Miki Ando | Page 5 | Golden Skate

Miki Ando

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
JSF has already said they won't send Miki to competitions unless she competes at Regionals (that means no GP) and she has to WIN Nationals to make the team for Sochi. Miki will be 26 by Nationals and she will not have competed internationally for 2.5 years. I have my doubts that Miki will be competitive against the current lineup of Japanese ladies, and don't see her winning the title.

Wow, they said she *has* to? I think her chances are really slim now. And it's not like she's the most artistic skater so she'll need everything, including faulty performances from all 3 favourites.
 

drivingmissdaisy

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
Well, she will have to compete in some international competition to get a qualifying score, right? If she gets the 2nd highest overall total score of the Japanese women for the season, and finishes in 2nd at Nationals, I highly doubt they would leave her off the team, especially consider she was a WC this Olympic cycle.
 

mary01

Final Flight
Joined
Nov 20, 2011
Well, she will have to compete in some international competition to get a qualifying score, right? If she gets the 2nd highest overall total score of the Japanese women for the season, and finishes in 2nd at Nationals, I highly doubt they would leave her off the team, especially consider she was a WC this Olympic cycle.

exactly, I think the chances of Akiko or Murakami not making the team is bigger then Miki being left out, after all Miki's scoring potentials is higher then both Akiko and Murakami. so any decent showing from Miki and she will be in the mix. the only one I consider a lock for the Olympic team is Mao.

and through many people have written Ando out, I still think that she is able to make a good comeback, after all she is a natural jumper just like Mao, and a good training team and determination to work hard may be all she needs to get back in shape. i atleast wouldn't be surprised if she gave a strong comeback at nationals!
 

pangtongfan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
Well, she will have to compete in some international competition to get a qualifying score, right? If she gets the 2nd highest overall total score of the Japanese women for the season, and finishes in 2nd at Nationals, I highly doubt they would leave her off the team, especially consider she was a WC this Olympic cycle.

She apparently has to skate at Regionals to qualify for Nationals before even getting a B assignment. I doubt a high score at a B assignment would be convincing of anything either given that the fields there are easier. If the JSF has already said they wont send barring a win at Nationals, I dont see them going back on that unless one of Suzuki or Murakami has a horrible grand prix season. It is not like Ando at this stage is anymore competitive than them. Suzuki posted a 200ish score at the WTT and that is almost the same as Ando got at the 2011 4CCs which was the competition of her life, and higher than Ando got in winning the 2011 Worlds. I doubt given her layoff and age Ando would even be capable of that now (Suzuki is even older but she is a late bloomer who has been competing and improving continously). Murakami was 4th at Worlds, and Ando would have needed to be in her 2011 form to even be as high as 4th at this years Worlds.

I still dont think we will see Ando compete. What would be her goal for coming back, Olympic Gold, ROTFL, maybe if Kim falls 5 times and Kostner and Asada fall a couple atleast each. I dont think there would be anything to motivate her to return when her chances of an Olympic medal are extremely small.
 

altuixde

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 7, 2012
Miki placed 15th and 5th at the two previous Olympics, so a medal of any color in Sochi would probably be satisfying.
 

Bartek

On the Ice
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
She apparently has to skate at Regionals to qualify for Nationals before even getting a B assignment. I doubt a high score at a B assignment would be convincing of anything either given that the fields there are easier. If the JSF has already said they wont send barring a win at Nationals, I dont see them going back on that unless one of Suzuki or Murakami has a horrible grand prix season. It is not like Ando at this stage is anymore competitive than them. Suzuki posted a 200ish score at the WTT and that is almost the same as Ando got at the 2011 4CCs which was the competition of her life, and higher than Ando got in winning the 2011 Worlds. I doubt given her layoff and age Ando would even be capable of that now (Suzuki is even older but she is a late bloomer who has been competing and improving continously). Murakami was 4th at Worlds, and Ando would have needed to be in her 2011 form to even be as high as 4th at this years Worlds.

I still dont think we will see Ando compete. What would be her goal for coming back, Olympic Gold, ROTFL, maybe if Kim falls 5 times and Kostner and Asada fall a couple atleast each. I dont think there would be anything to motivate her to return when her chances of an Olympic medal are extremely small.

Well, would Suzuki have gotten the same score if the WTT hadn't been held in Tokyo? I know it's ISU international competition just like 4CC and Worlds Ando won in 2011 but still we all know that Japanese score slightly higher in Japan, especially at this very competition. It seems special to them ending the season of their beloved sport in their country and the judges want to deliver properly. Normally, I think Akiko would've scored something around 195 for her performances.

If Ando comes back to her old form she's capable of high GOE's on all of her jumps and spins. If the technicalities are there the judges will increase PCS accordingly. What's more, she could also benefit from 70% base value for "<" as opposed to what she got before.
 

drivingmissdaisy

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
If the JSF has already said they wont send barring a win at Nationals, I dont see them going back on that.

Why not? If Akiko or Kanako finish 4th at Japanese nationals and have mediocre GP events they haven't made a compelling case to be on the team. I find Miki uninspiring but I do know she can score well if she's clean, and her two world titles are no fluke.
 

CoyoteChris

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 4, 2004
I being lucky enough to not know anything about skatin', and unencombered by the thought process, wonder if it is totally out of the question that the JSF would release her to skate for another country? If they are just trying to be mean to her, I suppose they would not release her. But with Akiko and Kanako skating at the level they are now, the JSF better never say never about letting Miki compete. Burning bridges isnt a good idea. And Mao, like every skater, is one injury from sitting out the season. I like and admire Akiko but she is not "on". I say let Miki compete on the GP circuit....I would have rather seen her at Worlds than 20 of the other ladies that made it to the final skate.....
 

chloepoco

Medalist
Joined
Nov 1, 2009
I being lucky enough to not know anything about skatin', and unencombered by the thought process, wonder if it is totally out of the question that the JSF would release her to skate for another country? If they are just trying to be mean to her, I suppose they would not release her. But with Akiko and Kanako skating at the level they are now, the JSF better never say never about letting Miki compete. Burning bridges isnt a good idea. And Mao, like every skater, is one injury from sitting out the season. I like and admire Akiko but she is not "on". I say let Miki compete on the GP circuit....I would have rather seen her at Worlds than 20 of the other ladies that made it to the final skate.....



Thank you, CoyoteChris. I don't understand the animosity that many on here seem to have for Miki. She may not be the most artistic skater, but I think she is still lovely to watch.
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Why not? If Akiko or Kanako finish 4th at Japanese nationals and have mediocre GP events they haven't made a compelling case to be on the team. I find Miki uninspiring but I do know she can score well if she's clean, and her two world titles are no fluke.

I agree with this. Japan should send their best 3 skaters, based on who is the best skater at that time. Russia has clearly shown that sending lower placements that are theoretically a good choice can really backfire. At this point, Mao/Akiko/Kanako have shown through varying degrees (and varying performances) that they're good choices for the Olympic team. Until Miki skates, there is no way of ascertaining the shot she has at the Olympic podium, let alone beating her 3 country mates for a shot at the Olympics in general. And who knows what could happen to Mao/Akiko/Kanako next season. The only one I would say has sway is Mao because she's been a world champion and is the defending bronze medalist (which Akiko was last year, and Kanako almost was this year), and she's got the most potential to make the podium even with errors whereas Suzuki and Murakami aren't afforded that. We also can't tell how the judges will receive whatever programs Miki comes up with... her PCS will be high because of her reputation but not exorbitantly high unless she's made drastic improvements to her overall skating.
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
I being lucky enough to not know anything about skatin', and unencombered by the thought process, wonder if it is totally out of the question that the JSF would release her to skate for another country?

How could she do that? Singles skaters must be a citizen of the country they represent. Since Japan does not permit dual citizenship, Miki can't skate for another country, except in pairs or dance, and she has no experience in either.


I say let Miki compete on the GP circuit....I would have rather seen her at Worlds than 20 of the other ladies that made it to the final skate.....

Miki doesn't qualify for an GP invitation since she will have fallen off the updated World Rankings, and isn't on the 2012-2013 SB list. She already used up her one-time-only return bid this past season by withdrawing from both GP events. She can't even get a host pick, since the JSF has said they won't send her to any competitions until she qualifies at Regionals.

As far as Akiko and Mao are concerned, both of them are ten times more musical than Miki Ando, and for that reason they are far more watchable than Miki Ando at her best.
 

CoyoteChris

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 4, 2004
How could she do that? Singles skaters must be a citizen of the country they represent. Since Japan does not permit dual citizenship, Miki can't skate for another country.
I do not look for Miki to come back or give up her citizenship but technically I was interested in the rules as to if a skater did leave their country and become a citizen of another, could the first federation stop them.


Miki doesn't qualify for an GP invitation since she will have fallen off the updated World Rankings, and isn't on the 2012-2013 SB list. She already used up her one-time-only return bid this past season by withdrawing from both GP events. She can't even get a host pick, since the JSF has said they won't send her to any competitions until she qualifies at Regionals.

OK, that clears that up.

As far as Akiko and Mao are concerned, both of them are ten times more musical than Miki Ando, and for that reason they are far more watchable than Miki Ando at her best.

Musical is nice but at the end of the day its all about the points. I think Mao is pretty solid now but Akiko has issues...hopefully they will be solved by next season. If they are not, things will get interesting....
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Musical is nice but at the end of the day its all about the points. I think Mao is pretty solid now but Akiko has issues...hopefully they will be solved by next season. If they are not, things will get interesting....

In terms of PCS, Mao is solid, but she's had some rough skates this season. I was really surprised at her getting a PB for her Worlds FS, though. Akiko's WTT FS probably would have gotten a PB at Worlds too, but perhaps not as high. I think they're still both potentially solid and will likely hold off Miki, but internationally, there a few skaters who can definitely surpass them should they have an off day.
 
Top