Mao to train with Rafael Arutunian

[mzheng]

Well you pre-rotate when you do a toe axle. But it's just wonky. DON'T DO IT. Lol.

I've never seen anyone do a toe-axle in real life...whether it be a messed up Axle (which really could only result from a bad entrance that was trying to be saved) OR a messed up toe loop. Mao Asada is the only time I've ever seen this phenomenom.

I saw Mai did toe-axle.

[attyfan]

I read somewhere that Mao would also be working with Lee Barkell (Jeff Buttle's coach). Anyone hear anything about this?

[Jaana]

Rafael did wonders with Sasha Abt and it showed in Euros that year. When Abt went to New Jersey, he was at his worst.

Joe

Wasn´t Rafael the coach for Alexander Abt since very early in his skating career? I mean years and years before those 2002 Europeans. I don´t remember ever having seen any other coach with Abt in the kiss & cry since he started to compete as a senior skater at international events in 1995 (I have not seen any of his junior skating). Skate America 1995 was the first event where I saw his skating.

Unfortunately Abt was always a rather inconsistent skater and he also had the bad luck in form of lots of injuries. He was awesome at 2002 Europeans and was definetely robbed from the title. Of all his programmes I have loved the freeskate proramme (Polovetsian Dances) at 1995 Skate America most.

About the actual topic, LOL, I have some little doubts, but hope that Mao will benefit from the new coach.

[inloveagain]

This is probably a stupid question, but I can't recognize an under-rotation most of the times (only sometimes when there is a super slow-motion provided) and was wondering the main reason for downgrade on the second jump of 3-3s and 3-2s attempted by many ladies. Is it the habit of toe-Axel, or is it just the fact that these ladies can't get those triple/double toes fully rotated?

[antmanb]

Arutunian may be the coach who can clean up Asada's toe loop so that she can put it back in her programs and also the salchow...like others have said though, i don't think its the jumps that Mao has problems with and might benefit from a more "artisitc" teaching coach rather than a technical one.

Ant

[antmanb]

This is probably a stupid question, but I can't recognize an under-rotation most of the times (only sometimes when there is a super slow-motion provided) and was wondering the main reason for downgrade on the second jump of 3-3s and 3-2s attempted by many ladies. Is it the habit of toe-Axel, or is it just the fact that these ladies can't get those triple/double toes fully rotated?

The most common cause for a downgraded jump is an underotation on the landing. Its easier to spot with lower level skaters trying to get their doubles and triples. If you watch the skate blade very carefully on the landing of a jump you can see that a good clean checked out, fully rotated jump will have the boot fully rotated and ready to hit the ice on the toe pick and roll immediately down onto the edge. In an underrotated jump - the boot will not be all the way round and the skater will remain pulled in, in the backspin position as the toe hits the ice, linger on the toe a little longer than normal, completing the rotation whilst on the toe and then check out and roll back down onto the edge of the blade. Often you see more snow coming up from a jump that's been underrotated and more time on the ice with the skater still pulled in tight.

Less often you'll see the cheat on the entrance to the jump like the toe axel mentioned earlier, though there is always a debate about edge jumps since the inherent edge you deepen when you bend your knee to jump gives you some pre-rotation. I've seen (in the petkevich book) both the salchow and the loop described as being jumps that have only a half turn in the air like the waltz jump. But in the case of those jumps - its the body that performs the full rotation instead of the blade since if you let your body go on a loop it kills the height and rotation.

The other jump that is most dangerous to cheat is the axel. Some elite skaters skid the entrance to the axel and i think it is fairly common and some caoches teach the skid into the axel. Often the skid entrance axels don't have that classic "step up action" that i personally prefer to see. Joubert is a good example of the skid entrance axels and it look like he leaves his leg trailing when he jumps. Pluschenko is an example of great "step up action" axel. Personally when i've tried axels (not that i've ever landed any successfully) i get a much more solid jump and take off and greater height with that "step up" axel than trying to skid the entrance.

Ant

[R.D.]

US Olympic team article

http://www.usolympicteam.com/117_48795.htm

[Eeyora]

This is a good move because it may be early enough in her career to change things. I have a feeling the coaching arrangement won't be long especiaally with the Japanese federations' reputation of switching coaches.