Finland’s Iida Karhunen eyes podium in Bangkok

[gsk8]

Finland's Iida Karhunen eyes podium in Bangkok

Iida Karhunen Finland's Iida Karhunen made a remarkable outing at the 2024 Junior World Championships where she finished fourth. She outperformed several

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We met the 16-year-old from Lappeenranta, Finland, during a five-week camp in Imatra, Finland, which was organized by her longtime coach Marina Shirshova, to get to know her a bit better.

Choreographer Adam Solya also explains the music choice for the new free skate that he selected together with Shirshova.

A dream travel destination for her is visiting and skating in Japan. Definitely within reach for the two-time junior national champion who will open her season at the Junior Grand Prix in Bangkok next month!

 

[Mathman]

“Right after the competition my team celebrated with champagne and I had Sprite.”

Thanks for the article. It gives wonderful insight into the working interactions between skater and coach. The coach seems downright ebullient on her students’ behalf. Interesting contributions from the choreographer as well.

I looked up the city of Lappeenranta. Very interesting. This Finnish city near the Russian border is celebrated as a nature and environmental enclave. They are celebrating 2024 as the Dream Year of (diverse community)) Culture, coinciding with the 375th anniversary of the founding of the cty.

 

[Weathergal]

As a lover of +3Lo combos, I was happy to read "Technically, Karhunen has very solid triple-triple combinations. This includes the triple loop as the second jump in a combination, which she already showed in competition."

I also noticed several times her coach emphasized health and safety, which is great to hear. It seems like she has a great team around her.

I did find it a bit unusual that when she talked about working on the quad salchow with a harness that it was with René Lohse, a former ice dancer. I always think of singles or pairs skaters working on jumps with a harness, but do ice dancers use them for training in some way? Perhaps he's evolved into coaching jumps - I just found it interesting.

 

[Diana Delafield]

As a lover of +3Lo combos, I was happy to read "Technically, Karhunen has very solid triple-triple combinations. This includes the triple loop as the second jump in a combination, which she already showed in competition."

I also noticed several times her coach emphasized health and safety, which is great to hear. It seems like she has a great team around her.

I did find it a bit unusual that when she talked about working on the quad salchow with a harness that it was with René Lohse, a former ice dancer. I always think of singles or pairs skaters working on jumps with a harness, but do ice dancers use them for training in some way? Perhaps he's evolved into coaching jumps - I just found it interesting.

I don't know about Lohse specifically, but I had a friend who competed in men's singles at the senior level and had skated pairs with his sister up to juniors. He got me to partner him through his Canadian senior pairs test and through the dances up to Gold level as it was then (c1990), because he wanted to coach and had a better chance of being hired if he had more than one string to his bow. Many coaches are competent to handle at least the basics of other specialties than the one they competed in.

 

[Weathergal]

I don't know about Lohse specifically, but I had a friend who competed in men's singles at the senior level and had skated pairs with his sister up to juniors. He got me to partner him through his Canadian senior pairs test and through the dances up to Gold level as it was then (c1990), because he wanted to coach and had a better chance of being hired if he had more than one string to his bow. Many coaches are competent to handle at least the basics of other specialties than the one they competed in.

Thanks - makes sense. I was just a bit surprised. I remember enjoying Winkler / Lohse when they were skating.

 

[gsk8]

I did find it a bit unusual that when she talked about working on the quad salchow with a harness that it was with René Lohse, a former ice dancer. I always think of singles or pairs skaters working on jumps with a harness, but do ice dancers use them for training in some way? Perhaps he's evolved into coaching jumps - I just found it interesting.

Same!

 

[gsk8]

I remember enjoying Winkler / Lohse when they were skating.

Their 1999-2000 FD was my favorite

 

[Ladybug89]

Thanks for the nice comments on the article. About Rene: he is working as a coach in Berlin for pretty much all around, jumps, off-ice, choreo…
he is one of a few guys world-wide who do the harness training. As it need a strong physique plus practice and experience to do this with the skaters.

He was in Finnland vor 3 weeks to work with the skaters. Here is some video footage also of Iida’s 4s:

Elite U Ice Camps on Instagram: "Thanks so much @rene.lohse for working with our skaters with the harness during the first half of the camp! 🙏🏻 Due to the feeling of security the harness provides skaters often manage to master new and difficult jumps

118 likes, 0 comments - eliteuicecamps on July 5, 2024: "Thanks so much @rene.lohse for working with our skaters with the harness during the first half of the camp! 🙏🏻 Due to the feeling of security the harness provides skaters often manage to master new and difficult jumps for the first time...

www.instagram.com

 

[Weathergal]

Thanks for the nice comments on the article. About Rene: he is working as a coach in Berlin for pretty much all around, jumps, off-ice, choreo…
he is one of a few guys world-wide who do the harness training. As it need a strong physique plus practice and experience to do this with the skaters.

He was in Finnland vor 3 weeks to work with the skaters. Here is some video footage also of Iida’s 4s:

Elite U Ice Camps on Instagram: "Thanks so much @rene.lohse for working with our skaters with the harness during the first half of the camp! 🙏🏻 Due to the feeling of security the harness provides skaters often manage to master new and difficult jumps

118 likes, 0 comments - eliteuicecamps on July 5, 2024: "Thanks so much @rene.lohse for working with our skaters with the harness during the first half of the camp! 🙏🏻 Due to the feeling of security the harness provides skaters often manage to master new and difficult jumps for the first time...

www.instagram.com

Wow this is interesting - and thank you for sharing the clip!

You do a great job with the written articles and the video interviews! You have such a friendly approach and ask good questions.

 

[Weathergal]

Their 1999-2000 FD was my favorite

Do you mean this program?

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

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I like this one a lot. I think this is the program that people mentioned when discussing Chock and Bates Pink Floyd program. I hadn't remembered the info that they shared in the small bio segment before their skate that discusses how their was no tradition of ice dance in East Germany so they originally had to use books to learn about it. Talk about coming a long way!

 

[gsk8]

Do you mean this program?

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

www.youtube.com

I like this one a lot. I think this is the program that people mentioned when discussing Chock and Bates Pink Floyd program. I hadn't remembered the info that they shared in the small bio segment before their skate that discusses how their was no tradition of ice dance in East Germany so they originally had to use books to learn about it. Talk about coming a long way!

Yes that’s it

I recall mentioning last season although the music escaped me then

2023 Skate America: Ice Dance Thoughts?

https://www.goldenskate.com/chock-and-bates-win-fourth-skate-america-gold/ I think we all new that Chock and Bates would take this! Their free dance was very clever, especially to me as I'm a big Pink Floyd fan :) It was great to see Lajoie and Lagha move up and their FD is gorrrrrrgeous! What...

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