Kim to skate at 2011 Worlds: Press release

[SkatingAnalyst]

I believe...Ladies peak their technical skills at age 15~17...
If you don't make a signicant achievement by 17...you'll be just a mediocre skater rest of your career.

Yuna suffered back injury between age 16~17...
She performed the most beautiful program in ladies history at age 16 anyway...with 2 beauty marks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS-ZByonsJ4
This program was a turning point of her career...JUDGES BEGAN TO RECOGNIZE HER OUTSTANDING TALENT WITH THIS EVENT.

 

[janetfan]

I believe...Ladies peak their technical skills at age 15~17...
If you don't make a signicant achievement by 17...you'll be just a mediocre skater rest of your career.

Yuna suffered back injury between age 16~17...
She performed the most beautiful program in ladies history at age 16 anyway...with 2 beauty marks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS-ZByonsJ4
This program was a turning point of her career...JUDGES BEGAN TO RECOGNIZE HER OUTSTANDING TALENT WITH THIS EVENT.

Fans of Joannie Rochette might disagree with you.

Go back and watch Irina skate at 15-17 and then watch her skate at 24-26.

Sasha needed back surgery and had a much more serious injury than Yuna ever had. She came back, kept training and by the time she was 21 had through hard work and experience acquired much better skating skills than she had at 15 - 17.

Sorry, and I could give many more examples. All skaters do not develope at the same pace or age.

In fact, I think Yuna's skating at 15-17 is clearly not as good as it was at 19.

 

[Olympia]

And then of course there's Shizuka!

 

[SkatingAnalyst]

Fans of Joannie Rochette might disagree with you.

Sasha needed back surgery and had a much more serious injury than Yuna ever had. She came back, kept training and by the time she was 21 had through hard work and experience acquired much better skating skills than she had at 15 - 17.

Sorry, and I could give many more examples. All skaters do not develope at the same pace or age.

In fact, I think Yuna's skating at 15-17 is clearly not as good as it was at 19.

You can say 19 yr old Yuna is better than age 16... ARTISTICALLY...thanks to the Team in Toronto.
It was unfortunate for Sasha...She is a world champion...if not jumps.
Joannie never came close to become a world champion.

 

[dorispulaski]

Not to mention the resurgence (however inconsistent) of Cynthia Phaneuf.

 

[janetfan]

You can say 19 yr old Yuna is better than age 16... ARTISTICALLY...thanks to the Team in Toronto.
It was unfortunate for Sasha...She is a world champion...if not jumps.
Joannie never came close to become a world champion.

I think 19 year old Yuna has better tech too. Better spins, better spirals, better footwork .......... and I never saw a 3Lz+3T from 16 year old Yuna. I saw that wonderful combo from 19 year old Yuna.

And who knows what the future holds for Yuna. She may decide to retire after this season - or may comeback fulltime for next season, including the GP. It might depend on how she is feeling and whatever her choice I can't say Yuna has definitely peaked at 19.

BTW, when a skater shows better artistry it is often because their tech has gotten better. Yuna made it look easier at 19 than she ever did at 15-17.

Watch her TR - what she was doing going into and after her jumps at 19. We see technical mastery Yuna had at 19 but not at 15 or 16.

Her improved artistry was a result of her improved technical abilty.

 

[doubleflutz]

I believe...Ladies peak their technical skills at age 15~17...
If you don't make a signicant achievement by 17...you'll be just a mediocre skater rest of your career.

Tell it to Midori and Tonya, both of whom were better technicians at their peak than Yuna ever will be, or even could be.

 

[cooper]

We should stay on topic or whatever.

Anyway "Homage to Korea" will probably Variations on a Korean Folk Song which includes Arirang.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZyn2FDvvy0&feature=related

 

[seniorita]

Watch her TR - what she was doing going into and after her jumps at 19. We see technical mastery Yuna had at 19 but not at 15 or 16.

not that I mind but from the last two seasons I think she does the same transitions though before and after her jumps, the turn she does after her solo jumps (flip?, salcow and lutz), spread eagle before axel or axel combo and the ina bauer. I think is part of her style now.

 

[steyn]

I think 19 year old Yuna has better tech too. Better spins, better spirals, better footwork .......... and I never saw a 3Lz+3T from 16 year old Yuna. I saw that wonderful combo from 19 year old Yuna.

Well although I agree with you on other points, as a matter of fact, Yu-Na once did 3L-3T when she was 15 years old (Junior Grand Prix at Sofia, 2005). She added impromptu 3T after 3Lz because she failed 3F-3T at that time.

http://www.isuresults.com/results/jgpbul2005/jgpbul05_Ladies_FS_scores.pdf

 

[blue dog]

I believe...Ladies peak their technical skills at age 15~17...
If you don't make a signicant achievement by 17...you'll be just a mediocre skater rest of your career.

You might want to talk to the following women, who began making changes in their skating long after 17:

Kristi, who landed the triple-triple at 18
Maria, a world champion at 27
Joannie, who didn't start attempting the triple-triple until 21
Lesley, who upgraded her triple jump arsenal at 23

or Denise, who still lands triples at 47 years old!

 

[Kwanford Wife]

?


Oops, I meant "it doesn't matter to me"...which is also a fib. You're right, it does matter, but it's not what I hope most for. And yet, at the same time, I do. One can't help but root for their favourites to have the best outcomes.


Aww, is this the real Kwanford Wife? Those are totally sweet and fair reasons, and I could see a judge seeing it this way exactly, too. It didn't occur to me to look at it that way. I guess that's why phrases like "YuNa waltzing in to grab the gold" were used, it seems almost unfair if she does that, and figure skating would be better promoted by supporting participation in more than one event. To that end, a Mirai or Miki or Akiko win would be preferable, and talent-wise they are totally deserving. Well, in my heart of hearts I'm doing the uber thing, but I'm not completely against such an outcome either. (that is, if they bring it!)


I don't know, I still think it could happen, and it just says that it's the post-Olympic year (and that YuNa is indisputably the greatest figure skater of all time! ) It explains why Miki also said her focus would be to have more fun, and why Mao has timed her retooling to be now. It's kind of like a pause before the next wunderkinder hit the scene (especially the little Russians) and the "veterans" start to re-arm themselves. It wouldn't be such a disaster to me.....hehe.... (the YuNa uber that I am)

P.S. I didn't know pangtongfan was a boy.

Hmmm... as always, you make an excellent case. Post olympics are traditionally a weird year. 2007 wasn an exception and I need to remember that. For example: remember 2003 Worlds? Yeah, Kwan was on fire but Elana and whoever won the bronze (Fumie?) totally didn't register in my memory. I can only remember the crowd jumping to its feet like a flashmob when Kwan raised her arms at the end.Plus, Yuna really is awesome and I doubt she's sitting around eating potato chips...

ESPCIALLY since she is the indisputably the GREATEST SKATER OF ALL TIME!!! One world championship and all... (yes, I did go and look that up because I just wanted to see where Yuna ranks in terms of hardware - which leads to this question: does one world & one olympic gold make you great or just Tara Lipinski?)

A boy, huh? Kinda stranger danger if you ask me...:unsure:

 

[Tonichelle]

which leads to this question: does one world & one olympic gold make you great or just Tara Lipinski?

I don't know, ask Evan, or Kristi (or does she have two?), or Oksana, or Viktor [Petrenko]... does Boitano have one or two world titles?

I think it all boils down to - what does one accomplish after. In the case of Tara - she was going to have a great pro career. She wanted to carve out her spot, but injuries got in the way.

 

[Kwanford Wife]

Ando is not capable of beating Kim at Worlds or any other event. Kim can only beat herself with multiple major finals and Ando would have to skate lights out, which is what happened in 2007. However 2007 wasnt even prime Kim yet. I expect prime Kim could have those type of falls and still beat Ando skating lights out. Add to that Ando isnt the caliber of skater she was in 2007 anymore anyway.

Anyone who thinks the judges would ever let Ando beating Kim without Kim bombing majorly is off their rocker though. Especialy when Ando isnt even doing impressive triple-triple combos which was by far her best asset at her best, anymore.

I'm starting to think you are either a) mocking us figure skating nerds with your outlandish statements that we are taking way too seriously while you giggle away or b) off YOUR rocker. We all have skaters that we love, worship and adore - but you are nuts if you think the shameless promotion of Yuna is going to translate into her scores. And honestly - tempting the skating gods is never a good idea. And here's a question I posed earlier that I am repeating just for you: does one world gold and one olympic gold make Yuna the greatest or just Tara Lipiniski? Think about it. Meditate on it. And get back to me when you have a real answer vs. your nonsense. :disapp: :disapp:

 

[Kwanford Wife]

I don't know, ask Evan, or Kristi (or does she have two?), or Oksana, or Viktor [Petrenko]... does Boitano have one or two world titles?

I think it all boils down to - what does one accomplish after. In the case of Tara - she was going to have a great pro career. She wanted to carve out her spot, but injuries got in the way.

Oh, I know... I am feeding trolls and lashing out right now to earlier foolishness. While teasing Prettykeys, of course because that one's simply a doll whom I love...

As you know, I don't count hardware. That comment was not for adults. Fine since you wanna rain on my parade - I'm logging off to finish this report due at 4pm...

 

[prettykeys]

While teasing Prettykeys,

I didn't know I was being teased... :

does one world gold and one olympic gold make Yuna the greatest or just Tara Lipiniski?

Can I rephrase that question to make sure I'm understanding it clearly? You are asking, "Does one World gold and one Olympic gold make YuNa the greatest or just awesome?", right? Tara Lipinski is pretty awesome in my book.

And so, to answer that question, it means that YuNa is awesome.

For that matter, 10 World golds and 3 Olympic golds wouldn't necessarily make someone the greatest, either. It's all about the performances, the contexts, and the competitors, to me. In that order. And even so, I don't think it's necessary to think in terms of who's the greatest or the best. Not in this multifaceted sport.

 

[Layfan]

I didn't know I was being teased... :


Can I rephrase that question to make sure I'm understanding it clearly? You are asking, "Does one World gold and one Olympic gold make YuNa the greatest or just awesome?", right? Tara Lipinski is pretty awesome in my book.

And so, to answer that question, it means that YuNa is awesome.

For that matter, 10 World golds and 3 Olympic golds wouldn't necessarily make someone the greatest, either. It's all about the performances, the contexts, and the competitors, to me. In that order. And even so, I don't think it's necessary to think in terms of who's the greatest or the best. Not in this multifaceted sport.

Indeed - and we probably spend entirely too much time trying to decide who is the greatest, bestest, bestest most awesomest awesomest awesomest ... perhaps an understandable hazard of following such tough competitions...

There is no doubt in my mind that Yuna has earned her place among the greats. However, Yuna regards Michelle Kwan as her hero. And Michelle Kwan considers that an honor. I doubt those two spend anytime at all obsessing over whether they would have beat each other IF... so why should we? ahem, pangtongfan

 

[SkatingAnalyst]

You may list as many aberations as you want...but...
Just check the age of recent Olympic Champions who included triple-triple jumps in the programs...last 18 years.

YEAR NAME------ AGE -- SIGNIFICANT WIN before age 17
2010 Yuna 19 --- 2006 Jr. Worlds(15)
2006 Shizuka 24 ---1998 Japan Champion(16)...Yuna and Mao were not allowed in 2006 Olympic...because they were 15.
2002 Sarah 16
1998 Tara 15
1994 Oksana 16
1992 Kristi 20 1998 Jr. Worlds(16)...Kristi was a pair skater before...The best single female skater the US ever had.

If you look at history, even if you win signicant competitions before age 17, it does not mean...you're going to be a great.

 

[seniorita]

For that matter, 10 World golds and 3 Olympic golds wouldn't necessarily make someone the greatest, either. It's all about the performances, the contexts, and the competitors, to me. .

hey thats Henie

 

[pangtongfan]

does one world gold and one olympic gold make Yuna the greatest or just Tara Lipiniski?

Tara Lipinski was never a dominant skater. She never even won a regular grand prix event. In her best seasons ever she lost 3 times in both of them, including 3 losses to Kwan, 2 losses to Slutskaya, 1 loss to Butyrskaya, and 1 loss to Hubert (lol). Yu Na was far and away the dominant skater for about 3 years with only 3 losses total over 3 seasons, setting incredible world records for short and long programs that will probably take over a decade to break (unless she breaks them herself). Skating cleanly or even close to it she is considered unbeatable. Tara was also a blip on the radar that lasted 2 seasons at the top. Yu Na lasted 4 seasons and would have been a real contender for the Olympic and World titles in a 5th season before all that (as would have Mao Asada) but was ruled age ineligible by a stupid ISU rule with which Tara Lipinski (as she was alteast) never would have even existed as an amateur World or Olympic eligible skater. And while it is a shocking (and frankly flukish stat given her overall dominance) that Yu Na has only won 1 World title, she has 4 World medals compared to 1 for Lipinski, not to mention the huge # of international victories she has compared to Tara who has about 4 total. And won the free skate portion at Worlds 3 years in a row.

Try harder next time.

And nobody is promoting Yu Na for the sake of her scores. She doesnt need any help to get the scores as the judges scores the last couple seasons show. Anyhow continue your delusions that Miki freaking Ando is a threat to a half decent Yu Na Kim. And you think I am the crazy one. :scowl: