General Yuzuru Chat

[SaluYuzu]

14 hours ago, rockstaryuzu said:

Unless fanyus were the ones running JSF and the ISU, there is literally no way we could have possibly protected him from them. The best we can hope to do is protect him from other overstepping fans and even that's questionable.  Instead of feeling guilty, just trust and support him and be there for him if things go sour. 

Spoiler

For years Yuzu was robbed of points and medals in broad daylight right in front of worldwide fans' eyes. I'm only a post BJ fan but have learned there were strong voices among Fanyu community at the time saying Yuzu didn't mind and better not to rock the system to make things even worse for him. The fact of the matter was things were already rotten bad. In retrospect, I wish the audiences had joined forces in chanting loudly "judges not fair" at '19 GPF medal ceremony, so loudly that the national anthem of a certain country could be drowned -- and engage in similar actions at other ISU events -- to let him know at least his fans saw the injustice and were not happy about it. Granted that it would unlikely bring any good consciences to those running ISU/JSF or change their behaviors, at least it would have lent more moral support to Yuzu. We didn't need to be at the helm of JSF/ISU to help protect him.    

 

[Mor2904]

Hace 14 horas, Sombreuil said:

In the past there was a tendency among sections of the fandom to infantilise him - I’m thinking of all those people pre Planet who were so certain that leaving lovely Nanami Abe to go to Toronto was a dreadful mistake, that Parisan was a horrible programme, that he should stay in his comfort zone in Japan etc etc.  Hopefully we’ve all moved past that sort of attitude.  We ought to know by now that he knows what he’s doing.
  We all hate it when bad things happen to him - until the series of greatest hits practices from Beijing came through I couldn’t bear to watch footage from those games.  But he’s much braver and more resilient than we are.  If he’s doing SOI he’s got his reasons.  Maybe he’s assessing who he might be able to use/work with in his own projects.  Maybe it’s a nice useful big fat cheque that can cover certain expenses.  It’s going to be interesting to compare audience numbers with the other SOI stops.

As for Malinin I’m sure he will be his usual charming self.  He’s always been very generous and nice to those younger than him, so unless M is objectionable, which I haven’t seen any evidence of, he’ll probably treat him for example as he’s treated the Russian girls in the past.  It’s one of his most admirable traits - and a stark contrast to the way seniors treated him in the past.

 

Just read about @Muffinator- so very sorry to hear it.

I agree with you. 
Yuzu looks like a smart, level-headed person. I trust him and I think he knows what he’s doing.

I just hope he’s healthy enough.

[gapil27]

3 hours ago, ccy said:

 

30 March - 9 April. They only rest on 2nd April. No break between Oshu and Yokohama. I don't know which geniuses arrange this crazy schedule but I do hope all skaters are safe and healthy. 

ALL OF THEM?!!! I honestly thought one show per stops 

[rockstaryuzu]

2 hours ago, SaluYuzu said:

  Hide contents

For years Yuzu was robbed of points and medals in broad daylight right in front of worldwide fans' eyes. I'm only a post BJ fan but have learned there were strong voices among Fanyu community at the time saying Yuzu didn't mind and better not to rock the system to make things even worse for him. The fact of the matter was things were already rotten bad. In retrospect, I wish the audiences had joined forces in chanting loudly "judges not fair" at '19 GPF medal ceremony, so loudly that the national anthem of a certain country could be drowned -- and engage in similar actions at other ISU events -- to let him know at least his fans saw the injustice and were not happy about it. Granted that it would unlikely bring any good consciences to those running ISU/JSF or change their behaviors, at least it would have lent more moral support to Yuzu. We didn't need to be at the helm of JSF/ISU to help protect him.    

 

Spoiler

I respect that those are your feelings. I have been watching figure skating since the late 1970s and am firmly convinced that had the fans done something like that, Yuzu would have been punished for it by the judges with even more unfair scoring at his next competition. Because Yuzu's not the first skater this garbage has happened to, and he definitely won't be the last. And it takes a blatant scandal, like what happened at the 2002 Winter Olympics, for anything to change, and even then the change is temporary and strongly resisted. (IJS, anyone?) The one thing that remains consistent is that fan opinions about the sport and/or skaters are routinely ignored by the ISU. Vocal fans are seen as a nuissance. Skaters with vocal fans can find themselves also treated like nuissances. So shouting down results or another nation's anthem at a GPF would have, in the end, caused Yuzu harm. 

 

Yuzu knows we know his scores were unfair. He's made comments in interviews at times that make it clear he reads what fans say about him online. He knows infinitely well, how much fans care. That still does not give any of us the right to second-guess his choices or rain on his parade.  If he is doing SOI, then our job is to support him skating at SOI. Simple as that. 

 

 

[SaluYuzu]

1 hour ago, rockstaryuzu said:

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I respect that those are your feelings. I have been watching figure skating since the late 1970s and am firmly convinced that had the fans done something like that, Yuzu would have been punished for it by the judges with even more unfair scoring at his next competition. Because Yuzu's not the first skater this garbage has happened to, and he definitely won't be the last. And it takes a blatant scandal, like what happened at the 2002 Winter Olympics, for anything to change, and even then the change is temporary and strongly resisted. (IJS, anyone?) The one thing that remains consistent is that fan opinions about the sport and/or skaters are routinely ignored by the ISU. Vocal fans are seen as a nuissance. Skaters with vocal fans can find themselves also treated like nuissances. So shouting down results or another nation's anthem at a GPF would have, in the end, caused Yuzu harm. 

 

Yuzu knows we know his scores were unfair. He's made comments in interviews at times that make it clear he reads what fans say about him online. He knows infinitely well, how much fans care. That still does not give any of us the right to second-guess his choices or rain on his parade.  If he is doing SOI, then our job is to support him skating at SOI. Simple as that. 

 

 

Not at all second guessing his decision — the concern, again, is that may not be his decision or a decision made out of no option. Just to make myself clear. 
 

I personally still believe fans were not organized AND vocal enough in the past to amount to any meaningful impact. 

[Anni]

After all the discussions about SOI let's look forward to GIFT together now. Only a few days, my excitement is rising, but the anticipation is huge, to see Yuzu skating again soon.

 

 

Here is a fan teaser for GIFT with English commment above the video (link see post below)

 

[NEWS]

 

 

 

[Anni]

The trailer of the official movie "Beijing 2022" has been released. Yuzu is the only foreign athlete (he appears at 0:38 in this clip).

 

More
https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202302/04/WS63de02e8a31057c47ebacec6.html

[NEWS]

[rockstaryuzu]

4 hours ago, SaluYuzu said:

Not at all second guessing his decision — the concern, again, is that may not be his decision or a decision made out of no option. Just to make myself clear. 

Yes, and I'm just not seeing where that concern is coming from. To my knowledge, other than the pandemic itself leading to limited opportunities at the time, there is no entity that would have or could have forced him to sign a contract for any ice shows. 

 

As to your second point, see my previous post re: the nature of sport. 

[SaluYuzu]

58 minutes ago, rockstaryuzu said:

Yes, and I'm just not seeing where that concern is coming from. To my knowledge, other than the pandemic itself leading to limited opportunities at the time, there is no entity that would have or could have forced him to sign a contract for any ice shows. 

 

As to your second point, see my previous post re: the nature of sport. 

Spoiler

I wish I could be as sanguine about this world as you but just can't. Yuzu's situation is no less than one single individual challenging an entire establishment and industry with their numerous interest groups behind. Regardless of how genius a mind he has or his 28 years of age should be considered mature or tender, it is a very daunting and perilous task and certain things are bound to work beyond his control. With Prologue, GIFT and NS, he has completely overshadowed the rest in his field. Certain individuals and organizations are bound to hate it and may pull all strings to sabotage his professional activities and personal wellbeing. That's why I'm concerned that participation in SOI may be due to some pressure from high up and all around that he is not in a position to fight. This is my doomsday scenario which I by no means wish true. 

 

At the end of the day, we are all speculating. You have your best case scenario and I happen to have the opposite. This is a public forum and we are all entitled to share our well-intended views. Just because someone's view is different from yours doesn't mean you should pass judgement by calling them second-guessing. If anyone can prove with solid evidence SOI is a decision made out of Yuzu's own volition, then great I'll be happy for him. Has that evidence surfaced yet? 

 

Regarding the second point, note that Yuzu's case is a very unique one. Can you name another skater -- even dating back to the 70's -- who has amassed the type of global and fervent fanbase as Yuzu? I can't and I don't think there is any. So your historical references of other skaters may not be relevant here. How do you know for sure organized and vocal actions of such a mass-scaled fan body would not have brought about some positive results? For Yuzu, getting silver was already like death so how much worse could it be for him had the fans really spoken out for him? In the end, he was still shoveled to an early exit with all this silence and effort not to rock the system. 

 

[gapil27]

13 hours ago, SaluYuzu said:

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With everything that has been said about SOI, I still find it very distasteful and unpleasant -- but that's my problem and not Yuzu's or other fans' for sure. My biggest concern, again, is that the contract was signed under duress and he actually didn't have a choice -- knowing how dirty and nasty the corporate world and FS can be. The fact of the matter is, I don't believe anyone can be completely free in this world. Pray that my worries are absolutely unnecessary. The only thing I'm looking forward to is those three shows in which Yuzu participates will for sure significantly outsell the other shows on the tour.  

 

The only acceptable duress he’s under is where they keep piling cash on the table while Yuzu sweats profusely thinking to sign the contract or not 

[SaluYuzu]

1 minute ago, gapil27 said:

The only acceptable duress he’s under is where they keep piling cash on the table while Yuzu sweats profusely thinking to sign the contract or not 

Spoiler

I personally think THEY can do many nastier things than handing him cash if THEY want.

 

[river]

Spoiler

Coming out of forum semi-retirement to say...

 

I popped on to celebrate the internationally available streaming of Gift and Yuzuru booking more show appearances and there are people who are upset? I can't imagine thinking during all the injuries we've been through where we thought we might never see him again, or the great media silence of 2020, that we ever would have been upset about seeing Yuzuru skating, and by all appearances, thriving.

 

He's a 28-year-old man who is the biggest name in figure skating (even bigger than skating itself). He has a thriving professional career. He can take care of himself. He's not under JSF/ISU's thumb any more. Anyone who wants their ice show to succeed needs Yuzu far more than he needs them. I'm sure he has his reasons he's doing SOI, but there's no reason to think it's likely anything sinister.

 

...all that said. We have GIFT this week! Let's enjoy watching Yuzu make history, again.

[Xiupia]

I think we as fans should mind the boundaries of our relationship with our idol, Yuzu, and behave within fandom spaces knowing that we cannot project our own insecurities onto someone’s life. 
 

Our knowledge is absolutely limited and we have a tendency to feed into our own negativities because we feel so strongly about things we can’t know about. 
Taking a step back and hold speculation is good in cases like this. 
 

I’m looking forward to see Yuzu’s appearance in SOI, I had the feeling he would attempt to start exercising some of his personal influence in these shows now that he will not be judged by them. He loves fs too much. 
My only worry is potential burn out for him, because that’s a hectic schedule, for any olympic athlete at his or her peak - I want Yuzu to continue skating for longer. 
 

Anyway, this will be my only commentary about SOI. 
 

Happy show for anyone catching GIFT live!
 

 

[SaluYuzu]

Agreed we should all take a step back and just enjoy what we have at the moment. Enough has been said and speculated about insignificant SOI while GIFT is looming large and I'm literally packing for it! 

[rockstaryuzu]

Spoiler

1 hour ago, SaluYuzu said:

Certain individuals and organizations are bound to hate it and may pull all strings to sabotage his professional activities and personal wellbeing.

...and I'm just saying that there is no one who has that kind of power over him now. The JSF and the ISU were the only organizations that might have had, but only while he was competing. 

 

And Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kratz, the ice-dance team, were huge fan favorites who always got deliberately underscored by the judges. The more fans cheered for them, the lower the scores went - even though they were innovative, creative, and demonstrably better than the rest of the field. Likewise, Isabel and Paul Duchesnay, a decade before. The ISU is in RusFed's pocket, is corrupt, always has been, will not ever change. The only 'organized fan campaign' that would change anything is for people to stop watching and stop participating, entirely. No more skating, full stop. Nothing else would have an effect.