Kazuki Tomono | Page 189 | Golden Skate

Kazuki Tomono

Yesterday, on the last day of SOI, Kazuki skated to his free skate Die Fledermaus with his full competitive layout and only made minor mistakes, such as a step out on the 3Aeu3S on the second half. Amazing! WTT practices start on Wednesday already, so I hope he gets to have a little bit of rest before then. It's a tough schedule!

Meanwhile, some fun pics from yesterday:


 
Yesterday, on the last day of SOI, Kazuki skated to his free skate Die Fledermaus with his full competitive layout and only made minor mistakes, such as a step out on the 3Aeu3S on the second half. Amazing! WTT practices start on Wednesday already, so I hope he gets to have a little bit of rest before then. It's a tough schedule!

Meanwhile, some fun pics from yesterday:



That champagne glass goes really well with his costume :LOL:
 
Kazuki's IG post yesterday: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq2eX-1PP3g/
It was 10 shows in a blink of an eye, Osaka-Iwate-Yokohama. Thank you so much!

There was also a cute pic of him on Mao Shimada's IG:


Now that SOI is over, time to think about WTT... Official practice starts tomorrow already! Hope he got to at least rest a little bit yesterday :pray:

Asahi Shinbum published a nice article today looking back on his season so far: https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASR484F7XR42UTQP022.html
Kazuki Tomono's sense of distance from the world's top players

He did not reach his goal of a podium finish. Still, Kazuki Tomono (Uenoshiba) is feeling a great response to the World Championships in March, where he placed 6th overall.

He said, "I am very happy with this ranking after two falls (in SP and FS) in that group of skaters.

He is now closer to the top of the world.

In the past, Tomono has been a substitute in international tournaments and has made a mark across the board, giving the impression that he is a "substitute hitter. Fans have even called him "the god of substitute hitting. He laughs, saying that this is the highest praise he can receive, but there is no way an athlete can be satisfied with that position.

This season, in order to "get out of the substitution position," he carefully and meticulously checks jumps, spins, and steps in practice, so that he can gain recognition on the international stage. He has been skating in the performance style since early in the morning, pushing himself hard.

He said, "The foundation has been laid. I feel I am growing.

At the All-Japan Championships last December, he won a bronze medal, his first podium finish in his 10th attempt. He was not an alternate, but rather grabbed a ticket to the World Championships on his own.

At the World Championships, he finished an impressive 6th place. The results he has accumulated have led to his first appearance at the World Team Trophy, which will be held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on April 13.

The image of a "stand-in" is becoming a thing of the past.

This season, he has gone from being a "stand-in" to a "starter," a position that is taken for granted in the national team. He has become accustomed to the pressure of the position, saying, "I am going into the game thinking I have the ability to do well.

Naturally, his sights are set on the next level. Every time I go up a stage, I see a new stage. There is always a wall there, but I hope I can break through it again.

At the World Team Trophy, he will take another step toward a higher level. (Takaaki Fujino)
 
Kazuki's latest Mainichi article was published yesterday!
This time, he talks about about his values and approach to figure skating. How I wish these articles weren't paywalled 😭

WTT official practice started, and Kazuki had a pretty solid morning session, doing a run-through of his free skate:


So it seems he's still in shape despite so many shows, and doing well in practice! He'll be the 7th to skate tomorrow, at 8:19pm Japan time 🔥
 
Soooo... Kazuki did well in practice yesterday, he seems to be in a good place mentally and physically 🔥 Now, let's pray for the actual competition:pray: I'm a bit worried as, not only it's his first WTT, the Japanese press are now treating him like the 'ace of team Japan' which is not something he's used to. But hopefully he'll be alright. Ganbatte, Kazuki!

He seems to be having fun with Shun, at least:



Meanwhile, non-no magazine published some more wonderful pictures :love2::love2::love2:
 
Well... that pesky Salchow again 😭
It wasn't quite as sharp as Worlds, but not too bad all things considered. All of team Japan singles skaters felt the pressure.


That was probably the last competitive Happy Jazz we've seen, as Kazuki had hinted he'll get new programmes for next season. Don't get me wrong, I love that programme, it's so much fun, and I'm happy that he finally got to try an uptempo SP. But let's face it, it didn't quite work for him competitively, I don't think he skated a clean SP all season 🤔

I hope he and Misha choose the music for the new SP carefully, and hopefully it'll be something that will make it easier for him to land both quads. He's been getting high 80s/low 90s with a fall consistently, which is not bad, but he needs to nail both quads in the short if he wants to be on more podiums.

Well, at least we got to see some amazing K&C moments 🤩
 
So... how are we all feeling? He ended up running out of steam in the second half of the free skate yesterday, but that's alright. He admitted later in interviews that it had been difficult to prepare for this tournament after 10 days of SOI shows, and he made mistakes in the free because he worried about his lack of practice (I guess the same thing happened in the free at Worlds 2022). He said he will work on becoming stronger, so he can perform well even in tough conditions.

For now, he confirmed he will have two new programmes next season! The music hasn't been decided yet, but the free will be choreographed by Misha again, and he will work with someone new for the SP. He said he wants the SP to have the same vibe as New Cinema Paradiso, something that makes you feel calm. This is music to my ears as, like I said before, I don't think having an uptempo SP quite worked for him competitively.

I really hope he has a good rest now, it's been a roller-coaster of a season! I've always expected it would be a bit of a struggle, as every new quad brings a new set of circumstances and goals, and he normally takes a bit of time to adjust. Remember the mess that was 2018-19 💀

But all things considered, he did so well. He didn't quite make it to GPF but managed to have good placements in both his GP assignments; he medalled at Nats for the first time; and he delivered great performances at Worlds, finishing in the top 6 again. One thing that stood out for me was the relative stability of his scores: at WTT even with mistakes, he scored in the 250 range. I'm really excited because I think he will only get better from now on, and his scores will definitely increase if he gets Toeloop-san and Salchow-san to coexist in harmony 😅

At this point, I don't really think he needs a new type of quad but I hope if he tries something, he sticks to the 4lo which he already landed in practice. There has been talk of 4F and 4lz but I hope he realises he's an edge jumper first and foremost :pray:
 
Kazuki with that cake with his makeup still on :biggrin: Actually, I think I would like for Kazuki to do a hard rock or punk SP, a bit like The Hardest Button but tougher. 💪 If Oshima can skate a competitive program to it, then so can Kazuki. It would be fun to see among the traditional programs.
 
non-no magazine confirmed that it will post a report of the visit, and also that Kazuki's column will continue next season!


Meanwhile, actress Fuka Koshiba posted a few pics with Kazuki:
 


Fuka Koshiba used to be a novice ice dancer who was on the same team with Kazuki Tomono, tutored by the same coach. Fuka Koshiba was good enough to participate in the Nobeyama camp for elite skaters and she went to the Japanese Novice National Championship in 2011. She grew up to become a well-known actress in Japan.

 
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