General Yuzuru Chat

[micaelis]

In regard to Yuzu's thesis we can probably hope to see it in English translation sometime soon, that is, if Yuzu wants it to be published in an international scientific journal.  Why do I say translation is probably on its way?  It's that English is the required language for international scientific writing (Centuries ago it was Latin).  The reason?  Basically beyond those who are native English speakers English is the most widespread second language.  It has become the universal language for international commerce and increasingly it is the universal language for academic discourse.  I'm sure Yuzu would like his thesis to be available to non-Japanese so that's the reason I'm saying an English version should be forthcoming.

 

As for its possible dangers to the ISU and Yuzu's long-term plans, well, I think we got a sample of that with the recent Stars on Ice.  I have a strong feeling that Yuzu is one of those who was central in getting this year's show organized.  The lighting was more elaborate and the length of his solo indicates that he was seeking to alter the nature of ice shows, at least in comparison to the canceled Fantasy on Ice, which essentially is a collection of skaters doing their gala programs.  I think Yuzu is planning to produce ice shows that have internal cohesion and exploit possibilities in skating that go beyond what is seen in international competition today.

 

Ultimately I can see Yuzu, along with other prominent skaters both past and present, spearheading the formation of a new figure skater's union to stand against the ISU and its blatant manipulations.  I'm reminded of what happened in the early days of Hollywood when a number of leading performers in film, protesting against the practices of many of the studios, broke away and formed their own studio, called United Artists.  They had the high profiles that made it possible.  If Yuzu were to gather about him a number of other prominent skaters to form a skating union I think it could work.  He has the ability to visualize far into the future, as we saw when well before he even began to skate intensively in competition, Yuzu declared that he was going after TWO Olympic golds.  He did just that, as we all well know.

 

I know this might seem to be mere fantasizing but we must remember that one of the reasons Yuzu is what he is is because he has the ability to think outside the box.  That ability we see in practice right now when we look at Yuzu's apparent priorities being the attainment of the holy 4A rather than the winning of a third Olympic gold.  That very attitude itself must frighten the ISU because it essentially says he doesn't need competitions around which to structure his career.  Yuzu is not interested in winning these days, he's just interested in skating.

[Yuzurella]

Happy Birthday, Planet Hanyu! 

 

I'm so glad that I found and joined this great forum. It's been an absolute blast and pleasure to be here on this wonderful planet and share our love and admiration for everything Yuzu with so many kind and supportive people.

 

By the way, another thing to celebrate: Yuzu's LMEY Sportschau video has just passed 1,3 million views!

[sallycinnamon]

Thank you to all satellites for sticking with the Planet for so many years.  When the Planet was created four years ago today, the Olympic season was upon us and now the next Olympic Games are coming up in a few months -  time is flying by so quickly. Hopefully we will all be able to support Yuzu and cheer for him together in the next season as well. Stay safe and healthy everyone! 

[Umebachi]

16 minutes ago, sallycinnamon said:

Thank you to all satellites for sticking with the Planet for so many years.  When the Planet was created four years ago today, the Olympic season was upon us and now the next Olympic Games are coming up in a few months -  time is flying by so quickly. Hopefully we will all be able to support Yuzu and cheer for him together in the next season as well. Stay safe and healthy everyone! 

 

Thank you to Planet Hanyu admins for creating the platform in the crazy aftermath of Worlds 2017 which was instigated by the unfair scoring discussion.  Now, four years on, we are once again discussing unfair scoring and preparing for pre-Olympic year, but what a difference a quad cycle makes!  We now have a serious, research article addressing the topic of judging and a star skater who is no longer tied down to the Olympics title but is looking ahead to a brighter future.  Congratulations and ありがとうございます!!　

 

 

 

2 hours ago, micaelis said:

In regard to Yuzu's thesis we can probably hope to see it in English translation sometime soon, that is, if Yuzu wants it to be published in an international scientific journal.  Why do I say translation is probably on its way?  It's that English is the required language for international scientific writing (Centuries ago it was Latin).  The reason?  Basically beyond those who are native English speakers English is the most widespread second language.  It has become the universal language for international commerce and increasingly it is the universal language for academic discourse.  I'm sure Yuzu would like his thesis to be available to non-Japanese so that's the reason I'm saying an English version should be forthcoming.

 

As for its possible dangers to the ISU and Yuzu's long-term plans, well, I think we got a sample of that with the recent Stars on Ice.  I have a strong feeling that Yuzu is one of those who was central in getting this year's show organized.  The lighting was more elaborate and the length of his solo indicates that he was seeking to alter the nature of ice shows, at least in comparison to the canceled Fantasy on Ice, which essentially is a collection of skaters doing their gala programs.  I think Yuzu is planning to produce ice shows that have internal cohesion and exploit possibilities in skating that go beyond what is seen in international competition today.

 

Ultimately I can see Yuzu, along with other prominent skaters both past and present, spearheading the formation of a new figure skater's union to stand against the ISU and its blatant manipulations.  I'm reminded of what happened in the early days of Hollywood when a number of leading performers in film, protesting against the practices of many of the studios, broke away and formed their own studio, called United Artists.  They had the high profiles that made it possible.  If Yuzu were to gather about him a number of other prominent skaters to form a skating union I think it could work.  He has the ability to visualize far into the future, as we saw when well before he even began to skate intensively in competition, Yuzu declared that he was going after TWO Olympic golds.  He did just that, as we all well know.

 

I know this might seem to be mere fantasizing but we must remember that one of the reasons Yuzu is what he is is because he has the ability to think outside the box.  That ability we see in practice right now when we look at Yuzu's apparent priorities being the attainment of the holy 4A rather than the winning of a third Olympic gold.  That very attitude itself must frighten the ISU because it essentially says he doesn't need competitions around which to structure his career.  Yuzu is not interested in winning these days, he's just interested in skating.

 

I totally agree with you!  Looking forward to Hanyu branded events - which will go beyond the simplistic cheerleader style ice shows of N America or the embarassingly clumsy, Showa-era (i.e. clonky old) Japanese ice shows.  I have deep dislike for FaoI and only tolerate watching it because of Yuzu.  The entire show brings back too many trauma inducing memories of my teenage years in Japan, when this type of shows were common.  Yuzu's Continues with Wings gave a glimpse into his more artistically mature and coherent approach to ice shows.  It would be great to see him produce or co-produce with prominent skaters in the Europe.  Perhaps Stephan Lambiel's Art on Ice would be a good place to start?  That would give Yuzu a wonderful partner to expand his artistic style, and Stephan is familiar enough with Japanese esthetic style to give space for a meaningful collaboration.  I fear that in N America the show director would insist on some low-ball ideas like a poohbeardance or asianSamyuuraishow. 

 

3 hours ago, Faithyu said:

 

That's exactly what I think as well. Both on the subject of timing and that Yuzu probably has his own plan.

 

If one wants to start some kind of initiative, I think waiting until Yuzu isn't actively skating anymore would be best.....but I also believe he has his own long-term plan. 

He likes to plan and calculates everything he does, so its not a far fetched thought that he has a bigger agenda up his sleeve.

 

 

Please note that this article covers only the first part of his thesis, which comprised three parts. Yuzu might be going for 2 more articles to cover the other parts of his thesis.  (This is a common practice in academic research.)   I would not want to have an incomplete package to ISU, if one aims to be truly effective in messaging.  The timing is extremely important.  

 

 

Spoiler

It reminded me that in (some) American graduate schools/departments, you have the choice of submitting a doctoral thesis or going for a 3 article option, which means you have to publish 3 inter-related articles in a reputable, peer-reviewed journal.   But this is for a doctoral degree, not undergraduate degree.  It seems not many American universities require a thesis for a BA degree (Princeton is the only one I know where a senior thesis is mandatory for undergrads).  

 

[Umebachi]

Here is a tweet string with a good summary of Yuzu's reserach article.  As I  noted above, please take note that this article covers only one part of his longer thesis.  There might be more articles to follow.  

 

 

 

 

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

[BrightonDogwoods]

Happy Birthday Planet! Who could have thought it would become what it is, with countless threads discussing all aspects of Yuzu, other skaters, and any other interests Fanyus may have! And the VIDEOS being compiled, especially Yonkaiten Pixels, what a treasure!

 

If I ever had a chance to ask Yuzuru a question, I would ask when (haha, I don't think it's 'IF') did he find out about Planet Hanyu and what is his impressions of it? 

 

I remember seeing that beautiful Planet Hanyu banner, directly behind where Brian and Ghislain (I think) were standing at the boards during a practice session, where Yuzu could not possibly have missed it :-)

[barbara]

10 hours ago, Yuli said:

I don't know if I understand it all right, but, if you ask me, I would never do this without Yuzu's permission. You don't know if he would agree and if not, he can't do anything against this. Even if ISU knows this does not happen in order of him, it is his thesis and it will maybe left a "bad taste" at ISU. Besides this I am sure ISU already knows about the thesis. It has a bit of blackmailing the ISU, like, if you do not change the scoring, all the Fanyus will not watch FS anymore. I think it will not be to Yuzus advantage and I personally feel very uncomfortable with this as a fan of him. This action maybe leads Yuzu in a position to applogize and explain himself at the ISU and that's not what we all want for him. Maybe this action goes completely the wrong way. You do not know what Yuzu is doing/planing  by himself. Please think about it again

She is not suggesting Yuzu's methods or mentioning him at all - just pointing out the ongoing issue with the scoring insanity.  And Yuzu is being left out of the conversation purposely so as to not make the situation worse for him.  If he was being referenced, that owuld be different.  But this is about fair scoring for all.  He's not the only one to not get a gold because of biased judges.

Yuzu has nothing to apologize for.  The ISU does.

[snowy]

1 hour ago, Umebachi said:

 

 

Please note that this article covers only the first part of his thesis, which comprised three parts. Yuzu might be going for 2 more articles to cover the other parts of his thesis.  (This is a common practice in academic research.)   I would not want to have an incomplete package to ISU, if one aims to be truly effective in messaging.  The timing is extremely important.  

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

It reminded me that in (some) American graduate schools/departments, you have the choice of submitting a doctoral thesis or going for a 3 article option, which means you have to publish 3 inter-related articles in a reputable, peer-reviewed journal.   But this is for a doctoral degree, not undergraduate degree.  It seems not many American universities require a thesis for a BA degree (Princeton is the only one I know where a senior thesis is mandatory for undergrads).  

 

Completely off-topic but it interests me how the East Asian countries have a different concept of publication than most other countries. I am a University Professor in the US with a high-speed publication record. My PhD students are Chinese and they were thinking like they should spend a year or two at writing their thesis. They were so surprised when I told them "you focus on your research, publish good-quality papers and two months before your defense combine these papers to make a thesis document". They were like , I bet in their mind they were thinking "do you even know what you are doing?"  So, basically we just turn each one of our papers to a chapter of thesis (most of times you don't need to change anything because 6 pages paper in journal format turns to more than 20 pages in thesis format) then only write a general Introduction chapter and one very short Conclusion chapter. Thinking that you can write papers out of your thesis is just beyond my imagination because of the high competitive field and the fact that you get scooped easily if you wait. 

[Kat]

Hasnt his thesis been done for a while? Someone, please correct me if I am wrong. If it has been, then why is it only now blowing up? The timing seems a bit off for it to only NOW gain so much traction, and he made the topic of his thesis no secret...I'm definitely being paranoid, but I find it terribly suspicious. Are those in the ISU and judging world planning to use this as justification for a media hit piece campaign against Yuzuru going forward? 

 

When JW and TL chime in...that will confirm it for me. God I hope I'm just overblowing this. The next season already seems to be heralding in rough waters ahead.

[EisElle]

8 hours ago, senemgencer said:

While we are celebrating the 4th anniversary of the group, I wanted to share some videos from On Ice Perspectives, a YouTube channel which I really like:

 

My favorite video (maybe because it also mentions my Winnie the Pooh campaign)

I had already seent the other vids, but I had never seen this one!

The wonder on the faces of the flower girls as they see the pooh rain? And all those BIG SMILES and laughter form the girls and the volounteers rinkboard? So precious, so heartwarming!

Looking forward to when pooh rain will be allowed again! (and anyway gifts on ice is not nearly as dangerous as a packed arena, since fomite transmission is like <<<<<<<<<<<<< droplets/airborne)

 

 

7 hours ago, Henni147 said:

(EDIT: I'm not even sure, if the thesis is not one of the reasons, why Yuzu's scores are in free fall now and so many journalists try so desperately to discredit him. The thesis is a serious threat to many people in charge.)

if you ask me, that's at least a co-factor.

Of course, the mere fact that USFSA has someone in the race would have been enough to lower Yuzuru's scores (I mean, USfed even managed to outscore Russia in dirty play in 2010, which is...A LOT Though they had the "home advantage" of Olympics in North America).

But I bet that the thesis contributed (we've learned about the general subject early on, with the HTV24 vid, right?) because it's the kind of development that ISU (and by ISU I mean Rusfed and USFSA), are definitely NOT thrilled about

I also think that, while Rusfed might have felt like exploiting Yuzu to "counterbalance" USFSA in Mens' field (since their own men are...not up to par, yet) their tune might change drastically, if they saw Yuzuru more like someone endangering their interests (well, it's not like people like TAT and Yags hadn't already been joining the current hype train already)

Certainly, many people have been trying to marginalize him at every turn.

Spoiler

 

On the other side, we have someone like Alexander Majorov who also spoke about employing tech for better calls. So, there is something moving below surface, within the FS world. It's to be seen how long it will take, because I'm sure at some point, in the future, automated scoring will happen (just like at some point ISU accepted cameras and cd-rom, at some point history). It will just take long.

I kinda expect that it will be IOC, once they see every other sport using AI, demanding ISU to move their arses.

 

Funny thing: ISU has been promptly experimenting on remote scoring, which before pandemic hit was never in the picture. So, when they have an interest, they do find the sources.

For a technology similar to icescope? Still crickets.

This, while gymnastics are already implementing this kind of technology in competition. I sincerely doubt gymnastics have access to more sources than the ISU...

 

 

 

6 hours ago, yumeaki said:

Oooh... 4th Anniversary... 4A...  

Your mind!

 

 

 

Anyway, today I'm a happy fanyu very proud of Yuzu's thesis.

And

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE PLANET!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Not the first time I say it, but the Planet is very special for me because I became a fan only a few months before the Planet was borne, and I saw it move its first steps, and now we have our own amazing video archive too, and the streaming parties, and I keep getting impressed with my  own post count, it blows my mind

 

Thank you to the admins and mods who made this possible.

And also, a community is only as good as the people who form it, so thank you, everyone, for keeping it up day by day, no matter the bumps in the road, or how stressful our daily life is, or how much what happens in the FS world torubles us. Thank you!

 

I wanted to make a small gift to the Planet (ok,it's kinda a recycled gift) so I've created a wiki Glossary

It will be easier to access than the Glittering Glossary thread, especially for newcomers.

I'll pasting the entries from the Glossary thread (with some editing here and there also because emoji limit argh), and hopefully it will look less chaotic (since I'm strictly following alphabetic order).

By they way, if you remember in which Ghana(?) video Yuzu said something along the lines "probably there are many people worrying for me", and if you have memory of a side by side edit(?) of Mitsuki Sota and Yuzu all in white shirts (iirc Yuzu in the white shirt he also wore in CiONTU day3 ending), please drop me a link

 

Also, do we have a name for the unfamous white polo shirt, or no need for that?

 

[Whoopiewoop]

4 minutes ago, Kat said:

Hasnt his thesis been done for a while? Someone, please correct me if I am wrong. If it has been, then why is it only now blowing up? The timing seems a bit off for it to only NOW gain so much traction, and he made the topic of his thesis no secret...I'm definitely being paranoid, but I find it terribly suspicious. Are those in the ISU and judging world planning to use this as justification for a media hit piece campaign against Yuzuru going forward? 

 

When JW and TL chime in...that will confirm it for me. God I hope I'm just overblowing this. The next season already seems to be heralding in rough waters ahead.

 

It's because it is now widely available for general download that it blew up. He did present it a couple of months ago, but it hadn't been published yet 

[Umebachi]

1 hour ago, snowy said:

Completely off-topic but it ests me how the East Asian countries have a different concept of publication than most other countries. I am a University Professor in the US with a high-speed publication record. My PhD students are Chinese and they were thinking like they should spend a year or two at writing their thesis. They were so surprised when I told them "you focus on your research, publish good-quality papers and two months before your defense combine these papers to make a thesis document". They were like , I bet in their mind they were thinking "do you even know what you are doing?"  So, basically we just turn each one of our papers to a chapter of thesis (most of times you don't need to change anything because 6 pages paper in journal format turns to more than 20 pages in thesis format) then only write a general Introduction chapter and one very short Conclusion chapter. Thinking that you can write papers out of your thesis is just beyond my imagination because of the high competitive field and the fact that you get scooped easily if you wait. 

 

Yuzu has selected a field that is extremely under-represented.  In an earlier interview, he noted how little research there is on figure skating compared to other sports.  His research is among the first in this area, and there is not much competition in terms of being "scooped" academically - especially when you are among the path-breakers.  Also, Yuzu is not publishing for tenure, so the usual "publish or perish" paradigm is obviously not relevant here.  He is interested in open source type of research - sharing widely to encourage the expansion of the field and inviting MORE competition. 

 

Finally, among the Japanese academics, there is huge surprise to see an undergraduate thesis of this calibre.  I think it is quite rare to get a ground-breaking research done at the undergrad level in the USA because the curriculum is generally geared toward liberal/broad education and less specialized at that stage (I am Japanese but did my BA and PhD in USA).  It's probably the same in Japan (this is a conjecture on my part).   But Waseda's Human Sciences department seems to be quite an innovative group, as they are tackling a new area of scientific research and taking a multidisciplinary approach to problem solving.   

 

As a retiree, I have the pleasure and privilege of starting to educate myself in this area and am amazed at the enormous progress being made in this field.  There is a marvelous convergence of neuroscience, behavioral sciences and harnessing of technology to enhance research.  In the sports field, I do expect Yuzu to continue his research and will likely make further contributions.  His undergrad thesis is just the first small step in that direction!

 

[rockstaryuzu]

Happy 4th Birthday, the Planet!!

[rockstaryuzu]

7 hours ago, yumeaki said:

Oooh... 4th Anniversary... 4A...  

[Pammi]

 

 

 

 

Here's the man who coined the name of this 4 year old forum continuing to argue for change and fairness in judging, and hoping Yuzuru is more successful at gaining a listening ear from the powers that be than fans and commentators who have tried repeatedly to express concerns

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