Kazuki Tomono

[KiraraChin]

Thank you so much, Ichat!
Thinking about it, I think once I saw Keiji do something similar (but not ten times lol) before skating, so I wonder if this is a common tradition for Japanese skaters.

 

[surimi]

In the new Quadruple Axel, Kazuki will have a joint interview with Taichiro ^ ^ Onsen Club FTW!

 

[KiraraChin]

In the new Quadruple Axel, Kazuki will have a joint interview with Taichiro ^ ^ Onsen Club FTW!

Awww that is so sweet. I wish I could read it. I wonder if Kazuki is gonna get back at Sota by naming Taichiro his best friend

Asahi published an article about Kazuki today: https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASNDG6RJCNDFUTQP01T.html
I only read the first few paragraphs, as the rest is behind a paywall, but I must say I don't like the premise of this article. 'Is 22 old?' shouldn't really be a question, of course he's not old. Kazuki has been a late bloomer all his life, and historically so many male skaters achieved a lot in their 20s, and even up to their late 20s.

I feel like they are trying to push a 'Russian Ladies' vibe into the Japanese Men ('it's all about the teenagers'), and I'm really not here for it

 

[bouncy]

Awww that is so sweet. I wish I could read it. I wonder if Kazuki is gonna get back at Sota by naming Taichiro his best friend

Asahi published an article about Kazuki today: https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASNDG6RJCNDFUTQP01T.html
I only read the first few paragraphs, as the rest is behind a paywall, but I must say I don't like the premise of this article. 'Is 22 old?' shouldn't really be a question, of course he's not old. Kazuki has been a late bloomer all his life, and historically so many male skaters achieved a lot in their 20s, and even up to their late 20s.

I feel like they are trying to push a 'Russian Ladies' vibe into the Japanese Men ('it's all about the teenagers'), and I'm really not here for it

Totally. They shouldn't really make such remarks. Very misleading and unprofessional.
I guess it's just the nature of mass media. I still recall the days when Japanese media used to hail Evgenia the queen, then all of a sudden Alina became their new favorite and they just "ditched" Evgenia like nobody; when Alina had bad days, they started to hype the Eteri trio. Yikes.
Kazuki is making solid progress this season and NHK just feels like the start of the journey for him as a fully-fledged skater. And you're right! I think 22 is absolutely not late to achieve anything, and it's never too late. I have faith in Kazuki and he will show them how good a 22-year-old is at Nationals.

 

[KiraraChin]

Totally. They shouldn't really make such remarks. Very misleading and unprofessional.
I guess it's just the nature of mass media. I still recall the days when Japanese media used to hail Evgenia the queen, then all of a sudden Alina became their new favorite and they just "ditched" Evgenia like nobody; when Alina had bad days, they started to hype the Eteri trio. Yikes.
Kazuki is making solid progress this season and NHK just feels like the start of the journey for him as a fully-fledged skater. And you're right! I think 22 is absolutely not late to achieve anything, and it's never too late. I have faith in Kazuki and he will show them how good a 22-year-old is at Nationals.

Thank you! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that

 

[KiraraChin]

Something to look forward to - Kazuki will feature on this Fuji TV series: https://otn.fujitv.co.jp/b_hp/920200152.html
'Yuzuru Hanyu, Shoma Uno, Daisuke Takahashi, Rika Kihira, Satoko Miyahara, Wakaba Higuchi, Marin Honda, Yuma Kagiyama, Shun Sato, and other famous skaters from the past are picked up! Not only all-Japan figures, but also valuable images from the Novice and junior eras. Furthermore, under the title of Masterpiece Theater, "That emotional movement that cried all over the venue" and "Masterpiece of that player's achievement of achievement" will be revived from the large amount of images stored by Fuji TV. In addition, you can see the couple competition, all-Japan junior, and east / west Japan figure skating programs that could not be seen in the full version without cutting. A must-see for figure skating fans! From November to January, we will deliver all 10 episodes with enough to see.'

Kazuki's episode, joint with Rika Kihira, will air on 17 January!

 

[bouncy]

Something to look forward to - Kazuki will feature on this Fuji TV series: https://otn.fujitv.co.jp/b_hp/920200152.html
'Yuzuru Hanyu, Shoma Uno, Daisuke Takahashi, Rika Kihira, Satoko Miyahara, Wakaba Higuchi, Marin Honda, Yuma Kagiyama, Shun Sato, and other famous skaters from the past are picked up! Not only all-Japan figures, but also valuable images from the Novice and junior eras. Furthermore, under the title of Masterpiece Theater, "That emotional movement that cried all over the venue" and "Masterpiece of that player's achievement of achievement" will be revived from the large amount of images stored by Fuji TV. In addition, you can see the couple competition, all-Japan junior, and east / west Japan figure skating programs that could not be seen in the full version without cutting. A must-see for figure skating fans! From November to January, we will deliver all 10 episodes with enough to see.'

Kazuki's episode, joint with Rika Kihira, will air on 17 January!

Sounds interesting! Will this series be available on Youtube?

 

[KiraraChin]

Sounds interesting! Will this series be available on Youtube?

They might upload it on their YouTube channel, but normally Fuji TV stuff is blocked outside Japan sigh
I'm hoping some fan will record it and upload it somewhere else, either YT itself or Instagram/Twitter. I'll certainly post it here if I see anything!

Meanwhile, Atom Doshisha published a big article on Kazuki - sadly all in Japanese and doesn't work on Google Translate, but we can see the photos: https://twitter.com/atom_doshisha/status/1341323208306266113

He looks so grown up in the picture on the first page!

 

[KiraraChin]

He looks so grown up in the picture on the first page!

...and there is already a cute fan art based on it: https://twitter.com/colorful1505/status/1341438970287177729

BTW I came across the sample of the Kazuki/Taichiro talk on QA: https://twitter.com/AxelQuadruple/status/1340522896326762496
I like what they did with the colours there, cool design!

Aaaahhhh official practices start tomorrow. Anyone else getting nervous?

 

[surimi]

...and there is already a cute fan art based on it: https://twitter.com/colorful1505/status/1341438970287177729

BTW I came across the sample of the Kazuki/Taichiro talk on QA: https://twitter.com/AxelQuadruple/status/1340522896326762496
I like what they did with the colours there, cool design!

Aaaahhhh official practices start tomorrow. Anyone else getting nervous?

You bet! Though I am not so much nervous for Kazuki though. He's shown he can manage his nerves at NHK so top 5 is quite realistic for him.
I hope we can get a few snippets from the Kazuki/Taichiro talk from somewhere...

 

[KiraraChin]

Meanwhile, Doshisha released the second part of their enormous article about Kazuki: https://twitter.com/atom_doshisha/status/1341685202263785472

Again, not Google Translation-friendly, but cool pics!

 

[KiraraChin]

Pictures from today's practice: https://www.aflo.com/ja/editorial-images/search?k=友野一希&c=AND

Sadly, no reports or interviews whatsoever... The press is only focusing on Yuzu, Shoma and to a less extent YumaShun.

So it's very possible we will watch Kazuki tomorrow with no idea of his condition...

 

[KiraraChin]

Welp, Kazuki will be the last to skate tomorrow This is not usually a good position for him, we can tell he thought the same from the look in his eyes and the way he immediately tensed up his shoulders: https://twitter.com/Summer29child/status/1342048507029438464

At least he seems to be in good shape, he appears in this news clip landing a gorgeous 4T3T: https://twitter.com/nobumamiya/status/1342039744226631682
Also, this picture of him warming up - jumping so high! https://twitter.com/toramomo_tweet/status/1342059766181314561

Here's tomorrow's detailed schedule: https://twitter.com/Tomono_Infonet/status/1342058363086020608
He'll be skating at 4:33 PM local time.

Now would be a good moment to overcome the mental block of being the last to skate... You can do it, Kazuki!

 

[bouncy]

The press is only focusing on Yuzu, Shoma and to a less extent YumaShun.

Welp, Kazuki will be the last to skate tomorrow This is not usually a good position for him, we can tell he thought the same from the look in his eyes and the way he immediately tensed up his shoulders: https://twitter.com/Summer29child/status/1342048507029438464

At least he seems to be in good shape, he appears in this news clip landing a gorgeous 4T3T: https://twitter.com/nobumamiya/status/1342039744226631682
Also, this picture of him warming up - jumping so high! https://twitter.com/toramomo_tweet/status/1342059766181314561

Here's tomorrow's detailed schedule: https://twitter.com/Tomono_Infonet/status/1342058363086020608
He'll be skating at 4:33 PM local time.

Now would be a good moment to overcome the mental block of being the last to skate... You can do it, Kazuki!

Same same. I'm a little worried about the starting order but somehow I don't think the odds are all against Kazuki.
I'm secretly happy that Yuma/Shun are in Group 5, and Kazuki along with the veterans Hanyu, Shoma, etc, in Group 6. (I'm hereby assuming the judges tend to hold back when they score the two boys )
If they give Kazuki the PCS he deserves and not overscore Yuma, yep I think Kazuki has 50/50 chance to get onto the podium. Go Kazuki

 

[KiraraChin]

OK, as usual, let me start with the bad news: Kazuki is currently 7th after the SP, with a score of 81.72. As usual, he was scored really harshly, receiving q calls in both his quads and also getting dinged on spins
Here's his performance, for those who missed it: https://youtu.be/SiMD47ouVcU
Protocol: https://twitter.com/Tomono_Infonet/status/1342378921707196417

The good news is that there are less than 2pts separating him from Keiji (who's currently in 4th). So, although the podium is most likely out of reach now, he can totally finish in 4th place if he skates well tomorrow. You can do it, Kazuki!

 

[bouncy]

OK, as usual, let me start with the bad news: Kazuki is currently 7th after the SP, with a score of 81.72. As usual, he was scored really harshly, receiving q calls in both his quads and also getting dinged on spins
Here's his performance, for those who missed it: https://youtu.be/SiMD47ouVcU
Protocol: https://twitter.com/Tomono_Infonet/status/1342378921707196417

The good news is that there are less than 2pts separating him from Keiji (who's currently in 4th). So, although the podium is most likely out of reach now, he can totally finish in 4th place if he skates well tomorrow. You can do it, Kazuki!

Thank you for posting the protocols! Kazuki was visibly tight from the very beginning. Despite the calls and the fall, the air position looked good to me.
I'm glad score-wise he's not too far from Keiji. If he skates clean in the FP, a 4th is totally possible. Not bad at all considering he's competing with Olympics gold & silver medalists!

 

[KiraraChin]

Thank you for posting the protocols! Kazuki was visibly tight from the very beginning. Despite the calls and the fall, the air position looked good to me.
I'm glad score-wise he's not too far from Keiji. If he skates clean in the FP, a 4th is totally possible. Not bad at all considering he's competing with Olympics gold & silver medalists!

You're welcome! I agree, he was very tense and it showed, that's why skating last wasn't ideal for him.

Tomorrow he'll be the last to skate again, but in the second to last group! I think that actually might work better for his nerves

 

[rRainbow]

Meanwhile, Atom Doshisha published a big article on Kazuki - sadly all in Japanese and doesn't work on Google Translate, but we can see the photos: https://twitter.com/atom_doshisha/status/1341323208306266113

Translation: 1 of 2
College Life and Competition
--Thank you for coming today. Do you go to school to write your thesis these days?
Yes, I attend seminars. Besides I only have to finish my thesis.
--Are you going to submit your thesis soon?
Yes [laughter]. In January. Japanese Nationals will be over by that time. I’m feeling time pressure [laughter].
--Are you doing joint research with other students?
No, I do research on my own. Probably somehow [laughter] I will be fine if I submit my thesis [laughter].
--The number of classes you have to attend has decreased, so is it much easier for you to juggle study and skating?
I guess so. This year I focus on skating while I go to college once a week or so. My life has been more centered on skating than before, but I miss school life a little.
--Do you keep in touch with your college friends?
I only see my seminar classmates. I get to see my friends once a week or so. They all send me messages saying “good luck with the competition.”
--Now, please look back on the time from Kinki to NHK Trophy.
My SP is getting solid, but I often struggled in FS. But compared to last season, the quality of my quads is better, I mean the success rate in practice is quite good now, so I want to keep practicing to improve my ability to perform at my full potential in competition. In retrospect, I did fine overall. I made some mistakes and I felt disappointed many times. Yet, I am able to practice with a positive self-image now, so it has been a season in which I feel my personal growth..
--Last season you seemed to have struggled more in SP than this season. Do you feel differently now?
Not particularly [laughter]. But the biggest difference is that my anxiety about quads is nearly gone. After all, I have been trying to skate clean in both SP and FS, and I am very anxious to do great in SP to have a good start. I am more motivated than last year, and that’s why I’ve made very few mistakes. Still, I haven’t done so well in FS with a steadfast resolve to carry over momentum from SP. Therefore, at the next Nationals I would like to keep focused throughout the competition. I buckled under the pressure at the end, so it’s not a matter of technique. I would like to face this issue seriously so that I can keep highly motivated when I practice.

--to be continued

 

[KiraraChin]

Translation: 1 of 2
College Life and Competition
--Thank you for coming today. Do you go to school to write your thesis these days?
Yes, I attend seminars. Besides I only have to finish my thesis.
--Are you going to submit your thesis soon?
Yes [laughter]. In January. Japanese Nationals will be over by that time. I’m feeling time pressure [laughter].
--Are you doing joint research with other students?
No, I do research on my own. Probably somehow [laughter] I will be fine if I submit my thesis [laughter].
--The number of classes you have to attend has decreased, so is it much easier for you to juggle study and skating?
I guess so. This year I focus on skating while I go to college once a week or so. My life has been more centered on skating than before, but I miss school life a little.
--Do you keep in touch with your college friends?
I only see my seminar classmates. I get to see my friends once a week or so. They all send me messages saying “good luck with the competition.”
--Now, please look back on the time from Kinki to NHK Trophy.
My SP is getting solid, but I often struggled in FS. But compared to last season, the quality of my quads is better, I mean the success rate in practice is quite good now, so I want to keep practicing to improve my ability to perform at my full potential in competition. In retrospect, I did fine overall. I made some mistakes and I felt disappointed many times. Yet, I am able to practice with a positive self-image now, so it has been a season in which I feel my personal growth..
--Last season you seemed to have struggled more in SP than this season. Do you feel differently now?
Not particularly [laughter]. But the biggest difference is that my anxiety about quads is nearly gone. After all, I have been trying to skate clean in both SP and FS, and I am very anxious to do great in SP to have a good start. I am more motivated than last year, and that’s why I’ve made very few mistakes. Still, I haven’t done so well in FS with a steadfast resolve to carry over momentum from SP. Therefore, at the next Nationals I would like to keep focused throughout the competition. I buckled under the pressure at the end, so it’s not a matter of technique. I would like to face this issue seriously so that I can keep highly motivated when I practice.

--to be continued

OMG rRainbow! This is the best Christmas present! Thank you so much!

Meanwhile, Kazuki did super well at the FS practice: https://twitter.com/figure365/status/1342636067690668032
He landed: 4T 4S-2T 4S-2T 3F 3A-1Eu-2S 3A 3Lz
Which means, doubled some combos, but otherwise clean!
Good luck, Kazuki! You can do it!

 

[bouncy]

He landed: 4T 4S-2T 4S-2T 3F 3A-1Eu-2S 3A 3Lz

Poor boy. He did so well in the practice but bombed the free. Kazuki is very technically capable, but it seems something's not there.
On the positive sides, I'm glad to see Kazuki being so upbeat. He looked a little disheartened after the free but then put on his charismatic smile again in Kiss & Cry.