All-time-favourite Mao programs?

Hey guys,
in consideration of the fact that the following season will be possibly Mao's last ever, I wanted to know which are your favourite Mao programs of her career?
During this off-season I'm wondering whether I have a wish how Mao's Olympic programs should look like... I think a SP like Nocturne would be great (and it seems to happen if we can trust the rumors ) and I also would love if Mao has a joyful Free Skate like I Got Rhythm, Por Una Cabeza, Caprice or Mary Poppins; I loved Czardas too!

So what's your opinion guys?
I choose the option of multiple choice because I personally can't decide which one is my favourite... It's really hard!! So I thought maybe we can limit the number of choices to 5 or so!?

http://randompersonbeingrandom.wordpress.com/2013/04/27/top-5-mao-asada-programs/

My blogpost on my top 5 Mao programs!

(It was so hard choosing 5, and the ones I voted for are not the same ones in the post...)

This is nice to choose. Thanks a lot. I like Chopin Ballade No. 1 and EX 11/12: Jupiter,too.

thanks, josling for creating the poll!
Yes, it was very difficult to choose from all the programs. Though I managed to limited the votes to 5, there are definitely more than 5

Thanks for creating this poll Just wondering why Nutcracker is not on the list?

ilovethai wrote:

Thanks for creating this poll Just wondering why Nutcracker is not on the list?

Actually I thought of adding it to the list but then I just listed all her programs from the senior years (I mean her full-time seniors years) and decided that I'll just create the 'Other' option. Sorry, I just thought that there are already enough programs to decide between so that I skipped her junior years programs...

josling wrote:

ilovethai wrote:

Thanks for creating this poll Just wondering why Nutcracker is not on the list?

Actually I thought of adding it to the list but then I just listed all her programs from the senior years (I mean her full-time seniors years) and decided that I'll just create the 'Other' option. Sorry, I just thought that there are already enough programs to decide between so that I skipped her junior years programs...

Hahahhh that's alright I just love the Nutcracker program because of the charm and effortlessness of program and the moves between the elements.

Oh man, this was difficult, limiting it to only 5 choices. I absolutely adore Jupiter and before the rumour about her SP came out, my biggest wish was that she would skate to it as her Olympic LP, but if her SP is Chopin type than Jupiter would be too similar.

I guess my dream programs for Sochi are: Por una Cabeza for the SP and Jupiter for LP. Whatever kind of programs Lori and TAT are going to give her, I just hope BOTH programs are going to be fantastic and will be milking COP to it's maximum.

Nocturne, Swan Lake, Caprice and Jupiter are my favorites.

I rewatched bell of Moscow she perform at world today it just blow me away!

Although I understand why many people might not appreciate this program; but in term of artistic, this performance is extraordinary; all the fire and feeling is there.

To be honest I never see Yuna or even Caro (who is my favorite and I think she is one of the most artistic skater right now) perform like this.

Afsfan wrote:

I rewatched bell of Moscow she perform at world today it just blow me away!

Although I understand why many people might not appreciate this program; but in term of artistic, this  performance is extraordinary; all the fire and feeling is there.

To be honest I never see Yuna or even Caro (who is my favorite and I think she is one of the most artistic skater right now) perform like this.  

 I second this. I don't like this music at all, and Mao's performance made me a convert. I think that's a success. When I watched Mao's performance in Vancouver, I was not yet her fan. I was drawn more to Yuna's prorams. But after watching this, I couldn't get how Mao's SP was 5 points

pearlyriver wrote:

Afsfan wrote:

I rewatched bell of Moscow she perform at world today it just blow me away!

Although I understand why many people might not appreciate this program; but in term of artistic, this  performance is extraordinary; all the fire and feeling is there.

To be honest I never see Yuna or even Caro (who is my favorite and I think she is one of the most artistic skater right now) perform like this.  

 I second this. I don't like this music at all, and Mao's performance made me a convert. I think that's a success. When I watched Mao's performance in Vancouver, I was not yet her fan. I was drawn more to Yuna's programs. But after watching this, I couldn't get how Mao's SP was 5 points

Simple, because Mao skated first. And in case of any mistakes done by Yuna, the judges wanted to make sure the scores remained close, to make sure Yuna still had a chance to win. I guarantee you, if Mao would've skated after Yuna, Her score would've at least been a 75-76, instead of 73+  for a completely clean sp, with a triple axel combo. What a freaking insult to Mao and the Figure Skating sport as a whole for the politricks they played in Vancouver.

Is it so hard to rightly reward an athlete when they go out and perform at the highest level by taking chances, and doing what many said can't be done? Ignoring an athlete great achievement(s) makes younger athletes in training (who are watching their heroes), not take risks to try new things. Allowing them to stay in the safe and boring zone, making the sport in question lose it's drive, and causing audiences and fans to lose interest, thus putting FS on a continuing downward spiral. And that is why Figure Skating has been on the decline for years.  

It shouldn't matter if an athlete is inconsistent. We are humans, and we will make mistakes and learn from them throughout our lives. What should matter to the judges, is when we do deliver, especially if it is done with a great risk, and that they give said athlete their just reward. Isn't there a saying "the greater the risk the greater the reward"? Yet in figure skating, it's "the more consistent (even if safe and boring) the greater the reward".  

The one thing I do hope to see when Mao retires, is FS gets a new Mao-like spirit, who no matter what the haters/judges say or do, that he/she will go out there, take great risks, and breathe new life into this dying sport, no matter if he/she wins or lose. Because with that kind of spirit, he/she will always be a winner.   


And with that, I truly thank Mao for bringing me back into this sport after many years, allowing me to enjoy watching her performances. She was my breath of fresh air. I wish her the very best this season, and in her life outside of FS moving forward.  GO MAO!!!   

Sorry for my rant, I have nothing against Yuna (or Patty) perse, I just hate to see the injustice done to hard working athletes at the expense of a judges favorite(s). It makes me so

I don't think Mao's scores at Vancouver and Worlds 2010 were fixed because of skating order or lack of consistency which are bogus reasons anyway. Instead, I think it is due to the fact that Brian Orser was a famous Canadian coach who came very close to but didn't win a gold medal two times in a row and a Canadian had never won a figure skating Gold Medal. The Olympics were in Canada and Yuna Kim had trained in Canada for a very long time. Also, I think it is due to the fact that speed skaters instead of figure skaters have control of the sport, so intricate transitions and the value of superior dancing, spirals and spins is ignored. I think Yuna Kim is a very good skater, but I and my friends like Mao a lot better. Also, COP has set up a tech crew, GOE which are then often tied to PCS along with anonymous judging as lines of of defense for giving the favored skater preferred scoring while fixing scores against those who are "unfavored."


In their last ISU freeskate before the 2010 Olympics, Mao had a freeskate score in the 4CC's LP that was 3 points higher than Yuna Kim's at the Grand Prix Final and both performances looked equally clean. Mao's score was 126 and Yuna Kim's was 123. So, if they both skated equally clean, why was Mao's SP given 5 points lower at Vancouver which would be an adjusted score of 10 points lower in the LP? Yuna Kim skated well, but why shouldn't Mao be given the higher SP score in Vancouver with her triple axel / double toe combo , superior spirals and spins and steps from a prima ballerina who has been praised as having the best positions and being the best dancer by professional dance instructors? Obviously, what I consider to be the unjust scoring of the SP set the psychological tone for the LP as well. Here are comments by renowned figure skaters that agree the scoring was unfair in the SP:

Philippe Candeloro:"No one can understand that 5.25 points difference. Why? Bad surprise, how this happens?"

Evgeni Plushenko:"Asada's level is the best in human history. I cannot win, if I was a woman. Did Kim jump 4 rotation twice?"

Maria Butyrskaya:"Judges should have evaluated Mao's SP correctly. I cannot understand a difference of this much."

Russian TV:"Our opinions are exactly the same. Mao was the best. Kim's more than five points of advantage is terrible. Very terrible."


As far as the Vancouver freeskate goes, one wonders what Mao thought when she saw the score of 150 when Yuna Kim's last freeskate score which also appeared fairly clean received 123. That is a 27 point increase in 2 months.  It must have been shocking to see such an incredibly high score, especially after Mao's deflated score in the SP and since Yuna Kim had only 6 triples and no triple axel. Mao would need 156 points to win which was impossible even though Mao had a higher freeskate score than Yuna Kim in their last ISU competition and even though Mao had given what very many consider to be her all time best SP, though it was deflated to over two points below Mao's previous best, while Yuna Kim's was considerably higher than her previous best SP score. Yes, Mao popped a triple toe and made a small misstep on the ice in her Vancover LP, but she landed two triple axels one with a double toe combo. Besides, who wouldn't be demoralized seeing that kind of totally unprecedented score before they skate? In my opinion, this kind of biased scoring environment and SHOCK SCORING puts extra pressure on the one who skates at a clear disadvantage (Mao) and allows the one with the advantage to be more relaxed and confident (Yuna). In addition, Tatianna Tarasova said that the JSF did not allow Mao to follow the reduced practice schedule that she advised as Mao's coach before the LP, but instead she said that the JSF made Mao follow a more rigorous practice schedule that Tatianna believes led to fatigue in the second half of Mao's LP performance. Tatianna said that was one of the issues that caused her to stop being Mao's coach because she said she did not want to be responsible for the performance of a skater she coached if she could not control their practice schedule.

So in their last competition before the Olympics, Mao had a 3 point advantage on Yuna Kim's LP score. But looking at their next two clean freeskates, Yuna Kim received 150 at Vancouver and Mao received only 129 in the Worlds LP. However, Yuna Kim was given 1 points higher freeskate score in the Worlds LP with a popped jump, a fall and a brief pause in the program. So, Mao's three point advantage before Vancouver turned into a 21 point disadvantage after Vancouver. That is a 24 point difference in two months and exactly what happened between Adelina Satnikova's and Mao's LP scores in 2014 before, during and after Sochi. Instead of Mao's inspired LP performance getting a much higher freeskate score than Yuna Kim at Worlds, she received a lower score even though she skated clean and even though Yuna Kim had a couple of major jumping errors that reduced her score considerably.

Furthermore, Mao's low scores in both the SP and LP at Worlds were repeatedly criticized by europort commentators live on the air, including criticism of ur calls on her triple axels, and in the exhibition one of the announcers said that the issue of Mao's underscoring should be addressed at the next meeting of the ISU. They also said that the value of the triple axel was too low as did former Olympic champions at Vancouver. Looking at the logic of the Worlds scoring from the other side, if Yuna Kim with two major jumping errors in the Worlds LP received a higher score than Mao clean in her Worlds LP, then why shouldn't Mao receive a higher score than Yuna Kim clean in her Vancouver LP, especially since Mao's mistakes were less serious overall and since Mao had superior spirals, steps and spins and hit two triple axels in one program: the first and only time a woman has done this in Olympic history? Just think how much more 3 triple axels total would have counted under 6.0. Even under ISU scoring Mao had a higher LP score than Yuna for equally clean performances in their last competition before Vancouver.

I just showed Mao's LP at Worlds and Yuna Kim's LP at Vancouver to a friend of mine who had never seen either skate and they said they liked Mao's performance a lot better. I know others may disagree with me and them, but I think sometimes it's best to get an observer who hasn't seen extremely biased press coverage, the scores or been on forums, so the performances can be looked at in a more impartial context and speak for themselves.

Mao continues to get deflated scores especially compared to Satoko and Evgenia, which I talked a whole lot about in another post, but also Gracie, Elena and Ashley as well, though Mao has already been given deflated PCS and a bogus ur call on a gorgeous triple axel against Ashley's technically safe and in my opinion less artistic performance  in the 2012 4CC LP which caused Mao to "lose" unjustly in the 4CC's 2012 in the United Sates only a month and a half after her mother passed away. I think it was obvious as most others did on the youtube video that Mao's performance was clearly better.

I have given up totally on the scoring of this sport and the injustice against Mao has made me very angry. I didn't believe it at first but close observation of scoring trends and double standards for ur calls and GOE and PCS inflation / deflation also contradict visual evidence. This has made me turn again the scoring completely. There is the unjust inflation of skaters at the Grand Prix Final 2015 and Mao's harsh tech calls and deflated step sequence scores in the SP, Japanese Nationals LP 2015 and the Mao's deflated LP score relative to Satoko's and  to the American and Russian Nationals, and finally Satoko's complete tech exemption for triple jumps with almost 270 degrees of pre-rotation and only 2 or slightly more revolutions in the air and a total pass on edge calls, even though the edges didn't look clean especially on the triple flip. Satoko skated well, but jumps are by far the biggest part of tech scores, and Satoko's jumps lack a lot in quality compared to Mao's when she lands them. I guess I found it particularly offensive that the judges gave this inflated score - almost identical to Mao's underscored Sochi LP-  on the 2nd anniversary of Mao's Sochi LP. But, there was an outburst at goldenskate against this. Mao the skater who has received the harshest tech calls of any major champion and the most GOE deflation is on the same Japanese team as Satoko, who has received near complete tech immunity, despite having many errors that are visible on instant replay, and the most inflated GOE. Mao's ur calls have more total rotation than Satioko's most rotated triples. To me, this shows the judging is obviously corrupt.

I love Mao's skating the most, more than any other ever, and it hurts to think what she must feel about all this. I love to follow her competitive skating and will gladly do so until she retires. I am optimistic she will skate wonderfully at Worlds.  But, I don't want her to continue to give her sponsor and performance money to the ISU and JSF who steal her scores from her and effectively give her points to others. I think Mao can develop her skating better outside the control of the corrupt ISU and JSF.  i just think she could express herself more freely and be a lot happier.

Thanks Mao for battling for artistic and athletic beauty and integrity in the face of injustice.  I will stop watching competitive skating when Mao retires because of the ISU's and JSF's obvious underscoring of Mao's performances and the inflation of others to put psychological stress on her.