Worlds 2013

ballerinamao wrote:

does anyone know when the practice session will beginn for Mao? i would love to know how Mao is doing

For today (Mar 15)? There will be two sessions for ladies: the AM one will start at around 11:10 (for last group to skate), the PM one 16:30, both local time.

COHK wrote:

ballerinamao wrote:

does anyone know when the practice session will beginn for Mao? i would love to know how Mao is doing

For today (Mar 15)? There will be two sessions for ladies: the AM one will start at around 11:10 (for last group to skate), the PM one 16:30, both local time.

thanks so much for the answer COHK, I think the practice session today could give a good picture of Mao's and the other skaters condition and if there is a repetitive mistake in the practice.

They just about finished airing ladies SP on Jpnse tv now...I saw the whole thing on live stream yesterday so I'm not bothering to watch it again on tv. Some of us including me were chatting about it in the FB Mao group, that's why it took me so long to get here and read all your thoughts. What we were saying in the FB group is more or less the same as how most of you seem to be feeling.

I personally think it's okay if Mao doesn't win this time. She knows she's just started to skate again at a higher level as she used to, and she herself said after 4CC that it'll be probabaly too short a time for her to perfect her skating by Worlds this season. I hope she can manage to be on the podium, but even if not, I'm sure she'll go on like she has and will master the sort of layouts she started skating since 4CC at some point next season. I think that was team Mao's major plan, but maybe Mao was a bit nervous feeling that she must skate her SP as well as she did at 4CC, and that may have lead to those mistakes. What's done is done and I'm not so pissed about her scores.

I thought the judges were very harsh on scoring PCS for most of the girls this time, and I was already pissed about that way before Mao performed. Adelina and Liza despite their mistakes was a pleasure to watch (at least for me), so I felt their PCS were way too low. Same for Akiko, and a bit for Kanako. I may be the only one who thinks this, but I don't think Caro was THAT much overscored. She fell yes, but besides that I actually enjoyed her performance which rarely happens. She was elegant, confident and seemed to enjoy what she was doing on the ice which sort of made me happy...I simply like it more when skaters look happy when they're skating, not too tense or agressive. If not for that fall, if it were up to me, I definitely would've scored Caro over Yuna.

Sorry Yuna fans, but there was nothing pleasurable for me to see in Yuna's SP this time. She was good sure, but it was like her heart wasn't there. She looked like a technical robot to me. There was nothing there that was enchanting nor moving. I suppose the program stinks, but at the same time it seemed to me like Yuna just wanted to get it over and done with. No joy of skating there...and this time, I do not think I was biased in feeling that way.

Overall, I thought Kanako skated best. She was simply beautiful and I was able to really sense what she was trying to portray through her skating. And she was enjoying it too like Caro. She got no URs or 'e's and was the only lady in the top 6 who got all level 4s for all the elements, so I think it's fair to say she was esp clean of all. But I guess her layout's base value was lower or something so she's still she's behind Yuna and Caro...I'm no judge so I'm not saying this is wrong, but I will say I don't like this kind of placement. I think the judges and maybe even the audience had watched Kanako's performance as the second or third best skater in Jpn's. Kanako is not arrogant so she seemed happy with her scores, but I think it should've been a bit higher, while Yuna's and Caro's scores should've been a bit lower.

As for the guy's SP...for our guys, I kind of saw all this coming. Dai's been trying to master a way to jump his quad without pressuring the leg he injured before Vancouver Olys, but he hasn't accomplished that yet according to a documentary on him which I've seen lately. His leg seemed all right after he recovered from that injury and lost a season before Vancouver, but now his leg's condition has become bad again. So when you think about that, even if he URd or two footed his quad this time, the fact he didn't fall, I think, is a good sign. He did much better than 4CC, I think that's one big step for him right now. He's aiming for Sochi patiently, not for this season's Worlds. He'll get better next season however the outcome of this competition should be.

Yuzu...I really feel sorry for him; I heard he has some injury and was sick right before Worlds started or something...but honestly, I think this may have been something he needed to experience as some point. And this is the first time he's being pressured about getting his country spots for Olys. Although he is a genius type skater, even such skaters need lots of experience to be able to do really well in a big competition under alot of pressure. I'm not worried about his future, he'll become stronger after this, and I hope he won't have to feel too responsible about the Olys spots. It's okay if we only get 2 spots. It would be disappointing to me, but if that's the case, so what? Some countries will only have 1 spot and some even none. Jpn has become strong in this sport but anything can happen. I don't want any of our skaters to have to feel bad about how many spots we get at Olys in the end.

This sense of responsibility I think is something which pressures many Jpnse skaters. All the top Jpnse skaters are good friends so that's one of the reasons they tend to feel like that I assume, and then there's our cultural obligation manner which is a bit too strict sometimes. I think Mura got too nervous this time too, and he'll probably still be nervous at FP. He was chosen over Taka, Nobu and Machida. He must feel that he has to prove he's worthy of that fact. I don't think that kind of pressure is good for him. He should just go out there and skate for himself. I feel the same for Yuzu and Dai of course too.

Since Vancouver we (I mean Jpnse pple) have always kind of thought that we'd always have 3 spots for Worlds and Olys. But that was never as easy as it seemed. But since so many fans started to think in that way, the burden the our skaters had to carry got bigger and bigger. I don't like this. The skaters are the ones who've been practicing hard all along, and our government hasn't been esp supportive to them or anything. They don't have to skate for Jpn. At least I don't want them to. They should be entitled to skate only for themselves and Jpnes fans should only be grateful to be able to share their dreams and experiences along with them. They're not soldiers nor professional athletes.

Last of all, I have to confess that even with the not so good results of Jpnse mens, I was actually going crazy with happiness after the guys SP. Why? Cause Denis finally skated clean, scored over 90 and made second place. I've been friends with Denis in FB for quite sometime now, and I've been sending him messages of encouragement after every competition he entered. He has been replying back to me too. He must be so busy and stuff, but he actually writes a proper message back to me from time to time. Not just a word or two saying thank you for your support but real longer messages. He's really nice and polite. I've always told him to believe in himself because he does have something special which other skaters don't have, and that all he has to do is overcome his jumping problems. I've even promised him that once he can manage that, his scores will go way up high, cause obviously his spins and steps are great so it's only the jumps. In the past seasons sometimes his results were so bad the Jpnse broadcast didn't even air his performance, as if he wasn't even in that competition. I was able to watch his performances on YT, but I was so heartbroken for him at times like that and had a hard time finding words to encourage him. But I tried my best and told him that he's younger than he probably feels he is, and so he has all the time in the world to go on practicing patiently and become the skater he wants to be someday. He never wrote it but I was able to sense he was struggling alot. He's a dancer type skater not a born jumper, but when I saw him perform in an ice show in Jpn for the first time, I knew he was special and had been supporting him eversince. He once said in an interview that sometimes he gets caught up with the beauty of the music he's skating to that he almost forgets that he's performing. That was when I really started to like him, and after we started to make contact in FB, he's like a dear little brother (or son...considering my age) to me. I actually cried after he succeeded all his jumps in his SP! After the jumps were done with, I knew there was nothing to worry about. His steps and spins are always good. And so, after all these years, after being forgotten by skating fans for so long, after being said that his peak was when he was 15 and he'll never peak like that again, he finally nailed all his jumps and skated close to perfect. So I was just soooo happy for him, Pattie's scores didn't even bother me. I was totally overwhelmed they rewarded Denis that highly. I knew he could do it someday, but I didn't think it would happen now. I wrote him a congrat message right away, told him how happy I was and stuff, but also told him that this is just the first step of a new beginning for him so he won't be too pressured in FP. Sorry for posting something totally personal. Just wanted you guys to know that Denis had really come a long way to become capable of performing that SP. Maybe some of you think he was overscored but he has really worked hard for this so please don't be so harsh on him. I believe he has a heart of an artist, and it must be really tough for an artist to be a good athlete at the same time. Thanks for reading this long post and do wish the best for him in FP!

Mao is the third last to skate, before kaetlyn and yuna. hopefully we don't see any outrageous over scoring of the last two.

Pochi this was a wonderful post! I especially liked the part about Dennis. I agree, he's such a beautiful talented skater, and I'm over the moon for his SP score. Now I only hope he won't crumble in the LP, this is a new situation for him, so nerves might get in his way. I hope they won't.

I completely agree with you on Adelina and especially Liza. When they were showing Liza's skate in the slow-mo and you could see her expressions, OMG, I was blown away. She was feeling every single note of the music and her expressions were to die for. She sold it like no other. And then you see the PCS judges gave her...

I absolutely agree with you on Yuna.

And while I would like nothing more than to see Mao win this (I'm being honest), after yesterday, I just want her to skate her heart out, go clean and bring the house down. If that's enough for gold medal great, if it's not enough to even put her on podium ok as well, because at least she'll go out on a giant bang. Though, if Mao does skate lights out tomorrow, she's guaranteed a place on the podium.

I really want Mao to win the Gold- still possible but she needs to skate lights out. But if it is not meant to be this year, does anyone think that Kanako can be the next world champion?

ballerinamao wrote:

[

thanks so much for the answer COHK, I think the practice session today could give a good picture of Mao's and the other skaters condition and if there is a repetitive mistake in the practice.

Honestly, I'd prefer if she skipped one of the practices, because I just know she'll go all out on both of them and might tire herself. I can't help but think of what happened last year.

Denlei wrote:

I really want Mao to win the Gold- still possible but she needs to skate lights out. But if it is not meant to be this year, does anyone think that Kanako can be the next world champion?

In the future absolutely, this year, NO.

And welcome to the forum!

zarinaballerina wrote:

Denlei wrote:

I really want Mao to win the Gold- still possible but she needs to skate lights out. But if it is not meant to be this year, does anyone think that Kanako can be the next world champion?

In the future absolutely, this year, NO.

And welcome to the forum!

Rewatching her performances over the past few years, I think she has matured so much: better posture, movements and musicality. I thought she arrived at last year's Worlds, but she kinda exited after the LP. Hope she'll skate her hearts out this time. But her jumps looked unsustainable to me.
Liza is the Russian diva to me, in a positive way. I've always been dazzled by her skating. Much like Yuzuru, she's the prodigious-style skater, but even natural skaters like them need to go through a learning process to harness their skills. i don't know why she often got low PCS. The only thing I didn't like about her yesterday was her dress .

I often feel that today's skaters generally lack in musicality and expression. But yesterday, Caro, Liza, Adelina, Mao and Kanako were able to sell their programs well. They were able to draw audiences into their characterization. Caro was the artist. I guess the fact that her family member were involved in arts and that she is studying art history do help with her presentation on the ice. Funny, but for some skaters, I wonder why they even bother with music. To be frank, I hate Mao's SP to bits, but I loved it yesterday. Her musicality has improved.

zarinaballerina wrote:

ballerinamao wrote:

[

thanks so much for the answer COHK, I think the practice session today could give a good picture of Mao's and the other skaters condition and if there is a repetitive mistake in the practice.

Honestly, I'd prefer if she skipped one of the practices, because I just know she'll go all out on both of them and might tire herself. I can't help but think of what happened last year.

well skipping the practices may not be the best idea, since she has to get used to the skating arena, and her recent changed choreography may still not feel as natural, so a few runthrough would not hurt. but knowing Mao it's may not end with a few runthrough, she will probably go all out and practice the jumps one after the other, but i trust sato to stop her when they think she has practiced to much.

zarinaballerina wrote:

Denlei wrote:

I really want Mao to win the Gold- still possible but she needs to skate lights out. But if it is not meant to be this year, does anyone think that Kanako can be the next world champion?

In the future absolutely, this year, NO.

And welcome to the forum!

Thanks! I wish Kanako and Akiko all the best but I'm really still hoping for a third world title for Mao. They say that the old Mao is back and the old Mao is able to come from behind and win the FP. I have a funny story to tell. Yesterday, I was praying like crazy for Mao to hit her 3A- and I got it but what i should have prayed for was for the whole program to be a success! Now, I'll make sure I pray for each elements and the program as a whole! Go Mao!!

Denlei wrote:

zarinaballerina wrote:

Denlei wrote:

I really want Mao to win the Gold- still possible but she needs to skate lights out. But if it is not meant to be this year, does anyone think that Kanako can be the next world champion?

In the future absolutely, this year, NO.

And welcome to the forum!

Thanks! I wish Kanako and Akiko all the best but I'm really still hoping for a third world title for Mao. They say that the old Mao is back and the old Mao is able to come from behind and win the FP. I have a funny story to tell. Yesterday, I was praying like crazy for Mao to hit her 3A- and I got it but what i should have prayed for was for the whole program to be a success! Now, I'll make sure I pray for each elements and the program as a whole! Go Mao!!

Welcome!!!
Yes, let's all pray together for the clean FS from Mao!!!

ballerinamao wrote:

well skipping the practices may not be the best idea, since she has to get used to the skating arena, and her recent changed choreography may still not feel as natural, so a few runthrough would not hurt. but knowing Mao it's may not end with a few runthrough, she will probably go all out and practice the jumps one after the other, but i trust sato to stop her when they think she has practiced to much.

Today, both practices are on the practice rink. Yeah, I agree, mr. Sato will tell her to stop if she overworks, I just hope she'll listen. And please Mao, don't attempt too many 3A. Less is more.

Denlei wrote:

I have a funny story to tell. Yesterday, I was praying like crazy for Mao to hit her 3A- and I got it but what i should have prayed for was for the whole program to be a success! Now, I'll make sure I pray for each elements and the program as a whole! Go Mao!!

I completely relaxed after she nailed both 3A and 3F-2Lo. I already saw a great score and then 3lo came, or better said, didn't come.

polosatik wrote:

Welcome!!!
Yes, let's all pray together for the clean FS from Mao!!!

Thanks!

pearlyriver wrote:

zarinaballerina wrote:

Denlei wrote:

I really want Mao to win the Gold- still possible but she needs to skate lights out. But if it is not meant to be this year, does anyone think that Kanako can be the next world champion?

In the future absolutely, this year, NO.

And welcome to the forum!

Rewatching her performances over the past few years, I think she has matured so much: better posture, movements and musicality. I thought she arrived at last year's Worlds, but she kinda exited after the LP. Hope she'll skate her hearts out this time. But her jumps looked unsustainable to me.
Liza is the Russian diva to me, in a positive way. I've always been dazzled by her skating. Much like Yuzuru, she's the prodigious-style skater, but even natural skaters like them need to go through a learning process to harness their skills. i don't know why she often got low PCS. The only thing I didn't like about her yesterday was her dress .

I often feel that today's skaters generally lack in musicality and expression. But yesterday, Caro, Liza, Adelina, Mao and Kanako were able to sell their programs well. They were able to draw audiences into their characterization. Funny, but for some skaters, I wonder why they even bother with music. To be frank, I hate Mao's SP to bits, but I loved it yesterday. Her musicality has improved.

I totally agree, that's why nothing would make me happier then to see her go all out and just skate like she usually does, the scores and placement would automatically follow. Mao just has a presence on the ice and everything thing she does spins, jumps, steps looks soo effortless. there is no preparation from one move to the other, she just naturally floats on the ice, and that's a really rare quality. Another thing I love about Mao's skating, is how fast and often she can change her spin positions, and every position she takes in her spin is picture perfect, in terms of extension/flexibility and center.

The only thing change would make is to add one or two spirals in Mao's sp, Mao really has the most beautiful spirals and I would love to see her add one or two next year! because they perfectly showcase her gouges line, extension, and flexibility!

Quote :

I completely relaxed after she nailed both 3A and 3F-2Lo. I already saw a great score and then 3lo came, or better said, didn't come.

Lol the same here, I could barely keep my eyes open when Mao went for the axel, and when she landed the 3f-2l I screamed out of joy and began imagining the score she would be receiving, Mao missing the loop was really an unexpected mistake. but one thing I love about Mao is that she still kept going and was really selling her program, and from her look in the kiss and cry I think she also was chocked by that sudden mistake.



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