Yuzuru Hanyu: 2014-15 Season

[Victor]

This is the chapter 1 To be continue.

(Q) I was so surprised to hear you got an operation just after the JN in December. Wasn't there any other options?
(Y) No, I had an abdominal operation. the doctor cut 4cms (in a crescent shape) around my navel. He/She (?) explained me that method damages my mustles the least. It was done under a general anesthetic. Then I stayed in the hospital for 2 weeks. Since I got my fascias sutured, my doctor said, I had to be very carefully in daily life for a while, so I just took rests at home for 4 weeks.

(Q) It was very long. I guess you couldn't help feeling anxious?
(Y) Actually I was afraid of losing my muscle power, so I thought I should have vivid images of my good executions in my head. I watched the videos of GPF etc., where I did well, and watching them over and over, I rehearsed them like "Oh, that's the timing." and practiced all the jumps in my head.
Thanks to the imagery training, the feeling of skating on the ice wasn't so changed as I had worried before.

(Q) I heard you got your right ankle sprained when you landed a quad jump.
Did you feel anxious in those days? You seem to have been in a hurry.
(Y) The opposite rather. as I had 2 months more to the Worlds at that time, I felt like putting 3 quads (in my LP) as the original one had had. So I did some training again and again, in which I practiced "the third quad in the tiring second half" after I did many run-throughs. I did the set many times. Consequently I got a sprained ankle. That's one of the learns I have to reconsider.

(Q) As a result, you resumed your training at the beginning of March.
Is that the reason why you couldn't go to Toronto?
(Y) Finally I decided to practice in Japan, for I wasn't in very good shape yet, for the short-flight of Japan-Shanghai is preferable to the long-flight of Toronto-Shanghai considering my health condition.

(Q) Did you wonder whether you would be scolded unless you went to Toronto?
(Y) No, not at all. (Laughter) Brian always cares about me and he is not the person putting incessant pressure on you, not the person thinking all the time, like " I have to order him to do this or that to make him busy."
He approached me in the same manners as usual, in order that I could be relaxed. I'm really grateful to him for his consideration.

 

[oriquey]

Why does Yuzuru sometimes wear glasses?

Bad eyesight. He wears contact lenses most of the time but he sometimes wears glasses off ice.

 

[oriquey]

This is the chapter 1 To be continue.

(Q) I was so surprised to hear you got an operation just after the JN in December. Wasn't there any other options?
(Y) No, I had an abdominal operation. the doctor cut 4cms (in a crescent shape) around my navel. He/She (?) explained me that method damages my mustles the least. It was done under a general anesthetic. Then I stayed in the hospital for 2 weeks. Since I got my fascias sutured, my doctor said, I had to be very carefully in daily life for a while, so I just took rests at home for 4 weeks.

(Q) It was very long. I guess you couldn't help feeling anxious?
(Y) Actually I was afraid of losing my muscle power, so I thought I should have vivid images of my good executions in my head. I watched the videos of GPF etc., where I did well, and watching them over and over, I rehearsed them like "Oh, that's the timing." and practiced all the jumps in my head.
Thanks to the imagery training, the feeling of skating on the ice wasn't so changed as I had worried before.

(Q) I heard you got your right ankle sprained when you landed a quad jump.
Did you feel anxious in those days? You seem to have been in a hurry.
(Y) The opposite rather. as I had 2 months more to the Worlds at that time, I felt like putting 3 quads (in my LP) as the original one had had. So I did some training again and again, in which I practiced "the third quad in the tiring second half" after I did many run-throughs. I did the set many times. Consequently I got a sprained ankle. That's one of the learns I have to reconsider.

(Q) As a result, you resumed your training at the beginning of March.
Is that the reason why you couldn't go to Toronto?
(Y) Finally I decided to practice in Japan, for I wasn't in very good shape yet, for the short-flight of Japan-Shanghai is preferable to the long-flight of Toronto-Shanghai considering my health condition.

(Q) Did you wonder whether you would be scolded unless you went to Toronto?
(Y) No, not at all. (Laughter) Brian always cares about me and he is not the person putting incessant pressure on you, not the person thinking all the time, like " I have to order him to do this or that to make him busy."
He approached me in the same manners as usual, in order that I could be relaxed. I'm really grateful to him for his consideration.

Thank you so much for sharing this with us. Now we get more detail on what went on between Nats and Worlds.

 

[xibsuarz]

This is the chapter 1 To be continue.

(Q) I was so surprised to hear you got an operation just after the JN in December. Wasn't there any other options?
(Y) No, I had an abdominal operation. the doctor cut 4cms (in a crescent shape) around my navel. He/She (?) explained me that method damages my mustles the least. It was done under a general anesthetic. Then I stayed in the hospital for 2 weeks. Since I got my fascias sutured, my doctor said, I had to be very carefully in daily life for a while, so I just took rests at home for 4 weeks.

(Q) It was very long. I guess you couldn't help feeling anxious?
(Y) Actually I was afraid of losing my muscle power, so I thought I should have vivid images of my good executions in my head. I watched the videos of GPF etc., where I did well, and watching them over and over, I rehearsed them like "Oh, that's the timing." and practiced all the jumps in my head.
Thanks to the imagery training, the feeling of skating on the ice wasn't so changed as I had worried before.

(Q) I heard you got your right ankle sprained when you landed a quad jump.
Did you feel anxious in those days? You seem to have been in a hurry.
(Y) The opposite rather. as I had 2 months more to the Worlds at that time, I felt like putting 3 quads (in my LP) as the original one had had. So I did some training again and again, in which I practiced "the third quad in the tiring second half" after I did many run-throughs. I did the set many times. Consequently I got a sprained ankle. That's one of the learns I have to reconsider.

(Q) As a result, you resumed your training at the beginning of March.
Is that the reason why you couldn't go to Toronto?
(Y) Finally I decided to practice in Japan, for I wasn't in very good shape yet, for the short-flight of Japan-Shanghai is preferable to the long-flight of Toronto-Shanghai considering my health condition.

(Q) Did you wonder whether you would be scolded unless you went to Toronto?
(Y) No, not at all. (Laughter) Brian always cares about me and he is not the person putting incessant pressure on you, not the person thinking all the time, like " I have to order him to do this or that to make him busy."
He approached me in the same manners as usual, in order that I could be relaxed. I'm really grateful to him for his consideration.

Wait what? This boy wanted to add the 3rd quad to his FS after undergoing surgery? Ok he really is an alien XD Thank you so much for the translation!

 

[firal]

I love that Canon interview and video! I think they are a sponsor of Japanese skating events(someone was asking), so as you can see there are interviews with a lot of skaters on the site. It's refreshing to get info right from him instead of from unknown sources.

Looks like Kanako made an effort to take a picture with every team Japan member at Worlds...and the way she thanked her coach after her FS made me think this is it for her:hopelessness:

 

[ngml]

Hi

Back from a wonderful time in Shanghai and and now looking forward to GPF in Barcelona. Does anyone of you know if the venue will be the same, CCIB ?

 

[Victor]

Part 2


(Q) How did you practice without him?
(Y) I e-mailed him every day. I asked him about everything, even about how to correct my ill-positioned jumps on the e-mails. It was such a hard job for me to explain everything in English. But Brian knows my original manner/capability of jumping well, so he compared my good jumps and bad jumps on the videos of COC, GPF etc. and gave me advices like, "Yuzuru, you have a tendency to do that, so adjust it in this way when it happens......" In that way, I regained my sense/feeling of jumping gradually, better and better.

(Q) Did you feel a kind of lag, a gap compared with given advices on face-to-face basis？(Y) When I made some mistakes on jumps, I couldn't get any advices from him on the spot. That was hard. But I came to understand the points to be payed attention to when I jump, because the points Brian and Tracy are always advising me are mostly the same things recently. So, basically I recalled the advices they had given me at TCC for three years and followed them.

(Q) You had only 3 weeks of training. What practice did you aim at?
(Y) Anyway I did more run-thoughts than last summer or before GPF and tried gaining stamina. So I thought I'd got prepared better, in better condition than JN.

(Q) Then you determined to enroll WC, right?
(Y) No, in my mind, I didn't have the option to withdraw. Because I am a skater on the active list, a competitor, I don't have any illogical feeling about it.
I was chosen as a member od Team Japan, then I must skate to compete there.
I've always thought I'm happy that I can continue skating, which I love most, thanks to my family and the people supporting me, who have been always allowed me to do what I want.

(Q) You've come to WC at last and you met your team members again here in Shanghai
(Y) I was really relieved meeting them. Brian seemed to be relieved too.
And when he saw my practice, he said to me, "Oh, good/that's fine/you're doing well!"
(I don't know what he actually said.)
So that words made me reassured. I think I'm happy that we could be reunited here this time.

(Q) Did't you feel lonely while you trained alone by yourself?
(Y) Since you can practice freely using the music, it's not a disadvantage at all.
Brian asked worriedly, "Can you keep your motivation?" But he also said like that, "but you're Yuzuru. You're gonna OK/You'll make it.“
Yes, definitely I was highly motivated to peak myself here to WC.

 

[won0066]

Part 2


(Q) How did you practice without him?
(Y) I e-mailed him every day. I asked him about everything, even about how to correct my ill-positioned jumps on the e-mails. It was such a hard job for me to explain everything in English. But Brian knows my original manner/capability of jumping well, so he compared my good jumps and bad jumps on the videos of COC, GPF etc. and gave me advices like, "Yuzuru, you have a tendency to do that, so adjust it in this way when it happens......" In that way, I regained my sense/feeling of jumping gradually, better and better.

(Q) Did you feel a kind of lag, a gap compared with given advices on face-to-face basis？(Y) When I made some mistakes on jumps, I couldn't get any advices from him on the spot. That was hard. But I came to understand the points to be payed attention to when I jump, because the points Brian and Tracy are always advising me are mostly the same things recently. So, basically I recalled the advices they had given me at TCC for three years and followed them.

(Q) You had only 3 weeks of training. What practice did you aim at?
(Y) Anyway I did more run-thoughts than last summer or before GPF and tried gaining stamina. So I thought I'd got prepared better, in better condition than JN.

(Q) Then you determined to enroll WC, right?
(Y) No, in my mind, I didn't have the option to withdraw. Because I am a skater on the active list, a competitor, I don't have any illogical feeling about it.
I was chosen as a member od Team Japan, then I must skate to compete there.
I've always thought I'm happy that I can continue skating, which I love most, thanks to my family and the people supporting me, who have been always allowed me to do what I want.

(Q) You've come to WC at last and you met your team members again here in Shanghai
(Y) I was really relieved meeting them. Brian seemed to be relieved too.
And when he saw my practice, he said to me, "Oh, good/that's fine/you're doing well!"
(I don't know what he actually said.)
So that words made me reassured. I think I'm happy that we could be reunited here this time.

(Q) Did't you feel lonely while you trained alone by yourself?
(Y) Since you can practice freely using the music, it's not a disadvantage at all.
Brian asked worriedly, "Can you keep your motivation?" But he also said like that, "but you're Yuzuru. You're gonna OK/You'll make it.“
Yes, definitely I was highly motivated to peak myself here to WC.

Thank you so much victor!!!!!!!!

 

[yhmafan]

This thread has moved more than 40 pages after putting my previous comment. and I like it.

What surprises me a bit is how Yuzuru doesn't seem bothered by all that touching. As far as I knew, it's not common for Japanese culture (though I'm not sure).:

Because he is a figure skater and that is why? means always these kinds of “touches” around there.
but it’s kinda hilarious to see, who knows, he still hesitate holding Japanese female skaters waists (Mao etc..)

Looks like Kanako made an effort to take a picture with every team Japan member at Worlds...and the way she thanked her coach after her FS made me think this is it for her:hopelessness:

Kanako...no :hopelessness:

 

[Meoima]

This short interview sounds a bit sad to me: http://yuzu-ice.tumblr.com/post/115241750719/rough-translation-realizing-my-limit-and-talking

Rough translation
Realizing my limit and talking about future retirement:
News Zero interview: ”I have been competing for so long now and my career as a competitive figure skater has passed its halfway mark (he joined senior circle at the age of 15). I think it is time to realize my own limit and cherish every single match that I have in the future. ”
Canon interview:“I will spend probably 1/4 of my life skating (he began figure skating at the age of 4), and I would then like to pass on my special experience to the next generation and develop my activities outside figure skating as well.”
—— So, as he used to mention several times, he is pretty much sure that he will retire at the age of 23 after 2018 olympics. And apparently, he is already planning his post-competitive skating career and life now. Coaching is something that he will consider as he mentioned he would like to pass on his experience to next generation. Meanwhile, all options are open to him.

 

[oriquey]

Part 2


(Q) How did you practice without him?
(Y) I e-mailed him every day. I asked him about everything, even about how to correct my ill-positioned jumps on the e-mails. It was such a hard job for me to explain everything in English. But Brian knows my original manner/capability of jumping well, so he compared my good jumps and bad jumps on the videos of COC, GPF etc. and gave me advices like, "Yuzuru, you have a tendency to do that, so adjust it in this way when it happens......" In that way, I regained my sense/feeling of jumping gradually, better and better.

(Q) Did you feel a kind of lag, a gap compared with given advices on face-to-face basis？(Y) When I made some mistakes on jumps, I couldn't get any advices from him on the spot. That was hard. But I came to understand the points to be payed attention to when I jump, because the points Brian and Tracy are always advising me are mostly the same things recently. So, basically I recalled the advices they had given me at TCC for three years and followed them.

(Q) You had only 3 weeks of training. What practice did you aim at?
(Y) Anyway I did more run-thoughts than last summer or before GPF and tried gaining stamina. So I thought I'd got prepared better, in better condition than JN.

(Q) Then you determined to enroll WC, right?
(Y) No, in my mind, I didn't have the option to withdraw. Because I am a skater on the active list, a competitor, I don't have any illogical feeling about it.
I was chosen as a member od Team Japan, then I must skate to compete there.
I've always thought I'm happy that I can continue skating, which I love most, thanks to my family and the people supporting me, who have been always allowed me to do what I want.

(Q) You've come to WC at last and you met your team members again here in Shanghai
(Y) I was really relieved meeting them. Brian seemed to be relieved too.
And when he saw my practice, he said to me, "Oh, good/that's fine/you're doing well!"
(I don't know what he actually said.)
So that words made me reassured. I think I'm happy that we could be reunited here this time.

(Q) Did't you feel lonely while you trained alone by yourself?
(Y) Since you can practice freely using the music, it's not a disadvantage at all.
Brian asked worriedly, "Can you keep your motivation?" But he also said like that, "but you're Yuzuru. You're gonna OK/You'll make it.“
Yes, definitely I was highly motivated to peak myself here to WC.

Thanks again for posting the translation, Victor. I really appreciate it

 

[Hanmgse]

This short interview sounds a bit sad to me: http://yuzu-ice.tumblr.com/post/115241750719/rough-translation-realizing-my-limit-and-talking

He has talked about that a few times in the past but still

 

[shiroKJ]

Thank you Victor for your hard work

This short interview sounds a bit sad to me: http://yuzu-ice.tumblr.com/post/115241750719/rough-translation-realizing-my-limit-and-talking

It's hard reading this....We've heard him say it many times already but.....I don't know. Its just really difficult to think about it. His words struck a chord and is making me very emotional right now. *goes to distract myself...*

 

[cheerknithanson]

Thank you Victor for your hard work



It's hard reading this....We've heard him say it many times already but.....I don't know. Its just really difficult to think about it. His words struck a chord and is making me very emotional right now. *goes to distract myself...*

whimper.....Now I'm determined to go to Boston to see him skate at worlds....or maybe IF he gets assigned to Skate America. I don't know.

But it's sad to think that.

 

[Meoima]

I will definitely see him in the next Olympic as I live very near there. Here's a better translation of the video from the other forum:

Thank you everyone for sharing the news. It sure is a worry for Yuzuru, hope it's not too serious. And IMO, the Japanese medias are usually not so good at citing sources. However, news like this cannot possibly be one of April fool's jokes either. Although April fools is widely known in Japan, using news isn't the way of enjoying April fool's jokes. Just my opinion. So whatever the source of this news, I still take it seriously.

Thanks for sharing this video, meoima. Here's a very brief translation of it.

-----------------------------------------------------------
from News ZERO (April 1st, 2015)

"What is Yuzuru Hanyu's determination?"

He's had a tough season which resulted in accidents, injury and surgery in the abdomen. Still, nothing stops him from competing to get higher results. What motivates him so much?
Though there are many who cheered for his getting a silver medal in the worlds, Yuzuru kept repeating the word 'regretful' in front of the media after the world championships, counted up to 23 times in 4 days after the competition. That came from his determination for his skating.
The day after the FP, he talked about his career length as a skater. "I had better start thinking about my limitations. My career as a skater is getting longer now, probably about halfway through."
He started skating at the age of 4, and he's been skating for 16 years since then. He's turned 20. However, many of the skaters end their career as competitors in their mid-20s. So Yuzuru started counting the days till he retires. Yuzuru became the world champion as a young skater, and everyone think his progression is unlimited. However, Yuzuru himself is more patient about it.

Interviewer: "Why do you not think of taking a break?"
Yuzuru: "Why, because I am an active competitive skater.There's no other reason."

He strongly realizes that the time limit as an active skater is not very far. He doesn't want to waste any minute, second, of it. That's the reason for his word 'regretful.'
Yuzuru: "I know I am the only person who can bring myself higher. And I know this 'regretful feeling' will help me go to the next step, one step at a time."

Yuzuru will be competing in 2 weeks. (No mention of his infection on the abdomen in this video.)

 

[oriquey]

I will definitely see him in the next Olympic as I live very near there. Here's a better translation of the video from the other forum:

Thanks for sharing, Meoima. I'm already planning my trip for the 2018 Winter Olympics in the hopes of seeing him and some of the other skaters perform

 

[Victor]

Part 3

(Q) It's been a long time since you practiced among the other skaters last time.
Didn't their skating speed affect you? (IMO the interviewer wanted to ask more streight, "frihgten you?")
(Y) Oh, yeah. I was a little nervous during the public practice. Kozuka Takahiko, Mura Takahito, Michal Brezina, Dennis Tenn, and Javier were there and they were skating on top speed. And of course I probably had a bit of thought, "That was the Shanghai, where .....you know"
That's why I couldn't concentrate on the practice well.

(Q) How did you feel (when you were) with Javier?
(Y) This season, I've hardly practiced with Javi. Though, I got to feel as usual soon after we started the public practice, feeling like a kind of daily routine, Brian is there watching both of us.

(Q) And the day of SP, you stepped out the first 4T.
(Y) To say the truth, I'm not reconciled yet about the 4T. It's my score-making jump. It's big. Fiest of all, I have a feeling I've lost my competitive intuition(試合勘).
I wasn't used to the tense atomosphere during the public practice and the 6mins practice. So I might have lack my concentration on what I did.

(Q) Even though you couldn't concentrate on skating well, you got 95.20 and you were top at that point.
(Y) Yes, the 4T's mistake wasn't so fatal as falls, or 2T replacing 4T. I could manage it, just a stepout.
And I think this 3weeks' hard intense training led the rest of the SP to the high level which I could add enough points to recover the ill-4T.

(Q) What do you think about the 2 quads in LP?
(Y) This time, I got the feeling I was much swayed by the circumstances, like the atmosphere in the venue, or my rival skaters......I had such kind of weakness (mentally) this time.
I could make it during practicing, but I couldn't make it at the competition. That means, to me, I have to reconsider the method of practice and how to prepare (peaking?) for the moment of competition.
Yeah, I executed both SP and LP pretty well at GPF, but COC, NHK, and GPF were scheduled in succession, not having a big blank between each competition. Brian and I had a picture like, "I was like that (at COC), now like this (at NHK), and will be like.....(at GPF)"
But this time, I've had 3 months' blank. While my mental state has been changing (apart from competitions and skating), small lags/gaps occurred in my intuition.

(Q) In the public practice, you made 4Ss so cleanly.
(Y) Yeah, I didn't worry about 4Ss because my 4Ss had been more consistent/stable than my 4Ts, even when I practiced in Japan. I landed them in the same clean way all the time. Brian also said, "That's fine!" So I trusted my feeling, but it turned out to..."
That means nothing if you can't make it at a competition, you know."

 

[Caustica]

Part 3

(Q) It's been a long time since you practiced among the other skaters last time.
Didn't their skating speed affect you? (IMO the interviewer wanted to ask more streight, "frihgten you?")
(Y) Oh, yeah. I was a little nervous during the public practice. Kozuka Takahiko, Mura Takahito, Michal Brezina, Dennis Tenn, and Javier were there and they were skating on top speed. And of course I probably had a bit of thought, "That was the Shanghai, where .....you know"
That's why I couldn't concentrate on the practice well.

(Q) How did you feel (when you were) with Javier?
(Y) This season, I've hardly practiced with Javi. Though, I got to feel as usual soon after we started the public practice, feeling like a kind of daily routine, Brian is there watching both of us.

(Q) And the day of SP, you stepped out the first 4T.
(Y) To say the truth, I'm not reconciled yet about the 4T. It's my score-making jump. It's big. Fiest of all, I have a feeling I've lost my competitive intuition(試合勘).
I wasn't used to the tense atomosphere during the public practice and the 6mins practice. So I might have lack my concentration on what I did.

(Q) Even though you couldn't concentrate on skating well, you got 95.20 and you were top at that point.
(Y) Yes, the 4T's mistake wasn't so fatal as falls, or 2T replacing 4T. I could manage it, just a stepout.
And I think this 3weeks' hard intense training led the rest of the SP to the high level which I could add enough points to recover the ill-4T.

(Q) What do you think about the 2 quads in LP?
(Y) This time, I got the feeling I was much swayed by the circumstances, like the atmosphere in the venue, or my rival skaters......I had such kind of weakness (mentally) this time.
I could make it during practicing, but I couldn't make it at the competition. That means, to me, I have to reconsider the method of practice and how to prepare (peaking?) for the moment of competition.
Yeah, I executed both SP and LP pretty well at GPF, but COC, NHK, and GPF were scheduled in succession, not having a big blank between each competition. Brian and I had a picture like, "I was like that (at COC), now like this (at NHK), and will be like.....(at GPF)"
But this time, I've had 3 months' blank. While my mental state has been changing (apart from competitions and skating), small lags/gaps occurred in my intuition.

(Q) In the public practice, you made 4Ss so cleanly.
(Y) Yeah, I didn't worry about 4Ss because my 4Ss had been more consistent/stable than my 4Ts, even when I practiced in Japan. I landed them in the same clean way all the time. Brian also said, "That's fine!" So I trusted my feeling, but it turned out to..."
That means nothing if you can't make it at a competition, you know."

Thank you very much for your translation! Wow, it was really long! This is a really good interview, too.

It's interesting, but not surprising, that Yuzu has felt that he has lost (a bit) his competitive intuition. This probably came from not going to 4CC, as well as not training with others. It makes it more important that he should attend Finlandia or some other preliminary competition next season to begin with - I'm sure he wants to, I just hope he doesn't get injured!

It's also interesting that he mostly refers to mental issues rather than physical when trying to explain the mistakes in the programs. I'm not sure how much of this is him not wanting to make excuses for himself based on injuries.

 

[ahkeekee]

Thanks Victor for the translation! I really like how he has been through those three months from him directly!

This short interview sounds a
bit sad to me: http://yuzu-ice.tumblr.com/post/115241750719/rough-translation-realizing-my-limit-and-talking

Thanks for translating this interview, it hurts to read.this, especially when I know it's not possible for me to go there in person......
But he becomes a coach, maybe we can still see him in k&c with his students? That might be interesting to watch (that's the only way I can console myself after reading this.... )

 

[yhmafan]

Just to watch the championshipActually I flew almost half the earth to meet Yuzu...there were disappointments of course (that is, I think Yuzu skated his fs very slow and laboured. Such a pity that this time I couldn't get to see his fast and "floating" skating skill), but overall Yuzu is much more perfect than I expected. He has the strongest presence on the ice. He really commands you to fix your eyes on him. Just like others have said, he has a very special aura around him which none of the other skaters have. I have so many good things to say about him that I don't know what to say now:hopelessness:

Thank you for sharing your experience and impression for us.

As much as I am happy for Javier to be the winner at the worlds, this time I find it myself (again) that I LOVE Yuzuru’s skating no matter what anyone says and I am happy for that too.
but seeing that some haters keep saying about him parrotlike he is overrated it is overscoring, I am wondering is he really overrated? the guess is from a fan of Yuzuru who usually don’t care about his scores and scoring system that much. because for me his skating itself is the only one thing that I care about and whether it’s overrated or not it has nothing to spoil the appreciation of his skating at all.
Thanks god I don’t think Yuzuru himself even care about that from some ones who do armchair judging and grumbling all the time in front of screens, though.