Mao: post-Sochi news and articles

COHK wrote:

In case anyone would like to see the whole program, let me know and there is a version (without those CMs) to be found somewhere.

Hi COHK - can you please post the link for me?  Thanks.  

I know a lot of fans want Mao to continue skating competitively, and I do too, but I would like her to take at least a year off first...I really think she should experience some other things and get away from the stress of competition.  

My guess is that after a year (or maybe less time), Mao will realize anew how much she loves skating and how much she wants to compete, and then she will be back with newfound fire!  

Along this vein, here are some other things to consider when thinking about Mao retiring:

1)  According to this article (which is based on a tabloid report, so might not be 100% accurate), Mao could make 600 million yen (about 6 million US dollars) per year if she retires.  Right now, she makes 300 million yen a year because the JSF gets to keep 50% of her earnings from commercials, etc.  (50% seems like a lot!    ) Once she retires, however, she can keep everything.
http://woman.infoseek.co.jp/news/entertainment/menscyzo_20140226_162751

2) According to this article, Mao went to New York to take dance lessons and work on her choreography last year, and saw several Broadway musicals.  And apparently Mao was inspired and wanted to try it.
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20140227-00000002-tospoweb-spo
And judging by Mao's Mary Poppins EX, etc, I could totally see Mao dancing in some Broadway musical numbers, can't you?  

The article also says that Mao is interested in agriculture and especially organic food--to the point that she drove a tractor at an organic farm during the off-season.

So it seems that Mao has many things she could try, and I think it would be good for her to do something new, and then go back to skating if she realizes that is what she truly wants to do.  

COHK wrote:

In case anyone would like to see the whole program, let me know and there is a version (without those CMs) to be found somewhere.

Can you give me this link too, thanks in advance!   

COHK wrote:

In case anyone would like to see the whole program, let me know and there is a version (without those CMs) to be found somewhere.

I am also interested. Thank you!

Batsuchan wrote:

I know a lot of fans want Mao to continue skating competitively, and I do too, but I would like her to take at least a year off first...I really think she should experience some other things and get away from the stress of competition.  

My guess is that after a year (or maybe less time), Mao will realize anew how much she loves skating and how much she wants to compete, and then she will be back with newfound fire!  

Along this vein, here are some other things to consider when thinking about Mao retiring:

1)  According to this article (which is based on a tabloid report, so might not be 100% accurate), Mao could make 600 million yen (about 6 million US dollars) per year if she retires.  Right now, she makes 300 million yen a year because the JSF gets to keep 50% of her earnings from commercials, etc.  (50% seems like a lot!    ) Once she retires, however, she can keep everything.
http://woman.infoseek.co.jp/news/entertainment/menscyzo_20140226_162751

2) According to this article, Mao went to New York to take dance lessons and work on her choreography last year, and saw several Broadway musicals.  And apparently Mao was inspired and wanted to try it.
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20140227-00000002-tospoweb-spo
And judging by Mao's Mary Poppins EX, etc, I could totally see Mao dancing in some Broadway musical numbers, can't you?  

The article also says that Mao is interested in agriculture and especially organic food--to the point that she drove a tractor at an organic farm during the off-season.

So it seems that Mao has many things she could try, and I think it would be good for her to do something new, and then go back to skating if she realizes that is what she truly wants to do.  

Why the heck does the JSF get so much from Mao's earning in commercials? that's really a lot. this makes me admire Mao even for wanting to continue, when she would earn soo much more as a retired skater.

does anyone know whether Daisuke and Miki paid half of their earnings to JSF too?

Batsuchan wrote:

1)  According to this article (which is based on a tabloid report, so might not be 100% accurate), Mao could make 600 million yen (about 6 million US dollars) per year if she retires.  Right now, she makes 300 million yen a year because the JSF gets to keep 50% of her earnings from commercials, etc.  (50% seems like a lot!    ) Once she retires, however, she can keep everything.
http://woman.infoseek.co.jp/news/entertainment/menscyzo_20140226_162751

Yea, 50% does seem like a lot. It appears she is better off financially if she retires imo. Hmm, didn't Mao mention starting a restaurant in an interview before?   

Personally, I have mixed feelings about whether I want her to continue to compete or not, mostly because of the judging system. I have always felt her real opponent was not a single skater but the judging system. I think this time was a personal victory for Mao because her performance shone through and the controversy showed everyone how ridiculous FS judging can get. However, as a fan, Mao's battle against the system has been long and stressful. I really wish she could get away from it all and simply skate in shows for the joy of it.

aoi88 wrote:

Batsuchan wrote:

1)  According to this article (which is based on a tabloid report, so might not be 100% accurate), Mao could make 600 million yen (about 6 million US dollars) per year if she retires.  Right now, she makes 300 million yen a year because the JSF gets to keep 50% of her earnings from commercials, etc.  (50% seems like a lot!    ) Once she retires, however, she can keep everything.
http://woman.infoseek.co.jp/news/entertainment/menscyzo_20140226_162751

Yea, 50% does seem like a lot. It appears she is better off financially if she retires imo. Hmm, didn't Mao mention starting a restaurant in an interview before?   

Personally, I have mixed feelings about whether I want her to continue to compete or not, mostly because of the judging system. I have always felt her real opponent was not a single skater but the judging system. I think this time was a personal victory for Mao because her performance shone through and the controversy showed everyone how ridiculous FS judging can get. However, as a fan, Mao's battle against the system has been long and stressful. I really wish she could get away from it all and simply skate in shows for the joy of it.

To be honest, I always felt that the problem lied more on the judges then the system, the system is clear but when the judges decide to ignore the rules and the guideline, then it's deemed to become corrupt regardless of which system is used. of course the anonymous judging doesn't help either
I still can't come over how lowbelled Mao was in Sochi, the pcs she received in the GPF should have been a warning sign of whats was about to come.

As requested by some of you, here's the special program from last Friday:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMCDNi8OQsw
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNjc5MTY5NTE2.html

I pretty much cried through the 2nd half of the program when watching it for the 1st time...  

Thanks for the link, COHK!   I'm downloading the videos now   

aoi88 wrote:

Yea, 50% does seem like a lot. It appears she is better off financially if she retires imo. Hmm, didn't Mao mention starting a restaurant in an interview before?   

Yup, it's a lot. Speaking of which: I read some rumors on Tumblr that there was some tension over the place of Mao's training during the Sochi Olympics. Basically what I read was:
Coach Sato wanted Mao to train in a tried, safe environment, At first, training in Nagoya was suggested, but JSF refused. Then Tatiana Tarasova said Mao was welcome to practice on the same rink as Adelina, but again, JSF refused and Mao was requested to train at the Armenia rink. However, it turned out that the conditions in Armenia weren't very good - it was very cold and there was a problem with finding a specialist to sharpen Mao's blades in the right way, so Mao ended up returning to Sochi earlier than expected anyway.
Reportedly the JSF refused to let Mao go back to Japan or train with TAT because Armenia was much cheaper, and the article author commented that JSF shouldn't be that cheap with their money considering that most of it comes from Mao's earnings (commercials, etc) anyway.

I lost the source - it would be nice if somebody could confirm or deny.   

Another rumor I read was that, should Mao decide to pursue career as a coach, TAT offered her an opportunity to come to Russia and learn the craft from TAT herself. Again, I can't find the source (my laptop crashed and I lost my bookmarks), but it would be a nice gesture from TAT if it was true.

inskate wrote:

Thanks for the link, COHK!   I'm downloading the videos now   

However, it turned out that the conditions in Armenia weren't very good - it was very cold and there was a problem with finding a specialist to sharpen Mao's blades in the right way, so Mao ended up returning to Sochi earlier than expected anyway.
Reportedly the JSF refused to let Mao go back to Japan or train with TAT because Armenia was much cheaper, and the article author commented that JSF shouldn't be that cheap with their money considering that most of it comes from Mao's earnings (commercials, etc) anyway.

Another rumor I read was that, should Mao decide to pursue career as a coach, TAT offered her an opportunity to come to Russia and learn the craft from TAT herself. Again, I can't find the source (my laptop crashed and I lost my bookmarks), but it would be a nice gesture from TAT if it was true.

No problem with the videos!   
About Armenia, I actually read very early on from twitter and some gossiping Jpn news sources, that the rink at Armenia was really bad...as the ice was in mixture of sand (!), which probably caused the blades to worn out quickly.

As for the future career as a coach for Mao, I also read from an interview by Yukari Nakano with Mao, that Mao doesn't think she'll pursue a career as FS coach ...(I don't recall why she said so, and couldn't find the source at the moment   )

There have been updates on several Mao's web sites/blogs:

Mao's main website -
http://maimao-asada.com/mao/about-game/2014/03/03/646/
(adding: Akiko has been updating her personal blog with lots of photos from Sochi as well -)
http://ameblo.jp/suzuki-akko/entry-11785875912.html

Mao's mini website at '住友生命' ouen page:
http://mao-asada-ouen.jp/eye/08/

The Arsoa cosmetic also set up a tribute 'The steps we take for 8 years':
http://www.arsoa.net/mao/history/

  

COHK wrote:

As requested by some of you, here's the special program from last Friday:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMCDNi8OQsw
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNjc5MTY5NTE2.html

I pretty much cried through the 2nd half of the program when watching it for the 1st time...  

Thank you for the links! I loved the scenes with Lori and TAT .

inskate wrote:

Thanks for the link, COHK!   I'm downloading the videos now   

aoi88 wrote:

Yea, 50% does seem like a lot. It appears she is better off financially if she retires imo. Hmm, didn't Mao mention starting a restaurant in an interview before?   

Yup, it's a lot. Speaking of which: I read some rumors on Tumblr that there was some tension over the place of Mao's training during the Sochi Olympics. Basically what I read was:
Coach Sato wanted Mao to train in a tried, safe environment, At first, training in Nagoya was suggested, but JSF refused. Then Tatiana Tarasova said Mao was welcome to practice on the same rink as Adelina, but again, JSF refused and Mao was requested to train at the Armenia rink. However, it turned out that the conditions in Armenia weren't very good - it was very cold and there was a problem with finding a specialist to sharpen Mao's blades in the right way, so Mao ended up returning to Sochi earlier than expected anyway.
Reportedly the JSF refused to let Mao go back to Japan or train with TAT because Armenia was much cheaper, and the article author commented that JSF shouldn't be that cheap with their money considering that most of it comes from Mao's earnings (commercials, etc) anyway.

I lost the source - it would be nice if somebody could confirm or deny.   

Another rumor I read was that, should Mao decide to pursue career as a coach, TAT offered her an opportunity to come to Russia and learn the craft from TAT herself. Again, I can't find the source (my laptop crashed and I lost my bookmarks), but it would be a nice gesture from TAT if it was true.

Russian journalist Elena Vaizekhovskaya wrote about ice condition in Armenia. Still not sure if it's true or not)

COHK wrote:

As requested by some of you, here's the special program from last Friday:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMCDNi8OQsw
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNjc5MTY5NTE2.html

I pretty much cried through the 2nd half of the program when watching it for the 1st time...

Thank you! I noticed that they kept on mentioning her mother. Now I wonder if they included footages that they know will probably affect Mao emotionally on purpose.   

inskate wrote:

I lost the source - it would be nice if somebody could confirm or deny.  

By chance, is this article the one you are talking about?

Quote :

http://zasshi.news.yahoo.co.jp/article?a=20140226-00010005-jisin-ent

aoi88 wrote:

Batsuchan wrote:

1)  According to this article (which is based on a tabloid report, so might not be 100% accurate), Mao could make 600 million yen (about 6 million US dollars) per year if she retires.  Right now, she makes 300 million yen a year because the JSF gets to keep 50% of her earnings from commercials, etc.  (50% seems like a lot!   ) Once she retires, however, she can keep everything.
http://woman.infoseek.co.jp/news/entertainment/menscyzo_20140226_162751

Yea, 50% does seem like a lot. It appears she is better off financially if she retires imo. Hmm, didn't Mao mention starting a restaurant in an interview before?  

Personally, I have mixed feelings about whether I want her to continue to compete or not, mostly because of the judging system. I have always felt her real opponent was not a single skater but the judging system. I think this time was a personal victory for Mao because her performance shone through and the controversy showed everyone how ridiculous FS judging can get. However, as a fan, Mao's battle against the system has been long and stressful. I really wish she could get away from it all and simply skate in shows for the joy of it.

I never really thought the JSF was totally on Mao's side. For some reason, they let her get away with being underscored in so many competitions of the past. In fact, the only competition where Mao was generously rewarded was NHK Trophy 2012... and we all were stunned after that bec even as Mao fans a lot of the people thought Akiko could have won.

Mao dedicated her whole youth to skating, and TBH I don't really want her to spend more time on a sport which does not reward her effort. However, Mao loves skating too much so I can see why she's still 50-50.

BTW there's a new post for Mao's Eye:

Quote :

たくさんのご声援、ありがとうございます！



みなさん、たくさんのご声援、ありがとうございます！

「集大成」のこの冬、こんなに多くの方に支えられ、たくさんの励ましの言葉を頂いて、
本当に幸せだなと思っています。

世界選手権もがんばりますので、応援よろしくお願いします。

浅田真央

Source: http://mao-asada-ouen.jp/eye/08/

Batsuchan wrote:

shar wrote:

I hate how reputation can score you higher than than an absolute brilliant, magical, heart wrenching performance. But that's ok, because it was everyone's favorite.   

I second this!     I spoke to a bunch of my friends who are not big skating fans, but watched the ladies at the Olympics, and at least two of them said that Mao made them cry!    

That really is the power of Mao, isn't it?  She's not the fastest skater or the biggest jumper, and she certainly struggles with mental toughness, but she can really move people--even people who've never seen her before!  When she smiles, you want to smile, and when she cries, you wan to cry too!    

*****
Here are some quotes from a news article about that documentary on FujiTV, where Mao talks about Yuna.
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20140228-00000079-dal-spo

About Yuna, Mao said, “When we were juniors, we didn’t have this sense of ‘direct competition,’ so we would go eat meals together, and take purikura [mini picture stickers] together.”

However, as the media kept hyping them, and they began to be aware of each other as rivals, “over time, as the media kept presenting us as rivals, and a space grew between us,” and it was difficult to have the same relationship as they did when they were juniors.

Even so, “But, once we left the rink, we would talk normally, and I think she has been a good rival for me,” Mao said.

After the Sochi Olympics, Mao said “Congrats” to Yuna, and they took a photo together, and “Yuna Kim said ‘otsukaresama’ [means something like ‘good job’/’you worked hard’] to me.”

Does anyone have the picture Mao and Yuna took together after Sochi? It would be interesting to see it especially since they barely talked to one another.

silenceisgolden wrote:

Fuji is the most hated TV station among Mao fans because of the way of making programs  

I can never ever figure out why Fuji insistently doesn't want to acknowledge and praise her achievements straightforwardly.  ITA the way of making this program is again ridiculous. They ignored her important achievements on purpose: winning world Jr. champion with 3A, winning 2008 GPF with two 3A in FS, just to mention a few.  They instead used those videos to portrait as if she's been loosing to a certain someone.     Regarding 3A, they used a Japanese word "回避" in a weird way and that sounded as if other skaters can land 3A in practices but they avoided 3A in competitions because it's a risky Jump and they opted for 3-3, while Mao stuck to 3A and didn't care about 3-3.  wtf!?  Mao had both 3-3t and 3-3l (although <<) when she won 2008 Worlds, and she regained her 3-3l and attempted it in Sochi.  It's true Mao has been struggling and overcoming difficulties in both her skating and private life.  But, I don't like the way they use it and in particular to make her look as if she's been consistently inferior to a certain skater.  

ballerinamao wrote:

aoi88 wrote:

Yea, 50% does seem like a lot. It appears she is better off financially if she retires imo. Hmm, didn't Mao mention starting a restaurant in an interview before?   

Personally, I have mixed feelings about whether I want her to continue to compete or not, mostly because of the judging system. I have always felt her real opponent was not a single skater but the judging system. I think this time was a personal victory for Mao because her performance shone through and the controversy showed everyone how ridiculous FS judging can get. However, as a fan, Mao's battle against the system has been long and stressful. I really wish she could get away from it all and simply skate in shows for the joy of it.

To be honest, I always felt that the problem lied more on the judges then the system, the system is clear but when the judges decide to ignore the rules and the guideline, then it's deemed to become corrupt regardless of which system is used. of course the anonymous judging doesn't help either
I still can't come over how lowbelled Mao was in Sochi, the pcs she received in the GPF should have been a warning sign of whats was about to come.

I started to feel sadder than happier recently because I really feel Mao is not loved by the judges.    
The fact that the judges on the panel in Sochi were not so much moved/inspired by her FS performance and were OK to gave her 8s in PCS really saddens me, on top of the PCS they gave her GPF SP.  It saddens me all the more for her sincere dedication to this sport.  I wish I would be proven wrong at Saitama worlds.

COHK wrote:

inskate wrote:

Thanks for the link, COHK!   I'm downloading the videos now   

However, it turned out that the conditions in Armenia weren't very good - it was very cold and there was a problem with finding a specialist to sharpen Mao's blades in the right way, so Mao ended up returning to Sochi earlier than expected anyway.
Reportedly the JSF refused to let Mao go back to Japan or train with TAT because Armenia was much cheaper, and the article author commented that JSF shouldn't be that cheap with their money considering that most of it comes from Mao's earnings (commercials, etc) anyway.

Another rumor I read was that, should Mao decide to pursue career as a coach, TAT offered her an opportunity to come to Russia and learn the craft from TAT herself. Again, I can't find the source (my laptop crashed and I lost my bookmarks), but it would be a nice gesture from TAT if it was true.

No problem with the videos!   
About Armenia, I actually read very early on from twitter and some gossiping Jpn news sources, that the rink at Armenia was really bad...as the ice was in mixture of sand (!), which probably caused the blades to worn out quickly.

As for the future career as a coach for Mao, I also read from an interview by Yukari Nakano with Mao, that Mao doesn't think she'll pursue a career as FS coach ...(I don't recall why she said so, and couldn't find the source at the moment   )

klarification wrote:

By chance, is this article the one you are talking about?

Quote :

http://zasshi.news.yahoo.co.jp/article?a=20140226-00010005-jisin-ent

I think this is the source.

I think Mao was more affected by the pressure than the rink condition in Armenia.  IIRC, Mao started to mention about winning a medal when she won a spot in Team Japan after nationals.  Before that she kept saying that her goal at Sochi was to give two clean performances and she didn't care medals.  I think she's got pressure of medal from Ms. Seiko Hashimoto, the chairperson of JSF and also the head of Team Japan for Sochi Olympic.  Ms. Hashimoto made the goal for the team to win 10 medals including 5 golds. (I LOL at this too ambitious goal) and even after some promising speed skaters failed to win medals she said the goal would remain unchanged.  Accordingly, the pressure on athletes got bigger and bigger as the schedule came to end.  It seems she encouraged athletes to go for medals in quite a strong manner: Yuzu revealed after he won gold that he got a kind of scary encouragement from her before the competition, and a male speed skater who finished in the 6th said that he wanted to pay back the travel expenses because he failed to meet the expectations (  ).  Team Japan won 8 medals in total but most of them were won by athletes from snow sports.  It looks JSF athletes succumbed to her pressure.  I assume that Mori's controversial message might meant to criticize her. (By the way Mori said later that he didn't regret what he said but he got chewed out by his grandchild who's a big fan of Mao.   )   I understand that Ms. Hashimoto wanted to fulfill her responsibility of making sure that the team delivered good results.  But I think she did it in wrong and ineffective way and ended up crashing the athletes.

You're absolutely right Linglang. Ms. Hashimoto should not have applied added pressure to the athletes. It had disastrous effects on the japanese contingent at Sochi.
I think this added pressure " broke the camel's back" for many of the athletes. I think it affected Mao,
as well. But in Mao's LP I don't think she was skating for JSF at all. She skated for herself. And look at how she MOVED the world!

Thanks for the information, linglang. That was quite upsetting to read. I don't think any athletes needed an "encouragement" to do their best, it was OLYMPICS. Of course all the athletes wanted to do their best, they didn't fly to Russia to eat shchi and kasha.  

linglang wrote:

(By the way Mori said later that he didn't regret what he said but he got chewed out by his grandchild who's a big fan of Mao.   )

Well, at least there's hope for the future generations?  

linglang wrote:

[

I started to feel sadder than happier recently because I really feel Mao is not loved by the judges.    
The fact that the judges on the panel in Sochi were not so much moved/inspired by her FS performance and were OK to gave her 8s in PCS really saddens me, on top of the PCS they gave her GPF SP.  It saddens me all the more for her sincere dedication to this sport.  I wish I would be proven wrong at Saitama worlds.

IMO, if Mao delivers at worlds you will be proven wrong.     The PCS low balling in Sochi happened mostly due to Mao skating in second group (out of 4). If she skated in last, or even in 3rd group, her PCS would go higher and IMO, had she skated in the last group in LP, her score would be similar if not higher than Adelina's.

linglang wrote:

Ms. Hashimoto made the goal for the team to win 10 medals including 5 golds. (I LOL at this too ambitious goal) and even after some promising speed skaters failed to win medals she said the goal would remain unchanged.  Accordingly, the pressure on athletes got bigger and bigger as the schedule came to end.  It seems she encouraged athletes to go for medals in quite a strong manner: Yuzu revealed after he won gold that he got a kind of scary encouragement from her before the competition, and a male speed skater who finished in the 6th said that he wanted to pay back the travel expenses because he failed to meet the expectations ( Whirly ).  Team Japan won 8 medals in total but most of them were won by athletes from snow sports.  It looks JSF athletes succumbed to her pressure.

Holy cow, are you serious?    No wonder Yuzu had a semi meltdown in LP, this chick really needs to learn how to motivate athletes properly. 

The entries to the Worlds 2014 is updated here:
http://www.isuresults.com/events/fsevent00051515.htm

Some 'surprises' (or not...) so far:
- Dai will not attend due to injury, Koz will go instead
- Patrick will not attend
- Adelina is listed as Sub, Anna and Yulia take the 2 Rus entries
- neither D/W nor V/M will attend
.......

Oh, and I finally figure out what's about this 'Copyright(C) Mao Asada' from my twitter:
Koz updated his blog to confirm that he'll attend world --
http://www.t-kozuka.com/blog/2014/03/post-999b.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
And this is the photo posted in the blog entry (see if you can find something funny  , not the hair )

Meaning she took the picture?  
That's so cute, wonder if he added that or if she told him to add that onto the picture?

and his hair seems so short in that pic though, at least from the back...

COHK wrote:

The entries to the Worlds 2014 is updated here:
http://www.isuresults.com/events/fsevent00051515.htm

Some 'surprises' (or not...) so far:
- Dai will not attend due to injury, Koz will go instead
- Patrick will not attend
- Adelina is listed as Sub, Anna and Yulia take the 2 Rus entries
- neither D/W nor V/M will attend
.......

This is great news for Kozuka, but it sucks for Dai. This would've been his last worlds and being in his own country...it must be awful for him.

I'm not surprised that Adelina isn't going. I honestly don't think the judges would've given her a score anywhere near at what she's got in Sochi, so why add fuel to the whole Yuna was robbed controversy. I hope she doesn't retire though.

I'm not surprised at Patrick skipping this etiher, he doesn't want to lose to Yuzu yet again.

So the new world champions in ice dance are going to be Lena/Nikita.   God I hope Katya/Dimka will manage to pull an upset. I really don't want Lena/Nikita to win, they're not good enough yet, or to say it better, their program content is not deserving of a world title, IMO.