General Yuzuru Chat

[river]

19 minutes ago, KendallKlaire said:

To be honest I have a feeling Yuzu may REALLY want to go to Sochi because he does need to test his new short program somewhere (we all know he typically pancakes the debut of his programs). As much as I don't want him to go to Russia, not only because of his injury, but because of high COVID cases, I think it would be good if he can do a competition before nationals (given he goes to nationals). For all we know his injury may not have been as severe as last time and may have just needed a few weeks of rest. 

 

The best case if he does go to Sochi is that he performs his programs with watered down content so he doesn't risk injury. Sure he may not even medal (though I'd expect he'd land somewhere on the podium) but at least he can test the SP, run through his FS, and figure out his physical condition. He can still withdraw if he really doesn't feel up for it, we shall see.  

 

I'd hope he can get a comp in before Nationals, even if it's just something like a Senior B.

 

As for watered-down content, yeah, he's done it before when injured. But not medaling? No offense to the other skaters there, but this isn't a championship. I'd be shocked if a clean Yuzu with easier tech content didn't still win in that field.

[Umebachi]

Time to calm down a bit with this gorgeous element from White Legend.

 

 

[Yuzuwinnie]

5 minutes ago, river said:

 

Hopefully he can get some competition before the nationals, even if he's just something like a senior B.

 

As for the diluted content, yes, it already did when injured. But not a medalist? No offense to the other skaters out there, but it's not a championship. I'd be shocked if a clean Yuzu with easier tech content still didn't win in this area.

 

 

He is still mentioned in the male list with K Tanaka and K Tomono 

 

https://actupatinage.com/grand-prix-2021-22-rostelecom-cup-sochi    : will go where will not go ???? 

[Umebachi]

I share the view expressed by the tweet from maimai:  sometime ago she recalls seeing a lot of comments from overseas fans asking why Japan doesn't take better care of Hanyu-kun.  She wants people to know that it's only a very very small sliver of people in Japan who make these questionable comments.  She recalls fondly how at the time of Pyeonchang Olympics the entire nation of Japan prayed for him to achieve his dreams, and during his performance the TV viewership reached an unprecendented high 46% level.  

 

I also recall that moment when he won gold, there was a tremendous amount of celebration and crying tears of relief and joy.  He is greatly loved and held in great esteem in Japan, and most are unaware of the shenanigans by ISU and JSF.  The detractors' comments get blown out of proportion because they tend to go viral and solict unwarranted attention.  It's human nature to attract naysayers against anyone who is popular, as this is the way to call attention to themselves.  We should ignore them and let them disappear into the grey oblivion of irrelevancy. 

 

 

 

 

[ZuCritter]

1 hour ago, Umebachi said:

Time to calm down a bit with this gorgeous element from White Legend.

 

 

This is the essence of Yuzu's greatness: This toe loop is so quick and so smooth that I had to watch it several times and play it in extreme slow motion to believe it was a toe jump rather than an edge jump. If ever a jump was "out of nowhere" ...

[airi]

Uhh, Yuzu, please tell us if you're going to COR or not, I was absolutely certain it was impossible and I need time to mentally prepare again if necessary

[Henni147]

Someone asked on tw what it would be like to have Yuzu as a skating coach.

 

This is just my guessing, but I actually think that Yuzu would be the type of coach who would spend a lot of time listening to his students. How they think, how they feel, what their ideas and goals are. He would let them talk a lot and value their contributions to make them feel more comfortable and confident. Teach them autonomy, initiative and self-reflection from the beginning. And I think, he himself would enjoy these conversations a lot.

 

I can imagine that he would create similar logbooks for all his students that he'd used himself throughout the years to note his technical developments. Also let his students work with sensors, AI tech and all the other tools he uses himself. Overall I think, he would be more of a researcher than the typical "instructing" coach, not working for but rather with his students as a team.

 

And that's the reason why I feel that the coaching job might not be so ideal for Yuzu. It's one thing to fight the system yourself and get shabby scores. But I fear it would break his heart if his students were treated badly by the judges and feds. I can't say that for sure, but that's my feeling.

[DancingFeather]

If Yuzuru really wants to coach, I see him more as a jump coach or choreographer who gives advice in special classes over the world.

 

@Henni147 There is another reason why I doubt coaching would be satisfying for Yuzuru. As a teacher myself, I need the satisfaction of accompanying pupils who will surpass me by miles in the future. To see their abilities unfold and to know their (and my) efforts lead to bigger accomplishments than I can ever reach.

 

But Yuzuru is the best. Is there anyone who could reach him, even when being taught by the master himself? Anyone at all with his dedication, hard working attitude and perseverance for figure skating?

[Whoopiewoop]

5 minutes ago, DancingFeather said:

If Yuzuru really wants to coach, I see him more as a jump coach or choreographer who gives advice in special classes over the world.

 

@Henni147 There is another reason why I doubt coaching would be satisfying for Yuzuru. As a teacher myself, I need the satisfaction of accompanying pupils who will surpass me by miles in the future. To see their abilities unfold and to know their (and my) efforts lead to bigger accomplishments than I can ever reach.

 

But Yuzuru is the best. Is there anyone who could reach him, even when being taught by the master himself? Anyone at all with his dedication, hard working attitude and perseverance for figure skating?

　

No one in the football world thought there would be another Maradona - until Messi showed up. 😉

 

The world is big, and there is a lot of history to be written still. Kids that haven’t been born yet but might bring massive changes to the sport as much as Yuzu did (or more).

[Guest Mary_kyo]

Hmmm, I think one of the reasons we might not witness another “Yuzuru” in figure skating is that he has walked through a very unique hard challenging path/life. He is not what he is now just because of talent, ambition and hard work. His unique personality is also a result of his roller-coaster life too. The continuous struggle with asthma, massive earthquake survivor, fighting with lots of injuries and physical problems in very sensitive moments, cold treatment by lots of seniors and officials, not getting support from his fed, etc. Even his entrance time in senior career was very well-timed, he started to compete with the god of skating skills aka Patrick. He didn’t rush to learn quads, he learned them gradually, while trying to match Patrick’s skating skills. His skating and personality is shaped and affected a lot by the demanding challenges in his path. He overcame those hardships with determination, extreme passion for skating, relying on himself rather than his federation and unbelievable hardwork and well, this is the ultimate rewarding result. He is not scored properly by the faulty system but the performances will speak for themselves for decades. We watch the literal result of blood, sweat, tears for the few minutes that he performs. No, I doubt we will see anyone close to him. Universe was harshly cruel to him but indeed shaped a dazzling diamond.

Anyway ignore my rambling, I’m having my emo phase tonight.

[Yuzurella]

7 hours ago, KendallKlaire said:

To be honest I have a feeling Yuzu may REALLY want to go to Sochi because he does need to test his new short program somewhere (we all know he typically pancakes the debut of his programs). As much as I don't want him to go to Russia, not only because of his injury, but because of high COVID cases, I think it would be good if he can do a competition before nationals (given he goes to nationals). For all we know his injury may not have been as severe as last time and may have just needed a few weeks of rest. 

 

The best case if he does go to Sochi is that he performs his programs with watered down content so he doesn't risk injury. Sure he may not even medal (though I'd expect he'd land somewhere on the podium) but at least he can test the SP, run through his FS, and figure out his physical condition. He can still withdraw if he really doesn't feel up for it, we shall see.  

 

If Yuzu does compete in the CoR, I hope he only does it fully fit. But I do believe that he wouldn't compete unless he has fully recovered.

 

I don't think he necessarily has to skate his new SP in a competition before Nationals. Last year he debuted two entirely new programs at Nationals and skated both of them perfectly clean. I think given Yuzu's experience and outstanding level of skills, he's gotten to a point where he can master new programs even without having to go through a pancake phase.

 

To be honest, considering Yuzu's superior quality of skating and jumping, even if he only has triples in his programs, he should still easily win this competition if he's more or less clean.

 

I trust that Yuzu makes the right decisions for himself. Only he knows his body and condition the best. Let's be patient and wait for the return of the king whenever it might be.

[Figure_Frenzy]

7 hours ago, Umebachi said:

and most are unaware of the shenanigans by ISU and JSF

 

See that's where the problem lies. It just doesn't sit right when most Japanese fans of Yuzu, who love and care for him so deeply, weren't even aware of the injustice dealt to him from ISU and JSF (especially considering if they decided to make some noise about how Yuzu is always snubbed by JSF in one weird way or another, JSF would be very hard pressed to ignore their grievance).

 

Obviously that wasn't the case with those who routinely pored over the protocols after comps, and starting from last season a few more Japanese fans were starting to be aware of this matter. Hope more fans are getting aware about it and press JSF about it, especially when the suitable occasion to do so arises...

[ZuCritter]

2 hours ago, Yuzurella said:

 

I trust that Yuzu makes the right decisions for himself. Only he knows his body and condition the best. Let's be patient and wait for the return of the king whenever it might be.

OK, I know I'll probably get a lot of push-back on this, and before I say it, let me emphasize that I am NOT questioning Yuzu's intelligence, his skill, or his maturity (OK, maybe a little on that last one -- he is only 26, after all). 

 

If prudence ruled all Yuzu's decisions, we would never have seen him attempt Nessie, which he did in Torino and Stockholm not because he had planned it but because he was frustrated and wanted to re-establish his dominance even though he had lost (or was sure to lose) the competitions. It may have been all in his calculations, but the calculation was about commanding attention and proving his superiority, not about avoiding undue risk. 

 

In his line of work, daring and determination are excellent -- even necessary -- qualities. They are part of what makes Yuzu the GOAT. They are part of what has kept him at the pinnacle of this sport for more than a decade. In short, I celebrate him because of, not in spite of, his uncompromising drive to win (even when he doesn't win). 

 

But I fear it's not always compatible with making the most objective, reasoned decisions based on his health or his long-term goals. He's no longer the reckless kid who was rash to a fault, but he's the heir to that kid, with all his virtues and all his foibles. In fact, being human, his strengths and weaknesses are inextricably bound together. 

 

I'm not criticizing his decisions, and I certainly don't question his right to make them. I'll love and support him however many risks he takes. Along the way, I'll pray every day that the risks will reward him as richly as he deserves. 

 

 

 

[Kizuna]

9 hours ago, ZuCritter said:

This is the essence of Yuzu's greatness: This toe loop is so quick and so smooth that I had to watch it several times and play it in extreme slow motion to believe it was a toe jump rather than an edge jump. If ever a jump was "out of nowhere" ...

I agree with this 

 

When I first started being able to differentiate jumps, I couldn't distinguish between Yuzu's 4T and 4S and often had to rewind several times to check  I could identify other skaters' jumps though! His toepicking technique is extremely light, fast and smooth as butter. So wonderful and pleasing to watch. 

[Lanvin]

12 hours ago, river said:

 

I'd hope he can get a comp in before Nationals, even if it's just something like a Senior B.

 

As for watered-down content, yeah, he's done it before when injured. But not medaling? No offense to the other skaters there, but this isn't a championship. I'd be shocked if a clean Yuzu with easier tech content didn't still win in that field.

 

I was thinking the same and actually looking at some senior B's left. There's still the Golden Spin....and that's all that's left besides the smaller senior B's like the Santa Claus Cup, Open d'Andorra and uh yeah that's it...