Junior Worlds: Men's Thoughts and Highlights

[gsk8]

Andrei Mozalev of Russia rose from second after the Short Program to capture the gold after the Free Skate in the Men's event on Friday night in Tallinn, Estonia. Japan's Yuma Kagiyama slipped to second for the silver, while Russia's Petr Gumennik catapulted to third to pocket the bronze.

Mozalev checked off his elements one by one, opening with a quad toe-double toe, quad toe and triple loop. He put a hand down on the landing of a triple Axel (in combination with a double toe) and later had to hang on to a solo triple Axel, however, landed a solid triple Lutz-triple toe and triple flip.

"I approached the event like I always do, like in training, and I was calm," Mozalev said. "The performance was not the best, there were mistakes on the triple Axel and the quads were not perfect."

More...

There were definitely some surprises in this event! Some good, some not so good. Hats off to all the young men who gave it their all!

Who do you think has made the most improvement this season? Who and/or what were your highlights?

 

[heartyxo]

What chaos. I got 0 predictions right...

My highlight was Maxim Naumov! I did not see that coming.
Petr did great too and I was happy to see him move up so much and medal
Mozalev definitely earned the win, unusual music cuts aside.
Sad for Kagiyama and Sato, but Yuma still got silver and Shun still has his junior world record.
Also very sad for Torgashev, but unfortunately not surprised.

 

[ladyjane]

Although I am a fan of Kagiyama, Torgashev - who had a disastrous FS today - and Grassl, I am really happy for Mozalev who finally got past the eternal second thing and got himself the title. Good for him! I'm sure he really is very pleased today. Finally! My highlight was Grassl (but he had too many underrotations today to get another medal even if he did get a small one for his FS), but it was also good to see Gummenik picking up the challenge after a less than stellar Short. I felt so much for Torgashev - to be fair his SP is usually better than his FS so I didn't expect him to remain in third - who fell 4 times. And in such cases, even guys who skate beautifully (he does, I love his skating style, his skills and movements, especially his signature move which is unique in the World) lose it. The falls influence the flow really too much. I also felt for Sato who surprised me so much in a positive way at the JGPF in December. Not today. I also had hoped for Gogolev to show us he's back (he really was at the Bavarian Open) but I think he still needs to get used to his new body after a major growth spurt. And Naumov was a delight too in this competition.

Edit: I understand Gogolev twisted his ankle and had a boot problem. A pity!

 

[Tolstoj]

I hope Grassl will have his moment one day, he has the quads (just need a little more height perhaps, but the tech caller was very strict here), great spins, the packaging is there. Just need to keep working, it will come together. Ted Barton mentioned Daniel had some issues cause he couldn't bring his equipments at this event.

I'm happy for the two russians, because there's always this urban legend that the russian mens aren't good, when i think there are more unrealistic expectations on them.

Kagiyama and Sato are gorgeous skaters, but today it wasn't their best and that was the case for others as well like Torgashev, Yablokov, Selevko, Gogolev,... that's the reality of the boys, those elements are hard, you can skate perfectly at one event and bomb the one after.

 

[lariko]

I would love to see the rest of it, as I only had a chance to see the last group so far, but after following Mozalev for the whole season in proud solitude, I have to say that my day was made by his win. I will need a bit of time to get over it and be able to appreciate everything else wonderful that went on.

 

[Jeanie19]

My highlights were Maxim Naumov his free skate was great and his short program was good. I recommend everyone watch Ivan Shmuratko free program, the first 30 seconds were great and he really feels the program.
I'm happy Andrew and Daniel got small bronze medals.

 

[MGstyle]

Over the moon for Petya having an *almost* clean FS finally, bounced back so strongly to get on the podium :luv17:
On the other side of the coin, a heartbreaker for Daniel just missing out on the medal. :sad21:
Mozalyov won the gold deservedly, but still don't understand what makes his PCS almost 4pts higher than Petya :think:
Totally agree with @Jeanie19 on Ivan Shmuratko. He is truly special. I really hope for a similar path to that of Kevin Aymoz, that leads to much greater things because he has so much to offer. He will probably need a coach among more advanced level, to brush up on his jumps, which looks rather awkward. I wish him all the best.
I wish also the poor Stephen Gogolev all the best - it's heartbreaking to see him struggle so much with jumps due to his growth spurt. He must believe in himself and it will come together. As Ted rightfully said, as a skater he has improved so, so much since last year.

 

[labgoat]

My thoughts are that I am sorry I cannot view this competition anywhere. I was at work when it happened and hoped to watch it when I got home but now it is blocked at ISU website.

 

[Spirals for Miles]

I think Petr should've won silver. So glad to see him do well

 

[sweetice]

Grassl omgwhatrobbed !!!

...on a side note, Gumennik and Naumov did a great performance and i'm mostly disappoint by how, with such great skaters with bright future and a 100+ TES points chance, the one who took the crown did it just by doing less mistakes and with PCS inflation.

Oh well, it happens. Not every championship is meant to be epic :confused2:

 

[YuBluByMe]

Well, I was rooting for five dudes: Kagiyama, Grassl, Torgashev, Mozalev, and Sato. Two of the five made the podium and another two were crying ( not happy tears) in the K&C. None of the guys created a moment.

Kagiyama: Saw him for the first tine at JNats. Held onto silver by the skin of his teeth. He held it together after the fall on the 4T but that 1A is what cost him the gold. I’m not worried about him, though. He flies across the ice and he already has one of the best 4Ts in the field. He’s also consistent so hopefully he’ll turn senior next season.

Grassl: Discovered him at Euros. Yet another charismatic skater that Cha’ed his way off the podium. The good news is that he didn’t seem affected by nerves; his issues are a technical one. He fixes his jumps and straightens his back and the medals will come. He has my favorite SP of the season.

Torgashev: The third fall broke me and I turned off the stream. I discovered him at the beginning of the season at a Challenger. Can’t remember which one but Krasnozhon was there and I thought he was a senior skater making his debut. I kept my expectations low as I read the comments from those that followed him for much longer than I have. I gather that he’s inconsistent, but still... I wasn’t expecting three falls in a row. He’s the opposite of Grassl in that his jumps and posture (great body lines!) are fine, but he needs to get his head together.

Mozalev: I happened to catch the last two skates at JGPF and I saw him again at RusNats. While everyone’s going crazy over Samsonov, I’m sitting over here by myself saying, “Yeah, uh huh, whatever. Man, Mozalev is where it’s at, but y’all keep on with hyping the wrong dudes. I was right about Aliev and I’m going to be right about Mozalev too!” There’s a calmness to him that’s really drawing me in. He’s not a jewel but so what? Rocks are needed, too.

....That FS can go in the trash can, though. Some misguided soul probably thought that music cut was ingenious.

Sato: Again, caught his skate at JGPF and saw him again at JNats. He’s an ambitious tech skater that needs to work on his spins and with connecting with the audience, but so does nearly everyone in the field. He already has a solid foundation. But of the guys on this list, I think he’ll benefit the most by staying junior for another season. I’m sure he’s disappointed, but he still has that JGPF gold under his belt.

 

[lariko]

Mozalev: I happened to catch the last two skates at JGPF and I saw him again at RusNats. While everyone’s going crazy over Samsonov, I’m sitting over here by myself saying, “Yeah, uh huh, whatever. Man, Mozalev is where it’s at, but y’all keep on with hyping the wrong dudes. I was right about Aliev and I’m going to be right about Mozalev too!” There’s a calmness to him that’s really drawing me in. He’s not a jewel but so what? Rocks are needed, too.

....That FS can go in the trash can, though. Some misguided soul probably thought that music cut was ingenious.

Heh, I had been in that state since the first JGP event through all 8 competitions he skated.

The World: Watch! Samsonov is about to go Supernova!
Me: but...but...this kid from Olympic Reserves School... Mozalev is real steady. Mild as milk, but look at how he lands...

(Happy sigh)

I love Grassl’s spins-Xtreme, but I don’t find his jumps beautiful. Kagiyama shone at 4CC, but not so much in this particular FS, but he’s still excellent.

I had caught up on the rest of the warm up groups!

Naumov def skated his heart out! Lovely!

Gumennik wasn’t too shabby either, but he overplays the drama for me, so I am not yet on the bandwagon.

Almost got to tears myself watching Gogolev—and I got dejavue with him reacting to injury during the skate. But I liked that his coach told him not to get upset.

I don’t get Shmuratko’s music (hides) but I really liked his skating.

 

[el henry]

Well, heartbroken :sad21:Andrew T. is a beautiful skater even in a splatfest, but dear heavens my boy ..... Cut back on the quads, you don’t need so many, play to your strengths. Like inventing the “Flying Torg”

But it’s always a good comp when Daniel Grassl spins. And young Maxim, another performer, hitting everything right. Also looking forward to Ivan S. developing.

Never a dull moment, or what is expected, with the Junior men.

 

[skylark]

My highlight was Maxim Naumov. He skated free; he skated with joy; he skated with great love for the sport. This is the kind of performance that resonates, whether you're looking for beautiful jumps, some sort of emotion communicated, or simply a clean skate. Never underestimate the power!

 

[Colonel Green]

That...well, kinda sucked.

Mozalev, as he has done pretty much everywhere this season (other than nationals) got the job done, so bravo to him on the consistency and the deserved win here. If he can keep that up going into seniors, he'll find success.

I thought Kagiyama should have had more a lead after the short program, but with the free, no question about the result. It wasn't terrible, but two big errors, one at the beginning and one at the end.

Gumennik found his way back to a solid result after a difficult year. I'd say the same about Siao Him Fa, even if he had some issues in the second half -- more skaters should go to Joubert for jump coaching, the man clearly knows his stuff.

Naumov should probably have been third in the free, but the perils of skating earlier. He saved the USFS' bacon regarding spots, so I hope they show him some love.

Gogolev was hard to watch in the KnC, but all the credit to Raf, who's known for his amusingly gruff demeanor with seniors, with the juniors he knows to be more openly supportive in tough moments.

 

[QueenOfTheRoad]

Last year i loved Torgashev, but this year programs and styling let me cold. He need a lot of time to get into the program after his falls, so i liked him even more less.

Gumennik is on his way back. Very tall now, needs to adjust to it. I still think he has a bright future.

Poor Gogolev, it was heart-breaking. I have Gachinski deja-vu and i hope it won‘t go the same way.

Kagiyama is not entirely my cup of tea, but has a lot of potential. He is ready to be the next generation of Japan male skaters.

Mozalev needs better programs to present himself, but his presentation and music feeling are not bad. If he keeps his stability with time and experience he will get over his youth awkwardness, which is not only on the ice (he was so cute awkward at the medal ceremony). He is not wooden like Samarin. Better programs, better music, better choreography will do the trick.

 

[Edwin]

End of season fatigue?
Too many 'thrown' quads instead of 'properly jumped', which lead to many calls and falls.
A certain lack of choreography in many, are the boys afraid of real artistry, of 'showing' themselves?

Would have like to see Grassl with a medal, he had the highest BV, he has the artistry, but yesterday too many calls, alas.

A 100 points difference between #1 and #24 ....

 

[readernick]

My favorite junior men's skaters this year have been Torgashev, Kagiyama, Sato and Artur D. Artur wasn't here and the others didn't skate to their full potential. The SP was such a joy to watch, but the FS was really disheartening. I am sure that they will all have better days.

Mozalev deserves to be rewarded for his consistency, so it was nice to see him win here. Technically he is her solid, and I think his artistic side will improve in time. Hopefully, he has better music next year! Congrats to the winners!

 

[lariko]

Guys, those who had been unable to watch the Short b/c of music copyright block, it had been removed!

 

[snowflake]

Young men’s competition was great entertainment! I watched all of them from the first skater Adam Hagara(SVK) skating in glasses to the last skater who was Torgashev

Am I wrong or did Canada lose a spot for next worlds? That's sad with the junior talent in Canada: Stephen, Aleksa and others. It's 28 for two spots, right? Joseph and Stephen got 29 for combined placements