Mao news - as we head into the 2009-10 season

Ok, so since all these articles talk about future things, I thought I would start a new news thread.

1) Mao will study ballet in Russia
http://www.daily.co.jp/general/2009/04/20/0001841214.shtml

This article says Mao is going to go to to Russia to study ballet and polish her expression. Mao said, "Russia is the best place for ballet. I want to learn from Sensei [TAT, I think?] and also do ballet.
I definitely approve of this! After all, Mao is our ballerina on ice!

2) Mao won't reveal her music choices until the last minute
http://www.sponichi.co.jp/olympic/news/2009/04/20/12.html

According to this article, Mao is not going to reveal her music choices until the last minute, so as to not give Team Yu-Na any hints about what she's doing. A different article said that it would be after the skating training camp in Japan at the end of the summer - so sometime in August?

Bummer!! That means we have to wait 4 months! The suspense will be killing me!

I do hope that even if Mao doesn't reveal her choices, she keeps tabs on what the others are doing, so that we don't have another Battle of the Giselles like this year!

oh, this news is awesome!!

I'm glad Mao will be spending more time that she originally planned to with TAT in Russia. It will be so much better for her sense of confidence and training - away from the limelight and the centre of pressure.

I'm all for Mao to improve her expressiveness. Just wondering if Mao would have a chance to try a bit of modern dance? It may help her to loosen up, let her personality shine through her skates more on ice and be less self-conscious. Still waiting for the moment when Mao looses herself in the the music as she skates. That, I am certain, will be the skate of her life. Go, MAooooo!! Show the world how much you love skating!!

Regarding the date of releasing news about Mao's programs:

It's certainly a pretty reasonable strategy to adopt. But that will be a long wait for us fans... Will we be seeing Mao's new EX in June? Can't wait!!!

another interview!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaJ9ZDf6K84

bibi wrote:

another interview!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaJ9ZDf6K84

Wow Her "good night" sounds soo russian! Mao,you're wonderful!

bibi wrote:

another interview!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaJ9ZDf6K84

Thanks bibi!

I like Mao's nails! Pretty!

Mao says that she wants to make steady progress up until the Olympics - even if it's just a little bit, everyday she wants to get better.

Mao also says that she wants to do her free program with even more power up to the end. Goodness me, does this mean she's going to have an even CRAZIER step sequence next season?

The announcer lady's comments at the ends were actually quite interesting. Apparently there's a class at the university that Miki, Kozu, Mai and Mao are all enrolled in, so Mao thinks it would be fun if they all can attend together! The older lady then said that they better pay attention and not talk behind the teacher's back. Hahahha!

The older lady also said that according to TAT, Mao's step sequence is so hard that even if some of the men tried to skate it, they might not be able to. And so she pointed out that Nobu was watching the end with this awed/stunned look on his face.

@ polosatik

I was wondering about that! How Mao's Russian is, I mean. Maybe one day
if you meet Mao you can talk to her in Russian! That would be so cool!

Today's news:

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/winter/news/20090422-OHT1T00292.htm

They're basically going to have a "base camp on the front lines" for the Japan team for the Olympics!

What does that mean? Well, apparently, the JSF is going to rent the first floor of a building in Richmond (next to Vancouver) that is about a 10 minute walk from the rink for the speed skaters. There, they plan to have a place where skaters can adjust/repair their skates, a kitchen to cook Japanese food, and the center for all the information on what's going on (and what the other skaters are doing). This is not just for the figure skaters, but also the speed skaters too.

Also - the JSF is planning to take Mao and the others to Vancouver in September for a training camp there!

Wow, the JSF is really going all out!! I hope this will be a good advantage for Mao and the rest of the Japanese Olympic team!

ETA: According a comment on YT, Yuna said she didn't want to talk about Mao in interviews because it puts great pressure on both her and Mao. She also mentioned that something about her choice of programs - ones that have a strong image - highlighted with more make-up and dramatic facial expressions.

ETA: Hmmm... according to Batsuchan, the video uploader seems to be purposefully trying to stir up trouble between Mao fans and Yuna fans again. Soooo, I decided to delete the YT link. People who are interested in the full report of what Yuna responded to the interviewer's question about Mao could refer to Batsuchan's post and translations below.

Batsuchan wrote:

Today's news:

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/winter/news/20090422-OHT1T00292.htm

They're basically going to have a "base camp on the front lines" for the Japan team for the Olympics!

My goodness...Team Japan is ready! I feel like this is something Nobu thought of...or at least the name >w<
I hope this is a helpful thing, but I don't want it to make the skaters more nervous or feel more pressure with all this being set up for them. How early do skaters usually arrive at the location before the Olympics?

MaoMaoRevolution wrote:

My goodness...Team Japan is ready! I feel like this is something Nobu thought of...or at least the name >w<

Quote :

I hope this is a helpful thing, but I don't want it to make the skaters more nervous or feel more pressure with all this being set up for them. How early do skaters usually arrive at the location before the Olympics?

I have no idea how early the skaters usually arrive at the location... But I think an early arrival can actually benefit Mao and other skaters. I think that being in Vancouver and getting a first taste of their Olympic experience will certainly be very overwhelming at first, but thanks to the early arrival they will have more time to get used to the surroundings. As long as the media don't bother them too much (I hope TAT and Morozov will take care of that) I think this "camp" can help them to get over their nerves sooner and get into a battle spirit!

Batsuchan wrote:

1) Mao will study ballet in Russia
http://www.daily.co.jp/general/2009/04/20/0001841214.shtml

This article says Mao is going to go to to Russia to study ballet and polish her expression. Mao said, "Russia is the best place for ballet. I want to learn from Sensei [TAT, I think?] and also do ballet.
I definitely approve of this! After all, Mao is our ballerina on ice!

I love this news. Practicing ballet did wonders for Mao! And yes, she's definitely our ballerina on ice.

snowdrops24 wrote:

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKm5yxyJQhQ

ETA: According a comment on YT, Yuna said she didn't want to talk about Mao in interviews because it puts great pressure on both her and Mao. She also mentioned that something about her choice of programs - ones that have a strong image - highlighted with more make-up and dramatic facial expressions.

It seems the people who posted the vid are trying to be deliberately inflammatory!

Please see the original article/news clip:

http://www.fnn-news.com/news/headlines/articles/CONN00153694.html

(click on the Windows media player links on the bottom right)

Here's the translation of the text, which is basically what is said in the video:

Yu-Na Kim reveals that she feels burdened by the heated
rivalry-promoting journalism

Figure skating's Yu-Na Kim reflected on a perfect season. About the topic of Mao Asada, she revealed that she feels burdened by the heated rivalry-promoting journalism.

At this season's World Championships, Yu-Na Kim set a world record score, and with a splendid win, she ascended to the throne of World queen.

Yu-Na Kim polished her famed power of expression, and it became a season of fulfillment.

Yu-Na Kim said, "I think both my short and free programs leave a strong impression. I used heavy make-up, even making my eyes looking like they were glaring, and I think that made it more impressive."

In addition, about Mao Asada, her greatest rival heading into the Olympics, she said that the inflammatory media surrounding them is a burden.

Yu-Na Kim said, "I feel that way now, but I wonder what Mao Asada thinks…this sort of thing, is kind of unpleasant."
******************************
So Yu-Na actually didn't say anything negative about Mao at all! She was criticizing the media! (Which I totally agree with.)


But reading her quote, I had to think, she wanted to look like she was glaring???

Well, I guess that fits the music in "Danse Macabre," but I'm glad that Mao doesn't try to do that! Give me happy, smiling Mao over scowling Yu-Na anyday!!

[quote="Oscilla"]

MaoMaoRevolution wrote:

Quote :

I hope this is a helpful thing, but I don't want it to make the skaters more nervous or feel more pressure with all this being set up for them. How early do skaters usually arrive at the location before the Olympics?

I have no idea how early the skaters usually arrive at the location... But I think an early arrival can actually benefit Mao and other skaters. I think that being in Vancouver and getting a first taste of their Olympic experience will certainly be very overwhelming at first, but thanks to the early arrival they will have more time to get used to the surroundings. As long as the media don't bother them too much (I hope TAT and Morozov will take care of that) I think this "camp" can help them to get over their nerves sooner and get into a battle spirit!

Hmm, well this doesn't say that they'll actually be arriving early at the Olympics - just that they're going in September to scope out the location/the facilities etc.

That being said, I do hope that Mao gets there reasonably early - that way she can enjoy the Olympic experience, but more importantly, she can get accustomed to the time zone! Since according to TAT, jet lag was a major reason for Mao's poor showing at Worlds (and I'm guessing 4CC) too.

One thing that had been worrying me was whether or not the Pacific Coliseum rink would be Olympic-sized or the smaller NHL-size, like at 4CC. Though Mao denied it, I really think the smaller rink affects her speed and her triple axels (she runs out of rink). (And Nobu seemed to have problems with crashing into the walls too. )

I've seen conflicting reports - the Japanese media reported it would be enlarged, but people on other forums, and Sandra Bezic, said it wouldn't.

SOO, today I did some research, and this is what I found!

From the official website:
http://www.vancouver2010.com/en/news/news-releases/-/63242/32566/yyx7ei/testing-successfully-completed.html

An article on 4CC, which says at the bottom:

Quote :

The event was held on non-international-sized ice, also called NHL-sized ice, as approved by the ISU. International-sized ice will be used at Games time; however, ice conditions can be accurately tested on both configurations. The ice meister was again given the opportunity to test ice conditions that will be shared by both figure skating and short track speed skating in 2010.

So then I was like, THANK GOODNESS!!

Batsuchan wrote:

Yu-Na Kim said, "I feel that way now, but I wonder what Mao Asada thinks…this sort of thing, is kind of unpleasant."

Seems like some people really don't have any shame.

Batsuchan wrote:

So Yu-Na actually didn't say anything negative about Mao at all! She was criticizing the media! (Which I totally agree with.)

Sure, she didn't. Why should have she said anything negative about Mao all of a sudden? It's not a kindergarten backyard after all, is it? What she should've said - she has said: in proper time and in proper way.
And now, oh why, of course! So, so unpleasant burden... How can she hadle it at all?..

Thanks Batsuchan for the clarification! It seems that Yuna and Mao didn't talk to each other as much at the worlds than in other competitions. Probably because of the all the media and hyped up rivalry.

New interviews of Mao are uploaded on YT:

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXAt3SVkksc
(Did Mao confirm in this interview that she is going to put a 3A combo in her SP next season?)

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2OcxEDUV0A

snowdrops24 wrote:

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXAt3SVkksc
(Did Mao confirm in this interview that she is going to put a 3A combo in her SP next season?)

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2OcxEDUV0A

Keep the clips coming!

I wasn't sure where to put it, but it seems like in this show Yu-na and korean comedians talked about Mao for a minute (since 5:05)
, can someone translate it? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E860F6JZMZ8

another interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N809DUZTh_A
well...I can't understand Is there anything surprising in the interview?

Thanks for the vids people! bibi, you beat me to post the video~

I don't speak Japanese either...can only recognize random characters that resemble Chinese characters. Any summaries/translations?

Btw, love Mao's blue top in the interview! (I hav a thing for knitwear and blue/white strips, hahaha)

Was this interview taken before the WTT or after? I know it's definitely aired after WTT...

*****************************

polosatik, the video u posted before was about Yuna on the TV comedy show. The comedians probably mentioned Mao when cracking jokes. (my guess from experience of watching that kind of show) That video only showed part of the show though.

They mentioned Mao again in the later part of the show - for jokes again. Erm... seems that some Mao fans were offended by their jokes about Mao, so subsequently uploaded another video on YT with Japanese translations of certain part of the shows, highlighting comments/remarks that he/she find offensive to Mao.

*sigh*, hopefully, this will not spark off another YT fan war... i wonder what will happen when the new season starts in October.

polosatik wrote:

I wasn't sure where to put it, but it seems like in this show Yu-na and korean comedians talked about Mao for a minute (since 5:05)
, can someone translate it? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E860F6JZMZ8

o_O. And i thought yuna kim and koreans were polite to mao....

Pooping wrote:

polosatik wrote:

I wasn't sure where to put it, but it seems like in this show Yu-na and korean comedians talked about Mao for a minute (since 5:05)
, can someone translate it? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E860F6JZMZ8

o_O. And i thought yuna kim and koreans were polite to mao....

Can you translate it?

bibi wrote:

another interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N809DUZTh_A
well...I can't understand Is there anything surprising in the interview?

There are a few interesting things:

Mao was asked to evaluate her season. She replied that maybe things didn't go perfectly, but she gained a new confidence. This wasn't an Olympic year, so she was just challenging herself.
Mao always tried to do 2 3A in her LP and her confidence in this jump became really strong. Her stamina improved a lot as well. Mao feels that this will be a huge plus for her in the next season.
Then Mao was asked if she ever wanted to stop skating. She said that no, she never seriously wanted to stop skating. But, when things weren't going well and she felt she wasn't in her best form she wanted to stop, a little, and was a bit afraid before competitions
Mao felt very frustrated after Worlds, but, when she was accepted into the Chukyo University she felt as if it was a new beginning in her life. She felt refreshed, and things started going really well in the practices!
When Mao skates a program, she is always alone in the rink, and so she must not allow herself to become weak. She wants to keep her feelings strong, especially before the first 3A, and keep on "attacking".
Mao's eventual goal is to win a gold medal in Vancouver, but there are still other things to accomplish before that.

ETA: Ooops, I mixed two clips together, I think! Here's the second one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l06nxO2_iug
Most of the interview is the same, but there are a few different things. It looks like I kept on switching between those two and actually wondered why the clip is so chronogically messed up!

Thank you so much Okami! I have a feeling that something changed in Mao, she looks so calm and so confident, love to see her like that And I think one russian girl gave Mao a perfect nickname- sunny girl!

Okami wrote:

bibi wrote:

another interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N809DUZTh_A
well...I can't understand Is there anything surprising in the interview?

There are a few interesting things:

Mao was asked to evaluate her season. She replied that maybe things didn't go perfectly, but she gained a new confidence. This wasn't an Olympic year, so she was just challenging herself.
Mao always tried to do 2 3A in her LP and her confidence in this jump became really strong. Her stamina improved a lot as well. Mao feels that this will be a huge plus for her in the next season.
Then Mao was asked if she ever wanted to stop skating. She said that no, she never seriously wanted to stop skating. But, when things weren't going well and she felt she wasn't in her best form she wanted to stop, a little, and was a bit afraid before competitions
Mao felt very frustrated after Worlds, but, when she was accepted into the Chukyo University she felt as if it was a new beginning in her life. She felt refreshed, and things started going really well in the practices!
When Mao skates a program, she is always alone in the rink, and so she must not allow herself to become weak. She wants to keep her feelings strong, especially before the first 3A, and keep on "attacking".
Mao's eventual goal is to win a gold medal in Vancouver, but there are still other things to accomplish before that.

ETA: Ooops, I mixed two clips together, I think! Here's the second one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l06nxO2_iug
Most of the interview is the same, but there are a few different things. It looks like I kept on switching between those two and actually wondered why the clip is so chronogically messed up!

Thank you so much for those translation
It is sad to hear that Mao was very frustrated after World. But it is glad to hear that she became fine after the University Opening Ceremony.
Uhmm, it is a little bit sad to imagine a lonely mao skate alone in a big ice rink><

Thank you Okami!!

I guess Mao feel a little lonely at her rink, she mentioned that also at a special tv show before WTT (where the 4 skaters ate different kind of food). Maybe skating with other skaters could be motivating even more.?!

Thank you guys, again, for the clips and the translations. As expected, Yuna is trying to wash her hands and put the blame on the media. The more she defends and reasons out, the louder the echo of her lies resonates. They(Yuna and her show) shoudn't make fun of Mao - she doesn't deserve it. As they say, "He who laughs first, laughs last". And they are so spiteful of the WTT where Mao has proven her sturdiness and her resiliency. Yuna is intimidated because Mao is getting stronger and stronger and she's perfecting things no matter which way they try to put her down. I really admire Mao and I'm definitely looking forward to the coming competitions. And you guys got her back - which is very vital to keep her torch...Thanks guys.

Hmmm... I don't think Yuna is trying to discredit Mao in anyway through the media, nor do I think she is intimidated by Mao's performance in WTT. She may feel a tint of pressure - since Mao just landed the 3A combo in the SP and received a new personal best. But let's be frank, WTT isn't regarded by the FS community with the same level of prestige and respect as other ISU championships. Besides, she's having too much fun at her ice show anyways to be upset about anything... Man, she's just won the worlds with a HUGE lead.

It's a comedy show, not one with the best taste - but let's try not take it too seriously.

A lot of things get "lost in translations". The tone and cultural expressions are but a few things that are essential for us to understand a person's attitude and personality through verbal communication. Unfortunately, they are not the easiest things to translate either.

I am very very thankful to people on this forum who offered to translate any interviews/articles/videos about Mao. It's sometimes a very difficult job to do. However, I would suggest that we should not take the translations tooooo literally because it's only a reproduction for what someone had said in a foreign language with a vastly different cultural background.