- Joined
- Feb 6, 2009
I can say Kulik's is better than hers
Mao wants to do a quad at Sochi in 2014
- Thread starter Phoenix347
- Start date
I can say Kulik's is better than hers
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2005
One of the best triple axels ever was Tonya Harding's. It had the height of Midori Ito's without the leg wrap. She may be a punchline now, but Harding was one of the most talented skaters to ever take the ice.
According to ISU's 2008 memos, judges are required to award + goe based on the following criteria:
1. unexpected / creative / difficult entry
2. clear recognizable steps/free skating movements immediately preceding element
3. varied position in the air / delay in rotation
4. great height and/or distance
5. superior extension on landing / creative exit
6. superior flow in and out (and in-between in jump combinations / sequences)
As for how much + GOE is awarded, it is suggested, but not required, that judges give +1 if a jump satisfies 1 or 2 of the criteria, +2 if a jump satisfies 3 or 4 of the criteria, and +3 if a jump satisfies 5 or 6 of the criteria.
To me, of all the criteria, the 3axels Mao has been doing only satisfies the "great height" criteria. No, it doesn't have the height of Midori Ito and Harding, but it's still higher than most jumps by women.
But that's only the positive GOE. The GOE for her ratified 3axels may actually start at a deficit. Here are the relevant guidelines:
-1 to -2 for under rotation up to 1/4 revolution (that's not downgraded by the tech specialist).
When you add it all up, it's possible for Mao's 3axel to be ratified and still get no +GOE, or even -GOE.
According to ISU's 2008 memos, judges are required to award + goe based on the following criteria:
1. unexpected / creative / difficult entry
2. clear recognizable steps/free skating movements immediately preceding element
3. varied position in the air / delay in rotation
4. great height and/or distance
5. superior extension on landing / creative exit
6. superior flow in and out (and in-between in jump combinations / sequences)
As for how much + GOE is awarded, it is suggested, but not required, that judges give +1 if a jump satisfies 1 or 2 of the criteria, +2 if a jump satisfies 3 or 4 of the criteria, and +3 if a jump satisfies 5 or 6 of the criteria.
To me, of all the criteria, the 3axels Mao has been doing only satisfies the "great height" criteria. No, it doesn't have the height of Midori Ito and Harding, but it's still higher than most jumps by women.
But that's only the positive GOE. The GOE for her ratified 3axels may actually start at a deficit. Here are the relevant guidelines:
-1 to -2 for under rotation up to 1/4 revolution (that's not downgraded by the tech specialist).
When you add it all up, it's possible for Mao's 3axel to be ratified and still get no +GOE, or even -GOE.
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DesertRoad, I have to agree with you about Harding. When she was on, her jumps were so powerful and she always chose unconventional music pieces. She never failed to entertain. It's a shame about the choices she made and what happened to her career because she was a truly talented skater.
- Joined
- Dec 12, 2005
I've seen videos of Mao practicing a quad loop in the past.... considering her problems with the 3T and 3S, I imagine that the 4Lo would be the one she would go for. Also, 4 years is a lot of time... and considering we haven't seen Mao's 3Lz this season, it's hard to truly say that she hasn't cleaned it up. She very well could have worked on it... but given her LP layout, the only jump she could have replaced with the 3Lz would have bee the 3F, and that .5 difference really wouldn't be worth the risk. You can't replace the 3T with a 3Lz because of the difference in setup... it would have changed the whole second half of her program. 4 years is also a lot of time... Mao's done a 3-3 before, her first focus should be on getting that back (actually only first focus in jumping, I think her main focus should be gaining speed on the ice and learning to relate to the music more and finding what suits her skating style). I do think we will see a 3-3 from Mao, my guess is that it would be her 3F+3Lo, since it has a base value higher than Yu-Na's 3Lz+3T, and Mao seems more secure in her loop than toe. If Mao could gain more speed in her skating in general and coming out of her 3A, it would be nice to see a 3A+3T (but I don't think that will happen, and if it did... it would probably be dinged UR most of the time). She really should work on a transition into or out of the 3A so she can get better GOEs on it.
Mao mentioned 3a-3t as a goal when she was around 16. She used to have 3A out of steps, but it affected her consistency.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2009
I honestly don't think it has much to do with Rachael and more to do with Mirai, who was at Phaneuf level two months ago and now has surpassed Miki and is at Joannie level. The judges realized that Mirai is better than Rachael but rather then just give Rachael credit for all 7 triples and hold her back in PCS (which would have been the correct thing to do) they gave her bogus downgrades and high PCS to make it seem like if her jumps were clean SHE'D be in 4th place, but her jumps were clean so yeah.
Earlier this evening I was looking over my stats for all my favorite skaters throughout history, in particular Tonya Harding & Midori Ito (lol, I have a notebook devoted to them, as well as other triple axel women throughout history; aka Yoshie Onda, Yukari Nakano, Ludmila Nelidina).
Anyhow, OMG, I was WRONG, there are two exceptionally gifted female athletes that landed their first triple axel at the respective age(s) of 19 & 20 yrs. old! Yes, I'm talking about Midori Ito & Tonya Harding. Therefore, since I consider Mao Asada to be the only woman on their level athletically, I would honestly not be surprised to see Mao land the quad by the time the next Olympics rolls around, to go along with her two triple axels.
Here are some of my stats:
MIDORI ITO (born 8/13/69)
*began experimenting with 3A at age 12/13; broke right ankle in 1982 & 1985 practicing 3A & quad; landed first ever 3A for a woman at age 19 at 1988 Japan competition; also landed first ever 3/3 combo., 3T/3T, for a female at 1981 Jr. Worlds at age 11.
*landed 3A numerous times throughout her career (18 in total) ~ examples include 1988 NHK Trophy, 1989 Worlds, 1989 NHK Trophy, 1990 Worlds, 1990 NHK Trophy, 1992 Olympics.
*most difficult programs ~ 1989 Worlds FS with 7 triples (3L,3A,3F,2T,3R,3T/3T,3S,2A); 1991 Trophee Lalique FS with 6 triples (3L/3T,3A/2T,3F,3R,3S), 1992 Olympic FS with 5 triples (2L/3T,fall on 3A,3F/2T,3R,3A,3S,2A).
*landed 3A/2T in SP & FS at 1991 NHK Trophy.
*retired at age 22
TONYA HARDING (born 11/12/70)
*began experimenting with 3A at age 14; excelled with 3R jump, landed first one at age 9; landed 4R in a Texaco commercial in 1991; landed first ever 3A for an American woman at age 20 at 1991 US Nationals.
*landed the 3A a total of 4 times throughout her career ~ 1991 US Nationals, 1991 Worlds, 1991 Skate America.
*careers firsts include the following ~ 1st woman ever to do a 3A in the SP; 1st woman to do 2 3axels in a single competition; 1st woman ever to do a 3A combo. with 2T.
*retired at age 23.
****NOTE: Tonya Harding, Midori Ito, and Mao Asada are the only females to have ever landed a 3A in both the SP & FS & also in combination.****
In comparison to Tonya & Midori, Mao Asada landed her first 3A at age 12 in a novice free skate in a regional Japanese competition. Also, though Tonya & Midori's 3axels were high & powerful & completely rotated with no underrotation whatsoever, Mao's are elegant, feminine, balletic, tight in the air with legs close together, and lovely. Deceptive power packaged in the body of a ballerina.
Honorable Mention Triple Axelers:
Yoshie Onda (born 12/13/82) -- multiple falls of the 3A throughout her career, but she did manage to stand up on one, which was underrotated by 3/8. Completed one of the most difficult programs ever done by a woman at 2002 NHK ~ 3A(hand down),3Z/2T,3Z,3S,3R,3F,3T/3T sequence,2A/2A sequence ~ 8 triples!!!!!!!
Yukari Nakano (born 8/25/85) -- landed first 3A on 9/14/02 at Referee Skate in Japan; landed second 3A on 10/06/02 at Japanese Regional Competition; landed 1st offiicially ratified 3A at Skate America in October, 2002! Most difficult program was at said Japanese Regional Sr. Competiton ~ SP = 3Z/3T,3F,2A; FS = 3A,3Z/3R(fall),3F/3T,1Z,3R,2A,3S.
Ludmila Nelidina (born 12/07/84) -- officially became the 4th woman in history to land the 3A at 2002 Skate America (both she & Yukari Nakano tied at said competition, as they both landed their respective 3Axels in the same competition). Her best ever program ~ 3A(perfect, no underrotation whatsoever, better than Yukari's),3Z/2T,3R,3S,3F,3Z,2A-0.5R-3S ~ 7 triples!!!!!!
That's it, those the are the triple axel women throughout history (not counting Kimmie Meissner's one & only ratified 3A at 2005 US Nationals, which was obviously underrotated by at least a 1/2; nothing against lovely Kimmie, just stating facts).
Regards other stats, I have so many of them that it would take a week to list them all. However, I can safely say that the 3Axel jump is the hardest jump for ladies throughout history. Many many many of them (in fact too many to list) have landed various 3/3 combos. in both the SP & FS (3Z/3R, 3Z/3F, 3Z/3R, 3Z/3T, et al), but only the aforementioned women have landed the 3axel jump. Fact. Oops, btw, none of the 3axel women have yet to land a 3A/3 combination, the only one to come close was Midori Ito during a warm-up for her FS at the 1991 Trophee Lalique competition; she successfully landed a 3A/3T combo. That feat has yet to be duplicated in an actual ratified competition. This could be something for Mao to work on in order to become the 1st!!!!!!!!!
Anyhow, OMG, I was WRONG, there are two exceptionally gifted female athletes that landed their first triple axel at the respective age(s) of 19 & 20 yrs. old! Yes, I'm talking about Midori Ito & Tonya Harding. Therefore, since I consider Mao Asada to be the only woman on their level athletically, I would honestly not be surprised to see Mao land the quad by the time the next Olympics rolls around, to go along with her two triple axels.
Here are some of my stats:
MIDORI ITO (born 8/13/69)
*began experimenting with 3A at age 12/13; broke right ankle in 1982 & 1985 practicing 3A & quad; landed first ever 3A for a woman at age 19 at 1988 Japan competition; also landed first ever 3/3 combo., 3T/3T, for a female at 1981 Jr. Worlds at age 11.
*landed 3A numerous times throughout her career (18 in total) ~ examples include 1988 NHK Trophy, 1989 Worlds, 1989 NHK Trophy, 1990 Worlds, 1990 NHK Trophy, 1992 Olympics.
*most difficult programs ~ 1989 Worlds FS with 7 triples (3L,3A,3F,2T,3R,3T/3T,3S,2A); 1991 Trophee Lalique FS with 6 triples (3L/3T,3A/2T,3F,3R,3S), 1992 Olympic FS with 5 triples (2L/3T,fall on 3A,3F/2T,3R,3A,3S,2A).
*landed 3A/2T in SP & FS at 1991 NHK Trophy.
*retired at age 22
TONYA HARDING (born 11/12/70)
*began experimenting with 3A at age 14; excelled with 3R jump, landed first one at age 9; landed 4R in a Texaco commercial in 1991; landed first ever 3A for an American woman at age 20 at 1991 US Nationals.
*landed the 3A a total of 4 times throughout her career ~ 1991 US Nationals, 1991 Worlds, 1991 Skate America.
*careers firsts include the following ~ 1st woman ever to do a 3A in the SP; 1st woman to do 2 3axels in a single competition; 1st woman ever to do a 3A combo. with 2T.
*retired at age 23.
****NOTE: Tonya Harding, Midori Ito, and Mao Asada are the only females to have ever landed a 3A in both the SP & FS & also in combination.****
In comparison to Tonya & Midori, Mao Asada landed her first 3A at age 12 in a novice free skate in a regional Japanese competition. Also, though Tonya & Midori's 3axels were high & powerful & completely rotated with no underrotation whatsoever, Mao's are elegant, feminine, balletic, tight in the air with legs close together, and lovely. Deceptive power packaged in the body of a ballerina.
Honorable Mention Triple Axelers:
Yoshie Onda (born 12/13/82) -- multiple falls of the 3A throughout her career, but she did manage to stand up on one, which was underrotated by 3/8. Completed one of the most difficult programs ever done by a woman at 2002 NHK ~ 3A(hand down),3Z/2T,3Z,3S,3R,3F,3T/3T sequence,2A/2A sequence ~ 8 triples!!!!!!!
Yukari Nakano (born 8/25/85) -- landed first 3A on 9/14/02 at Referee Skate in Japan; landed second 3A on 10/06/02 at Japanese Regional Competition; landed 1st offiicially ratified 3A at Skate America in October, 2002! Most difficult program was at said Japanese Regional Sr. Competiton ~ SP = 3Z/3T,3F,2A; FS = 3A,3Z/3R(fall),3F/3T,1Z,3R,2A,3S.
Ludmila Nelidina (born 12/07/84) -- officially became the 4th woman in history to land the 3A at 2002 Skate America (both she & Yukari Nakano tied at said competition, as they both landed their respective 3Axels in the same competition). Her best ever program ~ 3A(perfect, no underrotation whatsoever, better than Yukari's),3Z/2T,3R,3S,3F,3Z,2A-0.5R-3S ~ 7 triples!!!!!!
That's it, those the are the triple axel women throughout history (not counting Kimmie Meissner's one & only ratified 3A at 2005 US Nationals, which was obviously underrotated by at least a 1/2; nothing against lovely Kimmie, just stating facts).
Regards other stats, I have so many of them that it would take a week to list them all. However, I can safely say that the 3Axel jump is the hardest jump for ladies throughout history. Many many many of them (in fact too many to list) have landed various 3/3 combos. in both the SP & FS (3Z/3R, 3Z/3F, 3Z/3R, 3Z/3T, et al), but only the aforementioned women have landed the 3axel jump. Fact. Oops, btw, none of the 3axel women have yet to land a 3A/3 combination, the only one to come close was Midori Ito during a warm-up for her FS at the 1991 Trophee Lalique competition; she successfully landed a 3A/3T combo. That feat has yet to be duplicated in an actual ratified competition. This could be something for Mao to work on in order to become the 1st!!!!!!!!!
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2005
Miki Ando has landed the 4s, ratified, too, at least under the rules at the time (which is good enough for me). Surya Bonaly has attempted the 4t in competition, but it was not ratified. Sasha Cohen landed a 4sal during the warm up of a competition that had a good chance of being ratified under the system at the time, too. If you mean the 3axel is the most difficult jump that more than one woman has landed in competition, then I guess that's true?
I am not happy with the current state of under-rotation rules that severely penalizes skaters to a degree disproportionate to the mistake. However, I hear those rules may change, and once they do, I have no doubt more women will be attempting quads and triple axels.
I have no particular fondness for skaters doing more and more difficult jumps, though. I'd be happier seeing skaters do more difficult footwork and spins and do them with more speed. I'm also happier to see skaters with great basic skating skills. And I'm happiest of all to see skaters do something new and exciting artistically and succeeding with it.
Wow impressive. Would you happen to know how many times Mao has landed 3A in comps?
14 Ratified in the past 3 years. Quite a few downgrades and not tallied (2 in 2008 Nationals LP, 1 in 2009 WTT LP, 1 in 2009 Nationals SP, 1 in 2010 4CC SP)
5 in 2010 (2 in 4CC LP, 1 in Oly SP, 2 in Oly LP)
5 in 2009 (1 in Worlds LP, 1 in WTT SP, 1 in WTT LP, 1 in TEB LP, 1 in Nationals LP)
4 in 2008 (1 in 4CC LP, 1 in NHK LP, 2 in GPF LP)
So she is getting closer Midori in terms of the number of times.
I'd like to add Aki Sawada to the honorable mention category. She's never landed one in international competition, but she's attempted and landed a few in national/regional competitions. I believe most Japanese ladies with modicum of jumping talent train triple axels, which I believe is the legacy of Midori Ito. Mai Asada also had few triple axel attempts, and Miki and Shizuka were also attempting in practice at certain point. With Yoshie Onda, it was clear it was not going to happen, but she never gave up.
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2009
This idea that Mao might be attempting a triple-axel-triple toe combo come Sochi time sounds more reasonable and doable to me.
I get the feeling that her axel take-off is now faultless, and her air position and rotation speed have never ever been an issue, so the only thing that could be improved about her axel technique is the speed of the landing. Once she can land it with more speed, I think her toe-loop technique is already faultless, so it seems feasible that she'll be able to do the combo.
With the quad, I don't know. I would just much rather see solid 3-3's and an improvement in flip/lutz. Actually, I don't care if she never does the quad. I'd rather see her delegate her energy on her step sequence, which I love to watch.
I get the feeling that her axel take-off is now faultless, and her air position and rotation speed have never ever been an issue, so the only thing that could be improved about her axel technique is the speed of the landing. Once she can land it with more speed, I think her toe-loop technique is already faultless, so it seems feasible that she'll be able to do the combo.
With the quad, I don't know. I would just much rather see solid 3-3's and an improvement in flip/lutz. Actually, I don't care if she never does the quad. I'd rather see her delegate her energy on her step sequence, which I love to watch.
- Joined
- Feb 5, 2004
I realise that it wasn't stellar, but you are short changing Midori a little there - I thought she took advantage of the re-instatement rules and even though she was ill/injured so couldn't comete at the 1994 Olympics I thought she competed at 1995 worlds, fell on the 3A attempt in the short progarmme but stood up on the triple axel she did in the LP.
Also i think Mao has come close, or even landed 3A/3T in practice. I don't think it would be too much of a stretch of her - the 2T on the end of the 3A was rotated so much more slowly that if she just kept up the momentum on the rotation I don't think it would be too hard for her to add the 3T.
Ant
- Joined
- Oct 19, 2009
what she just says in an interview (that's broadcasted at news zero) is that she needs so much jumps that she has to. hearing that words i was feeling happy because she knows what is nesessary for her. maybe the interview is coming on youtube soon.
as for her helth,accroding to the article(maybe on msn), she lost 2kg,which may be difficult for her to become pregnant... if whenever she wants baby, she couldn't is too sad. so what i want to say to her is not take so high risk for her own body.
anyway i want her to stay hearthy and skate longer. i pray her good luck if she'd like to attend 4T! but that challenge made her body do some harm, what would i say?
as for her helth,accroding to the article(maybe on msn), she lost 2kg,which may be difficult for her to become pregnant... if whenever she wants baby, she couldn't is too sad. so what i want to say to her is not take so high risk for her own body.
anyway i want her to stay hearthy and skate longer. i pray her good luck if she'd like to attend 4T! but that challenge made her body do some harm, what would i say?
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2009
Actually a lot of female athletes with very low BF% do not menstruate, which means no pregnancy for them.
But provided that they're healthy and have no other medical conditions / complications, they can have babies later after they gain some weight. So please don't worry about Mao-chan not being able to have any babise ever. I'm sure she'll have really cute babies when and if she wants to.
True, Ant, thanks for the clarification. By the way, Midori's 18 triple axel count does include her 1995-1996 Japan Nationals ratified 3A that she did in the FS. However, the 18-count only includes Midori's ratified 3Axels that she landed in competition, it doesn't include the one she landed at 1993 World Pros, thereby becoming the 1st woman to land a 3A in a professional competition.
One more note as regards Midori, what was so impressive about her landing the 3A at the 1992 Olympics is that it came at 3:10 into her program (way past the half way mark)!!!!! I don't even know if Mao can do that.
As regards the 3axel & history, only six woman have officially landed it in competiton, as follows:
1st MIDORI ITO in 1988
2nd TONYA HARDING in 1991
3rd LUDMILA NELIDINA in 2002
4th YUKARI NAKANO in 2002
5th MAO ASADA in 2002
6th KIMMIE MEISSNER in 2005
That said, I honestly think that the powers that be were so desperate to have a woman land a 3Axel in the 21st century that they started to hand them out like candy. The ONLY ones that should have been ratified were 1.) Midori Ito 2.) Tonya Harding 3.) Ludmila Nelidina 4.) Mao Asada. That's it. Yukari's was about 3/8 or more underrotated, and Kimmie's was at the very least 1/2 underrotated (maybe a tad more).
This is why I do NOT want to see the rules changed to allow credit for underrotations that are more than 1/4 underrotated. This is counter productive. The one good thing about COP is the emphasis on doing it right!!!!!!
Back to Mao, since she seems to have the two 3axels down pat after two years, now's the time to bring back the 3/3 combos. & other triples. Work on their consistency. And if she wants to challenge herself (lol, like that's even a question), then work on becoming the 1st woman to land a 3A/3T combo. in competition. And also the 1st woman to successfully complete 8 triples in competition (note: Yoshie's didn't count b/c her 3A was not ratified). This should keep her busy for the next two years at least, then at that time if everything seems to be going smoothly, then & only then work on adding a quad to her repertoire. But be very cautious, she doesn't want to end up with a broken ankle like what happened to Midori Ito, that could be the end of her career all together! Yet, that said, I've often heard from the experts that a quad is easier to acquire than a triple axel, as the 3A is the most dangerous jump, bar none, because it takes off forward on an outside edge. One must be an extremely confident & great edge jumper to learn it.
Regards the quad for the women, they can't skip a grade, first they need to learn how to do a triple axel, thereby solidifying their mastery over ALL the triples (i.e. toe, salchow, loop, flip, lutz, axel). Then & only then should they move on up IMHO. And maybe one day we will see a woman that can do a man's program ~ ala The King ~ complete with 7 triples (including two 3axels) & a quad!!!!!
One more note as regards Midori, what was so impressive about her landing the 3A at the 1992 Olympics is that it came at 3:10 into her program (way past the half way mark)!!!!! I don't even know if Mao can do that.
As regards the 3axel & history, only six woman have officially landed it in competiton, as follows:
1st MIDORI ITO in 1988
2nd TONYA HARDING in 1991
3rd LUDMILA NELIDINA in 2002
4th YUKARI NAKANO in 2002
5th MAO ASADA in 2002
6th KIMMIE MEISSNER in 2005
That said, I honestly think that the powers that be were so desperate to have a woman land a 3Axel in the 21st century that they started to hand them out like candy. The ONLY ones that should have been ratified were 1.) Midori Ito 2.) Tonya Harding 3.) Ludmila Nelidina 4.) Mao Asada. That's it. Yukari's was about 3/8 or more underrotated, and Kimmie's was at the very least 1/2 underrotated (maybe a tad more).
This is why I do NOT want to see the rules changed to allow credit for underrotations that are more than 1/4 underrotated. This is counter productive. The one good thing about COP is the emphasis on doing it right!!!!!!
Back to Mao, since she seems to have the two 3axels down pat after two years, now's the time to bring back the 3/3 combos. & other triples. Work on their consistency. And if she wants to challenge herself (lol, like that's even a question), then work on becoming the 1st woman to land a 3A/3T combo. in competition. And also the 1st woman to successfully complete 8 triples in competition (note: Yoshie's didn't count b/c her 3A was not ratified). This should keep her busy for the next two years at least, then at that time if everything seems to be going smoothly, then & only then work on adding a quad to her repertoire. But be very cautious, she doesn't want to end up with a broken ankle like what happened to Midori Ito, that could be the end of her career all together! Yet, that said, I've often heard from the experts that a quad is easier to acquire than a triple axel, as the 3A is the most dangerous jump, bar none, because it takes off forward on an outside edge. One must be an extremely confident & great edge jumper to learn it.
Regards the quad for the women, they can't skip a grade, first they need to learn how to do a triple axel, thereby solidifying their mastery over ALL the triples (i.e. toe, salchow, loop, flip, lutz, axel). Then & only then should they move on up IMHO. And maybe one day we will see a woman that can do a man's program ~ ala The King ~ complete with 7 triples (including two 3axels) & a quad!!!!!
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2005
There are plenty of male skaters who do quads but is missing one triple or another because of lipping or flutzing. If I recall Tim Goebel, the quad king himself, was a flutzer. Mao herself was practicing quads long before she even attempted to fix her lutz. Miki Ando landed the quad before she landed a triple axel. You may want them to proceed in a linear fashion for aesthetic reasons, but it may actually be easier for a lot of skaters to learn the quad before they fix one triple or another. A skater who maximizes all his/her skills and jumps will, of course, score higher and do better. But some things come easier to a skater than others, and they're not likely to leave points on the table just to make sure they're well rounded.
I have no problem with under rotation calls being set at a minimum of 1/4th short. My problem is that there is a massive point loss when the base point value of the jump is docked. It should be exactly like edge calls, marked as wrong and then left to the judges to dock the GOE, the base point value of the jump is then left unchanged. For those who don't want to see under rotated jump attempts, this should discourage the practice just fine. Edge calls have stopped a lot of skaters from attempting jumps they have the wrong edges on. Having UR calls match that should work just as well.
Geeze, I just read over on FSU that Yukari Nakano has officially withdrawn from Worlds due to the shoulder injury she sustained back in the Fall of 2009.
It breaks my heart, I've followed her career since the beginning, and then to see her withdraw from 4CC & now this. In my heart & soul I know it's because the JFS, they just totally destroyed her spirit when they chose Akiko over her to go to the Olympics despite her 3rd place finish at Japan Nationals. And they did the same exact thing at the last Olympics, choosing Miki Ando over her despite Yukari placing higher at Nationals. Boo on the JFS, no wonder Yukari withdrew from her two assignments.
And I hold myself culpable as well with my latest post up above. I thought twice about it, as she has always held a special place in my heart, but in all honesty the 3A she landed at 2002 Skate America was underrotated almost as much as Kimmie Meissner's. About as much as Mao's when hers aren't ratified, and rightly so. Mao's percentage keeps going up, but I'd say instead of a 50/50 chance of her 3A being ratified, now she has worked on it to the point that I would give her a 75% chance of success when she goes for it.
I hate to see Yukari go out like this, especially when her "Firebird" program is the best I've honestly ever seen!
Still, the coach that taught her bad technique with the leg wrap should be held accountable as well. This should have been corrected at the very beginning. Midori's was just as bad, but she got away with it because she could fully rotate her powerful 3axels, and also that was in the days of 6.0, not COP.
Not to take anything away from either powerful skater, as God knows they both will always hold a special place in my heart, but the leg wrap was bad technique. But like I've said before, it didn't matter to me, I just loooooooooooved their skating!!!!!!!!!!
Here's wishing Yukari Nakano the best in all her future endeavors. I still have the card she sent me framed amongst my figure skating collection. I just wish her figure skating career ended on a much happier note.
And take heart, Yukari, your name is written in history throughout time, long after your body will have turned to dust, your name will be written alongside the all-time greatest female skaters ever! Many have tried, but only the greatest have achieved the triple axel jump, women pioneers long before their time. Only you 6 know that if it was so easy to acquire, every woman female skater would have had one throughout the 80's/90'/21st century. Yet over two decades have gone by, and still you select elite triple axel women have stood the test of time, nobody can touch you 6!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It breaks my heart, I've followed her career since the beginning, and then to see her withdraw from 4CC & now this. In my heart & soul I know it's because the JFS, they just totally destroyed her spirit when they chose Akiko over her to go to the Olympics despite her 3rd place finish at Japan Nationals. And they did the same exact thing at the last Olympics, choosing Miki Ando over her despite Yukari placing higher at Nationals. Boo on the JFS, no wonder Yukari withdrew from her two assignments.
And I hold myself culpable as well with my latest post up above. I thought twice about it, as she has always held a special place in my heart, but in all honesty the 3A she landed at 2002 Skate America was underrotated almost as much as Kimmie Meissner's. About as much as Mao's when hers aren't ratified, and rightly so. Mao's percentage keeps going up, but I'd say instead of a 50/50 chance of her 3A being ratified, now she has worked on it to the point that I would give her a 75% chance of success when she goes for it.
I hate to see Yukari go out like this, especially when her "Firebird" program is the best I've honestly ever seen!
Still, the coach that taught her bad technique with the leg wrap should be held accountable as well. This should have been corrected at the very beginning. Midori's was just as bad, but she got away with it because she could fully rotate her powerful 3axels, and also that was in the days of 6.0, not COP.Not to take anything away from either powerful skater, as God knows they both will always hold a special place in my heart, but the leg wrap was bad technique. But like I've said before, it didn't matter to me, I just loooooooooooved their skating!!!!!!!!!!
Here's wishing Yukari Nakano the best in all her future endeavors. I still have the card she sent me framed amongst my figure skating collection. I just wish her figure skating career ended on a much happier note.
And take heart, Yukari, your name is written in history throughout time, long after your body will have turned to dust, your name will be written alongside the all-time greatest female skaters ever! Many have tried, but only the greatest have achieved the triple axel jump, women pioneers long before their time. Only you 6 know that if it was so easy to acquire, every woman female skater would have had one throughout the 80's/90'/21st century. Yet over two decades have gone by, and still you select elite triple axel women have stood the test of time, nobody can touch you 6!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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