Skaters on Team Japan | Page 97 | Golden Skate

Skaters on Team Japan

Nice job by all Team Japan skaters at JGP Czech Republic.

I really enjoyed watching Ami and Spencer's programs. They seem to connect to each other so well. I noticed they were awarded higher PCS in both SP and FS than some of the other teams with higher BV/TES. Hope they can continue to skate together and have the chance to really develop their pair elements. So much potential there.

Congratulations to Rika on her silver and Yuna on her 4th place finish. Both girls delivered good performances even after hard falls on the first jumps of their FS.

Also congratulations to Mitsuki for skating 2 clean programs and on his new PB scores. His 193.3 total would've earned him a silver at JGP France. Mitsuki is generally a consistent skater so (as mikaboo and SuzyQ have already mentioned), I hope he'll work on his expression and start to challenge the 3A to keep himself competitive.


The competition for Koshiro's next JGP in Estonia is very high level. Maybe JSF will switch him to JGP Germany instead to give him a better chance at making final?
 
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Congratulations to Rika on the silver medal. And kudos for not falling apart after the hard fall. She was so close to winning but it might be a good thing in the long run not to get the media hyped up. And Yuna had a good fight despite her struggles. Her jumps are worrying but I still love her.

I’m hoping that Mitsuki will try the 3A too soon but I noticed the height of his 2A is very low and he doesn’t cover much distance with it either. I remember him attempting the 4T at a gala in Taiwan a few months ago so he might be one of those skaters who feels more comfortable with the 4T than the 3A. IIRC, he only started skating seriously (although he was already taking lessons) after watching Yuzuru’s 2012 Worlds so it’s amazing he’s come as far as he has in such a short time.

Congrats on the new PB for all of them!
Mitsuki posted some photos.
 
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Congrats to Rika, that was so so close! I still hope she will not give up on her 3A even if she didn't land it at Ostrava. But if she feels more comfortable with 2A in the time being I guess I will live with it. Yuna did a great job too, very lovely skater, just too bad she didn't land all her jumps.

Is JSF really putting Marin and Rika against Polina and Zagitova? This will just minimize both of their chances in making it to JGPF, I don't understand them :drama:
Is there a chance for a change in the entry list? :unsure:
 
I don't understand why Yuhana Yokoi is not getting a JGPS spot. She finished 3rd at Junior Nationals last season. Rin Nitaya wanted to move to senior this season (she is already 19 yo), but remained junior without senior GPS assignment while Yura Matsuda got two GPS. I can't help but feel those female pupils of Mr. Nagakubo are being treated poorly by JSF, like Akiko Suzuki was.
 
mikeko666 said:
I don't understand why Yuhana Yokoi is not getting a JGPS spot. She finished 3rd at Junior Nationals last season. Rin Nitaya wanted to move to senior this season (she is already 19 yo), but remained junior without senior GPS assignment while Yura Matsuda got two GPS. I can't help but feel those female pupils of Mr. Nagakubo are being treated poorly by JSF, like Akiko Suzuki was.
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I'd really like to see Yuhana more on the international stage. She's a great performer.
 
mikeko666 said:
I don't understand why Yuhana Yokoi is not getting a JGPS spot. She finished 3rd at Junior Nationals last season. Rin Nitaya wanted to move to senior this season (she is already 19 yo), but remained junior without senior GPS assignment while Yura Matsuda got two GPS. I can't help but feel those female pupils of Mr. Nagakubo are being treated poorly by JSF, like Akiko Suzuki was.
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I think Yuhana was simply fail to perform well in test skate. Akari Matsubara and Yuhana was listed as sub in all events. According to this article, Akari was the 1st alternative of JGPS. Yuhana will get a JGPS spot if only all of them (Shiraiwa, Iwamoto and Yamashita) not making to top 4 in the first event.

Interspectator said:
I'd really like to see Yuhana more on the international stage. She's a great performer.
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This is sadly that Yuhana was withdrawn from Triglav Trophy last season because of back injuries. If she can perform well at National, it is hopefully to see her at Senior B event. The chance of going to Junior Worlds was so little unless Yuhana win Junior National.
 
tinnychan said:
I think Yuhana was simply fail to perform well in test skate. Akari Matsubara and Yuhana was listed as sub in all events. According to this article, Akari was the 1st alternative of JGPS. Yuhana will get a JGPS spot if only all of them (Shiraiwa, Iwamoto and Yamashita) not making to top 4 in the first event.
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"Top 4" was stated in last selection season's criteria, but not this season's. I hope Akari or Yuhana replace Yuna Aoki in Estonia.

It's also hard to believe Yuna Shiraiwa performed well at the test skate because she was still recovering from injuries in early July as I saw her at Dreams on Ice.
 
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mikeko666 said:
"Top 4" was stated in last selection season's criteria, but not this season's. I hope Akari or Yuhana replace Yuna Aoki in Estonia.

It's also hard to believe Yuna Shiraiwa performed well at the test skate because she was still recovering from injuries in early July as I saw her at Dreams on Ice.
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I think this season will also use "top 4" as criteria. I think this criteria was removed (in paper) because of Wakaba was fifth in her first event last season.

I hope Aoki can get her second assignment, she have potential to become top Junior. Aoki have potential to become top Junior (in Japan / World), I hope she can have a better performance and build up her confidence.

For Shiraiwa, I think she might not in test skate but she show up she was back in local competition (Also in Junior National Camp). Shiraiwa was 4th in Junior Worlds / Youth Olympic last season, I think she deserve 1 spot even not participate in test skate. In fact, Honda and Shiraiwa was earned top 24 SB last season, they can easily to earn 2 spots in Senior GP if they are age-eligible.
 
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tinnychan said:
I hope Aoki can get her second assignment, she have potential to become top Junior. Aoki have potential to become top Junior (in Japan / World), I hope she can have a better performance and build up her confidence.
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I don't see that much potential in Aoki at the moment. She's been struggling since last season, and her FS didn't reach 100 in Czech. She doesn't have a clean 3+3T, and will eventually lose 3Lz+3Lo as she gets older. I don't understand some people's obsession with 3+3Lo at all.
 
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mikeko666 said:
I don't see that much potential in Aoki at the moment. She's been struggling since last season, and her FS didn't reach 100 in Czech. She doesn't have a clean 3+3T, and will eventually lose 3Lz+3Lo as she gets older. I don't understand some people's obsession with 3+3Lo at all.
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I don't think it's fair to say it's ppl's obsession with 3+3L jump combination. It's just a mere fact that some skaters are better with edge jumps, while others with toe jumps; not to mention that the younger skaters are still in the process of mastering the whole set of jumps. I actually feel sorry that Aoki would be 'forced' to work on the toe-jump in combination, as it has never been her forte and she has to cope with that because of the requirement of single loop jump in SP for juniors. Like I said in the other post, I think it could be possible that her loop jumps are also effected because of her practicing on 3T in combination. But we have to also take into the account that not all skaters are good with loop jumps: I could recall one or two top senior or currently junior skaters who acquire loop jump very late or are still learning to master the jump. In the end, it still makes sense that ISU requires the type of single jump in SP for junior from year to year.

Going back to Yokoi, I'd think one of the reasons for not (yet) getting any assignment might be that her jump elements were rather weak: yes she could do 3T-3T in SP and was doing that consistently last season, but in FS she was/is only doing 2A-3T (x2) but not all are reliable either? In this sense, Matsubara can be even more stable than Yokoi as Matsubara actually out-performed Aoki in FS at the recent domestic competition. So I won't be surprised that in case of alternatives to the remaining JGP spots the priority might go to Matsubara than Yokoi
 
I agree with cohkaix. Some skaters prefer loop jump for the second jump of combination. I remembered Daisuke Murakami.

Yuhana Yokoi is a good skater with power, but I sometimes feel a sort of roughness and too haste in jumping. It may be time for her to make stable all types of jumps, and improve her expression. Otherwise, her GOE/PCS would not be added so much, I'm afraid.

It is a good chance for Yuna A to practice combination jumps with 2nd 3T, so that she can have two competitive weapons.

Anyway, they are all still young. They should try everything they can :agree:
 
SuzyQ said:
I agree with cohkaix. Some skaters prefer loop jump for the second jump of combination. I remembered Daisuke Murakami.
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They are mostly junior girls, and they will lose 3+3Lo as their bodies mature. Even a talented jumper like Miki Ando could no longer fully rotate 3Lz+3Lo after she reached 20. 3+3Lo< is more like last resort for skaters who can not control enough speed to execute 3+3T. Dice Murakami's 3Lz+3Lo success rate isn't great either.
 
mikeko666 said:
They are mostly junior girls, and they will lose 3+3Lo as their bodies mature. Even a talented jumper like Miki Ando could no longer fully rotate 3Lz+3Lo after she reached 20. 3+3Lo< is more like last resort for skaters who can not control enough speed to execute 3+3T. Dice Murakami's 3Lz+3Lo success rate isn't great either.
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I just meant it seems Dice prefers Second Loop to Second Toe.
But anyway, as you say they are still juniors. I don't think it any wrong that they try second 3Lo now if they can. They might have to change it from 3Lo to 2Lo in future due to body change, but it would give them more variation, and there might be chances that they could avoid Zayak by another type of 2nd or 3rd jump as 2T is now subject to Zayak rules.
 
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Just an interesting fact: for the top 4 ladies' competitors from the most recent JGP Czech, actually 3 of them started out with 3-3L jump combinations. Except for Kihira, both Lozko and Gubanova were doing 3-3L last season, at least in their SP performances. For this season, they all have to switch to -3T combinations including Aoki. But it will be interesting to see after this season if any of them will bring back 3-3L when the required single jump will be Lz next.
 
mcq said:
Congrats to Rika, that was so so close! I still hope she will not give up on her 3A even if she didn't land it at Ostrava. But if she feels more comfortable with 2A in the time being I guess I will live with it. Yuna did a great job too, very lovely skater, just too bad she didn't land all her jumps.

Is JSF really putting Marin and Rika against Polina and Zagitova? This will just minimize both of their chances in making it to JGPF, I don't understand them :drama:
Is there a chance for a change in the entry list? :unsure:
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They changed YunaS and Marin around last season so they could still do that this season. Rika isn’t very consistent so JSF wouldn’t have known she had a chance for JGPF until she came in 2nd last week. Also, I see Polina’s name on every competition from JGP Russia onwards right now so there is no avoiding her at this point in time :hpull::biggrin:
 
mikaboo said:
They changed YunaS and Marin around last season so they could still do that this season. Rika isn’t very consistent so JSF wouldn’t have known she had a chance for JGPF until she came in 2nd last week. Also, I see Polina’s name on every competition from JGP Russia onwards right now so there is no avoiding her at this point in time :hpull::biggrin:
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Yikes :eeking:
Maybe the change up will depend on Marin's result at this week's JGP too? if she manages to be in 1st place then if she places 3rd or 4th at the next assignment she can still make it to JGPF. I heard that Polina will likely be in Russia + Germany so maybe this assignment is not so bad for Marin and Rika. She will still only be in 2 JGP so it is till possible to avoid her. If Polina does get assigned at Russia + Germany, YunaS is the one with a tough assignment cause she will be up against Polina in both events (and Alisa and Nugumanova) :shocked: I hope at least 2-3 Japanese junior ladies will make it to JGPF. :drama:
 
mcq said:
Yikes :eeking:
Maybe the change up will depend on Marin's result at this week's JGP too? if she manages to be in 1st place then if she places 3rd or 4th at the next assignment she can still make it to JGPF. I heard that Polina will likely be in Russia + Germany so maybe this assignment is not so bad for Marin and Rika. She will still only be in 2 JGP so it is till possible to avoid her. If Polina does get assigned at Russia + Germany, YunaS is the one with a tough assignment cause she will be up against Polina in both events (and Alisa and Nugumanova) :shocked: I hope at least 2-3 Japanese junior ladies will make it to JGPF. :drama:
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I haven’t seriously looked at the other competitors because I don’t trust the entries yet but poor YunaS if the entries stay that way :dbana: I guess whether changes will be made will depend on how Marin and YunaS will do in their first competitions. There might be surpries from the low profile skaters too.
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Is anybody going to JGP Yokohama? Both my attempts (they had draws twice for ticket sales) failed miserably :(
I’m looking forward to Mako Yamashita’s JGP debut. I hope Mihoko sensei has done a good job with her FS-from-last-season-turned-this-season’s-SP :luv17:
I don’t know if these have been posted before but they are from Coupe du Printemps last season where she came in 2nd after Rinka Watanabe. She didn't do too well at this comp. but she won over YunaS, Yuhana and RikaK at a comp. 3 weeks ago. Maybe she is inconsistent too :drama:
SP https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbp_UMIGOXM
FS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBEj61bH8GA

With the boys, will Kazuki’s PCS go up? Will Sena land the 3A? Will Yuto manage not fall on the stsq?
Good luck to Rikako and Aru for Ice Dance too! :hap10:

There was quite a strong earthquake in the Kanto region today. I hope all the skaters arrive, compete, and go home safely!
 
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