Message from Yukari Nakano | Page 3 | Golden Skate

Message from Yukari Nakano

Nadine

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 3, 2003
That's just the way I feel, Bennett, and it's something that will not change for a good while, if ever.

You ask why, well I just explained why in several posts about Yukari & the JSF in several different threads I posted to this past week, or the week before. I can't remember.

Yukari honored her country by bringing home medals consistently throughout her career, which I detailed in one of those aforementioned threads, competing continuously over a decade, and competing well (never taking a break, never taking time off for anorexia, et al), yet again & again & again she was denied a place on the Olympic Team. This last denial was too much for me personally. The disrespect & dishonor they showed Yukari is the final straw. I've had it with the JSF. **** 'em. :laugh:

The best revenge by Yukari is living a full life, with joy & happiness, and doing good in whatever endeavors she chooses to pursue, commentating being one of them. This woman has a great head on her shoulders. I look forward to seeing what lies ahead for her... :)
 
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Bennett

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
That's just the way I feel, Bennett, and it's something that will not change for a good while, if ever.

You ask why, well I just explained why in several posts about Yukari & the JSF in several different threads I posted to this past week, or the week before. I can't remember.

Yukari honored her country by bringing home medals consistently throughout her career, which I detailed in one of those aforementioned threads, competing continuously over a decade, and competing well (never taking a break, never taking time off for anorexia, et al), yet again & again & again she was denied a place on the Olympic Team. This last denial was too much for me personally. The disrespect & dishonor they showed Yukari is the final straw. I've had it with the JSF. **** 'em. :laugh:

The best revenge by Yukari is living a full life, with joy & happiness, and doing good in whatever endeavors she chooses to pursue, commentating being one of them. This woman has a great head on her shoulders. I look forward to seeing what lies ahead for her... :)

It was regrettable that Yukari could not go. But I hope that you wouldn't take Yukari's unfortunate situation too personally for her such as disrespect or dishonor.

JSF selection criteria for Worlds, 4cc, and Olympics had been published back on June 12, 2009 (In Japanese):
http://www.skatingjapan.jp/Jsf/News/09-10_Figure_Selection_Criterion.pdf

They announced three criteria:
- Item #1: To medal & to be place highest among Japanese skaters at GPF (Miki met this criteria).
- Item #2: To win the Nationals (Mao met this criteria).
- Item #3 (Akiko met all (a), (b), and (c) under this criterion, whereas Yukari met only (a).)
-- a. To medal at Nationals;
-- b. To make the GPF;
-- c. To make the top three among the Japanese skaters at the Worlds Ranking as of the date of the Nationals.

Their focus on this season's comp results would have been because of a lesson learned from the 2006 Olympics in which accumulation of the points during two seasons (the pre-Olympic season and the Olympic season) mattered. I doubt if Yukari, who had suffered under such criteria back then due to the poorer competition results in the pre-Olympic season (6th at Nationals, 11th all at 4cc and two GPs), would have found the revised criteria unfair.

The document does say that it is possible to consider special circumstances if the skater who fails to meet the item #3 had made the top six at Worlds in the past, but is injured early in the season. Yukari would have been possibly eligible for this special consideration. But there should have been strong rationales for picking Yukari who met only one criterion under the item #3 over Akiko who met all of the criteria under the item #3.
 
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Mikoto

Rinkside
Joined
Apr 22, 2009
What I never liked about Fumie Suguri is that she always had the easiest jumps out of all her countrywomen. I remember keeping stats of all the women, not just the Japanese & Americans, et al, I mean ALL of them, and Fumie not *once* tried a 3/3 combo. in competition. Heck, I don't even think she tried 7 triples. And I'm one that has never considered her & her programs artistic, no way, bowed legs, poor posture, mediocrity. The only thing I ever liked about her skating was the height of her jumps. I consider her an average skater, no standout qualities whatsoever, either athletically or artistically. As happens with most skaters, she medalled when others better than her failed, so I give her kudos for playing it safe & being relatively consistent. Sometimes that kind of skating even wins competitions, especially when one is goodlooking. *wink*

One last note, this whole situation this past year with Yukari Nakano & the JSFOne last note, this whole situation this past year with Yukari Nakano & the JSF has caused me to look at the JSF, et al, in the future, with a jaded eye..

:rolleye::rolleye::rolleye:

To hate JSF's foolish selection criteria, favoritism toward "average" skaters, or whatsoever is one thing but, oh well..
 
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Bennett

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
JSF is not to be blamed for this.
The fact that only 3 could go is to be blamed.

Worlds was a chance JSF gave Yukari in a very fair fashion.
Be it injury or motivation or both that kept her from going to Torino this time, it's not JSF's fault.
We all wanted to see her badly at Worlds. JSF knew it very well, IMO.

It seems that this was also based on the written criteria published on 6/12. It says that the criteria for the Worlds are the same as the ones for the Olympics, but that regarding the item #3, the selection could be different from the Olympics in circumstances in which they give consideration in sorting the selections of the skaters.

So it could have been possible that Akiko was selected for both Olympics and Worlds, but they gave Yukari a chance to skate at Worlds based on this "special consideration" rule.
 
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MikiAndoFan#1

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 30, 2009
What I never liked about Fumie Suguri is that she always had the easiest jumps out of all her countrywomen. I remember keeping stats of all the women, not just the Japanese & Americans, et al, I mean ALL of them, and Fumie not *once* tried a 3/3 combo. in competition. Heck, I don't even think she tried 7 triples. And I'm one that has never considered her & her programs artistic, no way, bowed legs, poor posture, mediocrity. The only thing I ever liked about her skating was the height of her jumps. I consider her an average skater, no standout qualities whatsoever, either athletically or artistically. As happens with most skaters, she medalled when others better than her failed, so I give her kudos for playing it safe & being relatively consistent. Sometimes that kind of skating even wins competitions, especially when one is goodlooking. *wink*

One last note, this whole situation this past year with Yukari Nakano & the JSF One last note, this whole situation this past year with Yukari Nakano & the JSF has caused me to look at the JSF, et al, in the future, with a jaded eye..

Actually, Fumie does have all the jumps, except the Loop, though she has tried it in competitions. And she tried a 3Lz+3T in the LP at the 2001 Skate Canada.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbJMRjo-6EA
 
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hurrah

Medalist
Joined
Aug 8, 2009
I don't really see that it was Fumie's fault that Yukari didn't get to go to two Olympics. I think it was a combination of things, things like peaking at the right time and all the rest of it.

Also, that insane underrotation rule really hurt Yukari badly. I think she may have been the one worst hit, more than Mao, more than Mirai.
 

Nadine

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 3, 2003
Dorispulaski, if you are going to edit my posts, please inform me as to why?

I can understand your editing my cuss word, which I never spelled out fully btw, but editing the way I type or write, that I do object to.

EDITED TO ADD: In fact, I personally do not believe in having an editing function at all, a person should be accountable for what they write, not coming back later to edit one's original thoughts, no matter the passion of the moment, lol. Seriously, I'm a member of a political board wherein they took away the edit function years ago so the members don't have a way to come back later & make themselves look good, including moi. :laugh:
 
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Bennett

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
I don't really see that it was Fumie's fault that Yukari didn't get to go to two Olympics. I think it was a combination of things, things like peaking at the right time and all the rest of it.

If Yukari had come into the scene one year earlier, she could have had a better chance to the 2006 Olympics because they used the points accumulated during the Olympic and pre-Olympic seasons as the selection criteria.

Retrospectively speaking, this turned out to be rather bad criteria, because the selected one was not landing jumps in that particular season. But the rule had officially been published back in May/June of the Olympic season when nobody could expect how the skaters' seasons turn out to be. I can see a rationale for looking at two consecutive seasons in that reputation matters really a lot in skating, esp in PCS.

Then they revised the rule at this Olympics to focus on the season's comp results. This was again published back in June of the Olympic season. The selected one did not have much international reputation, but was landing jumps.

I cannot see anything deliberately personal in these rules against Yukari. Even though both rules unfortunately worked against her specific situations at both times, it would not have been intended to be so.
 
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aftertherain

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 15, 2010
EDITED TO ADD: In fact, I personally do not believe in having an editing function at all, a person should be accountable for what they write, not coming back later to edit one's original thoughts, no matter the passion of the moment, lol. Seriously, I'm a member of a political board wherein they took away the edit function years ago so the members don't have a way to come back later & make themselves look good, including moi. :laugh:

:laugh::rofl::laugh::agree:
 

jsteam4501s

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 7, 2006
Yukari is a sweet, lovely, darling skater. She has been my favorite Asian skater since 4 Continents several years ago when she broke out with a big, beautiful smile and tears of joy upon hearing her marks. I was furious when her long program at 2008 Worlds, I think, landed her in 4th place when even Dick Button thought she should have won. I have her recorded many times on dvd and will be able to enjoy her performances for many years. May she find eternal happiness in her future.
 
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