Ladies Free Skate

[edeuse]

Yuna also tried to intimidate Mao by doing a biellmann spin very close to Mao who was also doing a biellmann during the practice session in the last Tokyo Worlds.

We all respect each other's opinion, whether we agree or not, but here is my observation about the above "intimidation":

Worst case: Absurd.
Best case: A dark, Harding-esque, perception on an otherwise crowded practice rink.

Besides, to other skaters, Mao or not, Yu-na's 3-3 combo is intimidating enough, even at the opposite end of the rink.

Even I wasn't the opposite end of the rink,
I was intimidated enough by her huge 3-3, on the other side of a screen.

Real Intimidator !!

 

[qazwsx]

Generally speaking, the Koreans are more confident than the Japanese in the international stages even though no statistics, economic, political or cultural, can justify their confidence. I think their overconfidnece is very helpful to calm down their nerves in the clutch. On the other hand, the Japanese is too modest and polite.

Do the Japanese want Mao to have the killer instinct and become overconfident and ill-natured like Yuna? I am not sure about that.

got it,

Japanese are modest and polite like you, tiara,

Korean are ill-natured like Yuna.

 

[chocola]

Spending your energy hating someone isn't good for you. The feeling of hate is hurt. :banging:

Cheers to tiara!

p.s. Real modest and polite people wouldn't say so many bad things about others.

 

[tiara]

Yuna has too much of the killer instinct. However she can not go to extremes to the extent of using dirty gamesmanship. A side by side spin is very dangerous. Recently Canadian pairs skater's blade cut into his partner's face.

BTW Yuna's biellmann spin shape is not as beautiful as Mao's. She approached Mao when Mao's music was on and tried to compete with Mao in front of the judges. How bold and audacious she is! Good natured skaters like Josee Chouinard and Mao will never have those kind of audacity.

 

[skates]

I think that the killer instinct and "ill-natured" are closely related. When a skater has a competitive spirit along with some kind of self-control, you can call that she has the killer instinct. However, when she has a competitive spirits without self-control, you can call her a ill-natured skater.

Every skater wants to win. But not every skater uses dirty gamesmanship. Katarina Witt quite often improvised her choreography when the other skater's music was on. That is her intimidation tactic. Maybe that tactic is permissible. Surya Bonaly did a back flip just before Midori was going to a 3A during the practice session in the Albertville Olympics. That one is very mean and disgusting tactic. Yuna also tried to intimidate Mao by doing a biellmann spin very close to Mao who was also doing a biellmann during the practice session in the last Tokyo Worlds.

http://journal.mycom.co.jp/news/2007/03/24/502.html

Josee Chouinard and the Japanese skaters including Mao never uses those dirty gamesmanship. They are too good-natured.

Well,I think that Mao and Yu Na did that to give us a laugh
While we are at that,why not point out that Emily Hughes collided with Mao as Mao was doing her spin. I consider that more intimidating and dirty gamesmanship than Yu Na doing her spin next to Mao because it was physical,not mental.

 

[feraina]

While we are at that,why not point out that Emily Hughes collided with Mao as Mao was doing her spin.

At the GPF warmup, I thought Carolina K, while stroking forward, was going to ram straight into Mao, who was skating backwards in a fan spiral and couldn't see CK. Maybe everyone is going after Mao?

Actually, I think it's just that warmups are tense moments where skaters are preoccupied with their own upcoming skates. How many injury-inducing accidents happen in warm-up such that someone's taken to a hospital, and someone has to withdraw from an event? (Think Melissa Grigory for a recent example.) Even in regular practice freestyle sessions, you have collisions during high-level sessions, without the extra stress of the competition. No need for conspiracy theories here. I highly doubt that Mao/Yu-na were trying to be cute, or Emily/Carolina K were trying to be mean.

 

[californiea]

With much discussed Yu-na/Mao rivalry(and other tablnoiz hype, conspiracy aside), I do hope both of them deliver the elusive perfect programs at the Worlds in Mar. They are both skating currently at a level several GOE points above the others(Carolina Zhang maybe the next future) by most accounts.

Very few weaknesses appear visible with these two ladies, as they are near complete packages all around. Mao I think can do wonders with some strengthening of emotional fortitude that is required at the championship level, and once she can muster this, she has a strong base to wow the audience and present her exquisite feather like movements across the ice, and not break at its own fragility.

Yu-na, I think will challenge her tough self, and work harder, faster, more passionately towards achieving that perfect program that has come close, but eluded her this season. Consistency that she craves will come with the inevitable maturity of a young lady, and she may just deliver another of that "wow" performance(as in her stunning 2007 Worlds SP, Tango De Roxanne), I hope in March in Sweden.

At any rate, let us count our figure skating blessings to have the opportunity to witness the arrival of these cometary talents, as ladies figure skating never looked so beautiful, and reaffirms once again it is the most beautiful and technically artistic of all sports.

 

[bekalc]

Yuna has too much of the killer instinct. However she can not go to extremes to the extent of using dirty gamesmanship. A side by side spin is very dangerous. Recently Canadian pairs skater's blade cut into his partner's face.

BTW Yuna's biellmann spin shape is not as beautiful as Mao's. She approached Mao when Mao's music was on and tried to compete with Mao in front of the judges. How bold and audacious she is! Good natured skaters like Josee Chouinard and Mao will never have those kind of audacity.

Uh, looking at the picture, Yu-na's bielman wasn't close enough to be dangerous. Besides, skaters do these things all the time. Kimmie Meissner said that whenever her and Mao are on the practice ice together, Mao will do a triple axel, than she will, and they will try to match.

Even Michelle Kwan played these kind of games. Her and Irina use to do jumping wars, as did her and Tara. No big deal. It's not like Yu-na cut Mao off.

It's a common theme with skaters trying to win the practice, basically and yeah intimidate their competitors. As long as they aren't doing something dangerous, big deal...

At Skate America, Meissner and Zhang were doing spins side by side, but eventually Meissner stopped because well that pearl spin.. It's just a common thing for skaters to do, and they don't take it personally..

 

[blue dog]

Yuna has too much of the killer instinct. However she can not go to extremes to the extent of using dirty gamesmanship. A side by side spin is very dangerous. Recently Canadian pairs skater's blade cut into his partner's face.

BTW Yuna's biellmann spin shape is not as beautiful as Mao's. She approached Mao when Mao's music was on and tried to compete with Mao in front of the judges. How bold and audacious she is! Good natured skaters like Josee Chouinard and Mao will never have those kind of audacity.

Maybe Mao and Yu-Na are going to form an all-female pair, and were showing what they can do with the sbs Biellmanns? :chorus:

No offense to either one, they both have good Biellmanns, but neither come close to Caroline, or, for that matter, to Denise and Lucinda.

 

[Bennett]

I really liked Yuna's LP performance at GPF. It was really a dynamic performance with great speed and strength. When the skaters are "on," I feel as if they opened a large space ahead of them. They could make me feel the the flow of the cold air in the rink passing through your cheeks and all the brightness of the lights on the ceiling. Her performance made me feel these on that night. It was really a sparkling performance. Despite the one fall, I saw a lot of energy and fire in this performance.

I think that LP music suits her style very well. I personally don't like the storyline of this musical or the "exotic" choreos that Wilson chose to use (although I usually like Wilson programs a lot). But I think the music itself suits her skating very well. The dynamic, strong melodies and the instruments used in this music really emphasize her big jumps and speed.

 

[ChrisH]

I really liked Yuna's LP performance at GPF. It was really a dynamic performance with great speed and strength. When the skaters are "on," I feel as if they opened a large space ahead of them. They could make me feel the the flow of the cold air in the rink passing through your cheeks ...

The aerodynamicist in me likes the cool rippling affects the rushing air has on her skirt.

I think that LP music suits her style very well. I personally don't like the storyline of this musical ...

You might like the storyline better if the main characters were named Kim and Bennett rather than Kim and Chris.

I personally don't like her half-ina bauer and the arm movements that precede it.

 

[californiea]

I really liked Yuna's LP performance at GPF. It was really a dynamic performance with great speed and strength. When the skaters are "on," I feel as if they opened a large space ahead of them. They could make me feel the the flow of the cold air in the rink passing through your cheeks and all the brightness of the lights on the ceiling. Her performance made me feel these on that night. It was really a sparkling performance. Despite the one fall, I saw a lot of energy and fire in this performance.

I think that LP music suits her style very well. I personally don't like the storyline of this musical or the "exotic" choreos that Wilson chose to use (although I usually like Wilson programs a lot). But I think the music itself suits her skating very well. The dynamic, strong melodies and the instruments used in this music really emphasize her big jumps and speed.

I also enjoyed her GPF LP performance, immensely. Some say her performance at COR was even better, as many skating commentators gushed over her passionate performance from beginning to the end, a Spanish commentator calling it another "Yu-Na masterpiece". Impressed Paul Wylie called it "an incredible performance", "a stunning talent" etc. I personally liked this more complex and challenging choreography, as it artfully brings out the "whole package" that Yu-Na is endowed.

 

[Bennett]

You might like the storyline better if the main characters were named Kim and Bennett rather than Kim and Chris.

???

Well I don't like the story because it looks to me as if it romanticizes the ‘pure love’ without recourse to the misery and sufferings that lead to prostitution in impoverished populations. Although some young prostitutes may fantasize ‘true love’ with their clients, how likely it may be realized? I also do not like the ending in which the main character kills herself to let the kid have a life with married parents in the country of freedom in the US. I don't appreciate the culturally imperialistic and patriarchal backgrounds that are quite explicit in this storyline.
I also do not enjoy the ‘exotic,’ 'oriental' choreos that Wilson chose to put in this program. I feel that Tom Dickson did a more sophisticated job when he choreographed Yukina Ota’s program when she skated to a contemporary piece of Japanese ethnic music for her SP several years ago. I feel that it had a more understated, well-thought-out fusion of the Western and Eastern tastes.
But despite all of the things that I find uncomfortable about the background of this storyline and the way it is choreographed, I really enjoyed Yuna’s performance. I like the strength and fire that she delivers in it.

 

[ChrisH]

Bennett, there were over a million Vietnamese refugees, so let's not make light of freedom.

I also do not enjoy the ‘exotic,’ 'oriental' choreos that Wilson chose to put in this program ...

But despite all of the things that I find uncomfortable about the background of this storyline and the way it is choreographed, I really enjoyed Yuna’s performance. I like the strength and fire that she delivers in it.

I don't much like the choreos either, but they are original. This reminds of some comments made by Nancy Kerrigan during Caroline's Ave Maria LP, "she could move it a little bit faster, but it is very elegant". I like the contrast.

In reference to my last post, I was thinking of Yuna's arm movements preceding her ina bauer in her SP, not her LP. I mixed the two up.

 

[Bennett]

Bennett, there were over a million Vietnamese refugees, so let's not make light of freedom.

I don't much like the choreos either, but they are original. This reminds of some comments made by Nancy Kerrigan during Caroline's Ave Maria LP, "she could move it a little bit faster, but it is very elegant". I like the contrast.

I didn't intend to make light of 'freedom.' But if it sounds so, I am sorry about that. I also apologize for bringing in political issues here. Whenever I see Miss Saigon and Madam Butterfly etc, which have the exact ending, I find it difficult to innocently enjoy the program. But I didn’t need to detail my thoughts on this board.

Anyway….
Thanks to Yuna who performed this program so well, I have come to have a newer appreciation of this music.

I find the way you made a contrast with Caroline’s program very interesting. I think that Yuna brings a lot of excitement to this program. The speed, the sharp moves, and dynamic jumps made me feel really excited.

I was thinking that watching her skate live would be a great experience. I think that her fast skating, the big jumps (as big as men’s jumps!), and dynamic moves would be really ‘wow’ if I could watch her live.

 

[ChrisH]

Whenever I see Miss Saigon and Madam Butterfly etc, which have the exact ending, I find it difficult to innocently enjoy the program. But I didn’t need to detail my thoughts on this board.

Anyway….
Thanks to Yuna who performed this program so well, I have come to have a newer appreciation of this music.

Yes, the stories are seedy and they require parental guidance. (I'm doing my best impersonation of an adult here and in general I know very little about musicals. The historical backgrounds of the stories are what interested me.) I wonder if Yuna had the choice of either Madam Butterfly or Miss Saigon. I noticed that the musical Miss Saigon was performed in South Korea in 2006.

I find the way you made a contrast with Caroline’s program very interesting. I think that Yuna brings a lot of excitement to this program. The speed, the sharp moves, and dynamic jumps made me feel really excited.

I was thinking that watching her skate live would be a great experience. I think that her fast skating, the big jumps (as big as men’s jumps!), and dynamic moves would be really ‘wow’ if I could watch her live.

Yuna's skating is as big as the men's. The elegance of Caroline's skating, in contrast, is something I don't see elsewhere in sports.

 

[californiea]

The aerodynamicist in me likes the cool rippling affects the rushing air has on her skirt.

 

[dizzydi7]

Ah Gee, every time there is any chance for a rivalry between two skaters, you can bet the discussion goes to intimidation during the warmups. We went through this already with Kwan and Cohen. Cohen, of course, being marked as the ill-tempered meany.

Why can't there be two great skaters who both just might be nice young ladies. I like both Mao and YuNa. They are both enormously talented and deserving of standing on the podium.

Let's play nice.

Dizzy

 

[fourclover]

???

Well I don't like the story because it looks to me as if it romanticizes the ‘pure love’ without recourse to the misery and sufferings that lead to prostitution in impoverished populations. Although some young prostitutes may fantasize ‘true love’ with their clients, how likely it may be realized? I also do not like the ending in which the main character kills herself to let the kid have a life with married parents in the country of freedom in the US. I don't appreciate the culturally imperialistic and patriarchal backgrounds that are quite explicit in this storyline.
I also do not enjoy the ‘exotic,’ 'oriental' choreos that Wilson chose to put in this program. I feel that Tom Dickson did a more sophisticated job when he choreographed Yukina Ota’s program when she skated to a contemporary piece of Japanese ethnic music for her SP several years ago. I feel that it had a more understated, well-thought-out fusion of the Western and Eastern tastes.
But despite all of the things that I find uncomfortable about the background of this storyline and the way it is choreographed, I really enjoyed Yuna’s performance. I like the strength and fire that she delivers in it.

I mostly agree with you. I liked Yu-na's performance to Miss Saigon at the GPF than at the CoR although she had a fall in the former, she was more passionate and connected with the audience. I don't like Miss Saigon storyline either and the fact that it romanticizes poor-oriental-girl-rich-white-man-attraction theme. I can kinda see why David Wilson wanted to cast Yu-na into his choreography - although Yu-na is tremendously ATHLETIC, her fine-boned physique and her body language SCREAM "delicate", "fragile" and even "helpless" to, I think, most men. So I can see how Wilson envisioned Yu-na as "Kim" the heroine of Miss Saigon but I agree that I don't like the seedy theme behind the story of Miss Saigon. I thought Yukina Ota's SP was a very sophisticated and yet dynamic program.

 

[Justlooking]

Why can't there be two great skaters who both just might be nice young ladies. I like both Mao and YuNa. They are both enormously talented and deserving of standing on the podium.

Let's play nice.

Dizzy

I don't understand waht you mean ??? Yuna Kim and Mao are areally nice to each other. Didn't you see this video http://youtube.com/watch?v=13_OLAcZLsc ?