Kana Muramoto & Daisuke Takahashi | Page 28 | Golden Skate

Kana Muramoto & Daisuke Takahashi

mikeko666

Final Flight
Joined
Apr 27, 2011
I was fortunate to get a ticket of FD. Kana and Dai were so good until the fall :eek2:, which reminded many people of SP from Finlandia 2009 :biggrin:.
They were both technically and artistically a league of their own. The program was very complex and the performance was so emotional.
Congratulation :clap: to Kana and Dai for becoming the national champion for the first time as a team!




Terrestrial broadcast version of RD with different camera angles

Comparison of FD from four competitions
 

synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
Mikeko, lucky you for witnessing them earning their first national title live! 🤩



I don't even care about the fall in the FD, or even that it was POTO again! What a beautiful Free Dance.

Agreed, despite the little mishap it was their best PotO interpretation so far imo. Best twizzles and diagonal step too. I also saw an improvement in the OFT – for the most part Dai’s turns were visibly cleaner compared to earlier in the season even if it wasn’t reflected in the level call. Tbh, I didn't see much difference between Kana's and Dai's execution this time (Kana's counter looked a bit cleaner). I was under the impression that the technical panel fell back on pre-determined level calls with regard to the step sequences for everyone. I would have gone higher with the levels on almost all of Nicole’s and Shilo’s step sequences for instance since they were quite carefully executed by both of them (I would say Nicole is slightly stronger than Shilo).

So yes, I agree with elbkup – don't be so hard on yourself, Dai-chan! You keep making progress and it is paying off little by little. 🤗


It’s great to see that Kana and him are still aiming at a top ten finish at Worlds. It won’t be easy, but it’s doable, if they skate clean-ish.




As for Dai’s statement that he wants to deliver memorable programs/performances first and foremost – mission accomplished already! 🥰



Terrestrial broadcast version of RD with different camera angles

Thank you for the video of their RD with different angles. I had forgotten there was a terrestrial broadcast, so now, of course, I rushed to watch the entire thing and wow, what a treat! The alternate angles helped seeing the edges better in some instances. Also loved the close-ups during the RD warm-up and the additional backstage footage.

I think the entire terrestrial broadcast of the dance event is worth sharing (they showed the top two RDs and top three FDs), so I recorded and uploaded it on google drive (I cut out HaruSumi, but can share them as well, if anyone is interested):

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-v49DBGB27QeFtJpKMmnww1BdRwf_Vx1/view?usp=sharing




The following videos also weren’t shared yet (thank you to all kind uploaders :pray:):



_______________________________


Many skaters grew up looking up to or, like in Sumitada’s case, even started skating because of Dai-chan – for some of them the dream of competing at the same event with him became true since he came back.



________________________________


 
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synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
From the Ice Explosion rehearsals 😍:









This one looks like Dai's "Krone" costume:




ETA:

Skating order:



There's going to be a partial brodcast on Monday on TV Tokyo:


As with all of Dai's shows, I'm sure there will also be a complete broadcast at a later point.



ETA 2:

A couple of articles:


Their new costumes in this one are amazing (I wonder, which program they are for - maybe the opening or closing number?):



Main points from the articles:

- "Takahashi, the show's producer, said, "In addition to my own skating, this time I also challenged myself to create something that I had never seen/done before. I hope I can deliver a fun experience.""
- "At the press conference held after the rehearsal, Takahashi said, "I am very happy to finally be able to hold Ice Explosion." He was also involved in the staging of the show, "The concept of the show is to explode what you have inside of you. I wanted to create a flowing performance that would make the audience think, "It's already over,"" he said."


- Dai attempted/landed a double Axel at rehearsals
- Kana reiterated that they try to reach the top 10 at Worlds
 
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synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
This article doesn't focus as much on the dress rehearsal, but rather outlines what makes KanaDai special as a team [note: I disagree with the notion that skaters from western countries are inherently more expressive than Japanese/Asian ones]:



Machine translation:
Why KanaDai is the "Best Couple in Japan": Kana Muramoto's Talent Receives New Praise
January 6, 2023 06:15
Takata Nakanishi

What are the strengths of "Japan's Best Couple"? -- On January 5, before the figure skating ice show "Ice Explosion" (6-8, KOSE Shin-Yokohama Skate Center, Kanagawa, Japan), Kana Muramoto, 29, and Daisuke Takahashi, 36, aka KanaDai, both from KFSC of Kansai University, showed off their new year's skating at the official practice. Takahashi was the center of attention when the couple first formed, but Muramoto's sense of style is also top-notch. Figure skaters are praising her talent.

 In their third season as a couple, "KanaDai" won the All-Japan Championships last December for the first time. For Takahashi, who has won the men's singles title five times before, this was a double crown with ice dance, and a new page in the history of the figure skating world.

 Takahashi became the first Japanese male to win a bronze medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics during his men's singles career. He also won a gold medal at the World Championships in the same year, leading the Japanese men's figure skating world. Nicknamed "Dai-chan" by his fans, he has continued to receive high praise for his performances even after switching to ice dancing. However, Muramoto's talent is not to be outdone.

 A figure skater who knows Muramoto well says, "Muramoto's style has been really good since she was little. Her legs are beautifully straight, and she is as good as Westerners. Her expressive power is outstanding, and she is far from being Japanese. There are few skaters who can keep up with Takahashi, who is also a world champion. He skates well through tight curves, and above all, he is a good skater. Not only are they good skaters as individuals, but they also have great chemistry. The same official said, "Their expressive ability is wonderful, and their beautiful visual balance is also outstanding. They really work well together, and I think their performances are only possible because they are the two of them.

 Both "KanaDai," who have outstanding abilities, showed brilliant skating in the official practice session on this day. Although the show was held during the season, Muramoto said, "I get a lot of energy from it, and I learn a lot from it. How can I incorporate the joy of skating I feel at the show into the competition?" She sees it as an opportunity to improve for the World Championships at the Saitama Super Arena in March.

 The second World Championships is just over three months away, following the last one where they finished in 16th place. Muramoto is enthusiastic, "I want to have fun with confidence and aim for the top 10, because I was disappointed last year," while Takahashi declares emphatically, "I have many memories of the World Championships in Saitama, so I want to make it a good memory for me." The Japan's number one couple will go head-to-head on the world stage.
 

synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
This one looks like Dai's "Krone" costume:


He is performing"Krone" as his solo number :love::




Video of the rehearsals:




More photos:


I'm intrigued to see Kana's duet with Massimo!



ETA:

More cute footage from the rehearsals (including Andrew lifting Dai 😅):





Jason Brown's lovely words about Dai on instagram:




ETA 2:

According to reports from fans, the show is very energetic and there is a lot of dancing, especially in the second half. Each performance flows into the next - Olympians and lesser-known skaters all get the same spotlight and the show is created by everyone together/feels like one long collaborative number. They say that Dai's love of theatre is evident in the way the show is staged.

Dorky Dai re-enacting Narcissus: https://twitter.com/tvtokyo_figure/status/1611535716269301760

Tv news clip: https://twitter.com/flapperbear414/status/1611385077883367426

Cyber rabbit x Blackpink (click through to the last picture) :cool::https://www.instagram.com/p/CnHTFSwSx-T/

Rinka Watanabe is in the audience today 🤩: [ig story expired]
 
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synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
From the last show day:


Oleksandr, Adrienne, Dai and Yura/Kana doing the Blackpink choreo: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnIvmJeSTHn/

Yuka, Kanako, Yura and Kana: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnJTYV2KCts/

Michal Brezina (who was a late addition to the cast) on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnJtW2mOBZy/

Kana and Dai dorking about backstage to Kanako's music (sorry, I don't know the song title): https://www.instagram.com/p/CnJhev2oPDt/

Bunny ears 🐰: https://www.instagram.com/stories/k.a.n.a.m.u.r.a/3011020937520626951/


Nagamitsu-sensei was there!




Longer tv-report:



I'm looking forward to all of the group numbers (I hope most of them are shown in the highlights broadcast) - it seems like everyone had such a blast! :dance3:


Aaahh, can't wait to see this :cool:: https://www.instagram.com/stories/juhopirinen/3011039134698723209/


Nao Kida's instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnKJZ1FpYce/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Kana x Kana: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnIQxszhYs6/

Team PiriHara instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/stories/teampirihara/3010853685451770654/?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=


Partner switch :biggrin::




Group picture after the final show: https://twitter.com/GHEERITAN/status/1612038129304887296



Shizuka Arakawa on twitter: https://twitter.com/tiramisu11/status/1612052612450521094

"Ice Explosion 2023. Six wonderful ice shows filled with the love of skating of Dai-chan & Kana-chan. It must have been very hard to meticulously create, perform and lead everyone through this ice show while working so hard in competition, but it was great! Thank you!!!"
 
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synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
ETA Belated happy new year to you all, my friends! :)

:ghug:

A happy new year to you and everyone in the KanaDai FF too! :)

_______________________________________


I uploaded today’s highlights broadcast on google drive:

Intro

Opening

Shizuka

KanaDai

Group No. 02

Kazuki

Group No. 04

Kao

Daisuke + Finale + Interview



I look forward to watching the complete show in March and getting a full picture of Dai's/Massimo's/Kenji's/Kaitlyn's vision. I guess the highlights broadcast did not do the show justice. From what I gather from fans' reports, it should be watched all the way through, as all the performances were linked together like one long collaborative piece.

Group number 4 and Dai's solo combined with the finale probably give a taste of the whole show? I am very impressed by how ambitious and artistic this concept is for a "regular" ice show - everything is of such high quality and looks well thought out and detailed. The choreographies, the sometimes unconventional music selections, the costumes and the lighting were perfectly coordinated. Also, such dramatic staging! I think this show had some elements in common with Hyoen. While Hyoen – Basara and Like the Moonlight were even more theatrical and each production obviously told one long story, Ice Explosion reminded me a bit of Luxe with a succession of scenes, each revolving around their own short narrative. Although here the concepts were more abstract, leaving room for a variety of interpretations. I absolutely loved what I’ve seen so far and can’t wait for the rest! :love:
 
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KiraraChin

Medalist
Joined
May 5, 2018
Just wanted to share what Kazuki said about his experience at the Ice Explosion show:

Ice Explosion” was the best show in my life, and I felt that my world as a skater had expanded.

There were a lot of new attempts that overturned the conventional wisdom, such as the transition between performances, and there were many professional skaters, so there was a creative sense to create the stage ourselves.

Rather than being a contestant, I also have a strong sense of being one of the members who appear in this show. It wasn't the joy of appearing as Kazuki Tomono, but the joy of being able to appear as a member of the show.

The sense of accomplishment after finishing the show was more than I could have imagined, because it was a show that everyone worked together to create.

I am honored to be able to enter the world view created by Dai-chan. I want to be able to participate in shows like this again, and I wish I could be in a position to create shows like this in the future.
 

elbkup

Those who search for pearls must dive below
Medalist
Joined
Mar 3, 2015
Country
United-States
Just wanted to share what Kazuki said about his experience at the Ice Explosion show:

Ice Explosion” was the best show in my life, and I felt that my world as a skater had expanded.

There were a lot of new attempts that overturned the conventional wisdom, such as the transition between performances, and there were many professional skaters, so there was a creative sense to create the stage ourselves.

Rather than being a contestant, I also have a strong sense of being one of the members who appear in this show. It wasn't the joy of appearing as Kazuki Tomono, but the joy of being able to appear as a member of the show.

The sense of accomplishment after finishing the show was more than I could have imagined, because it was a show that everyone worked together to create.

I am honored to be able to enter the world view created by Dai-chan. I want to be able to participate in shows like this again, and I wish I could be in a position to create shows like this in the future.
Beautifully done!
I wish the USA had shows like this..
Ice Explosion has set a standard for shows all over the world in future..🤩😻
 

synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
Anna Cappellini talked about Daisuke (and mentioned Kana too) in her latest interview with insideskating:

https://www.insideskating.net/2023/...-but-i-still-like-to-be-involved-in-the-sport


Q: What about the skaters that used to be single skaters when you and Luca where competing, and now they turned to ice dancing – and I am talking about Daisuke Takahashi here… What about that? It’s a massive change…


Anna: It is, it is!

And it’s not for everybody – ice dancing requires a whole different type of training.

And you need to be ready for that: you don’t have the excitement of jumps anymore, you just have to spend hours and hours and hours working on your stroking position – and just working on being in a couple, and not just minding your own business [smiling].

So it’s not for everybody, but it’s not impossible either, like Daisuke is showing us.

Of course, he was always a skater revered by all of us for his amazing skating skills and masterful interpretations, so he had a great starting point. But it still is a different discipline, so the concentration and the tricky parts, the ones that you are most likely to make a mistake, are completely different in ice dancing. Some steps may not look hard to the single skaters or the fans, but they are in fact, and an ice dancer knows how to pay extra attention on those.

About that, I remember how I used to complain to Ondřej about how hard it was for me to watch him compete, and do all those dangerous pair skating elements, and he once told me something very true: It is much worse to watch YOU compete, because in ice dance you might fall at any moment!

But it’s not impossible to make the switch – like Kana and Daisuke are proving to the world right now, getting greater results every season and, hopefully, setting an example for others to try this path.

I mean, you wouldn’t be able to pick up single skating at 25, at 20 – with ice dancing, you still have the possibility, but you have to be really able to almost completely change your brain for ice dance.

And it’s good to know that if this side of skating is what you like and enjoy, if you enjoy skating skills, if you enjoy dancing, there could be another opportunity for you.

[smiling] And isn’t it just wonderful that we can enjoy watching Daisuke Takahashi skate again?


It's nice to see so many fellow ice dancers praising Dai. Their opinion is what really counts. Hopefully the positive feedback reaches him. ❤️


_________________________________

Figure Skaters Plus Vol. 9 🤩:






KanaDai are booked for PIW in April:

https://twitter.com/princeiceworld/status/1618806329556205568




Ice Explosion reel from the show's official ig account:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn1eXM3pdhB/





A couple more posts + program snippets from IE cast members/collaborators:

  • Unholy 🔥 (from Kaitlyn’s ig account):

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CnSch4ABVfN/


  • The Future:

    https://www.instagram.com/reel/CnO0HDMtMY7/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=


  • Blackpink (from Yura’s ig account)

    https://www.instagram.com/reel/CnNUtRuKfAH/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link


  • The last part of Kana’s duet with Massimo (click to the right):

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CncLR12LqN3/


  • Massy Scali:

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CngL17Qr2Zk/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

    “After many years on the ice I never imagined that an experience as special as Ice Explosion 2023 would cross my path.
    First of all, I had the honor of choreographing the vision of a genius like Daisuke Takahashi who, with his show concept, revolutionized what a figure skating show can offer to the public. On top of that I also had the privilege of skating in the show as part of the cast, sharing my work and the ice with old and new friends. Twenty five incredible souls that during that week, with passion, appreciation, and hard work created something so unique and special on and off the ice. We were family and what we expressed on the ice for Ice Explosion 2023 was magic and a reflection of that love. It was art. Thank you all for that.
    Thank you: @d1sk_t for this incredible opportunity and your talent. @k.a.n.a.m.u.r.a for always believing in me. I love you guys ❤️. Thank you to the whole cast and choreographers for the amazing work.“



  • Costume designer Shogo Yanagi:

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CnMeiRkv_u-/


  • In one of her ig stories Cathy Reed thanked the IE crew for the invitation of Nao and Masaya, who, according to her, were very grateful for the opportunity and enjoyed the experience very much.


  • Dai-chan’s own conclusion after IE and the cast’s fond responses to his post:






Btw Dai has been on an instagram spree lately, he even did an ig live about a week ago. Hope he keeps it up – it’s so nice to have almost daily updates not only from Kana, but from him too. 🥰

In his "new year" post (on January 15th) he let us know that he replaced the kanji for “Taka” (high/tall) in his familyname. His name is now spelled with the kanji 高 instead of 髙.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnbFesBtP7p/


Maybe a GS mod can update the OP of Dai’s fanfest accordingly? (Thanks in advance. :))


__________________________________________

Since they don’t have their own fanfest:

Wishing a speedy recovery to KanaDai’s training mate and friend Raffaella Koncius, who had to pull out of US Nationals with her partner Alexey Shchepetov after she suffered a concussion during official practice.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn2yHRpPqsj/
 
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deedee1

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Good luck, Kana and Dai at 4CC this week! :cheer:

Isn't the venue at Colorado Springs? A bit worry some stamina-wise, but a very good opportunity for the team to get some productive feedback from int'l judges, thus a desirable tune up heading into the Worlds next month. :)
 

synesthesia

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Country
Germany
Universal Music Japan reposted the “Unholy”-clip from Kaitlyn Weaver’s ig account on their official youtube channel 🤩:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9sYoZkT3fc


Due to Ice Explosion’s success a second run is scheduled for Fukuoka in May:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CobyX_VuYWh/


Kana and Dai are also booked to perform as special guests in Kinoshita Academy’s annual show “Bloom on ice” in Kyoto:

https://kinoshitaacademy.com/2459/


_________________________________________

Isn't the venue at Colorado Springs? A bit worry some stamina-wise, but a very good opportunity for the team to get some productive feedback from int'l judges, thus a desirable tune up heading into the Worlds next month. :)

Yes, it looks like Dai shares your concern:

https://twitter.com/soranbushis/status/1623839299077652481




Longer clip of Kana and Dai arriving in Colorado Springs on Wednesday evening (geoblocked outside of Japan):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngmKgNqunik&feature=youtu.be


Article with a transcript of the interview in the video above:

https://www.fnn.jp/articles/-/484292


Machine translation:

Kana Muramoto and Daisuke Takahashi: "We just have to do what we have to do" - Kanadai's ambition to compete in the Four Continents Championships for the second year in a row.

Figure Skating Reporting Team
Friday 10 February 2023, 4:40pm
Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2023



The pair of Kana Muramoto and Daisuke Takahashi, aka "Kanadai", will compete in the Rhythm Dance on 11 November (Japan time / 10 December local time).

The Muramoto-Takahashi pair arrived in Colorado Springs, USA, at the venue for the event. Last year they won Asia's first silver medal at this event.

Takahashi said: "I don't remember anything about Colorado, which I hadn't been to since 2012, when I competed in the singles event there. I'm just scared of the high altitude. We've been practising hard," he said, to which Muramoto nodded, "We just have to do it.”

Muramoto said, "Our goal is not to finish in the rankings or anything like that, we have really, really practised a lot and I feel really good and fit. We just have to give it our all and beat the altitude." Takahashi laughed and said, "I don't think about the altitude!”

This season, Takahashi decided to continue, "I thought I should do it for another year". They took on a new stage with a renewal of both rhythm dance and free dance.

The two dancers' glamorous Latin-themed Rhythm Dance and Free Dance “Phantom of the Opera", which Takahashi had skated in the past as a single skater. It will be a competition with a programme that holds a special place in their hearts.

This season, Muramoto and Takahashi have been in the second half of the free dance group in both GP events, and their reputation in the world has been growing. They also won their first international competition at the CS Denis Ten Memorial Challenge.

At the All-Japan Championships at the end of 2022, they won for the first time at their third attempt. They also won a berth at the Four Continents Championships and the World Championships.

After the All-Japan, the duo, who had set themselves the goal of winning the All-Japan, were pleased with their victory but regretted that they had made some mistakes.

The two were interviewed after the All-Japan.

Muramoto said: “The mocking at the end of the free dance was funny no matter how many times I replayed it. It's a funny story now. I felt 'I'm so happy to have skated with Dai-chan. I'm so grateful that we continued to do it".


Constant growth through 'hard work' and 'strong feelings'.

The Muramoto-Takahashi team, now in their third year of existence, is constantly growing.

Muramoto cites “effort” as the basis of their growth.

Takahashi nodded his head and said, "I think that's all we can do", and added that they also had a "strong feeling".

“Our coaches and staff put in a lot of effort to bring us up, so a lot of things added up. In Japan, Tim (Takeru Komatsubara) and Misato (Komatsubara) were leading us, and we wanted to catch up with them. When we went out into the world, we came here with a strong feeling of 'this is what the world’s wall is like, we want to reach there’."

Takahashi also looks back: "I am 36 years old, but I felt that even at 36 I can still evolve in many ways.

Last year, the duo achieved Asia's first silver medal at this event [4CC].

“Last time there was no international top team. This time it won't be easy to win a medal. We want to finish as high up the rankings as possible."

The two athletes, who won the All-Japan title with a long-cherished dream, will take on the strong North American teams.



Kana and Dai at pratice at the main rink this morning (Thanks to all kind fans for sharing! :pray:🥰):

https://twitter.com/SachikoHR/status/1624058789220749313



https://twitter.com/hana_no_camera/status/1624063172951801860

https://twitter.com/purplearashi/status/1624056916023320577







ETA:

RD MiSt:




I think it's good that they don't have any pressure to achieve a certain result here. That should help them to approach the competition with a fairly relaxed attitude and focus on polishing select elements and their performance.

Good luck you two! As Kana always says: Trust your training and have fun! ❤️:cheer:


_________________________
 
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