Ladies' Long Program

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Mao follows the book of definitions and she does everything according to the book. However, she could work on the Lutz. She has such an obvious flutz it is sad.

She is an excellent competitive skater. She has everything to win, and I don't see anyone challenging that except Yu Na whom I have not seen this year.

Joe

 

[emma]

I have the greatest respect for Mao and a whole lot of just wow - respect too. She is amazing and a great competitor. It does bug me that, though, that she doesn't do the full array of triples. I 'get' that she maxes the points anyway - but that bothers me that she CAN (not her fault, rule problem). but boy, does she command the ice.

Joe, what did you think of Joanie Rochette.....her jumps seems sooooo well executed to me, I was just wondering what your opinion was live .

 

[passion]

I think Mao's biggest strength is her superior skating skills, edges, flow, speed, and power.

 

[ks777]

Where did you see her FP? I don't see it on you tube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enmPxzYQm60

 

[ae9177]

I think Mao's biggest strength is her superior skating skills, edges, flow, speed, and power.

Ditto that, although she still has problems in jump technique to fix. She's a wonderful all-around skater, always an eye candy, so cute and sweet to watch.

 

[bubbleyum]

hi all~

i was wondering, why do you think mao's 3-axel is so much more hyped up than yukari nakano? looking at a lot of old youtube videos, seems like nakano's 3-axel is even more consistent than mao. then why is mao considered such a superior when she doesn't have it?

when i first heard about mao, it was all about the 3-axel. other than that, (and of course this would differ according to personal opinion) her presentation/expression is considered lacking, her spins or spirals are nice enough but not like sasha/caroline, she has edge problems to her jumps, and she doesn't do all of the jumps either, and all last season her skating seemed slow as well... (i saw her skate canada on youtube though, she seemed a lot faster there.) not trying to bash mao, i'm just repeating what seems to be the opinion of quite a lot of people here. what makes her so much more outstanding? i've read here that ppl seem to think mao will do well even if she misses the 3-axel because of her "superior skating skills."

am i missing something that is obvious to all other skating fans and judges? how come yukari is not as supported by japan etc when she has the 3-axel as well? well, i know she has a bad leg wrap, but the rest of her skating seems to be pretty up to par...

i am not a skater, so i could just be totally ignorant of what makes a superior skater as opposed to how it appears on tv.

 

[chuckm]

Mao has had a tremendous growth spurt over the past year, and it seems her 3A has become less reliable than it used to be. Nakano is 22. She has been rotating the 3A more often lately than she used to.

 

[Wrlmy]

hi all~

i was wondering, why do you think mao's 3-axel is so much more hyped up than yukari nakano? looking at a lot of old youtube videos, seems like nakano's 3-axel is even more consistent than mao. then why is mao considered such a superior when she doesn't have it?

when i first heard about mao, it was all about the 3-axel. other than that, (and of course this would differ according to personal opinion) her presentation/expression is considered lacking, her spins or spirals are nice enough but not like sasha/caroline, she has edge problems to her jumps, and she doesn't do all of the jumps either, and all last season her skating seemed slow as well... (i saw her skate canada on youtube though, she seemed a lot faster there.) not trying to bash mao, i'm just repeating what seems to be the opinion of quite a lot of people here. what makes her so much more outstanding? i've read here that ppl seem to think mao will do well even if she misses the 3-axel because of her "superior skating skills."

am i missing something that is obvious to all other skating fans and judges? how come yukari is not as supported by japan etc when she has the 3-axel as well? well, i know she has a bad leg wrap, but the rest of her skating seems to be pretty up to par...

i am not a skater, so i could just be totally ignorant of what makes a superior skater as opposed to how it appears on tv.

Hi Bubbleyum, what a fabulous name When you put it like that, you make it sound like Mao is such a terrible skater. But, Yukari's triple axel has not been as consistent as Mao's by no means. She didn't land any last season where as Mao landed several, though slightly flawed. Mao just has better command and coverage of the ice than Nakano, and she glides so gently. Her spiral, especially classic position, is actully quite nice, if not great. Again, you are entitled to your opinion.

 

[bubbleyum]

Hi Bubbleyum, what a fabulous name When you put it like that, you make it sound like Mao is such a terrible skater. But, Yukari's triple axel has not been as consistent as Mao's by no means. She didn't land any last season where as Mao landed several, though slightly flawed. Mao just has better command and coverage of the ice than Nakano, and she glides so gently. Her spiral, especially classic position, is actully quite nice, if not great. Again, you are entitled to your opinion.

sorry didn't mean to make it out that mao is a terrible skater. just wanted to understand why she is considered such a "superior" skater, especially with all the other negative things ppl seem to point out about her. cause i used to think "mao asada, that little girl who gets high marks because she can do the 3-axel at such a young age!" but now without it, she is still considered in her own league. if you all point at her "superior" qualities, maybe it will open up my eyes and i'll appreciate her skating better.

 

[Wrlmy]

sorry didn't mean to make it out that mao is a terrible skater. just wanted to understand why she is considered such a "superior" skater, especially with all the other negative things ppl seem to point out about her. cause i used to think "mao asada, that little girl who gets high marks because she can do the 3-axel at such a young age!" but now without it, she is still considered in her own league. if you all point at her "superior" qualities, maybe it will open up my eyes and i'll appreciate her skating better.

Oh, no need to apologize at all! You have every reason to believe what you believe. The way she was promoted at young age was so much focused on jumping ability that many people considered her great just for her jumps. I actually think her lack of 3 axel will help her in long run so that skating fans can appreciate her other qualities. As for now, the title of queen of the jump should go to Yuna or Miki IMO.

 

[flying camel]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enmPxzYQm60

Thanks

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I have the greatest respect for Mao and a whole lot of just wow - respect too. She is amazing and a great competitor. It does bug me that, though, that she doesn't do the full array of triples. I 'get' that she maxes the points anyway - but that bothers me that she CAN (not her fault, rule problem). but boy, does she command the ice.

Joe, what did you think of Joanie Rochette.....her jumps seems sooooo well executed to me, I was just wondering what your opinion was live .

Mao's jumping skills are super except for the flutz. Why she doesn't work on it, only she knows. She's just not perfect.

The solo jumps are usually coupled up in the combos, which to me does not show that the skater is capable of the solo jump. I guess if the skater has trouble with a solo jump, it can be put into a combo and considered it was included. Who's going to notice that the loop jump or sal chow in a combo was executed properly with the crowd roaring - not for the loop jump - for the combo bouncing.

Joannie did all the solo jumps plus the combos. I was glad to see her fight back after that so so SP.

Joe

 

[JPierce]

Can I say that I think that figure skating is so blessed to have two wonderful skaters like Mao and Yu-na right now... Both girls have the capablity of taking this sport to knew artistic and technical heights.

..........:indiff:

New Technical Heights - yes.
New Artistic Heights - umm, NO.

 

[yukisnowflake]

Mao did a clean program. She will win. However, her jump content is not there. No 3A. Still no 3S, no 3T...

I think her 3+3 was underrotated...

Who's that lady with glasses ? I saw her a lot. I saw her giving Pang & Tong , D&D a hug at Skate America. Now she is giving mao a huge hug..

netnuts:

The lady with the glasses is me.
Yes I was @ Sk. America also. Though I haven't seen it yet myself I got alot of feedback from people (in US, Can. & Japan) that they saw me giving Pang & Tong & D&D a hug there as well as me giving Mira Leung a bear after her LP.

Yes, I was there @ Sk. Can. also & that is me giving Mao a hug after her LP as well as the big bear with the mutliple colourful hearts that she holds in her lap in the K'N'C.

Thanks for the compliment via noticing me @ both comps.

 

[Bennett]

Artistry is a very subjective word.
Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

Mao, IMHO, she can pull out somewhat intricate things, like steps, and she has a superb flow on the ice. Fantasie Impromtu can be very tricky but look how she handled her steps with quick, quick music. That is her strength, her artistry IMHO.

One thing though, I enjoyed watching her skate, especially her FS, but she looked so nervous that you just get nervous with her. I hope she can be more relaxed. And you know I'm not particularly talking about facial expression.

I totally agree! Her flow on the ice is simply amazing. Before the beginning of the season, I thought the LP music was going to be too melancholic, too fast, and too repetitive. This piece of music can be just boring background music. But when I first saw her performance, my image on this music completely changed. It accentuates her amazing flow, I also love the delicate, sophisticated chreos that go so well with this fast music. I must say that both Nichol and Mao have great musicality.

And yes, I also feel nervous with her Especially, in her SP. I feel that she may be actually presenting like only 30% of what she actually has. Even when she got level 4 on her steps at the US-JPN counter match, she seemed to be sad and regrettable about her steps afterwards.