Mirai Nagasu

Medusa · May 21, 2009

ae9177 said:
The fact is, an acute inflammation of tendons and ligaments could be a lot worse than a stress fracture, it takes much longer time and is more difficult to heal completely. IIRC Lambiel has tendonitis in his grion.

So don't be so sarcastic. You don't appreciate his style doesn't mean he doesn't deserve your respect.

It wasn't really meant that sarcastically - it's just an observation. Come on, all the articles after the Worlds win mention that he was so brave, that he didn't mention the injury - it was like, "Oh my God - that guy skated with a broken limb and beat everyone else in the World". To the average public a fracture sounds a lot more dramatic than a tendonitis, I know very well that a tendonitis can be as bad or in chronic cases even worse.

Joesitz (RIP) · May 21, 2009

Medusa said:
It wasn't really meant that sarcastically - it's just an observation. Come on, all the articles after the Worlds win mention that he was so brave, that he didn't mention the injury - it was like, "Oh my God - that guy skated with a broken limb and beat everyone else in the World". To the average public a fracture sounds a lot more dramatic than a tendonitis, I know very well that a tendonitis can be as bad or in chronic cases even worse.

In my skiing days (how bad they were), we had two accidents one weekend to take home on the club bus. One had broken his shin bone. He returned to skiing next season. The other tore tendons.and came back 2 seasons later.

Good news foor Evan, btw, and good luck to Mirai with Frank Not so lucky Stephane, but happy anyway.

merrybari · May 21, 2009

Observation from my own severe ankle sprain - stretched ligaments, inflammation, etc - several years back. Doc said it would've been better to break it. Breaks heal - as observed above - much quicker. Sometimes ligaments never retract to former condition. Mind you I know stress fracture isn't a "break" per se, but still . . .

Glad to hear he'll take a month off to let it heal completely.

Back to topic - I think this is a great move for Mirai. And I'm glad to hear there will no longer be coaching by "committee." That has to be counter productive and confusing.

janetfan · May 21, 2009

I am very happy for Mirai and hopefully she will be back healthy and training with a renewed spirit soon. Hope she will not have too much trouble with the growth spurt and that she and Frank will click with each other.
I know potential does not win medals, nor should it - but I think Mirai has many great qualities and could be the comeback kid this season.

Nationals just keep getting more intriguing!

HCOSurfer · May 21, 2009

Can you imagine how competitive nationals could be with a healthy Mirai in the picture? Let's hope she gets those UR issues out of the way!!!

demarinis5 · May 22, 2009

janetfan said:
I am very happy for Mirai and hopefully she will be back healthy and training with a renewed spirit soon. Hope she will not have too much trouble with the growth spurt and that she and Frank will click with each other.
I know potential does not win medals, nor should it - but I think Mirai has many great qualities and could be the comeback kid this season.

Nationals just keep getting more intriguing!

HCOSurfer said:
Can you imagine how competitive nationals could be with a healthy Mirai in the picture? Let's hope she gets those UR issues out of the way!!!

:agree:

feraina · May 22, 2009

Mirai is an extremely talented skater. If Frank can get her back on track and help her get the UR problems under control, then I think she has the goods necessary to trump all the other US ladies, including Sasha (more technical difficulty) & Caroline (more speed) & Rachael (more "it" factor). This coaching change was long overdue. With her athletic abilities, the height and distance she gets on her jumps, there's really no reason why she shouldn't get +GOE on every single jump, never mind under-rotating them.

The other girls better watch out!

Fashionista · May 22, 2009

janetfan said:
Mentioning Linda always brings back memories of one of the worst cases of Soviet led bloc voting in Olympic history. Linda wuz robbed in 1980 and only a sellout from the judges gave the mediocre E.German skater the Gold medal. I mean what a joke that Linda was placed second.

It's so funny how easily people repeat some statements after crying losers like Frank Carroll not even trying to check it.
What a Soviet led bloc voting on OG'80 are you talking about? There were only two judges from socialist bloc (USSr and GDR) of nine, how they could organize a bloc voting??

janetfan · Jun 2, 2009

Fashionista said:
It's so funny how easily people repeat some statements after crying losers like Frank Carroll not even trying to check it.
What a Soviet led bloc voting on OG'80 are you talking about? There were only two judges from socialist bloc (USSr and GDR) of nine, how they could organize a bloc voting??

Sorry if MY earlier comment - caused this response - and led to killing this topic.

Anyway, I was wondering about Mirai. Seems that an injury (and growth spurt) made her a non-factor only a year after her surprise US championship.
Part of what I like about Mirai's skating is the speed and height of her jumps along with the excitement/personality she brings. If Yuna is the "state of the art" right now in Ladies skating, I see Mirai having more Yuna-eske qualities than either Rachael or Caroline. I am a big Caroline fan - but have to admit that she and Rachael at times still have this slow, "Junior" feel to their skating.
Not much was said about Mirai's GP assignments but I think if she comes back strong she has as good of a chance to make the GP Final as any of our Ladies.

LeCygne · Jun 2, 2009

I agree, if Mirai can come back strong and injury-free, she could have a great shot as well. She's incredibly talented and has very good basics. I'm excited to see what Frank Carroll can do with her.

But I think it's more a matter of can she put it all together? She's lost considerable ground last season, missing out on a lot of major competition experience that Caroline and Rachael got at 4CC and WTT (Worlds as well, in Rachael's case). And Mirai doesn't have a history of performing well under pressure, either.

But if she can get her jumps back after the injury and growth spurt, and develop a consistency similar to Rachael and Caroline's, she'll easily surpass both of them.

feraina · Jun 2, 2009

LeCygne said:
She's lost considerable ground last season, missing out on a lot of major competition experience that Caroline and Rachael got at 4CC and WTT (Worlds as well, in Rachael's case). And Mirai doesn't have a history of performing well under pressure, either.

Mirai doesn't often skate clean programs, and when she does, there are typically under-rotations in the latter half of the program. But she doesn't strike me as a headcase, the way that Alissa and Sasha do. Rather, it seems like she has some technical problems with jumps, and maybe with stamina issues later in the LP. On the other hand, she was in tears before her LP at National's, and jumping around with excitement a couple of minutes later. She did seem very emotional there. At the time, it was chalked down to her teenage hormones. But most ladies figure skaters are teenagers, or very recently teenagers, and it is not of the norm for them to break down emotionally under the competitive spotlight. Does anyone remember Michelle or Yu-na or Mao being so emotional before an important competition?? Mirai was a little lucky to have landed her first jumps so well when she was so down on herself, because her confidence built up with each good jump. If she had a mistake along the way, she could easily have fallen apart completely.

Admittedly, Mirai had a tough season last year with injury and growth spurt (though there were others who were injured and had growth spurt), and a rocky relationship with her coach, so let's hope it was a one-off thing. Frank Caroll seems very much like a no non-sense sort of coach, maybe he will help her get into the mindset of a mature champion.

janetfan · Jun 2, 2009

feraina said:
Mirai doesn't often skate clean programs, and when she does, there are typically under-rotations in the latter half of the program. But she doesn't strike me as a headcase, the way that Alissa and Sasha do. Rather, it seems like she has some technical problems with jumps, and maybe with stamina issues later in the LP. On the other hand, she was in tears before her LP at National's, and jumping around with excitement a couple of minutes later. She did seem very emotional there. At the time, it was chalked down to her teenage hormones. But most ladies figure skaters are teenagers, or very recently teenagers, and it is not of the norm for them to break down emotionally under the competitive spotlight. Does anyone remember Michelle or Yu-na or Mao being so emotional before an important competition?? Mirai was a little lucky to have landed her first jumps so well when she was so down on herself, because her confidence built up with each good jump. If she had a mistake along the way, she could easily have fallen apart completely.

Admittedly, Mirai had a tough season last year with injury and growth spurt (though there were others who were injured and had growth spurt), and a rocky relationship with her coach, so let's hope it was a one-off thing. Frank Caroll seems very much like a no non-sense sort of coach, maybe he will help her get into the mindset of a mature champion.

I enjoyed your take on this :clap:

It seems there are many of our friends from the "East" who have a much different take on Frank Carrol. But he has a proven record that is only disputed by a few "fanistas" - and I not only recognize - but appreciate the work he has done with many great American skaters. (ex: if only Irina had been under Frank's guidance it might not have taken her 10 years to discover the artistic side of her skating).
I remember Michelle being very emotional when she was younger - and if she wasn't in tears before a skate she certainly was many, many times after she finished. (I am talking big major, teenage river of hormone driven tears).
I read a year ago, that unlike Caroline, Mirai is not an "ice rink rat." She is a very bright girl with many interests and very active in activities besides skating.
The article mentioned that Mirai was practicing no more than a couple of hours a day for 3-4 days a week. (Yuna, Mao & Caroline practice that much in a day or two if we can believe what we read).
If that is true, I hope to see a new , more disciplined Mirai emerging, better trained and in better shape. I think that athletically she is probably superior to Caroline, Rachael and Ashley and see a real chance for her to breakout and break away from the pack of "little ones" she came into prominence with. It is strange coz she already had, at age 14, what Rachael, Caroline and Ashley don't have - the US Ladies Championship.
Like all the other thoughts floating around this board I guess we will have to wait a few months to see who is hot and who is not. But I think it is very short sighted to ignore Mirai's potential for this season.

Tinymavy15 · Jun 2, 2009

I think Mirai's tears were caused by the pain she was in as well as because she though she would be unable to skate decently.
I agree that Michelle often cried after her skates when she was young

feraina · Jun 3, 2009

Yeah, Michelle often had tears by the end of a long program. But I think part of that was she really controlled herself emotionally before and during her skates, and when she finished, it was such relief and it was like the tears washed all that tension away. That's not the same as finding oneself in tears and emotionally shaken before even taking the ice.

Jaana · Jun 3, 2009

I´m glad that Mirai Nagasu will be coached by Frank Carroll, WOW, and will be looking forward to watch the result. Mirai is definetely my biggest favourite among the young US female skaters of today.

just wondering · Jun 3, 2009

I think Frank & Mirai will be a formidable combination, and I can't wait to see what his coaching program brings to her arsenal of untapped talent.

Perhaps of note, Mirai has experience staging a comeback. As an Intermediate level competitor, she place 1st at Regionals, yet as a Novice she didn't even make it to Sectionals. Then, as a Junior, she won Nationals, and again as a Senior! I hope she can draw from that experience and shine next year. JW

antmanb · Jun 3, 2009

just wondering said:
I think Frank & Mirai will be a formidable combination, and I can't wait to see what his coaching program brings to her arsenal of untapped talent.

Perhaps of note, Mirai has experience staging a comeback. As an Intermediate level competitor, she place 1st at Regionals, yet as a Novice she didn't even make it to Sectionals. Then, as a Junior, she won Nationals, and again as a Senior! I hope she can draw from that experience and shine next year. JW

I remembera actually reading articles at the time where she stated that her lack of success as a Novice made her work even harder so as to succeed the next time.

She certainly sounds like she's got the fire to do well, i just hope that she and/or her family have learnt that you cannot ignore injuries and that she has healed up well and is ready for the off season training.

Ant

Joesitz (RIP) · Jun 3, 2009

Carroll seems to be excited:

http://web.icenetwork.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090601&content_id=5084430&vkey=ice_news

Do not use "more". It has nothing to do with Mirai.

antmanb · Jun 3, 2009

I've actually now started wondering what Carroll's position will be regarding the elemtns he allows Mirai to do. I seem to recall him being very particular about the success rate he requires in practice before he allows an element to go in to a programme. So i wonder if there will be 3/3s attempted by Mirai.

Evan didn't put the quad in his programmes this past season - i wonder if that was at Carroll's behest?

Ant

janetfan · Jun 3, 2009

antmanb said:
I've actually now started wondering what Carroll's position will be regarding the elemtns he allows Mirai to do. I seem to recall him being very particular about the success rate he requires in practice before he allows an element to go in to a programme. So i wonder if there will be 3/3s attempted by Mirai.

Evan didn't put the quad in his programmes this past season - i wonder if that was at Carroll's behest? Ant

I hadn't thought about that - but I doubt that an Evan falling/failing on his quad would have won the WC.
Quite a few comments about Mirai never completing this or that but for a 16 year old she seems to have won more than a fair share of titles.
There are often questions about which whizz kids will make the most successful transition from juniors to seniors. At this point Rachael and Caroline seem to have passed Mirai but we will see what happens this year if a healthy Mirai returns. All three of them have a few problem areas to address before they can successfully challenge for medals at Worlds/Olympics.
I think Mirai's problems might be easier to fix as it is mostly a matter of getting hers jumps cleaned up. (OK, maybe that won't be so easy.) But she does skate much faster and her bigger jumps can potentially rack up points.

Rachael and Caroline have to adjust their slower, more cautious style of skating to compete with the top senior skaters. If they can't then they will have to rely on other skaters melting down to make a podium. Not bad but they have the potential for more.

Mirai Nagasu

Medusa

Joesitz (RIP)

merrybari

janetfan

Match Penalty

HCOSurfer

demarinis5

Gold for the Winter Prince!

feraina

Fashionista

janetfan

Match Penalty

LeCygne

feraina

janetfan

Match Penalty

Tinymavy15

Sinnerman for the win

feraina

Jaana

just wondering

antmanb

Joesitz (RIP)

antmanb

janetfan

Match Penalty

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