Mao News - The 2010-2011 Season!

klarification wrote:

Can anyone put up a short summary/translation for us?

linglang already got the Miyako Yoshida part down - apart from that, there wasn't too much, although Makino-san mentions how Mao's center of balance is leaning towards the right again from all the corrective jumping practice and that they'll have to work on fixing this over the next few weeks.

It looks like the Weider page will be updating again, so I'm looking forward to next week's clip.

clovera wrote:

klarification wrote:

Can anyone put up a short summary/translation for us?

linglang already got the Miyako Yoshida part down - apart from that, there wasn't too much, although Makino-san mentions how Mao's center of balance is leaning towards the right again from all the corrective jumping practice and that they'll have to work on fixing this over the next few weeks.

It looks like the Weider page will be updating again, so I'm looking forward to next week's clip.

And the Weider people also say in the video that Mao has lost weight but has not lost the amount of muscles in her body, which is good according to them, because it means she lost fat...which sounds slightly scary to me, because I cannot imagine Mao needing to lose any more fat! But well, it's probabaly comparing the numbers to how she was during off season. They also mentioned though, that Mao has more muscles now on her left side of the body, because she has been jumping alot to fix her jumps.

PochinkoPotanko wrote:

clovera wrote:

klarification wrote:

Can anyone put up a short summary/translation for us?

linglang already got the Miyako Yoshida part down - apart from that, there wasn't too much, although Makino-san mentions how Mao's center of balance is leaning towards the right again from all the corrective jumping practice and that they'll have to work on fixing this over the next few weeks.

It looks like the Weider page will be updating again, so I'm looking forward to next week's clip.

And the Weider people also say in the video that Mao has lost weight but has not lost the amount of muscles in her body, which is good according to them, because it means she lost fat...which sounds slightly scary to me, because I cannot imagine Mao needing to lose any more fat! But well, it's probabaly comparing the numbers to how she was during off season. They also mentioned though, that Mao has more muscles now on her left side of the body, because she has been jumping alot to fix her jumps.

Yea, I know! Mao's already so skinny. I hope Mao doesn't overwork too much. She looks a bit tired to me in the video. The most important thing is for her to stay healthy!

Yeah sounds scary when you hear that she lost weight and at the same time, I feel really fat!
But I think it's all for her jumps. In order to keep jumping 3A, she cannot gain any weight ! There was an article where Mai was saying that Mao would only eat 2 pieces of Yakiniku (althought she actually loves it) . That was when her 3A was not consistent last season and she was crying.
It shows how dedicated she is.

I think this is the article you're referring to ddmm:
http://www.sanspo.com/vancouver2010/news/100227/oai1002270507003-n2.htm

It stated that Mao had only 7% body fat and at most, ate only 3 pieces of yakiniku. Two weeks before last years' national, Mao had trouble with her triple axel, so her sister Mai took her out for a treat and told her she could eat whatever she liked- all she had was rice porridge, soup and stir-fried vegetables. The amount of commitment she has is undeniable. I can't even stay away from carbs for more than three days.

clovera wrote:

klarification wrote:

Can anyone put up a short summary/translation for us?

linglang already got the Miyako Yoshida part down - apart from that, there wasn't too much, although Makino-san mentions how Mao's center of balance is leaning towards the right again from all the corrective jumping practice and that they'll have to work on fixing this over the next few weeks.

It looks like the Weider page will be updating again, so I'm looking forward to next week's clip.

Which interview are you referring to when Makino-san mentions Mao's center of balance? I see Minako-san talking about Mao gaining muscle on her left side...I'm just wondering because I just converted from a pc to a mac and the interface is all new and strange to me. The video gallery doesn't have a video for 9/30- is that just for myself?

This is random but the new nutritionist is a former Miss Universe Japan finalist.

About her muscles on the left side, is that a good or bad thing?

Umm, I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing. More so, something that happens naturally. I think if it was unbalanced to a great extent where she was so weak on her right side their could be potential problems like injuries. But in the video, after Mao was told she gained muscle mass on her left side she concurred it was because her base leg is left and her landing leg is on the right. Just as you or I might be a little stronger with our right hand or left because we use it more.

aoi88 wrote:

About her muscles on the left side, is that a good or bad thing?

They said it's not so good that her body is unbalanced. But it seems unavoidable at the moment because you use alot of strength on the left when you jump in the direction Mao does. All that can be said is that, she is trying to do something about those jumps that much. I think she wants to show us some progress at TEB. Hope she doesn't push it too hard though...

Tony Wheeler posted a new blog post on Mao. http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/11/is-this-big-week-for-mao-asada.html
It basically talks comments on the relative success of the three other Japanese ladies this season and how that may affect Mao's chances at Nationals and Worlds.
Btw, it's good to hear that Tony likes Mao's changes this season despite her struggles.

I'm glad Mao has Weider looking after her in detail and keeping track of the changes in her body. I hope they can help prevent injuries and keep her on the right track, training-wise. I'm also really curious about how her jumps are looking now. I wonder if they've gone to one extreme or the other in terms of the completely new jumping style (a la Nagakubo) or the "old" one.

aoi88 wrote:

Tony Wheeler posted a new blog post on Mao. http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/11/is-this-big-week-for-mao-asada.html
It basically talks comments on the relative success of the three other Japanese ladies this season and how that may affect Mao's chances at Nationals and Worlds.
Btw, it's good to hear that Tony likes Mao's changes this season despite her struggles.

I think Mao would have a pretty good chance if all the other Japanese women weren't so on the ball right now
The problem I see is that even if Mao starts doing well again she looks inconsistent compared to the other skaters. She would have to completely annihilate the competition at TEB and earn some pretty high scores and then she would have to do the same for nationals because right now she looks "out of it" compared to the other Japanese women and if i was the JSF i really wouldn't want to risk it...
Maybe i went to an extreme but to the average person Mao looks a little shabby right now. I hope she comes back strong, but most importantly, i hope that she's picked for nationals this season.

But i guess we'll have to wait until TEB to find out! I think Mao-chan will do excellent!
She always know how to come back!

Figure_skating_love wrote:

aoi88 wrote:

Tony Wheeler posted a new blog post on Mao. http://www.flutzingaround.com/2010/11/is-this-big-week-for-mao-asada.html
It basically talks comments on the relative success of the three other Japanese ladies this season and how that may affect Mao's chances at Nationals and Worlds.
Btw, it's good to hear that Tony likes Mao's changes this season despite her struggles.

I think Mao would have a pretty good chance if all the other Japanese women weren't so on the ball right now
The problem I see is that even if Mao starts doing well again she looks inconsistent compared to the other skaters. She would have to completely annihilate the competition at TEB and earn some pretty high scores and then she would have to do the same for nationals because right now she looks "out of it" compared to the other Japanese women and if i was the JSF i really wouldn't want to risk it...
Maybe i went to an extreme but to the average person Mao looks a little shabby right now. I hope she comes back strong, but most importantly, i hope that she's picked for nationals this season.

But i guess we'll have to wait until TEB to find out! I think Mao-chan will do excellent!
She always know how to come back!

She'll be fine in all honesty. Whatever happens this season happens because we can tell that when Mao is at her best, she will REALLY BREAK THE ICE. I mean, it's not really about who is doing great at the moment but to me I can see the talent she has. She has tremendous amount of talent. Other skaters mentioned in the article can't compare to her when it comes to flexibility, spins, spirals, and step sequences. Plus, she has proven that she is capable of doing the hardest jumps and jump combinations. That's why to me, she's one of the figure skaters who can best others because of her talent. All she needs is time, time, time. Once she's finally got everything down, there are no more questions.

Hmm. My feeling is that the JSF knows what is going on with Mao right now (the changing jump technique issue), and my hope is that they will take that into consideration, especially when she will have had even more time to train in the time between TEB, Nationals, and Worlds.

I also think comparing her to Fumie in 2006/2007, as Wheeler does, is not particularly helpful. I'm no expert, but it seems to me their situations are completely different, and Fumie was never on the same level as Mao, either in popularity or talent. (Sorry, I don't mean to say bad things about her! Just trying to make a point.) I think Nationals is absolutely the key, and if Mao does reasonably well there they'll send her, no matter what happened in the Grand Prix.

Yeah, Mao should be fine by the time Nationals comes rolling in...

...But why is my heart so uneasy? I know Mao wants to show improvement right away and I know she's disappointed in herself. But then I sometimes wonder if this is right, Mao training night and day just to show a complete transformation in a matter of weeks.

I hope mao hasn't been working to hard, just imagining that she has lost wait in these few weeks makes me fear that she is overworking herself to show improvement right away. but somehow I do understand why she is working soo hard, I mean when all the other japanese skater are doing soo well it must be hard not to feel pressured. especially since nationals are right around the corner, and mao probably knows that since NHK didn't go as planned and therefor is likely going to miss the GPF, she will really need to pull it together at national, to show that she has regained her good condition....

now that I think about it mao said that she would like to do 2 3A and a 3-3 later in the season does that mean she will try it at TEB??? any news??

ballerinamao wrote:

now that I think about it mao said that she would like to do 2 3A and a 3-3 later in the season does that mean she will try it at TEB??? any news??

No, I haven't heard anything about her layouts, but I think it's unlikely. And for her sake, I really hope her team doesn't let her go for this. Mao already has a lot of pressure as it is; she doesn't need any additional pressure.

aoi88 wrote:

ballerinamao wrote:

now that I think about it mao said that she would like to do 2 3A and a 3-3 later in the season does that mean she will try it at TEB??? any news??

No, I haven't heard anything about her layouts, but I think it's unlikely. And for her sake, I really hope her team doesn't let her go for this. Mao already has a lot of pressure as it is; she doesn't need any additional pressure.

well I don't think it's to unlikely because even through mao is reworking practically everything, I remenber hearring her say that she wanted to keep her 2 3A in the LP and ad a 3-3 combo.

I know that this might sound ridicoules at the moment, when her jumps haven't been that consistent but I think thata mao may use this layout later on at nationals,4cc, and worlds. when she has had more time to focus on her jumps and knowing the way mao is, she never backs down from a challenge.. but it may depend on how her condition is and how her jump develop through the season... unless sato doesn't want to change anything

ballerinamao wrote:

I hope mao hasn't been working to hard, just imagining that she has lost wait in these few weeks makes me fear that she is overworking herself to show improvement right away. but somehow I do understand why she is working soo hard, I mean when all the other japanese skater are doing soo well it must be hard not to feel pressured. especially since nationals are right around the corner, and mao probably knows that since NHK didn't go as planned and therefor is likely going to miss the GPF, she will really need to pull it together at national, to show that she has regained her good condition....

Mao s persistent as all hell! Jeffrey Buttle said that when they practiced together she was always doing several more hours of practice than was necessary. I think that Mao is of the strong belief that practice makes perfect.
However perfect practice makes perfect, and Mao wants to put in a more "perfect practice." In a way i think she's trying to make up for all those years of doing it "wrong" by practicing as much as possible. One ting is for sure though, she knows what she's doing because she always comes back strong

I have heard about the interview with jeffrey buttle, and mao really is amazing she just knows what she want's and what she needs to do too get it.. it's a little bit funny that we are a little worried about mao making the world team since the field in japan is soo strong, even through mao was the one who in the first place made it possible for japan to get that many spots. but I have to say I am not really that worried again, after seing mao being so calm and knowing the reason to why she struggled, I think that we may be able to see mao in good condition soon, and I don't think that the JSF would be as stupid as not to send mao the 2 time and reigning world champion. because no matter how good a start and debut skaters like suzuki and murakami have, I don't see them as a threat to the world podium, unless there is a complete meltdown which is unlikely since the field is so strong. not to mention that when mao is back and has regained her jumps there best scores will be a piece of cake for mao to beat. the only other japanese skater I see as a threat to the world podium is miki . but it wil be quite interesting to see how everyone does especially at nationals, and who they end up chosing as team japan!!

illani wrote:

Hmm. My feeling is that the JSF knows what is going on with Mao right now (the changing jump technique issue), and my hope is that they will take that into consideration, especially when she will have had even more time to train in the time between TEB, Nationals, and Worlds.

I also think comparing her to Fumie in 2006/2007, as Wheeler does, is not particularly helpful. I'm no expert, but it seems to me their situations are completely different, and Fumie was never on the same level as Mao, either in popularity or talent. (Sorry, I don't mean to say bad things about her! Just trying to make a point.) I think Nationals is absolutely the key, and if Mao does reasonably well there they'll send her, no matter what happened in the Grand Prix.

Exactly! The talent level is different!

ballerinamao wrote:

I have heard about the interview with jeffrey buttle, and mao really is amazing she just knows what she want's and what she needs to do too get it.. it's a little bit funny that we are a little worried about mao making the world team since the field in japan is soo strong, even through mao was the one who in the first place made it possible for japan to get that many spots. but I have to say I am not really that worried again, after seing mao being so calm and knowing the reason to why she struggled, I think that we may be able to see mao in good condition soon, and I don't think that the JSF would be as stupid as not to send mao the 2 time and reigning world champion. because no matter how good a start and debut skaters like suzuki and murakami have, I don't see them as a threat to the world podium, unless there is a complete meltdown which is unlikely since the field is so strong. not to mention that when mao is back and has regained her jumps there best scores will be a piece of cake for mao to beat. the only other japanese skater I see as a threat to the world podium is miki . but it wil be quite interesting to see how everyone does especially at nationals, and who they end up chosing as team japan!!

And that's definitely agreed. The problem is there's a lot of "if's" here. IF Mao's jumps improve, IF she wins nationals IF she's gotten back to her old self in time. If I were the JSF i would be quite hesitant to send such an "ify" skater. Yes Mao has done amazing in the past, but as a skating federation, they are most concerned about wins for the present, and holding a certain number of spots for world's next year. While Suzuki may be a flip floppy skater, skaters like Miki and Kanako have always been consistent. Yes Miki had some minor flops but she has always represented Japan well. And Kanako's track record is awesome. She has been known as a consistent jumper and performer through out her junior year and her senior year seems to be following suit.
I know that Mao at her best is better than almost every other skater, but if she's not at her best this year, i'm scared that the JSF won't pick her this year!

Figure_skating_love wrote:

And that's definitely agreed. The problem is there's a lot of "if's" here. IF Mao's jumps improve, IF she wins nationals IF she's gotten back to her old self in time. If I were the JSF i would be quite hesitant to send such an "ify" skater. Yes Mao has done amazing in the past, but as a skating federation, they are most concerned about wins for the present, and holding a certain number of spots for world's next year.
.
.
I know that Mao at her best is better than almost every other skater, but if she's not at her best this year, i'm scared that the JSF won't pick her this year!

She doesn't even need to be at her best - she'll more than satisfy JSF's criteria to be selected for Worlds as long as she makes the podium at Nats.

Things will get complicated if she doesn't make the podium (which is an incredibly unlikely scenario to begin with) but Mao's scoring potential and past placements at Worlds should give her higher priority over Akiko and Kanako in the selection process even then. Of course, this is under the requirement that Mao will *not* have a repeat of NHK at TEB and Nats...which isn't exactly difficult at all.

Figure_skating_love wrote:

The problem is there's a lot of "if's" here. IF Mao's jumps improve, IF she wins nationals IF she's gotten back to her old self in time. If I were the JSF i would be quite hesitant to send such an "ify" skater. Yes Mao has done amazing in the past, but as a skating federation, they are most concerned about wins for the present, and holding a certain number of spots for world's next year. While Suzuki may be a flip floppy skater, skaters like Miki and Kanako have always been consistent. Yes Miki had some minor flops but she has always represented Japan well. And Kanako's track record is awesome. She has been known as a consistent jumper and performer through out her junior year and her senior year seems to be following suit.
I know that Mao at her best is better than almost every other skater, but if she's not at her best this year, i'm scared that the JSF won't pick her this year!

okay then

clovera wrote:

Figure_skating_love wrote:

And that's definitely agreed. The problem is there's a lot of "if's" here. IF Mao's jumps improve, IF she wins nationals IF she's gotten back to her old self in time. If I were the JSF i would be quite hesitant to send such an "ify" skater. Yes Mao has done amazing in the past, but as a skating federation, they are most concerned about wins for the present, and holding a certain number of spots for world's next year.
.
.
I know that Mao at her best is better than almost every other skater, but if she's not at her best this year, i'm scared that the JSF won't pick her this year!

She doesn't even need to be at her best - she'll more than satisfy JSF's criteria to be selected for Worlds as long as she makes the podium at Nats.

Things will get complicated if she doesn't make the podium (which is an incredibly unlikely scenario to begin with) but Mao's scoring potential and past placements at Worlds should give her higher priority over Akiko and Kanako in the selection process even then. Of course, this is under the requirement that Mao will *not* have a repeat of NHK at TEB and Nats...which isn't exactly difficult at all.

Hmm that seems to make enough sense!
This season is pulling my nerves in all different kinds of ways

Is there some miracle that Mao can still make it into the Grand Prix Final?