The speculation comes from some off the cuff comments she made in the past (~2011-12) about the days she didn't train in PS with FrankC and how (her process) she was training on her own along with off-the-record comments overheard from previous coaches about stubborness and work ethic.
Come on guys, it ridiculous to make rumor about someone that we don't know at all and all thoses athlete would not be there if they would not work hard in training. For a 3rd place finisher at nationals and a 3rd place at CoR, I can totally say that Mirai is a hardworker, not every skater archive what she does.
Questioning someone's work ethic is definitely not defamation. Calling someone lazy is not a factual statement, but rather an opinion.
... She's simply not toned ...
Saying "she is lazy" or "she is known to have work issues" it's stating a fact, which needs evidence.
Lazy is a relative term; what you consider lazy I may not. .
I certainly don't know enough about her regimen to state one way or the other, but we have a lot of skaters on the boards who train in the same rinks as these athletes and have credible information.
Come on guys, it ridiculous to make rumor about someone that we don't know at all and all thoses athlete would not be there if they would not work hard in training. For a 3rd place finisher at nationals and a 3rd place at CoR, I can totally say that Mirai is a hardworker, not every skater archive what she does.
What I recall reading is NOT a rumor, nor did I make it up. She mentioned in a presser when she was with FrankC and making the 2 hour drive a few days a week that the days she was skating at Arcadia (not in PS), she didn't train the same way (something about not running programs and some days just "playing around" on the ice) as she did when she was in PS.
A 2-hour drive several times a week followed by an intense training session and the same drive home seems incredibly grueling to me. Each person is different, though. Presumably some skaters can do just fine in this scenario, others not so much. Maybe Mirai is one who can't -- it may be less about motivation/work ethic and more about energy and physical stamina. If you don't have the energy, concentration is a real challenge and your work will be sub-par.
but if you have a skating background at all, you can see the preparedness of a skater at a competition and there have been a number of times that Mirai doesn't look prepared to skate her programs in the speed she carries throughout the program and her ability to fully rotate her jumps, particularly in the back half of her program.
I thought I remembered reading that Frank offered to help her move, even found a nice family for her to stay with, so that she wouldn't have to drive the two hours each way, but she refused and CHOSE to keep up with the two hour drive.
I thought I remembered reading that Frank offered to help her move, even found a nice family for her to stay with, so that she wouldn't have to drive the two hours each way, but she refused and CHOSE to keep up with the two hour drive.
Yes, after the disappointing 2012 Nationals, Frank wanted her to move to Palm Springs, and if finances were a problem, offered to find her a family to stay with at minimal/no cost. My understanding is Mirai's parents, not Mirai, rejected the offer, and Frank then set her up with coach Olson in the LA area instead for the 2012-13 season. Mirai moving to Colorado Springs now is a big deal for her, she is now 21 and moving away from her parents for the first time.
I think way to many people assume if you train hard, that automatically results in success. It doesn't. One of the biggest obstacles to success in major competitions is handling pressure. I think Mirai had trouble handling pressure at the 2012 Nationals, but she is by no means the only one. In the Boston Nationals, pressure certainly got to Gao, Agnes, and to a lesser extent Wagner. I don't believe for a minute these three skaters went to Boston undertrained, I believe the pressure got to them. Nagasu, on the other hand, went to Boston without a primary coach, skated very well and didn't let the pressure affect her performance.
I'm interested about this aspect.
I don't have a skating background so I wouldn't be able to see that. I mean, I can see when a skater is tired in the second half of the program, or when they lack in speed but I thought this isn't much about how much you train, work.
I remember that Yagudin and Irina had some issues with their energy and stamina in the second half of their programs? I don't know if it's the same thing you're referring though.
I remember that Yagudin and Irina had some issues with their energy and stamina in the second half of their programs? I don't know if it's the same thing you're referring though.
I thought I remembered reading that Frank offered to help her move, even found a nice family for her to stay with, so that she wouldn't have to drive the two hours each way, but she refused and CHOSE to keep up with the two hour drive.