, something that only you can skate, something that will delight the audience because you are the one who skates it. I think ice shows require a lot of that. I think I have learnt that through ice shows, what do you think, Javi?

 

Javi: I think the best thing about ice shows is that we can be playful and do what we want to do. For example, we can try different things that we wouldn't normally do, such as the style of the music or the program we choose. On top of that, there is no need to do very difficult technical things. We don't have to complicate the steps, we don't have to put in a lot of spins, we can be really open and focus on 'entertaining the audience'.

And then, with the music too, we can choose songs that we want to skate to, or that we think will be really exciting for us to perform. Of course, a show is meant to be for the audience and spectators, but it can also be 'useful for us'.

 

Q: Hanyu, you have said before that you "push yourself very hard in practice" in preparation for such ice shows, but is there a difference in the way you push yourself for the competitions, or is it more mental, like pushing your mind or raising your spirits?

 

Hanyu: This time, for this Fantasy, I have been practising very hard, and I have actually lost about three kilograms of weight, and I think I have gained a lot of fitness. But when I'm practising... if I'm practising for a normal competition, I always do the same pattern, like I said earlier, "I think about how I'm going to present myself to the judges". I focus on the same direction in front of me.

But when I was practicing for this Fantasy, I was also thinking about what it would really look from the back side. Then I thought, "Am I really expressing this properly?", I thought about it. It's obvious that it's expressive when you look at it from the front, but I was thinking about how it would look when you look at it from the back. I gave a lot of thought to whether the silhouette was beautiful or not. In that sense, I think it is necessary for an ice show to practice each and every aspect in detail, so it takes a lot of time.

In addition, of course, it is meaningless if I don't jump well, so I am practising how accurately I can perform my jumps, which I learned at the competitions, while also working on small details, such as jumping from the opposite position.

 

Javi: We were talking about a training program to prepare for shows, weren't we?

 

Hanyu: Yes.

 

Javi: Yuzuru is the type of person who prepares very carefully for both competitions and ice shows (laughs). I'm not like that, but in a show, you are closer to the audience than in a competition, and you perform right in front of them. The good aspect of this is that you can sell your character and yourself to the audience, or rather, they can really connect with you. But the negative aspect is that you are right in front of the audience, so you can see their reactions. If the audience's reaction is not so good, I get very scared (laughs). In a competition or an ice show, I just give it my all, but it's different in that way, so it is both fun and scary, which is something that is unique to ice shows.

 

We have now all FaOI 2022 pamphlet interviews on the Planet, at least as deepL translations.

 

(Again, please don‘t post any Javi negativity as a direct response to my post. Thank you.)

[NEWS]

 

 

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Thank you so much for doing all this work and taking so much of your time and energy to provide us with these translations! You're bringing Yuzu closer to us and helping us to understand and learn more about him.

[Sammie-s]

Anyone know whos streaming the nagoya special today?

[Xiupia]

  On 7/3/2022 at 3:03 AM, Sammie-s said:

Anyone know whos streaming the nagoya special today?

Expand  

This person might be

 

 

 

The Nagoya thread might have more resources

[Wintek]

  On 7/3/2022 at 3:51 AM, Xiupia said:

This person might be

 

 

 

The Nagoya thread might have more resources

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[CiONTUw4A]

 

 

This post has been tagged by yuzuangel as [NEWS].

[ImmortalBeloved]

I found an interesting analogy of Raison in the Demon Slayer Game/Series.  Open to interpretation, it seems like an analogy for the costume and theme for Raison can be found in Demon Slayer, a game Yuzu is said to like. The game/series is about keeping one's integrity while being attacked by evil (corruption in figure skating). Apparently, a demon slayer bite by a demon becomes gradually more purple around the wound. It is here I am thinking about his costume with dark purple on the left side/arm radiating outward (? from Yuzu's wound).

 

Taken from cbr.com: "Towards the end of the Demon Slayer series, some of the most powerful demon slayers started to acquire a demon slayer mark. This mark appears on the body of a powerful demon slayer, and appears to be a tattoo or a birthmark that reflects the breathing style that they use. Once it appears on one demon slayer, the mark inevitably appears on others.”  

 

The mark grants the user increased power, as well as the ability to slow the regeneration of demons. In order to activate it, the user must go through life-threatening conditions, and will inevitably die when they reach the age of 25.  Despite the increased power, it reduces their life span due to the strain on their bodies. Not every demon slayer was able to gain a mark, but they would have greatly benefited from obtaining one during their battles. 

 

Does this sound familiar or what???

 

I even found a picture of a demon slayer with similar purple markings:

 

https://imgur.com/a/MNx7zDy

[Perelandra]

Remember the wheelie bucket that Yuzu was seen using during warm up exercises.

This equipment is designed for transversus abdominis muscle training, the device was originally invented for wheelchair sports training. Yuzu researched this to aid his training following his ankle injury, so that he could optimise training whilst he could not go on ice or jump. It helped him with image training for the axis of jumps and it also aids hamstring warm up, non weight bearing of course. Kikuchi san explains this training method in his book

[Anni]

Also from me a big thank you  @birnasan for you translations and you effort with it.

At yesterday's "Yuzu SkatingParty" have I enjoyed H&L (Helsinki) again very much. I found this clip from the small medal ceremony. 👏

FaOI costume cookies 

[NEWS]

[Yuzurella]

 

Yuzu is the hero of the Olympics!

 

[NEWS]

[Perelandra]

That's so wonderful, that pose, that costume, just wow

Yuzu is hero of skating

[Yuzurella]

 

To be honest, I definitely prefer the cuddly, fluffy plushy bears.

But I have no doubt these bears will be sold out within a short amount of time. And the big one is only available via lottery...

 

[NEWS]

 

[Yuzurella]

 

OMG! Yuzu has really become a part of mainstream pop culture around the world.

 

This is the YouTube video. Yuzu appears at 0:44. The channel focuses on teaching psychology and has over 9 million subscribers.

 

 

[NEWS]

[Yuzu_legend]

🥳🥳🥳💖

[Wintek]

WELCOME TO THE 1st TEST OF VIRTUAL POOH RAIN TO WELCOME THE NEW SEASON!!!!!!

 

Ready for a coordinated effort to support Yuzu??? Read carefully, mark your calendar and share this info with your fellow network of fanyus.

 

We are planning a virtual “Global Pooh Rain” to:

• Show support to Yuzu for this new season, highlighting that we are supporting him from around the world.
• Following the example of Planet Hanyu in the past, we want to test run our coordination for virtual Pooh rains to show support when competitions start.
• ‘Bombard’ social media with positive content focused on Yuzu.
• Make Pooh Rain accessible to fans that won't be able to attend competitions due to different barriers (e.g. money, disability).

 

Post

 

“Fly Yuzu! We support you from around the world [add flag/flags of your country & name of the country]

#LoveYuzuruFromAllOverTheWorld  #YuzuruHanyu  #羽生結弦 

Add your favourite picture of Pooh or Yuzu/Pooh interaction.

 

***Having all the same message makes the statement stronger, but you can use a different message or add your own after the suggested one BUT keep it short so that the picture of Pooh stays visible. It’s important to include the hashtags.

 

When

Thursday, Jul 7 2022. Around 10 PM (Japan time)

Check the time in your city

 

You can check an example of how it would look like here

 

Please contact @Sun_Rise and me if you have any questions. We are in very different time zones so we have good coverage throughout the day

 

Let it rain!!!!!! Let's cover social media with love & support for Yuzu 

----

Tagging those who where curious about this initiative & give it a like to the posts with the seed of the idea: @LiaRy@Anni@Anabel@Yuzuwinnie@Pammi@ImmortalBeloved@Yuzurella@Sammie-s@littleorange
 

[littleorange]

 
It seems to me that Yuzuru notices and takes the best from his senpais. I was looking for another video, but I came across this. Moment at 2:10. 
I'm not talking about copying ideas, I'm talking about observation and the ability to analyze. It's delight!