Team Mao: potential plans | Golden Skate

Team Mao: potential plans

Tinymavy15

Sinnerman for the win
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 28, 2006
Yes, a 3/3 and "soft music" is just what the doctor ordered. I just have so much respect for Mao. She is constantly trying to improve, to challenge herself technically. I guess the lutz is officially not coming back though?
 

sunny0760

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 16, 2010
According to the article, now Sato Nobuo, Sato Yuka's father and Kozuka's coach and Honda Takeshi, Daiske's technical coach are being mentioned as new coaches.

Nagakubo Hiroshi, Suzuki's coach, is not mentioned there. I wonder whether he will be chosen too because he helped Mao a lot at 4CC.
(Please correct me if I am wrong.)
 

Trewyn

Medalist
Joined
Dec 10, 2008
Nobuo Sato is such a sweet-looking guy!! No idea what his methods are; but he always looks so calm and soothing. And Kozuka is a great skater; I think Mao and Kozuka could be great training partners :). So TAT is remaining as a coach and choreographer?? I'm confused, wasn't there an article stating Mao had broken off all engagements with Tarasova?
 

chloepoco

Medalist
Joined
Nov 1, 2009
Nobuo Sato is such a sweet-looking guy!! No idea what his methods are; but he always looks so calm and soothing. And Kozuka is a great skater; I think Mao and Kozuka could be great training partners :). So TAT is remaining as a coach and choreographer?? I'm confused, wasn't there an article stating Mao had broken off all engagements with Tarasova?

I wish she would use Kenji Miyamoto as her choreographer; his programs are so brilliant!
 

Bennett

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
Nobuo Sato is such a sweet-looking guy!! No idea what his methods are; but he always looks so calm and soothing. And Kozuka is a great skater; I think Mao and Kozuka could be great training partners :). So TAT is remaining as a coach and choreographer?? I'm confused, wasn't there an article stating Mao had broken off all engagements with Tarasova?

Mr. Nobuo Sato seems to greatly value basics, which seems apparent in his daughter's skating:). Yukari Nakano and Fumie Suguri went to him later in their career and I recall their wishing if they had done so before. Mr. Sato looks so gentle, but I read his wife Kumiko says that his students are kind of afraid of (?) him; perhaps he could be hard, too. :biggrin:
No, according to this particular article, TAT remains as a choreopgraher but not as a coach. But yeah, I read elsewhere that they just split off. So who knows? But I think it safe to say that TAT will not remain as a main coach.
 

aurora100

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 3, 2009
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20100330-00000012-sph-spo

The article says that they may pick multiple coaches with different expertise, while having the main coach and keeping TAT as a choreographer.

Mao wants to do 3-3 and "soft music." Happy to hear that.

PLEEEEEEEEASE PLEASE Mao, do not use have TAT as a choreographer. She is a great choreographer and you are a great skater, but TAT is not a good match for you. Pleeeeeeeeeease go back to Lori Nichol !!!!!!!!
 

Morning Glory

On the Ice
Joined
Dec 16, 2008
According to the article, now Sato Nobuo, Sato Yuka's father and Kozuka's coach and Honda Takeshi, Daiske's technical coach are being mentioned as new coaches.

Nobuo Sato and Takeshi Honda are mentioned just as prospective coaches. Also this article only mentioned that the persons concerned with skating ( I have no idea who they are...) said Nobuo and Takeshi would good for Mao, so I don't know how team Mao thinks about them.

I think it is really great if Mao goes to Nobuo Sato or Takeshi Honda.
 

Morning Glory

On the Ice
Joined
Dec 16, 2008
PLEEEEEEEEASE PLEASE Mao, do not use have TAT as a choreographer. She is a great choreographer and you are a great skater, but TAT is not a good match for you. Pleeeeeeeeeease go back to Lori Nichol !!!!!!!!

Mao with Lori and Chopin like Nocturne, Fantaisie-Impromptu and So Deep Is The Night were really great !! But I also love TAT's Fantasia for Violin and Orchestra, Por una Cabeza and Capriccio!
 

Wrlmy

Medalist
Joined
Jun 17, 2007
I somehow doubt Midori would make a good technical coach for Mao. IMO she had way too much natural jumping talent to provide any more constructive advice than "Mao-chan, just do it!". After all, she trained under Yamada.
 

Bennett

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
I somehow doubt Midori would make a good technical coach for Mao. IMO she had way too much natural jumping talent to provide any more constructive advice than "Mao-chan, just do it!". After all, she trained under Yamada.

Yeah, I get such an impression. Her commentary, to me, is not as reliable as Shizuka's, Yuka Sato's, or Ms. Yaginuma Junko's. She cheers for the skaters and does not do a great job in analysis.
 

aurora100

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 3, 2009
there are a rumor that midori ito wants to coach mao...

This would be an utter disaster. Mao already has the only thing Midori Ito could teacher her. Triple Axel. What Mao needs is not what Midori Ito was famous for. Triple combinations and complicated transition moves that would gain all the points she needs to score big. I watched the entire career of Midori Ito in late 80s and early 90s, when she couldn't beat Kristi Yamaguchi. She was famous for lack of artistry to put it mildly. And in her days, ladies did not have to do triple triple nor did it have today scoring system.
 

robinhood

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 18, 2010
This would be an utter disaster. Mao already has the only thing Midori Ito could teacher her. Triple Axel. What Mao needs is not what Midori Ito was famous for. Triple combinations and complicated transition moves that would gain all the points she needs to score big. I watched the entire career of Midori Ito in late 80s and early 90s, when she couldn't beat Kristi Yamaguchi. She was famous for lack of artistry to put it mildly. And in her days, ladies did not have to do triple triple nor did it have today scoring system.

I don't know if Ito would be a good fit for Mao, either. But suggesting that Midori could teach her only the 3A is just plain wrong. For starters, she can help to improve Mao's 3a. It isn't always ratified, and I'm sure she could help her in getting more height and flow out of it. About the lack of artistry, Midori wasn't very musical and didn`t have elegant or long lines. But her programs were way more difficult than Yamaguchi's, not only in terms of jumps of course, but they were filled with transitions, much harder steps and spins and besides that, she was a much better basic skater than Kristi. She would have trumped Kristy 90% of the time under COP. I think she has a lot to say to Mao, if she wants her advice
Then again, Midori was a freak of nature in jumping ability and I'm not sure she can quite explain how to do it to the simple mortals (not that Mao isn't an oustanding talent, either)
 

aurora100

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 3, 2009
I don't know if Ito would be a good fit for Mao, either. But suggesting that Midori could teach her only the 3A is just plain wrong. For starters, she can help to improve Mao's 3a. It isn't always ratified, and I'm sure she could help her in getting more height and flow out of it. About the lack of artistry, Midori wasn't very musical and didn`t have elegant or long lines. But her programs were way more difficult than Yamaguchi's, not only in terms of jumps of course, but they were filled with transitions, much harder steps and spins and besides that, she was a much better basic skater than Kristi. She would have trumped Kristy 90% of the time under COP. I think she has a lot to say to Mao, if she wants her advice
Then again, Midori was a freak of nature in jumping ability and I'm not sure she can quite explain how to do it to the simple mortals (not that Mao isn't an oustanding talent, either)

I have to respectfully disagree. Improving her 3A is not what Mao needs the most at the moment. She needs to go back to rounding out her program top to bottom. Now, I agree with you Yamaguchi was not what she became later as a pro skater. She was more of a jumping bean with often awkward lines and carriages, not the lyrical artistic skater like Michelle Kwan or anything. Even then Ito made Yamaguchi look strong in artistry. Ito had nothing but jumps...and it was the jumps that got her the titles she did. We all loved her personality and we wanted her to win more but she was so far away from a complete skater. I couldn't think of someone worse, just in skating style, than Ito, as Mao's coach, at this point.
 

Bennett

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
Ito is one of the advisors at Chukyo Univ (the univ of Mao, Miki, Takahiko). It wouldn't hurt to have her as one of the coaches. But it may not be the greatest idea to have her as the main coach who organizes and coordinates the teamwork. Yuka Sato would be fantastic as the main coach, but perhaps she would not be available. Shizuka also seems fantastic, but she may be considered too young, if she has to organize the team with older coaches. Plus she would be too busy with her own stuff.
 

tarotx

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 30, 2005
What you do as a skater doesn't mean that's all you can give as a coach. Anyway it's not like Midori last competed yesterday. It's been years. Plus She has been under the pressure that Mao has and she'll be in Japan seeing Mao day after day. The bad and the good. That's what Mao needs the most right now. Mao can get good cop choreography, take some edging/skating skills/figure lessons, jump lessons and dance classes with other instructors. She also needs to hear what the judges say to her in the early competitions and work on what ever the issues turn out to be.

Now I'm not saying Midori will be a good coach for Mao but I won't write it off as a bad move yet(if that's the direction she goes). Anyway Mao doesn't need a lot of help like a Caroline Z.
 

robinhood

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 18, 2010
I have to respectfully disagree. Improving her 3A is not what Mao needs the most at the moment. She needs to go back to rounding out her program top to bottom. Now, I agree with you Yamaguchi was not what she became later as a pro skater. She was more of a jumping bean with often awkward lines and carriages, not the lyrical artistic skater like Michelle Kwan or anything. Even then Ito made Yamaguchi look strong in artistry. Ito had nothing but jumps...and it was the jumps that got her the titles she did. We all loved her personality and we wanted her to win more but she was so far away from a complete skater. I couldn't think of someone worse, just in skating style, than Ito, as Mao's coach, at this point.
I didn't say Mao has to improve her 3A, I just stated my opinion saying that Mao's axel is far from perfect and isn't the only thing tha Ito can teach her.
Mao doesn't need a style coach, that will be solved with suitable choreography. She's already an extremely elegant and lyrical skater. What she needs is a technichal coach, and Ito in your own words (which I don't agree at all) could help her with the jumps
 

aurora100

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 3, 2009
Ito is one of the advisors at Chukyo Univ (the univ of Mao, Miki, Takahiko). It wouldn't hurt to have her as one of the coaches. But it may not be the greatest idea to have her as the main coach who organizes and coordinates the teamwork. Yuka Sato would be fantastic as the main coach, but perhaps she would not be available. Shizuka also seems fantastic, but she may be considered too young, if she has to organize the team with older coaches. Plus she would be too busy with her own stuff.

As the saying goes, too many chefs, spoils broth........ good luck Mao.
 
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