There's a petition to send Mirai to Sochi with 4,308 so far

breathesgelatin · Jan 20, 2014

chuckm said:
Mirai was just 19 at the time she was traveling to Palm Springs with Frank, and her parents didn't want her to live away from home with strangers or by herself in an apartment. She was able to stay in Japan this fall because she has many relatives there.

That's just silly. Thousands of teenagers move out of the house at age 17 or 18 - yes, many to go to college, which is arguably a protected environment in some respects, but so would have been Mirai staying with a host family in Palm Springs, which I believe is what Frank said he desired for her. Not to mention many thousands of older teenagers move out of the house completely to get jobs, have their own apartments, pursue dreams in Hollywood, etc. And when you look at elite young figure skaters, I'm sure proportionally many more of them move out on their own or relocate, even across the world, to pursue their dreams.

Now, perhaps some of Mirai and her family's objections were cultural. Or maybe not, maybe her parents are just uber protective. But in a way, it seem symptomatic of why she hasn't been able to succeed at the highest levels, despite so much clear potential.

Anyway, I enjoy Mirai and I'm glad she had a good personal performance at Nationals. What's done is done, the decisions of 2010 or 2011 cannot be taken back now. I wish her the best at 4CC, would love to see her on the podium there.

chuckm · Jan 20, 2014

There were cultural as well as monetary reasons why Mirai's parents didn't want her moving away from home.

karne · Jan 20, 2014

The really annoying part with this is that it's a total lose-lose situation with 4CCs.

If Mirai does well, the crazies will be all over the place screaming that she should have got the Olympics.

If Mirai does badly, the crazies will be all over the place screaming about the horrible evil USFSA that broke her heart so bad she can't skate anymore.

Meanwhile they'll continue to open fifty million threads lamenting the evil USFSA that crushed poor Mirai's dreams while happily advocating for the crushing of Polina's or Ashley's.

alexeifan · Jan 20, 2014

You have to remember also that Mirai's mother had cancer. It might have been a reason why Mirai or her family did not want her to be so far away at that time. Also Frank was not able to get her to worlds again so it probably seemed to the family that it just wasn't worth it.

aftertherain · Jan 20, 2014

chuckm said:
Mirai was just 19 at the time she was traveling to Palm Springs with Frank, and her parents didn't want her to live away from home with strangers or by herself in an apartment. She was able to stay in Japan this fall because she has many relatives there.

She was 16, not 19.

R.D. · Jan 21, 2014

I'd probably have gone with Wagner for the Olympics and Nagasu (and Wagner, too) for worlds, but honestly what's done is done. I don't anything is going to change barring injury or accident.

The bigger question now is what will become of Nagasu's skating career. Can/will she resurrect it, or fade into the night? She's young enough that she could still reboot like Wagner did and get herself in the mix for 2018 (if her body can hold up).

Skater Boy · Jan 22, 2014

I hope Mirai can decide regardless of what happened what does she really want to do? She doesn't have a coach right now. Does she want to compete or is it time to go to school and work? What has to end is all this crying - Mirai, Ashley, Polina crying for joy. Razzano, Jeremy Abbott too many drama queens. United States the nation of a billion tears.

SquishyDumpling · Jan 22, 2014

Skater Boy said:
I hope Mirai can decide regardless of what happened what does she really want to do? She doesn't have a coach right now. Does she want to compete or is it time to go to school and work? What has to end is all this crying - Mirai, Ashley, Polina crying for joy. Razzano, Jeremy Abbott too many drama queens. United States the nation of a billion tears.

Mirai has a coach or at least her ISU bio lists Takashi Mura as her coach. He's gonna be at 4CC with Mura so maybe he'll be with her in the KnC too.

Mrs. P · Jan 22, 2014

Looks like there's a bit of a Twitter/email campaign to USOC. People are sending tweets to USOC campaigning to get Mirai on that Olympic team with the hashtag #Miraiearnedit

http://www.asiancemagazine.com/2014/01/21/one-more-chance-to-help-mirai-nagasu

apgold · Jan 22, 2014

I don't think any of these campaigns are going to change the minds of USOC and USFSA. However, I don't see anything wrong with them, because it gives Mirai's fans an outlet to feel like they are doing something. It's also nice for Mirai to show that she's got a lot of fans on her side supporting her. Hopefully, this will motivate her to continue to improve her skating and performances going forward. Pulling for her to do well at 4CC this week.

As a fan of Mirai, I'm not signing these because I know they won't do anything, but I certainly won't begrudge those who do.

R.D. · Jan 22, 2014

The one thing I see on there that might be useful - force USFS' hand once again and make them outline and explain decision clearly.

Other than that however, afraid it's all but a waste of time as the decision won't be reversed...curious to see how Nagasu will do at 4CC though.

Mrs. P · Jan 22, 2014

apgold said:
I don't think any of these campaigns are going to change the minds of USOC and USFSA. However, I don't see anything wrong with them, because it gives Mirai's fans an outlet to feel like they are doing something. It's also nice for Mirai to show that she's got a lot of fans on her side supporting her. Hopefully, this will motivate her to continue to improve her skating and performances going forward. Pulling for her to do well at 4CC this week.

As a fan of Mirai, I'm not signing these because I know they won't do anything, but I certainly won't begrudge those who do.

If nothing else, I hope it does encourage the USFS to be more transparent about its selection process, especially for a high profile event like the Olympics. Not saying they were corrupt by any means, but I think more transparency could have prevent a lot of this backlash.

ETA: Apparently RD and I are on the same page.

Jammers · Jan 22, 2014

chuckm said:
Mirai was just 19 at the time she was traveling to Palm Springs with Frank, and her parents didn't want her to live away from home with strangers or by herself in an apartment. She was able to stay in Japan this fall because she has many relatives there.

You have to take ownership of your skating and Mirai wasn't willing to do that. Ashley left Priscilla Hill and went to John Nicks halfway across the country to try to make a breakthrough and it worked and she was only about 19. Gracie was barely 18 when she left Chicago to go to Frank Carroll in California though her mother and sister went with her but she still made the change.

MK's Winter · Jan 22, 2014

Jammers said:
You have to take ownership of your skating and Mirai wasn't willing to do that. Ashley left Priscilla Hill and went to John Nicks halfway across the country to try to make a breakthrough and it worked and she was only about 19. Gracie was barely 18 when she left Chicago to go to Frank Carroll in California though her mother and sister went with her but she still made the change.

How can you say she wasn't willing to take ownership? Money doesn't grow on trees some are limited... She made the choice to go to Japan and train under Mura and has made improvements. She needs more time with him obviously but you can't comment on skaters financials, you don't know them.

Jammers · Jan 22, 2014

MK's Winter said:
How can you say she wasn't willing to take ownership? Money doesn't grow on trees some are limited... She made the choice to go to Japan and train under Mura and has made improvements. She needs more time with him obviously but you can't comment on skaters financials, you don't know them.

It wasn't like Mirai was going to have to move halfway across the country to stay with Frank. She would have had a place to stay too since Frank would have set her up with a family he knew.

MK's Winter · Jan 22, 2014

Jammers said:
It wasn't like Mirai was going to have to move halfway across the country to stay with Frank. She would have had a place to stay too since Frank would have set her up with a family he knew.

And we don't know the reason why she didn't. Don't you have to pay a host family? She has family in Japan. And if her parents pay for her training I would think they have some say in where she trains as well.

chuckm · Jan 22, 2014

There were cultural considerations. Mirai's family are Japanese-born and very traditional. While they would be comfortable with Mirai going to Japan and staying with family, Mirai living with strangers would be unthinkable, and they would not have had the money to pay for it.

ice coverage · Jan 22, 2014

Jammers said:
It wasn't like Mirai was going to have to move halfway across the country to stay with Frank. She would have had a place to stay too since Frank would have set her up with a family he knew.

Guess what, Jammers? Skaters and their families are human beings, not robots. A type of arrangement that might feel right to one skater would not necessarily work or make sense to another skater.

Furthermore, none of us here on GS should have the arrogance to presume that we could know what is best for any skater -- esp. regarding a decision affecting her/his life off the ice.

Citing Gracie as a comparison to Mirai in this context, as you did in an earlier post, is particularly RIDICULOUS.

Sure, a long-distance move to Frank Carroll could not have been a choice that Gracie made lightly. But Gracie's mother, twin/best friend, and dog(s?) made the move with her. If home is where the heart is, lucky Gracie still is at home, for the most part.

For Mirai, boarding with a host family known to Carroll would be a far cry from living with her own parents or extended family.

karne · Jan 22, 2014

Plushenko went from Volgograd to St Petersburg at the age of 11. Alone. In total poverty. Living in the slums to get by. Being beaten and bullied by older bigger boys.

ice coverage · Jan 22, 2014

karne said:
Plushenko went from Volgograd to St Petersburg at the age of 11. Alone. In total poverty. Living in the slums to get by. Being beaten and bullied by older bigger boys.

Good for him. :bow:

Still does not mean that any of us could possibly know what is best for Mirai.
It's a matter of apples and oranges to compare any skater's situation in life to another's.

There's a petition to send Mirai to Sochi with 4,308 so far

breathesgelatin

chuckm

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alexeifan

aftertherain

R.D.

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apgold

R.D.

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Jammers

MK's Winter

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