- Joined
- May 5, 2018
Sota is going to participate in the next Naniwa Figure Skating Festival!
Sota Yamamoto
- Thread starter surimi
- Start date
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2013
Sota showing off his cooking skills:
He's doing a great job! Way to go, Sota!
And here are some photos of the FS Life online talk:
---
That was at least something cheerful in what is shaping to be the sh*ttiest season ever for me as a Sota fan. Like ever, including the pandemic years.
This is probably Sota's last season, and looks like Finlandia 2024 was the last chance for me to see him. GP France is literally the only opportunity to see Sota in Europe, unless a miracle lands him Challenge Cup. Priced out and/or uncomfortable with traveling to Angers? Too bad, says JSF, we don't give a f*** about the overseas fans anymore, or about our skaters' SB and pre-GP competing experience abroad! Here's some more competitions in Japan instead!
I guess I should be grateful I could see Sota multiple times because obviously not everyone has been that fortunate when it comes to their biggest favorites... but I was really hoping to see him one last time, after having to cancel Finlandia last year. Last fall, I was like, okay, take it chill, there'll be an opportunity yet next year... but no, this time it's just France, and nothing else in Europe. I'm bitter, furious and gutted all at the same time. Hoping JSF's horrible choices backfire on them spectacularly.
It really doesn't help that whatever Sota content there is these days, video-wise and article-wise, is either geoblocked, or paid, or only available to those willing to jump through hoops like creating accounts on Japanese websites / sending financial contributions to an entire group of skaters instead of just Sota. And, naturally, all of it is only for those who have excellent Japanese skills, to be able to actually enjoy said paid content - or who have a fluent translating buddy who is willing to jump through the aforementioned hoops.
So I guess I'm stuck with gifted articles and GP footage as my only Sota content until next spring, and he's likely to retire then. Joy.
Enshittification has hit the skating world full force.
He's doing a great job! Way to go, Sota!
And here are some photos of the FS Life online talk:
---
That was at least something cheerful in what is shaping to be the sh*ttiest season ever for me as a Sota fan. Like ever, including the pandemic years.
This is probably Sota's last season, and looks like Finlandia 2024 was the last chance for me to see him. GP France is literally the only opportunity to see Sota in Europe, unless a miracle lands him Challenge Cup. Priced out and/or uncomfortable with traveling to Angers? Too bad, says JSF, we don't give a f*** about the overseas fans anymore, or about our skaters' SB and pre-GP competing experience abroad! Here's some more competitions in Japan instead!
I guess I should be grateful I could see Sota multiple times because obviously not everyone has been that fortunate when it comes to their biggest favorites... but I was really hoping to see him one last time, after having to cancel Finlandia last year. Last fall, I was like, okay, take it chill, there'll be an opportunity yet next year... but no, this time it's just France, and nothing else in Europe. I'm bitter, furious and gutted all at the same time. Hoping JSF's horrible choices backfire on them spectacularly.
It really doesn't help that whatever Sota content there is these days, video-wise and article-wise, is either geoblocked, or paid, or only available to those willing to jump through hoops like creating accounts on Japanese websites / sending financial contributions to an entire group of skaters instead of just Sota. And, naturally, all of it is only for those who have excellent Japanese skills, to be able to actually enjoy said paid content - or who have a fluent translating buddy who is willing to jump through the aforementioned hoops.
So I guess I'm stuck with gifted articles and GP footage as my only Sota content until next spring, and he's likely to retire then. Joy.
Enshittification has hit the skating world full force.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2013
Sota debuted his new SP at Dreams on Ice (that ended today), and fans find it cool:
And he jumped 4T and 3A!
Lucky fans who saw Sota skate again in person!
He was sporting curly hair and a modern-looking costume (NGL, I hope both go away as the season starts as I'm in the conservative camp re. Sota's hair, and am not keen on men's costumes that look like designed by Eteri
- give me Teeth costume any day, though! Or does this particular design have a deeper meaning?) The smoky eye makeup was cute though 
Is anyone surprised that he was by his bff Kazuki's side for the final bows? ^ ^ Not me...
Like the previous years, I have not listened to the song (Tombeau de Vivaldi by Spearfisher) to avoid spoilers before the program is fully competition-ready. That served me well two years ago, when I was blown away by Dream of Flight
I recall I was skeptical of the song just based on the name, so I don't want to repeat the same mistake again. But I know I'm in the minority about not having listened to Sota's SP song - those who have looked it up, how did you like it? I enjoy reading people's impressions.
Most importantly, Sota looked healthy and happy, and enjoyed interacting with his fans as usual. I hope he has a successful season, and remains healthy.
I have a feeling it will be his last one, though I'm so out of the loop with interviews, I don't know if he's said anything for sure at this point. Which makes me even more upset to not be able to cheer for him once more. All I can do is pray for something like Challenge Cup, but we all know what JSF are like, and how callously they're treating their skaters this season, assignment-wise. I wouldn't be surprised at all if they ended up not assigning anyone to any CS and B comp other than Kinosita and Asian Open 
Fingers crossed of course, though...
And he jumped 4T and 3A!
Lucky fans who saw Sota skate again in person!
He was sporting curly hair and a modern-looking costume (NGL, I hope both go away as the season starts as I'm in the conservative camp re. Sota's hair, and am not keen on men's costumes that look like designed by Eteri
- give me Teeth costume any day, though! Or does this particular design have a deeper meaning?) The smoky eye makeup was cute though Is anyone surprised that he was by his bff Kazuki's side for the final bows? ^ ^ Not me...
Like the previous years, I have not listened to the song (Tombeau de Vivaldi by Spearfisher) to avoid spoilers before the program is fully competition-ready. That served me well two years ago, when I was blown away by Dream of Flight
I recall I was skeptical of the song just based on the name, so I don't want to repeat the same mistake again. But I know I'm in the minority about not having listened to Sota's SP song - those who have looked it up, how did you like it? I enjoy reading people's impressions.Most importantly, Sota looked healthy and happy, and enjoyed interacting with his fans as usual. I hope he has a successful season, and remains healthy.
I have a feeling it will be his last one, though I'm so out of the loop with interviews, I don't know if he's said anything for sure at this point. Which makes me even more upset to not be able to cheer for him once more. All I can do is pray for something like Challenge Cup, but we all know what JSF are like, and how callously they're treating their skaters this season, assignment-wise. I wouldn't be surprised at all if they ended up not assigning anyone to any CS and B comp other than Kinosita and Asian Open Fingers crossed of course, though...
- Joined
- May 5, 2018
NGL I laughed at the costume comparison lol I'm also hoping that the hair and costumes are temporaryHe was sporting curly hair and a modern-looking costume (NGL, I hope both go away as the season starts as I'm in the conservative camp re. Sota's hair, and am not keen on men's costumes that look like designed by Eteri
- Joined
- Nov 13, 2025
I met Sota today and he looks super happy
I love how he's taking his time.
To be honest I don't know if that's because he finally got rid of burden of Olympics or other things, but now he's in the best sharp since I knew him (yes since 2020).
When he was struggling with injuries, he always came across as very quiet and reserved, almost like a boy who had to grow up too early. But now he doesn’t seem to care at all about looking silly or adorable. He’s just being himself, and honestly, that’s one of my favorite things to see.
I also got some information about his competition schedule. He won’t be competing at the Nagoya Minato Aqua Cup, but he’s planning to skate at the Summer Cup in mid-August. If he’s assigned, he’ll also compete at the Kinoshita Cup—which, judging from what I’ve heard, he seems kinda confident about.
As of now, he hasn’t received any other assignments yet. So if everything goes well, I think his season could look something like this:
Summer Cup → Kinoshita Cup → Central Regional Championships → 2 Grand Prix events (→ GPF?) → All Japan Championships (→ Four Continents / Worlds?)
I really want to see him make the Worlds again. But at the moment, Kao looks incredibly strong. He’s already delivered four clean short programs, so the competition is going to be tough.
I love how he's taking his time.To be honest I don't know if that's because he finally got rid of burden of Olympics or other things, but now he's in the best sharp since I knew him (yes since 2020).
When he was struggling with injuries, he always came across as very quiet and reserved, almost like a boy who had to grow up too early. But now he doesn’t seem to care at all about looking silly or adorable. He’s just being himself, and honestly, that’s one of my favorite things to see.
I also got some information about his competition schedule. He won’t be competing at the Nagoya Minato Aqua Cup, but he’s planning to skate at the Summer Cup in mid-August. If he’s assigned, he’ll also compete at the Kinoshita Cup—which, judging from what I’ve heard, he seems kinda confident about.
As of now, he hasn’t received any other assignments yet. So if everything goes well, I think his season could look something like this:
Summer Cup → Kinoshita Cup → Central Regional Championships → 2 Grand Prix events (→ GPF?) → All Japan Championships (→ Four Continents / Worlds?)
I really want to see him make the Worlds again. But at the moment, Kao looks incredibly strong. He’s already delivered four clean short programs, so the competition is going to be tough.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2013
I met Sota today and he looks super happy
To be honest I don't know if that's because he finally got rid of burden of Olympics or other things, but now he's in the best sharp since I knew him (yes since 2020).
When he was struggling with injuries, he always came across as very quiet and reserved, almost like a boy who had to grow up too early. But now he doesn’t seem to care at all about looking silly or adorable. He’s just being himself, and honestly, that’s one of my favorite things to see.
I also got some information about his competition schedule. He won’t be competing at the Nagoya Minato Aqua Cup, but he’s planning to skate at the Summer Cup in mid-August. If he’s assigned, he’ll also compete at the Kinoshita Cup—which, judging from what I’ve heard, he seems kinda confident about.
As of now, he hasn’t received any other assignments yet. So if everything goes well, I think his season could look something like this:
Summer Cup → Kinoshita Cup → Central Regional Championships → 2 Grand Prix events (→ GPF?) → All Japan Championships (→ Four Continents / Worlds?)
I really want to see him make the Worlds again. But at the moment, Kao looks incredibly strong. He’s already delivered four clean short programs, so the competition is going to be tough.
Thank you for the long report!
It's reassuring that Sota is happy, carefree and gaining confidence rapidly. I suppose his new coaching experience helps in that respect. Going to use this as an opportunity to repeat myself for about the 3000th time, and say he's going to be an awesome, relatable and kind coach. I really look forward to seeing him in that role.I'm not surprised Sota is sure he's going to appear in Kinoshita. It's not like JSF is assigning anywhere else this season, and I'm still seeing red over that
I can see only the Chinese and Korean fed being equally callous if they had a Challenger on their soil. If all of Japan's best are assigned, as I expect they will, what good is it to deprive the skaters of enough foreign rivals? (wwhich foreigner except maybe Malinin will want to tackle that field? I fully expect to see few overseas entries, just enough to keep Challenger status in singles) What good is it to pit them all against each other well before Nationals, costing some of them medals and points they could most likely win in any other Challenger? Like someone else said on GS, yeah, kerosene is expensive, but this is unprecedented.If the season goes well for Sota, I hope he gets to go to 4CC and WC.
If it goes well for me, I hope he also gets Challenge Cup
I can't deal with the thought of not seeing Sota live in -likely- his last season. I have to keep hoping.
- Joined
- Dec 9, 2019
Well, there's worse, there's the Kazakh Federation...Thank you for the long report!
I'm not surprised Sota is sure he's going to appear in Kinoshita. It's not like JSF is assigning anywhere else this season, and I'm still seeing red over that
If the season goes well for Sota, I hope he gets to go to 4CC and WC.
If it goes well for me, I hope he also gets Challenge Cup
The thing is, Kinoshita used to be a sort of internal pre-season test skate, not a Challenger, and maybe they're slow to take it into account too? But yes I'm sure that the travel expenses enter in the picture a good deal.
- Joined
- May 5, 2018
@Noxia thank you for the report! It's good to know that Sota is in good spirits. I remember when he announced his mum's death, he wrote something along the lines of 'from now on I'll enjoy every day' 
As for the Worlds team, it's going to be difficult regardless, but figure skating is all about peaking at the right time, so it's too early to tell. Usually people who look very sharp in the off-season tend to lose steam later on.
Here's Sota's SP for those who haven't seen it. Amazing choice of music and choreography, and the style suits him perfectly. I think he'll do great with this programme
As for the Worlds team, it's going to be difficult regardless, but figure skating is all about peaking at the right time, so it's too early to tell. Usually people who look very sharp in the off-season tend to lose steam later on.
Here's Sota's SP for those who haven't seen it. Amazing choice of music and choreography, and the style suits him perfectly. I think he'll do great with this programme
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2013
The thing is, multiple federations face the same issue. And I bet you most won't be as scroogey when it comes to assignments as JSF. Yes, JSF funds a number of its athletes, unlike many other feds, but airfare is expensive for everyone, and having one's skaters compete only domestically, save for the biggest events, is not a fortunate solution for growing the popularity of FS and the international experience and ranking of JSF's skaters. The prospect of no overseas events for anyone but the cream of the crop, must be demotivating for the young promising skaters, too.
More Sota content from DoI...
Sota and Kazuki jumping 3A, with Sota jumping out of a spread eagle entry:
The boys in makeup ^ ^
