Yuzuru Hanyu and other figure skating talk part 10

A cute interview with Kazuki Tomono using his translator app. I like him and Koshiro about 1000x more than fug Shoma, but of course they still need a lot of work before they get to the top.

I guess it's a new 'straight' Hanyu episode.

R2 awww. I love that photo. I wish we could see how his hands are. lol.

I'll up you a Cha for your Tomono. Cha's English for age 16 is pretty good (though Koreans do a better job with English in school than Japanese - I think they feel they need it more). At one point Cha looks over to a translator for help, so he had a crutch, but still, impressive. It's 8 minutes long but you can catch his English skill pretty early. He said Orser picked Cinderella for him (I didn't know Orser got that granular hmmm)

I think Yuzu has been neglecting his bride too much and he's developed a new crush - well, besides Uncle Dai:

Shoma: "Nathan is someone whom I quite like, both his skating and his character. That's why I cheer for him, or rather I hope he does his best. Although he's more skilled than I am and I want to compete with him, I still want him to do his best. Even at competitions I find myself unintentionally cheering for him at rinkside. I've met him many times like at The Ice, but since I don't speak English I don't say anything. Yet I somehow carry a one-sided affection for him. It's not in my nature to start up a conversation. With anyone. LOL "

R5 Yuzu doesn't give a damn about Shoma. He was busy crying and putting snot all over Javi when Shoma was skating his FS at Pyeongchang because all he cared about was that he and Javi would be on the podium together.

Aw, come on - he mothers Shoma - rolls up his sleeves for him, adjusts his medal ribbons, puts his microphone on his ear for him, hangs with him at the galas. I do think that particular moment at Pyeongchang was pretty overwhelming, and there with his rink mate who had made the podium after barely missing it in Sochi, and he himself somehow manages to overcome horrific ankle injury to repeat - I mean, was he supposed to sit there in his chair unmoved after Javi's skate?

He did congratulate and hug Shoma later (and Shoma's coach) - he rubbed his little head during the medal festivities - I think they're still a "thing", especially with Javi exiting the stage (well at least at comps - does Yuzu keep up with people otherwise - and we know Shoma stays at HOME lol)

I don't follow every Yuzu interview and article, but when Yuzu praise his competition it sounds legit, like targeting a specific part about a skater that he appreciates (Med's consistency, Shoma's mentality, Boyang's 4lz etc.) and actually sounding like he knows what he is talking about.

I'm all in for sportsmanship but the empty praise is neauseating, especially when the fans coo and ah over how good of a person so and so is for saying this and that. Shoma is just protecting his image. Shoma is a better skater than Nathan, period. Nathan may have better jumping technique, but that's it. I find such empty praise bullshit and annoying.

I mean Shoma can fanboy Nathan for his character all he wants but that part of him saying Nathan is more skilled when the guy can't even remember his choreography once he's jumping multiple quads and is just a level above Boyang in PCS (despite his scores) is a farce.

Actually (though I don't know about Shoma), in Kenji's Room I think - well, in one of the interviews - Yuzu is asked what he does in his spare time. He says he talks to his friends online. and another time, Oda said he had been in a chat with Yuzuru and Akiko, during one of the comps. I bet he messages Shoma, as well. He seems to know a lot about him -- after the Olympics, he knew Shoma and Keiji had had some kind of video game tournament but he [Yuzu] hadn't been invited because he wasn't a good enough player - but Shoma was top notch.

And he talked about Shoma having a "titanium" brain that he wished he had - that he was strong and steady - lots of praise. The main thing I remember him saying about Javi is how kind he is (and how his jumps became more consistent after moving to Orser and that's why he wanted to go.) But when he did go to Canada, he had just been training in Russia with Igor and some woman (he said the Russian woman taught him how to express emotion in his skating) -- and Plushenko (if we can trust anything he says), says that the Japanese fed offered him a lot of money to coach Yuzuru, but he himself was still competing and how could he coach a rival?

I have a weird sort of liking for Plushenko - maybe because he's nicer to his little boy that his wife, the boy's mother, is - or maybe because he was so quick to heap praise on Yuzuru at Sochi and after (well, even before.) I don't think every skater would have been so quick to lavish accolades on the new star - that wasn't the case with Chan or Takahashi, anyway, so whatever his motivations, it took swallowing a bit of ego to do that. He could have just flounced and licked his wounds, but there he was, offering a bouquet to 19 year old Yuzu in Russia and bowing to him and saying he was "his [Plush's] hero now." I can't help but admire a man who can do that. I don't remember any skater bending over backwards to pass on the baton so ostentatiously. To a non-Russian!

Loved the interview R4 very cute when he asked for translation and the 'hmm' when he got it. He's very fluent despite having a limited vocabulary. I like his R's

R10 Lol why are people always bringing him that one same interview with Kenji from more than 3 years ago to argue that Yuzu actually has a social life or wants to marry when there are many other interviews and instances at the time and since then that proves the opposite. He doesn't and has admitted that much himself. He may text Oda or others but won't for dinner with them. He had no clue Shoma and Keiji were gaming without him initially and only heard it during the interview when Shoma mentioned it.

R10 I believe Plushenko is sincere with his praise to Yuzu. He has encouraged him since he was a little mushroom. I also believe he isn't as bad a person as most people on Twitter and elsewhere make him out to be. Just a tad bit too self loving and very Russian in his mindset and attitude. He is definitely not as bad as his wife. Even a lot of Russians question what the hell he is doing with her as they seem to be very different actually.

I love all my rink mates! They're all my best friends! Lol gotta appreciate that diplomatic answer, though he said something in Korean before answering, wondering what it was.

So, I was looking at the entries for Skate America and I guess it's a sure win for Nathan. For the ladies I wonder if Bradie will keep her winning streak or if judges will turn blind to Satoko's URs once more. There is also Kaori but not offence to her but she really has a weird face and I cannot watch her because of it. Same reason I can't watch Kevin Reynolds. Sorry for being a bitch.

Gosh the male SP in Yerevan. Who would qualify for JGP if the FS doesn't change the standing? Gogo?

Whatever he asked the translator, it sure seemed quick - so I guess it was "She's asking who my best friend is?" He seemed to pause a bit after clarification, and yes, he was very smart to not blurt out an answer, picking one of them. I really like him. I didn't expect his English to be so good! It's better than Evgenia's though she's getting there. I don't think Yuzu wants to try all that hard, with his tunnel vision focused on skating. Anyway, he's fine. Maybe he should just use Tomono's translator app (and take Shoma's approach - screw all this chit chat - I know skating terms wtf else matters)

Tomono was cute too - he reminded me of a little old man with those glasses. And when I watched him once before, he reminded me of Yuzu, but just now, watching him, he reminded me more of Shoma. Hopefully with better quality jumps. Though I'm a total non-skating expert and there's something I like about even Shoma's jumps - the way he swooshes his arm when he finishes, it's so cool. It's Nathan's landings that are so jarring to watch for me -- just because he does six, he's this supremo? And as the season wears on, his performance, such as it is, just disappears into getting from one jump to another. That can only get worse with 30 seconds less if he insists on using quantity of jumps to win with TES. Blech.

Makes me wish they'd limited the number of quads to four, just to avoid the acrobats taking over. And they're not even smooth with their acrobatics, they just get the job done and rack up the points. Even the little girl quadsters have more quality in the rests of their skates, if you ask me (than Nathan and Vincent.)

Yuzuru is a bodyhome but he used to have a normal life when he wasn't as famous as. During The ice tour in 2012 (2013 ??l) he hanged out with other skaters of the cast. Now he tries to avoid social interactions as much as possible to keep himself out of trouble ( or he's just getting cocky amd didn't want anyone to disturb him lol ). During FAOI tour this summer, Akiko, Kihira, Yuzuru and Miki Ando had a interview together, when MC asked them what Japanese skaters usually talked about when they gathered at ice shows, Miki Ando said Yuzuru always had earphones on during the break time and didn't talk to anyone. It's much more diffcult now to take a photo or have a talk with him than before. Sota Yamamoto also said although they did H&F show together but he wasn't to take a photo with Yuzuru and barely had a chance to talk with him.

But I'm sure he keeps in touch with friends through SNS, message... or hangs out with them in private sometimes.

I can't remember exactly when - maybe this past summer - but I thought it was funny when Miki Ando said Yuzuru needed to ask her out for dinner. Probably joking - but wouldn't that be wild?

He does go to those dinners they have after the comps - or he used to - lots of selfies with everyone all dressed up. I assume they're not absolutely required? Maybe when he's not so uber-focused, he'll branch out.

One time he said his arm was sore from playing video games with "family" all weekend. He has a sister - who may have a husband/kids? I can't imagine he's holed up in his room all the time. His schedule looks pretty packed, juding by this past year, with awards ceremonies, school visits, interviews, doing commercials, and his actual daily work requires being around people, so I don't think of him as an otaku, just a man on a seemingly life-or-death mission to be the best skater in the world.

It'll be interesting to see how he evolves. I mean, it's ok to remain a loner with a solitary focus, like a Nicola Tesla or something. It's not like he's a hermit in a cave.

Banquets after competitions are official events where you also usually have journalists and/or sport officials, so it doesn't count as him going out with other skaters. Even during the ICE 2012 he wasn't mingling with the other skaters outside of the rink and that was way before he got immensely popular. Miki was mentioning it in context of Yuzu always replying no to her attempts to get him to have dinner with her and Javi when she was still dating him. And yes he spends a lot of time with his family. Not sure his sister is married yet though. I didn't call him an otaku or a hikikomori but there is a margin between calling him a shut-in which he obviously isn't by virtue of spending hours every day training with other people and saying he has a social life. He doesn't and that's fine. As you said he is an elite athlete focused on his craft.

Here is some more "straight" Hanyu.

What is he doing

R21 I think Yuzu probably declines dinner invitations because he's not into food at all and probably wants to maintain a very specific diet. And perhaps, like many people, he can't stand Miki Ando either.

R24 you're not the first person to say that about Miki. Dirt Czar used to say she was very unpopular. Why is she disliked (other than constantly putting her foot in her mouth)?

I haven't had a chance to watch jgp armenia, but from standings looks like gogo still has a chance to make the finals then? Mozalev needs to get better than 5th right?

I did think about some kind of ocd that might be going on. With Tesla, that I mentioned before, he couldn't stand to touch people - germaphobe - and he had an aversion to getting close to people. Probably related to his genius (Albert Einstein had a son who had to be hospitalized for Asperger's - there's some kind of weird connection between autism and genius in math/science - and it's hereditary.)

I'm not saying that's exactly what's going on with Yuzuru but in one interview, he said he knew which parent he inherited his intensity/focus from (he didn't say which though - he just smiled and said "I have a pretty good idea" of where his inordinate drive came from.)

Maybe extreme performance people often have quirks of one kind or another, that both contribute to their amazing accomplishments and detract from their normalcy or "ordinariness."

He also told Kenji that he thinks his life would have been very different if it hadn't been for skating. But then, he might have focused intently on something else - so who knows? How can someone that famous lead a normal social life? This is too extreme an example - but maybe in a way it's similar - Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, Madonna, JPop and KPop stars - these people can't lead normal lives, like the rest of us. A lot of them resort to drugs, maybe to escape the goldfish bowl existence they're in - at least Yuzu hasn't done that and I don't think he will. He's handling things pretty well, it seems to me, other than maybe a tendency to depression but loads of people have that problem, no matter what their life circumstances are.

Sheesh I feel guilty for over-focusing myself on this poor guy. Who else can we pick apart? Who's the next superstar? Nathan? Gogo? Gumennik? Cha?

Reminds me of his face when he was grabbing Lambiel' s butt. He has really mischievous eyes like he is either judging you or up to no good or both at the same time.

JGP ARM Men SP Top 10

Ivan Shmuratko 72.08

Iliya Kovler 71.38

Adam Siao Him Fa 70.50

Ryan Dunk 68.45

Yuto Kishina 67.04

Yuma Kagiyama 65.10

Andrei Mozalev 62.72

Artur Danielian 62.33

Alec Guinzbourg 60.61

Geonhyeong An 59.13

And Trusova beat them all.

r16 r25 Yep, if the standings remain like now Gogo will make it to JGPF. I'm still giving it 5% of probability though.

Despite all the continuous circle jerk over every detail of Hanyu's life that's been going on for the last couple of threads, it's the first time I've ever heard that the Japanese Fed wanted Plushenko to coach Hanyu. Thank Fucking God it didn't happen.

Btw, can that one poster stop drooling over that pretentious "lion/mouse" comparison. We've heard about it some dozen time already, it's fucking tedious.

Mozalev and Danielian popped the Axel

Mozalev needs to raise to 4th (9 points) to be sure to pass Gogolev. If he finishes 5th, he needs a 134.37 FS to beat Gogo.

If Fa (which are the names and which are the surnames?) is third, he is out. If he ends up second, he would go to 24 points. A 163.77 FS (he only scored 133 at Skate Canada) is needed to oust Koshiro.

Kishina needs second and more than 171 points in FS to pass Koshiro. With a win he gets through. Kagiyama needs to win.

R5 I don't understand the hard-on the JPN boys have for Nathan (Dai called him handsome). I can get on board with Hanyu grabbing his fistful of Lambiel, but I don't get what the other two are thinking.

R30 I think Plushenko mentioned this in an interview - that the JPN fed approached him about Hanyu in 2010. I don't know that I buy this entirely. I don't buy Hanyu going to Toronto for Javi's 4s either. That's the story he likes to tell, but from other accounts it's clear he and his family considered a number of other options based on practical factors such transportation, air quality, training conditions etc.

R31 Thanks for this! Who knew it'd be such a toss up in the end. Mozalev got a 138.29 in his last FS in JGP Czech so 134.37 is very possible for him.

R32 Javi's progression under Orser was no doubt one of the factors. But that's it.

Kostornaia, Trusova and Shcherbakova are interesting to watch and will likely dominate when they turn senior, but by next Olys, they will all be over the hill! I think we need to be looking at the 11-12 year olds in Eteri's camp.

R33 but the Japanese fed had already talked to Orser about taking Mao, right? Wouldn't Yuna Kim's success be a bigger factor than Javi's improvement in less than a year?

Maybe Yuzu brought up Plushenko because who the hell else would even think of him. So that fell through - and the fed brought up Orser and Yuzu checked out Javi only at that point and noticed he was more consistent?

Shoma's praise of Nathan could be his way of sticking it to Yuzu. I don't know why some fans work so hard at convincing themselves that these direct competitors are good friends off the ice. Why would they be? Why would they even want to be?

As for his looks, I find Nathan average at best (I'm being generous here).

Attempt at a quadsters' roundup (of best results) since August - how many of these guys is Trusova surpassing?

Uno landed 4 quads w/UR call on 4F; fell on 3A (Lombardia) Aliev landed 3 quads in first half (Lombardia) - but his FS was 6th at Lombardia with no quads Hanyu landed 2 quads, fell on 1, popped the 4th quad. (ACI) Boyang Jin attempted 5 quads, 2 3As, but fell twice and popped twice – only landed the 4Lo (UR); his 4Lz was downgraded. (some Chinese comp) Kolyada landed 1 quad - planned 4S and 4T but didn’t do 4S. (Finlandia) Chen landed 1 quad; fell 3 times: 2Lo(ftdwn), 4Lz(fall), 3F3T, 3A, 4T, 4T(fall), 4S(fall) – his 2Lo was an attempted quad. (Japan Open) Zhou only managed 2 quads at US Classic, but 4Lz & 4S, both downgraded. (US Intl)

r35 Lol, I could totally see that.

Japanese Fed: "So what do we do with with our junior world champion? Shall we send him abroad? Any preference where you'd like to train, Yuzu? " Hanyu: "With Plushenko?" Fed: "Well, why the hell not, the dude does know how to jump quads and how to win, we can try."

Actually, I believe Hanyu that Fernandez played a role. After they narrowed down a few options, the decision might have come down to Hanyu's preference and I'd totally believe a good 4S could have been all it took.

r36 Why are some people so hell-bent on the idea that praising Nathan Chen is a veiled insult to Hanyu? Can't people actually appreciate something about Nathan Chen without it having to be all about Hanyu? Can't they even be politically correct about their rivals, without it being a veiled insult to Hanyu? In this alternate universe, does not mentioning Hanyu equal insulting Hanyu too?

10/10

r28 The difference between the top 8 is only 10 points. Given what a mess a FS can be, there will be a lot of movement on that list. Shmuratko's beaten his own SP score from the prevous JGP by 18 points, but his previous FS score was 103, so something easily beatable by Mozalev/Danielian whose scores are in the 140 range.

Figure Skating TV show coming to Netflix. I hope is good.

R41 Sounds like shit. Unlikely to be the masterpiece that is The Cutting Edge.

R38 Clearly you belong on a politically correct site like GS where no one would dare suggest that skaters have anything but the highest regard for each other.

Emma Roberts is a deal breaker already.

R43 Pointing out that the world doesn't revolve around Hanyu is hardly controversial or a sign of political correctness, just common sense.

R42

I hope for some revisions to the script...something like

Option A: set in Japan. A young short male skater attempts to pre-rotate his way to 2022 Olympic Gold with the help from fluffy always laughing coach. 90 versions of the same costume (just with different colours) will be used during the series. It's a silent movie.

Option B: set in China. A young girl is forced into pair skating with a 80 year old man (claiming to be 35) because the Spirits appeared in a dream to Zho have predicted gold in Beijing

Option C: a young humble guy from Palo Alto wants to be a figure skater. A poet. An academic. A novelist. An aspirational leader. Each episode will end with a 20 lines self-centered Instagram post. Humble, always.

I think they should do a life story on Yuzuru Hanyu. So many ups and downs. Start with when he was born and end it when he wins his second Olympic gold.

R46 Lol I'm positive each of these would be deeper and more compelling than the actual show.

R46 The idea of Shoma as a silent movie actor is pure genius. My only question is how do we differentiate between his costumes without color?

The show's probably focus on ladies skating, the bitch character, the goodie character, the one with anorexia, add some token represantion, probably an asian chick and a lesbian or a gay best friend. Plus some Neflix-sque sex scene in an ice rink closet.

r43 No sweets, I'm just and hater of the basic lack of logic and idol worship to the point of stupidity. And saying that Uno's praising of Chen means Uno wants to stick it to Hanyu ticks all the boxes.

r44 Who's Emma Roberts?

R50 it's about Pairs. Former single skater girl turned into pairpartnered with bad boy male skater

r53 If the girl's secret is that she's a lesbian, I might watch. Otherwise, sounds like a staple .

R52 Eric's daughter and Julia's niece. A crackho (allegedly)

R36. I agree with you. I think he may be sticking it to Yuzuru as well. Nathan? Why Nathan?

I doubt uno and Yuzuru are friends. And.......uno was part of the Dai group sitting while poor Yuzuru was left standing.

r46 Great ideas.

Here's mine: After losing an Olympic gold because of injury, a super-talented Yevgenia Bedvedeva leaves her long-time evil coach in Russia, and, egged on by her two-faced friend Tisha Ke, and motivated by her love for a two-time Olympic Champion Tatzuru Nanyu, she moves to a Canadian super school to train for that Olympic gold. But not everything is roses and sunshine, Tatzuru Nanyu turns out to be gay, her new coach may not exactly be the miracle worker everybody take him for and her evil former former coach is churning out superskaters like there's no tomorrow.

r55 Thanks. I missed her existence somehow.

That sounds uninspired at R53 I hope it doesn't get past post-production.

Sounds amazing R57

I meant pre production lmao

I'd pitch a movie with an irrelevant hetero love story line and based on some scandal. That's all it needs to get produced anyway.

About a 2x world champion skater who gets pregnant by someone on her team (but keeps the baby daddy a secret), dates her coach, is ostracized by her country but returns to skating, and is whisked away in the end by a handsome spaniard who was always present and her supportive teammate. (End credits reveal they break up eventually.)

r61 Skip the end credits.

Now I know why I'm so addicted to FS. Sometimes it's like a trashy movie, sometimes it's like an arthouse drama.

R61 Ewww I know you didn't intend it but I'm having this sickening image of Zhenya dating Brian Orser after date-raping Yuzu (who, btw, did make a public announcement that he was not Miki Ando's baby daddy though I'm pretty sure his tongue was firmly in cheek)

r63 In other words, Med is just made for movies?

Yeah, actually, the storyline is growing on me. Now THAT's a skating film for the arthouses of Japan and, uh, Russia I guess. A pretty girl breaks up a longterm gay marriage of two 60 year olds, and a hermit virgin becomes a horndog....

I loved The Cutting Edge. DB Sweeney was a real cutie.

R66 Toepick!!

r65 Throw in a threesome with a Spaniard.

R68 But the threesome ends horribly when they are joined by a handsome Canadian pairs skater and the three forget about our heroine altogether, leaving her alone to skate to the sound of her soul leaving her body. fin

r69 True art is angsty.

Shoma was asked about Nathan and Yuzuru in the same interview; he praised them both.

Thank you so much for that information, R71. Maybe it was at Golden Skate (that's where his comments about Nathan were) or PH or something, but it's hard to keep up, and easy to jump to false conclusions. I thought from just watching them that they were always friendly to each other, and they've known each other since juniors and been at numerous events/competitions together. There's a video of Yuzuru worried about Shoma being cold, and he takes off his jacket and gives it to him. And they stuck together like glue at the Olympics gala. So many little things but just hard to fathom that there's bad blood of any kind, for me, anyway.

You're very welcome, [R72]. I read a summary at Golden Skate. And I agree with you--there's an enormous amount of evidence for warm feelings between Yuzuru and Shoma, and none at all (that I know of) for the opposite. The smiles and laughter they always share seem very genuine to me. I just love that jacket video!

You guys should get into movie making business and hopefully produce some better FS related movies. Although real life trumps fiction, seemingly..,

r74 If they just took a few of those real life stories and put them together in one set, maybe just add a bit extra, they'd have a hit like Yuri on Ice did.

Take Yuzu-based character and give him a love interest, gay one if you want to be modern, straight one if you want to be mainstream, take Evgenia and Yulia Lipnitskaya and have them struggle with each other or than juniors, take the rivalling coaches, Eteri, Orser, Morozov, take Aliona Savchenko and her quest, Lysacek and Weir, take Ilynkh/Katsalapov and Sinitsina/Whatshisname and the forced Chinese-type switcheroo, juxtapose them with lifelong partnership like Virtue/Moir. Don't forget Javier/Miki/Morozov. Have them all screw each other to be more edgy. Go for Yulia/Evgenia/ Yuzu/Javi/Miki/Morozov/Amodio. Add a couple kids under pressure like Gogo, Nathan, Schcherbakova. Morozov, Eteri, Hao Zhang are the villains. Katsalapov and Ilynkh are the bitches you love to hate. The crazy instagram fangirl who signs up for classes so she can stalk her idol and ditzy Gabby but have her more talented, and a phony conceited combination of Patrick/Vincent. I'm sure Plushenko, Yuna and Mao could be accommodated too.

Pity about that "it's all fiction" rule. The best would be if they could basically transplant the characters, screw subtelty.

Daleman and Austman both WD from Skate Canada. Choi out of both assignments.

r76 Whoa. Canada's in deep shit with the ladies. I wonder what's up with Gabby, it can't be the bowel condition. Health problem? Mental problem? Coaching problem?

Why make a movie out of that if you can just watch skating, R75?

r78 Mybe I'd get a fantasy gay Yuzu/Javier and a public Eteri/Evgenia screaming match?

r78 Excuse me, I'm watching figure skating for the skating. Where's that protocol sheet I can bitch about.

[quote]Whoa. Canada's in deep shit with the ladies. I wonder what's up with Gabby, it can't be the bowel condition. Health problem? Mental problem? Coaching problem?

Considering her body image issues, I wouldn't be surprised if she has an ED (which might then lead to other health problems).

I know Evgenia didn't want to switch countries. but Canada could probably sweeten that pot up if they wanted her. If Russians hate her anyway, what is there to lose?

R77 With Gabby it's probably "all of the above." And having the popular Med training now at TCC with one of her coaches can't have helped matters.

R81 Gabby has talked about having an eating disorder but is supposedly past that.

Seems like Javi really doesn't care much about his European title. He is still in Spain enjoying life with his girlfriend who btw has a bigger jaw than him.

There was a post in either this thread or the previous one. I can't remember. The poster was talking about Hanyu and said something about a lot of people experience depression. That is true. However, when someone (in this case Hanyu) tries to take their own life then it needs to be looked at seriously and get the person the help they need. I'm sorry but I don't like to brush depression off as an oh well others have it too kind of thing.

Christ, you Yuzuru ubers are tedious.

R83 Less than 1 months until his ice show. It seems he will stay at Spain until then and he's not serious about EC anymore.

The fandom of this hypothetical TV Show would be even more crazy and extra, imagine them ship wars.

I think Javi probably just wants to have a farewell skate at EC, don’t think he’d be terribly upset if he doesn’t win the gold. If he’s anxious in anyway after experiencing the free skate at JO he’d take more initiative to return to TCC. But instead we see this chilled and relaxed Javi in various selfie shots. Seems he’s enjoying life, that’s great for him, he deserves it after competing non stop at elite level for so many years. remember he was going to take a year off after Sochi? Now he can finally have some off time to spend with his girl.

The fact that Javi doesn't like dick is one of life's greatest tragedies

This looks like a very pretty costume. I would love to see those pictures in high res especially the 2nd from the left. Unfortunately given that these are so called clearfiles which fans in Japan would sell their family to obtain and then keep jealously, I doubt we will get them anytime soon. However since it's for some Lotte ad he apparently shot, we should at least see him in it at some point.

R89 To be honest I still have my doubts about Javi. When he was much younger he used to ping quite a bit. These past few years he has gone full Plushenko's 'aggressively heterosexual' route but I'm still not fully convinced. Or I'm just refusing to accept reality.

I'd be less suspicious if the aggressive heterosexuality didn't coincide with promotional efforts to raise his profile in his home country. But really, while he might have dabbled a little in the past, looks like he's into the current gf.

R92 He looked like he was into Miki as well. The guy is 27 and has had 2 fiances already which for someone from Europe is absolutely not common. It's like each time he wants to prove to everyone that it's a super serious relationship. He has also mentioned several times how difficult it was as a male figure skater in Spain and how he used to be mocked for doing a girly/gay sport. And of course he wants to make it more popular in a country where football and neandearthalian displays of masculinity are still the norm when it comes to sport. I also remembered what he said befire Sochi. I know the journalists twisted it but still it shows how uncomfortable he is with this. So, not sure he is not straight but he is a tiny bit too conscious about appearing straight.

I feel sorry for Gabby but boy is the cricket pr backfiring on Orser in so many different ways. First his students underperform compared to Eteri's. Now after months of painting Eteri as a coach whose abusive methods cause her students to have a limited shelf life, it's Orser's own student who is having a very public meltdown (apparently Gabby's also posted and deleted a few odd things on her sns).

he was into miki ?when? They met each other twice a year? It was typical bullshit relationship.

R95 I believe it was mostly PR after a while but there were quite a lot of lovey dovey pictures of them up until 2016 and him acting like a dad to her daughter which I really hope wasn't part of the whole PR thing because what a shitty thing to do to that poor fatherless child.

Too bad Javi learned to contain himself on social media. He used to respond to the crazies on Instagram, like when he first posted a pic of himself and current gf, a few followers were like, WHAT ABOUT MIKI AND YOUR CHILD!! He said something along the lines of, "why should I stay with her if she doesn't make me happy." Harsh, Javier, harsh.

R94 I think she is probably not taking well having Medvedeva there and seeing all the attention focused on her.

R94, what odd things? You make me ever so curious. I wonder how Orser and co intend to deal with this meltdown. I too think it's largely to do with Medvedeva being the focus now. But I do hope Gabby is just being a drama queen and it's nothing serious. R97, did he ever reply to the ever-present comments on his instagram suggesting Yuzu is his intended?

EC is months away so IDC if Javi doesn't want to train seriously now, but if it comes around he still is in off mode I'd rather he just not return, unless he shows that he doesn't want a podium placement and intentionally does doubles as a fuck you to judges. Otherwise, I'd rather not see his failed miserable jumps and sloppy skating that happens when he doesn't get the tes.

I don't know if Javi is straight or not, but I do think even if he ever manages to stay long enough to marry someone it's a relationship/marriage that won't last anyway. Not necessarily that he's a bad person but the guy seems the type to fall in and out of love.

R98 Who even feels comfortable having Med at TCC ? She arrived and brought there a lot of shit thanks to her shameless PR team. They could have handled coach change better but they deciced to turn it into a fucking fuss instead.

I doubt Javi's taste. I have difficulty imagining any guys get hooked on a hoe like Miki Ando.

R99 Sorry "odd" is too loaded. Someone on my TL mentioned that Gabby seemed messy and depressed in some of the IG stories she has posted and deleted. I haven't seen them myself. I didn't mean to suggest that Brian is responsible for Gabby's issues, just that figure skaters seem to have a lot of issues but when it's Eteri's students people are quick to point the finger at the coach (might be somewhat true in her case).

With respect to comments about Hanyu, I remember one time Javi said something like "haha, that's fine if you say these things as long as you are able to separate fact from fiction." Now he just seems to ignore the comments.

Why blame Gabby's problems on Med? If Gabby's having a breakdown because there's another star skater in the building, there are other issues there. Probably makes Brian nostalgic for the days when there was merely "tension" between Hanyu and Fernandez and having them train in different rinks solved the problem.

Skaters should not try to make the sport more manly in order to get people to respect it, instead they should understand the sport is in fact not manly all the time and people should respect it and embrace it as it is.

R100 EC might be months away, but Javi has ROI from November through the end of December. That leaves him a little more than 2 weeks before EC. If he's serious, he needs to train now. He doesn't even have an SP yet. Oh well, like someone said above, maybe Javi just doesn't give a shit and had already moved on with his life. Wouldn't blame him.

r101

[quote]I doubt Javi's taste. I have difficulty imagining any guys get hooked on a hoe like Miki Ando.

Not sure if you're a gay guy who's blind to those things or a woman who, for some unexplicable reason, has no clue, but Miki is absolutely gorgeous in real life. Saw her once, Barcelona 2015, she was standing in a line at Sturbucks a few feet away from me, and she was probably the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. The type that turns heads, There's absolutely nothing surprisng that a guy would get hooked on her, at least for some time.

R106 Thanks for your perspective, Miki! I'm sure in your mind you turn heads and are the most stunning woman in any Starbucks you walk into!!! How do you live with all that beauty??

haaa Miki the MOST beautiful?The type that turns heads/?? lol she is awful . Not to mention her personality

R106 Lol. I have never seen someone who doesn't look good on picture look really gorgeous in real life. At most they are slightly better looking. Miki has a weird smile which makes her look like the Cheshire cat and there is something off with her face overall. I doubt those suddenly look good because you see it out of a camera lense. Javi's current girlfriend might not be top model beautiful but she is still much prettier than Miki.

Maybe it's like how they say the camera adds 15 lbs, but in Miki's case the camera it adds fug face. Such bad luck!

I haven't seen her program yet but holy shit, Trusova's TES was 85.27!

At Worlds was even bigger , so ??

Judge from Russia and Romania gave +2 for her lutz, lol

It's common knowledge that Javi is a slacker when it comes to training and that it took constant monitoring and action by Brian to keep him on track. Somehow I doubt that continuing to do that is high on Brian's priority list right now.

Well, can't even be mad. So much talent and so stupid from Japan to be that unable to place their girls so that they have a chance.

R115 Japanese juniors field this year is the weakeast in the last few years. Mind you.

R114 We all know that but even as a show skater he should not let himself go too much or his programs are going to suffer. People don't buy a ticket to see you put on a wig and sit at a table or fail your spins miserably. I respect Oda for still training hard and respecting the audiences by putting out entertaining programs in ice shows.

R117 I could not agree more. But Javi seems to lack the motivation/discipline/whatever that skaters like Oda have. He's a party guy.

I think Javi compensates with comedy style show programs, which works with the people who are willing to pay to watch him. It’s his own ice show, I think those who are going do embrace the type of skater that he is.

Such a sad irony that the season that Katelyn Osmond sits out, Gabby derails. Med was no threat to her if she'd be content to try for the Canadian national title. I read on GS that she'd never even gotten a GP medal before so why should she hold herself up as a rival to a champion like Med? Oh well, at least she has the Olympic team gold. Med didn't end up too happy with her Olympic results either.

What a mentally tough sport - so many headcases (I of course don't mean Med -- at least not yet). From GS: "[Gabby] did her SP at US Classics and despite what she said about wanting to up the component score, she did the 3T3T in lieu of the 3T3Lz." And her long is Samson and Delilah - so all prepped and ready to go, from the sound of it. Seems weird to say I hope it's a physical injury - but that's better than a mental breakdown.

Orser will drop her soon. Poor girl.

I don't think Gabby is concerned that Med would outskate her in competitions. But prior to Med coming to TCC, she was the top female skater there. And it was obvious she loved all the attention she got for that.

R121 Orser seems to have already done that. Not formally, of course. Because that would look terrible. But he didn't even sit with her at Worlds this year.

Lee Barkell is Gabby's main coach, not Brian.

Sasha gets shit from some fs fans for her quads, but Gogo gets nothing. It's the power of the D. Although, to judges the quads of both are superior than some of the grown men lmao. I guess it's because they also love Uno.

The quad craze during the last 4 years was hype, but I'm losing interest now seeing such ugly prerotated quads get high GOEs. I find it funny that Sasha fans are so quick to denounce Miki's junior quad as underorated by today's standards when Sasha barely gets enough rotations in the air for hers too. Waiting for history to repeat itself.

R124

[quote]Waiting for history to repeat itself.

You mean for Trusova to lose her quads after she turns senior, like Miki? Trusova's 4lz today was so pre-rotated it barely qualified as a quad and she got +2s for it from 2 judges. Trusova's jumping is truly impressive but I like watching Kostornaia and Shcherbakova much more. And I think once people get over the shock of a little girl performing all of these quads, they'll take a closer look at the quality of her jumps and the grumbling will start (well, I guess it's already started). 2022 is a lifetime away in skating years and by then she will likely be a has-been on crutches.

Trusova's quads are the most decent attemps from a female skater, they are excessively PRed though. Miki Ando, Asada, Sasha Cohen's quad attemps were both PRed and URed, they even went well beyond 1/2 turn on landing, which should have got downgraded by today's standard. Trusova for now has a perfect body for jumping. Besides that no hip, no boob body helps her rotate very fast, her jump's ice coverage and height are also good. But I don't think she can keep her quads after she turns senior unless her body remains a girl's body forever, which is very unlikely bc she has the same body type as Alina Zagitova.

Veronik Mallet has got one of the Skate Canada slots. I guess that Alicia Pineault will get the other one reserved to Canada.

R127 Jesus, they must be really desperate. Hasn't Mallet been gone for like 2 seasons? I thought she retired.

R128 Mallet was 6th at Finland Trophy last week with 170 points. But yes, she previously competed in 2016

Skate Canada statement

Austman is recovering left foot sprain that she sustained in September.

Daleman "has taken a break from training to focus on her mental health."

Mallet and Pinneault will replace them

R129 Thanks, I guess I didn't even notice she skated in Finland.

R130 Wow. It's rare for a fed to acknowledge that a skater is WD due to mental health issues, isn't it? Or have there been other instances?

R131 That's Mallet for you

She has been clean, no jump with negative GOE but she doesn't do 3+3 combos

R123 I think most of us know that. But Brian is Gabby's "big name" coach. When she won that World bronze, he was bragging about how this proved that someone with her body type (as opposed to those skinny Russian girls) can win medals too.

R130 Gracie Gold has made it okay to talk about mental health now. Also, Gabby seems to enjoy publicly talking about her issues--bullying, eating disorders, bowel problems, etc.

R132 Thanks very much. That wasn't bad, given the 2 year absence, but even in her prime she was never a top flight skater.

R133 Well, there's no shame in it and I hope she gets better, I just don't recall a fed stating it so bluntly. Even when Gracie WD, it was her own statement and she was vague about it (something about seeking "professional help") and didn't reveal that it was for ED and mental health issues until later. Maybe it's nothing, but I guess I was just hoping these issues - which seem to be so prevalent among skaters - are getting some recognition on an official level and not just being swept under the rug.

r108 r109 r110 Maybe you should get some perspective? Have you considered that beauty is a matter of taste? Miki's looks definitely tips my preference scales towards the vagina (I'm a woman by the way), big time, maybe I'm not the only one who finds her beautiful? Like, hello, maybe some vagina-preferring men would actually go for her? Because, get this, not everybody's taste is the same as yours and, as evidenced by myself, people can find Miki incredibly hot? I'm telling you, I couldn't help but stare at her. When I saw her, she was elegantly dressed, her body was perfect and her face was just stunning. I was lucky I wasn't drooling, but damn, she was fine.

[ / lusting after Miki]

I am a woman too and I find her ugly, sorry. Her body was perfect- perfect body requares boobs and hips. She looks like a man

r137 No, no, you're so wrong.

r124 I'm not sure what threads you've bern reading but Gogo got plenty of shit here and at PH? I don't have access to GS or FSU comp threads, but where I looked, he got more criticism than appreciation.

I think Med's presence may have affected Gabby. Not that she got less attention, after they had different coaches, but if she had training sessions with Med, maybe Med's approach to training was more hardcore and Gabby saw what it takes to be a real top skater? Tursy said, long ago, that TCC's approach to training is more like guidance and recommendations rather than strict regimen. Maybe, like Javi, Gabby needed a stronger hand? Total speculation on my part, I may be talking out of my ass.

[R138} no no YOU re wrong.. Perfect female body doesnt look like hers. Just because she is thin doesnt mean she is perfect. i dont know how fat you re , but lets face it for you perfect means something different then for me.

R139 Lol.

Gabby seems to have a very strong need for attention. I think her issues are much more serious than Gracie's ever were. I think in Gracie's case it was a bunch of things hitting her all at once, not the least of which was her father's addiction issues. Gracie also seems much more intelligent and self-aware than Gabby.

r138 Judging by the empty reference posts, you're talking to the Daitroll.

{R139} LOL is your description on what you call perfect. No ass, no hips, and no boobs. Just fugly face with tons of make up, troll

Jesus fucking christ. Why are you fraus fighting over that gargoyle with Baby Jane eye makeup?

r142 Lol, yeah, I realized that when it called me fat.

r144 Because Hanyu's not competing, we've already seen all the ass shots and we're bored.

R136 Did you ever consider that you might simply have a bad case of extreme shit taste?

[R136] extremely shit taste Whats gargoyle means?

Hey! Remember me? Assley Wagner? Hey! Hello....is this thing on?

{R145} Sorry, I opuldnt find any other reason to justify your posting that sheis perfect. Tell whay perfect means fo you.I cannot believe that someone can call her body perfect with that kind of flat cheat and ass . Lets have some decency

hahha chest , not cheat..I write too fast and those hanyutroll will start calling me out again

Why the hate against flat chested girls

I think Miki is very pretty but her ears stick out.

Look how long Yuzuru's top drapes down (as he's sitting tying a skate - or posing, or whatever). It looks long enough to be a dress to me ?!? Was he inspired by Johnny Weir's "Creep" (except his is pretty, of course)

R149 Yes, Ash, we remember you. And even if we didn't, your telling us how depressed you were after losing Nationals and an Olympic berth--another skater with a MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEM--got our attention. Gracie certainly opened up the floodgates.

It looks like a tunic. Very ethereal.

R142. You know How I know it's Daitroll? When I see this: you re. She doesn't put the apostrophe lol. It's a dead give away.

R154. Wow. He looks so pretty. I have never seen a bad photo of Hanyu yet!

Google his jump faces R158

This can't be all the skaters Javi invited to his ice show...can it? P/C are the only really big name active skaters, and they're only doing 1 of the shows. Others: Cappellini/Lannotte, Elladj Balde, Jeff Buttle, Yuko Sato, Ondrej Hotarek (solo?), Smart/Diaz, Dyturt/Bonheur. Meh...

R160 Do you know when this was announced? Just yesterday or so, Spanish media was implying that there would be a big name announced (I think they said it was a "bomb") and people were speculating that it could be Hanyu or Plush.

R160 Given that the show dates are right around GP comps and GPFs, I can see why more active skaters couldn't make it. Even P/C are only signed on for one show, after GPFs.

I can understand that. But he had a pretty decent cast for the first version of the show - Med, Misha Ge, Hubbell/Donahue, etc. Maybe he hasn't announced everyone yet. I really hope the "bombshell" isn't Plushenko...he's been skating the same damn show programs for about a decade now.

R163 Yeah, if there is a "bombshell," it's likely Plush. I guess it's possible for Hanyu to drop in between Helsinki and Rostelecom or after Nats, but unlikely.

You guys are crazy if you think Fernandez would ever invite Hanyu to his show. His ice show is the one place where the spotlight is on him instead of Hanyu

Since his retirement, Hotarek has been skating in shows with his wife. Bad breakup with Marchei or he simply figured more money to their family budget this way?

R165 Well, if you put it that way...

R166 When Marchei announced the split on her insta, it seemed amicable. She wanted to continue to the next Olys, and I can't imagine he'd want to continue skating that long (he'd be 38). Has she found a new partner yet?

R165 This. I fully agree. If Yuzu comes it will be full house but of people who came for Yuzu, not him and the proud Spaniard can't have that happen.

Mozalev 194.28 score. He would lose the tie break to Gogo if he finishes 5th. He needs 4th place finish

Kigyama 202 points. Into the lead

Danielian has a problem with the costume. The necklace was flying around. I think he lost it at some point

195.30. Ahead of Mozalev (who now needs only 1 skater out of the last group to outscore him)

Mozalev is screwed.

Danielan always looks so miserable when he skates...why do they give him these Javi-esque programs?

R173 Danielan looks so miserable also when he doesn't skate

Kishina bombed.

Dunk 195.30. Third. Tied with Danielan who is ahead because of stronger FS

Kovler 201.

Mozalev is out.

Gogolev now needs to root for the Ukraine. He needs Kagiyama not to win and the French guy being out of top 2, I think

Adam Siam Him Fa 205.83

He qualifies for the final.

Gogolev is out.

Koshiro Shimada is also qualified

Thanks for the real time updates! 3 US men. TCC is having a bad week.

Qualifiers for the 2018-19 JGPFinal - Men

1. PetrGumennik (RUS)

2. CamdenPulkinen (USA)

3. AdamSiaoHimFa (FRA)

4. TomokiHiwatashi (USA)

5. AndrewTorgashev (USA)

6. KoshiroShimada (JPN)

I'm happy with the final outcome. Sexy Brian and Stephane both have students in the final, and the skaters who bombed their 2nd assignment don't get to go. Good news.

R177 I hope it teaches Orser a lesson. He really believed himself to be almighty after Pyeongchang, forgetting the long list of skaters he has wasted and who left him. Even with Yuzu, he shouldn't brag too much because after Boston Worlds, he was also very close to lose him and it's mainly thanks to Yuzu's own strength of character and intelligence and his bond with Tracy and how she helped him out that he sticked to TCC instead of packing his bags back to Japan or elsewhere like a lot of his fans wanted him to do after that fiasco. We will see what happens later during the season but so far the one laughing is Eteri.

R173 Danielan probably gets Javi programs because he asks for them. He's said Javi is his favorite.

R179 lol when I first saw "sexy Brian" I thought, wtf is he talking about. Agreed, nice to see an actual sexy Brian again.

Interpretation for Danielan went from 6.0 (French judge... trying to hold thinking about Fa?) and 8.0 (Georgian judge)

So far skaters who left Orser Nam Nguyen and Elizabet Tursy have gained better results than when they were with him.

R183 Nguyen has continued for years to flop after he left Orser. Have we forgot that he failed to qualify for FS at 2018 Worlds (an edition with many absences and people like Carillo, Harris and the Armenian guy making the cut)?.

And he left 100 coaches in the meantime. Because he used to listen to his dad more than his coaches (and he notoriously didn't do the off ice training he was recommended at TCC)

the "Former Coach" list on ISU bio for Nguyen is so long that they had to go to the next line

R180. What happened with Hanyu at Boston World's that would almost make him want to pack up and leave?

R186: He lied to his coaches about the extent of his injuries.

Juniors: It’s ridiculous to put so much pressure on these juniors. I get it’s the nature of the biz, but it’s ridiculous Is gogo considered a has been or never was now?

Adam Rippon went through several coaches after he left Orser. And Adam didn't have Nam's growth spurt issues. During Nam's last season with him, Orser took a bad situation and made it worse by not doing damage control early in the season when it was obvious to everyone that Nam could not handle his new programs. They should have either let him go back to the old programs while he worked to adjust to his new height or greatly simplified his new programs. And they should also have helped him with the emotional toll that growing so much so quickly and losing his jumps took on him. These skaters are kids; they're not adults. Also, prior to Nam's last season with him, Orser had always praised Nam's work ethic. I doubt the kid turned into a major slacker overnight.

R180 I hope Orser learns a lesson too. I originally was a major fan of his but his behavior finally caused me to remove the rose-colored glasses and take a more critical look at him. His behavior after these Olympics has really shocked me--the most recent shock being the ugly way he behaved in the K&C with Gogolev. I used to think that if I had a skating prodigy, Orser is the coach I would want for my kid. Not anymore. I also think that TCC's "team approach" has some serious drawbacks.

Okay but I would want my kids at TCC just for Tracy and Ghislain. TCC with a team approach actually means I at least like someone in the team.

R189: I see no issues with that behavior if the skater performs like a twat. Thanks, in large part to the scoring system and egos, there seems to be no time to let the skaters develop.

R190: Their role at TCC is good cop.

I want my kids to be coached by the Italian woman with the OTT disgusted look and head shake in K&C after a bad skate

R193: yes, and she’ll consider every skate a bad skate!

R193 The ever exquisite Marilu Guarnieri!

What has Orser done now that everybody's shitting on him? Did he say again that Fernandez is his greatest success?

I'll let the Orser haters savor the sweet sweet schadenfreude and goodness knows he's asked for it in the recent Med interviews, but I don't think it's reasonable to blame him for every issue his students encounter. Gogo is very young, this is his first JGP season, lesson learned, he'll bounce back; Gabby seems to have deep issues that only a psychologist can fix; Nam, Adam didn't listen to Brian and that was the problem; with Tursy it seemed like there was a cultural disconnect and it wasn't a good fit, that happens.

R196 I think people are annoyed at all the drama Brian drummed up this summer over Med and all the constant PR for Gogo and now that he's not producing results, it's fun to shit on him. Can't blame them.

R197 Have you seen the number of skaters you just listed who had issues while training at TCC but somehow it's just never Orser's fault.

Orser's petty comments towards Sasha Trusova were also completely uncalled for. She is doing exactly what Gogolev is doing. She is just much better at it.

r179 Wtf, it's his job to PR his students. Is he allowed to PR only Hanyu?

R198 I wasn't clear but the point I was trying to make was that they have very different issues and I don't see Brian being the common denominator in all of them. I'm sure if you analyzed any top coach you will find a similar number of or more students that have left them to find success with other coaches. Coaches are usually judged on their successes not failures (except for Eteri, I guess).

R200 Of course it's Orser's job to PR students. But the PR also included shading another coach's students. And when that coach's students do better, people are going to judge. Why bring this back to Hanyu?

So many Daitrolls in here/ Poor Hanyu. He is so hated ;)

R186 As R187 said, Hanyu hid a very serious, potentially career ending injury from his coaches. He was able to get through the SP but was in a bad mental state before the FS. At the same time, Javi also had a more minor injury and because TCC didn't understand the extent of Hanyu's injury, they paid more attention to Javi and likely neglected to give Hanyu the support he needed. There was definitely a communication issue and a lot of people thought that as a coach Orser should have been more on top of Hanyu's condition. I don't know what to think about all of that. Can't expect the guy to be a mindreader if Hanyu didn't want to tell him. JSF was pissed, I think there was talk of firing Orser, but I guess they worked it out.

R200 lol I'm fuckin' relieved that Orser hasn't mentioned Hanyu much since early season. Thank god, all of shameless PR he did so far is about Med. Anyway, he has someone other than Hanyu and Javier to PR for his club. Good for him.

r198 I'd be interested to know why everybody's insisting it IS Orser's fault? Why not Tracy/Ghislain/Barkel's? Why every success is attributed to Tracy and Ghislain, and every failure to Orser? Why, in Daleman's case, it's Orser' fault, when Lee Barkel was her coach and not Orser?

r201 Is this about the interview where he said young girls from Eteri's are a new ground and it's unknown whether they'll retain their jumps and that getting them through the growth process must be handled carefully and he tries to do that with Gogo?

r203 JSF was pissed? From the posts here I thought JSF don't care much about Hanyu?

R205 Please, he by far gets the most credit internationally even for things other TCC coaches bring to the table and he enjoys that attention and runs his mouth a bit too much so it's only fair when he gets some of the negative as well. As for Yuzu and Boston 2016 not sure about JSF anymore but at the time most people believed he would leave Canada. He had been beaten twice by Javier at Worlds and it was obvious that Orser was way more invested into the latter. Actually till Worlds 2017 it was still visible who Orser favoured and that he would have loved for Javi to have a triple crown. Anyway, what matters is that Yuzu found support in Tracy and that after a while he and Brian were able to work on their communication issues but the fact that it was only with Brian tells me it was not just a cultural issue of the closed-up Japanese boy who refuses to open up to his Western coach. Since then Yuzu has expressed countless times how thankful he is towards Tracy and Ghislain. I think things are fine now though.

R205 Even if they didn't care about Hanyu, they had to care the number of slots for next Worlds. Not to mention Hanyu's coaching fee is partly from JSF, are you willing to funnel money to a coach who failed to lead your skater to Worlds title 2 straight seasons ( + bonus major injuries)

To add to this I think the break-up with Yuna was still affecting Brian for a long time and how he initially built his relationship with Yuzu and only after Yuzu actively made a step towards him (after Skate Canada 2016 where they had this famous meeting where they finally openly discussed all their issues) did he start to change as well.

R205

[quote]Is this about the interview where he said young girls from Eteri's are a new ground and it's unknown whether they'll retain their jumps and that getting them through the growth process must be handled carefully and he tries to do that with Gogo?

I think that interview was the start of it - the idea of Orser concern trolling for Eteri's students when he's training a quadster of his own (and touting him every chance he got). I think it continued with the PR for Med as well (from both Orser's and Doug Haw's interviews). The general picture they were trying to paint was that Eteri is only good at training little doper bots who are young, aren't allowed to think for themselves, don't have any control over their skating or programs and will fizzle out after puberty. When Med made her lackluster debut at ACI, people were like, you now have control over your programs, you have cuddly Canadian coaches who treat you like the blossoming woman you are and this is what you've produced? It's unfair given that it was the start of the season and the issues she needs to fix take time and adjusting to a new country/coach takes time, but when Zags is doing well, people are going to compare.

[quote]JSF was pissed? From the posts here I thought JSF don't care much about Hanyu?

Adding to what others have said above, the impression I get from posts here and elsewhere isn't so much that JSF doesn't give a fig about Hanyu - obviously, he is their star and cash cow and they're not going to sabotage him. It's that JSF probably would prefer it more if Uno or one of the skaters from the favored regions were the star and cash cow.

R206 yeah, he got the most credit and praise when his skaters are successful then he should and will get criticism the most when they fail. It's not that difficult to understand.

R206 I never understood why, being the supposedly great PR tactician that he is, that Orser was so public about his preference for Javi. Orser's human, Javi seems like a much more cooperative and agreeable student than Hanyu and a warmer person in general so I don't blame Orser for having a favorite. I just don't get why he couldn't at least control himself during interviews and not make that preference so obvious.

Lol, Hieloespanol (Spanish equivalent of icenetwork) teasing fans about the 'surprise' to Javi's ROI show and rising their hopes up that it might be Yuzu. Not very nice of them when we all know it's going to be Plushenko or one of the Canadians

R211 Simple. Brian is an old gay who finds cute Spaniards nicer to look at and deal with than cute workaholic Japanese nerds. And I just want to scream at him: why not take the best of both worlds. Actually the funny thing is that Javi was a pain in the ass to deal with: lazy, arriving late all the time and not very disciplined. With Yuzu the only thing you have to do as a coach is prevent him from jumping too much.

ISU is holding their Council meeting this weekend. But as slow as they are, they will likely release all info next week

Among other things they decide the minimum TES for Europeans, 4 Continents and Worlds

And the judges draw (Feds are being drawn, not individual judges) for 2019 Worlds, 4 Continents and Europeans took place on Thursday. Again no results published yet.

R212. Lmao! Some of them are ones that don't like plushenko and weir. I'm glad I don't read their Twitter. They probably have said lots of things about those two.

Compare them when Zag’s eighteen, R209.

R209 He gave interviews to Russian media right before Test Skate saying Med's improved so much in all aspects that she was amazing, which created high expectations from FS fans. At Skate Test, it turned out that she hadn't improved much and skated two empty programs with 3 flutes. In the interview with Phil posted few days ago, he said she had done a lot of lutzes on the outside edge in practice but failed to do it in competitions because of pressure. Why he said it when she failed to jump a clean lutz in competitions ? Is it better not to tell anything and let results tell ? That's why he should shut up.

Thank you to all who replied about Hanyu and Boston World's. It seems to me its both orser and Hanyu's fault. Hanyu should have said something and Orser being a coach should have known he had some injury. He didn't notice anything different? Little clues that something could be wrong?

R215 One of them is thinking it might be Yuna because hieloespanol mentioned a 'skating superstar' but if not Plush and Yuzu then who apart from her. Medvedeva was already on the show in the past so no big surprise. Tessa and Scott maybe but there as well it would not be so unexpected. Yuna is still one of the biggest names in fs.

R219 Yuna would be a nice surprise. I always hated the way her career ended - amid controversy and bitterness. She just kind of disappeared too (or maybe she didn't, I don't really follow her). Would be nice to see more of her.

R218 Brian and the others were too busy worrying about Javi's non-existent boot problems, thanks to me.

R216 I'm not saying the comparison between Zags and Med is fair. I'm just saying this is why people are shitting on Brian - the perception that he's been pitting himself against Eteri for some time now, and thus far has not produced the results. It's the same issue people had with Chiddy - if you're going to run your mouth, you need to back it up with results. Otherwise you look like an ass.

The skating superstar for Fernandez's show will be Felipe Montoya. Obviously

I know skaters who lied to Feds about injuries. But coaches usually knew about them

I'm shaking my head at you people assuming Orser is to blame for Hanyu's injuries and failures when Hanyu, by his own admission, only does whatever the fuck he wants. But ofc, it's always easier to blame someone else rather than blame your fav for making a mistake. Fact is, Hanyu didn't even want to make the effort of leaning English to understand (and be understood by) his coach. As for Orser seemingly preferring Javier: I think it's obvious that as a coach, you want to be recognized for your achievements. With Hanyu, there wasn't much of an achievement, because he was already naturally talented and everybody could see that even before he went to Canada. Javier was the one who blossomed under Orser and this is why Orser considers him his big achievement and hypes him up. Doesn't mean Orser thinks any less of Hanyu. There have been plenty of instances when he's praised Hanyu to high heaven and during warm ups and public practices he always gave Hanyu more attention than Fernandez.

R225 I agree with most of this but where did you get that Hanyu didn't even make an effort to learn English to be understood by his coach? My impression was that Hanyu was extremely frustrated/distraught that he couldn't communicate with his coaches or voice his objections when he disagreed with them. Or are you just judging his efforts to learn English by the results. LOL.

R225 Hanyu arrived at 17 in Canada. He was a kid still finishing high school in Sendai and living with his mom but ig course he should be the one to be blamed for communication issues and not the 50+ years old coach with a past experience with an Asian skater. Only for the first 2 years was the communication issue due to lack of common language. After that Yuzu's English was enough to understand and be understood and Brian himself has mentioned how the communication problems they had were not due to Yuzu not speaking English. As for him not making an effort in learning the language, don't pull shit out of your ass. He was taking classes but he had a very busy schedule and no natural talent for picking up languages. Again Boston 2016 happened because of Orser's hyper focus on Javier and Yuzu's habit of keeping his injury to himself. You may say it's a 2 way street but putting the blame on the 20 years old boy and not on the experienced coach is ridiculous. At the end of the day Yuzu handled things very maturely by not leaving.

Anyone with basic understanding of FS could see that Javi was very talented. Morozov saw it right away when Javi came to his summer camp in Andorra, and his break-through was with his Pirates of the Caribbean program. If anything, it’s a travesty he only has one Olympic medal and just the bronze.

And everybody who thinks Orser did such a fabulous job with Hanyu conveniently forgets that the latter won both times in no small part because the others fucked up. Men’s FS in Sochi was a splatfest, and in Pyeongchang, maybe not quite, but still a competition of who makes fewer mistakes. While ladies both times skated lights out, so I don’t know why Orser thought he could train an Olympic gold contender.

Hanyu has a business relationship with Orser. He definitely isn't aiming to be Orser's "son" and Orser does his obligatory job to train and PR him. A relationship is built both ways. If Javi shows Orser more warmth and even goes on trips with him isn't it obvious it'll naturally show? For pampering, Hanyu still has mommy and at competitions Kikuchi and reps from JSF. Boston was a two way street.

Some people are just bad at picking up languages. It's even harder if someone is an introvert and seeking social interactions with others beyond the necessary is a chore.

People forget that Orser's greatest students (Yuna, Javi, Yuzuru) also happen to be insanely talented prodigies. If Orser gets credit for being a genius coach for helping geniuses win a little better than they have been, Orser should also be held accountable for his skaters' failures. Eteri's students winning is due to their own talent but if they fail it's due to her evil Russian abuse, and since Med left her, if she does well it's thanks to TCC and Orser and if she flops it's the fault of everything else. The double standard is amusing.

Orser always has come across as a little immature to me. He doesn't seem to have learned to shut up and be tactful since his ugly behavior with Yuna. I'm sure he's nice and fine to learn from, and I have no personal feelings about him, but he seems a little immature and transparent for someone who really should know better.

R225, I don’t think people are blaming Orser for Hanyu’s injuries. I think most ppl pretty much know the issue with Hanyu is that he has a tendency to overtrain and needs the coaches to pull him back a little.

I want to add my 2 cents for Boston. I don’t think coaches at TCC were completely clueless about Hanyu’s injury, perhaps not to the extent of how serious it was, but I think it was very clear that Hanyu was injured leading up to worlds. Heck, the Spanish media even reported on Hanyu’s injury before the SP started (now I wonder where the source of that came from....). Also, prior to Boston worlds, a Japan TV crew (TBS) was at TCC filming some footages for a documentary of Hanyu. Their staff immediately noticed something was wrong with his left foot after watching his practice session, they asked him in the documentary (which was only broadcasted after Boston worlds) if he’s injured. Hanyu admitted and noted he might or might not reveal this to the public in near future. I cannot imagine coaches that worked with him day in and day out would not have noticed what an outsider was able to spot easily.

Now still I don’t think fans were angry at Orser for that injury when JSF finally released this info after Boston, it’s a known fact Hanyu is prone to injury. However, it was Orser’s attitude that was extremely disappointing. Not only he had completely neglected Yuzu’s condition after the SP and focused 100% focus on Javi, after the FS he also told media he has no idea what happened to Hanyu and what Hanyu put out there was not what he taught him. The complete denial on having any responsibility as a coach was what pissed people off. It is not to say Orser was to be blamed entirely for the loss, but at that point Hanyu was already kicking himself for all the things he didn’t do properly so it’s very disheartening to see the cold shrug off from Orser.

I do think both side did try to overcome this obstacle by 2017, at least Orser admitted he was having hard time to focus on two high profile students in the same competition. So by Helsinki Worlds, they have Orser, Tracy and Ghislain coaching team coming at full force to ensure everyone gets their proper attention during the comp. There are some good changes that came out from that difficult time.

About double standards between the Eteri team and Orser team, I also find it interesting the narrative about how Eteri's talented robots win because they are overscored and Russian while Orser's talents from weaker feds win because they are just so well-rounded.

If Zhenya picks back up from ACI, Zhenya fans will start gushing about how well-rounded she is since the move and how much she improved (ironic since her past scores say she's already near perfection and her fans used to swear by it).

R228 Lots of people have talent, including people who don't go on to win Worlds or Oly medals. The point is that TCC developed Javi's talent so that he could go on to fulfill his potential. Athletic competition isn't just about who has the most talent, but who performs best in a particular competition. So no, it's not a travesty Javi got just an Oly bronze. It's what he deserved given the level of his performance in those competitions (you can argue about the color of the 2018 medal if you want though). [quote]And everybody who thinks Orser did such a fabulous job with Hanyu conveniently forgets that the latter won both times in no small part because the others fucked up. Men’s FS in Sochi was a splatfest, and in Pyeongchang, maybe not quite, but still a competition of who makes fewer mistakes. While ladies both times skated lights out, so I don’t know why Orser thought he could train an Olympic gold contender.

This is the dumbest take ever: 1) Yes, Sochi was a splatfest but that is the point of competition, you win because you perform better than others; 2) you're not going to get as many clean skates in the quad era because of the high tech content; 3) the men's event at 2018 olys was far far more compelling than the ladies. The level of difficulty, the performances, everything. Med and Zags were both big yawners and the winner ended up being the one who did nothing in the first half of her program and jumped jumped jumped in the second. You call this lights out? 4) Hanyu held the records for SP, FS, Combined. You think his wins at Olys were flukes because others underperformed? Please, I've said before that I'm not the biggest Hanyu uber but his haters who twist and stretch to undermine his achievements come off as totally delusional. Or Canadian.

R228

[quote]And everybody who thinks Orser did such a fabulous job with Hanyu conveniently forgets that the latter won both times in no small part because the others fucked up. Men’s FS in Sochi was a splatfest, and in Pyeongchang, maybe not quite, but still a competition of who makes fewer mistakes. While ladies both times skated lights out, so I don’t know why Orser thought he could train an Olympic gold contender.

You do realize that Hanyu beat Uno by 11 points right? That even if Uno hadn't fallen on his first quad, Hanyu still would have won? You do realize that they give OGMs to the skaters that skated best at that competition and not based on their potential, right? So tell us again why you don't understand how Orser could possibly think he could train an Olympic gold "contender"? Are you one of those people from GS who thought Javi was robbed of gold at Pyeongchang? That might help me understand where you're coming from.

Lmao if everyone skated clean, Yuzu would still win. Is that luck?

If everyone skated to potential, Yuzu would still win. Is that luck?

So if Yuzu fucked up less to everyone's messy skates, it's still due to luck?

I guess the only fair game narrative for some people is if Yuzu fucked up and everyone skated clean or less messy, and that's the real achievement and not due to luck.

[quote]I guess the only fair game narrative for some people is if Yuzu fucked up and everyone skated clean or less messy, and that's the real achievement and not due to luck.

You betcha!!! How else do you think I got to be a 3x World Champion instead of just a one-timer? Old fashion Canadian achievement!!

Only obsessed Hanyu stans can think that "Orser was so public in his preference for Javi" and that he "obviously" played favorites. Just like anybody who doesn't kiss Hanyu's ass is evil and liking another skater equals insulting Hanyu. I love the guy but you crazies and you level of blind bias are making it difficult.

r234 Thanks for saying this shit so I didn't have to.

Orser's had his failures but he did a marvelous job with Hanyu. Hanyu's pretty much the most complete skater ever, but those who say that "any decent coach could have taught him" are morons, because if you change one part of the equation, you don't get the same result. Just imagine what he might have become if Arutyunian/Mishin/Hamada/Lambiel/Carrol coached him.

I’m the one who doesn’t think that the sun shines from Orser’s or Hanyu’s ass, R234, and no, I’m not from GS. I’m also the one who hasn’t had a favourite in men’s skating since 2010. Was that helpful?

R238 Sure, that's helpful. So you're not biased. You just don't know how competitions work or how OGMs are awarded. Congrats.

R239, cannot congratulate you on your inability to read and/or understand what’s written.

R237 [quote]Only obsessed Hanyu stans can think that "Orser was so public in his preference for Javi" and that he "obviously" played favorites. Just like anybody who doesn't kiss Hanyu's ass is evil and liking another skater equals insulting Hanyu. I love the guy but you crazies and you level of blind bias are making it difficult.

I don't consider myself an obsessed Hanyu stan, but I do think Orser showed a personal preference for Javi (as in a personal connection, not in terms of favoritism as a student). I don't think it's that big of a deal because as someone pointed out upthread, unlike Javi, Hanyu doesn't need for his coach to be a friend or father figure, so he gets what he wants out of Brian. And who could blame Orser for feeling more warmly towards a student he has a personal relationship with compared to a student who holds him at a distance, does what he wants, and doesn't listen most of the time. I don't think this manifested itself in the professional attention Orser gave to Javi and Hanyu - it looked like he gave them the kind and amount of attention they each needed.

R225. As a coach he should have seen something. A small limping? He's the coach. That tells me he wasn't paying too much attention. And of course Hanyu is also to blame for keeping it to himself.

R241 It did manifest during Boston and in a lot of interviews Orser has given where he has had sometimes calleous words about Yuzu and much warmer about Javi. Like his interview with TSL (I think it was with them) after Helsinki where he barely praises Yuzu but says something like "Yuzu needed that win" and "it's ok it's not always the same who wins" like way to show your excitement. Reminds me of Eteri's obvious favouritism towards Medvedeva and how annoyed she seemed that Alina won. And then in that tsl interview or another, Orser talks about how he feels he should have been more aware of Javi's stress pre FS. He never had such words after Yuzu's fuck up of a free skate in Boston.

R242: FFS his coaches DID notice an injury. For the millionth time, Hanyu his the SEVERITY of the injury.

R238 Seriously, let me guess, you're an Eteri nut, hence the blind hatred for Brian and the inane take on how he shouldn't fancy himself a coach of gold medal contenders. I mean, he's coached actual gold medalists, not just contenders. I'm always defending Eteri here, but she has one oly gold to her name (I'm not counting team, please) compared to Brian's 3. I'm sure she'll add to her haul eventually, but there's no need to discount Brian's or Hanyu's achievements.

Let's take a break from the Orser/Eteri fight and have some ass appreciation. Roman's costume is not the most flattering for his body type and Yuzu is really ridiculously skinny. Like yeah he has slightly broader shoulders than in the past but look at that waist and thigh gap. He makes the other 2 look fat.

R246 But there are no asses there to appreciate, just a trio of wedgies. Let me give you an example of true ass appreciation:

Some good old 'straight' Hanyu episode.

R248. LOL! Hanyu look like he's on his first date giggling and laughing. I love it!!

Hanyu has such aesthetically pleasant body shape. It becomes very evident in that podium picture. Very nice to look at.

I hate that his costume pants always hide his ass. He should wear practice leggings all the time.

Who was that guy again? He is rather cute and Yuzu seems to agree judging by how pleased he looks and how there is no hover hand but a firm waist grabbing.

R252 Australian pair skater

R252 Harley Windsor

R254 Thanks. That guy looks Slavic or Dinaric but given his name probably not. I have seen plenty of guys like him in the Western Balkans.

Harley's a gentle giant with aboriginal roots. Get it Yuzu!

R256 Aboriginal roots really? Methinks Harley's mommy had some fun with Mr Plejic, the postman fresh off the boat from former Yugoslavia some 20 years ago.

Hello, how about some talk about actual antis and not Orser? I’ve been holding onto some of this for a while, but wanted to avoid posting about Hanyu on the other thread so we wouldn’t run into the same problems again.

As many of you already know, posters of Hanyu advertising a new photobook and free exhibition were plastered over Sendai subway stations. Antis (posing as Uno fans) made a fuss and accused the city of organizing and paying for the posters with tax money, so the photographer (Sunao Noto) and the Sendai City Transportation Bureau has had to explain that the book’s publisher (Shuseisha) made and paid for everything. Unfortunately, some antis are still not convinced. The wording of a news article also didn’t help, although it’s common sense that whoever is selling the product would be paying for the ads and ad space.

Bunshun just came out with an article about Hanyu, Takahashi’s return, and the antis, and even mentioned how some fans were yelling abusive comments at Hanyu while they were waiting for their favorite skater at the skater’s hotel during the Sochi Olympics, and complaining about Hanyu at the recent Kinki regional, as well as complaining about Oda’s participation in this year's Japan Open.

I’ve seen some people linking to the Daisuke Takahashi Road to Sochi (RtS) twitter/fanpage. The owner is Ostile17, the FSU poster I’ve mentioned in a previous thread who made insinuations about Hanyu and the JSF in the Denis Ten murder thread. He’s also made some interesting comments in the past about Hanyu on other forums. There are normal Takahashi fans as well as a lot of fans of both skaters out there on twitter.

Harley with Brendan Kerry

R258 Dirt Czar! I've missed you!

Oh my god, antis pulling out Sochi stories. It's one thing to be upset about something that actually happened (Adelina's questionable win) but to still be in hysterics about an imagined relationship issue between skaters they personally know nothing about is getting old.

R248 Ugh. That's why you need to stick around, Dirt Czar, I go to that account to check on Dai's comps. I was probably the one who posted the link on this site. Hanyu's antis are fucking nuts and so tiresome.

R258 I had seen the photographer's message on Twitter and thought that would be it but I forgot how vicious and braindead Hanyu antis/Takahashi ubers are. There is truly nothing worse than the combination of stupidity and wickedness.

R259 Damn he is cute. Perfect for cuddling.

I like your theory R257 but looks like Dad could be a Slav/aboriginal mix. Maybe paternal grandma was the culprit.

R264 Dad is half Swedish IIRC

My oh my, Harley's insta is a goldmine.

R265 You're right! Just looked at his Wiki. He also has a little Welsh in him.

Are Brendan and Harley a thing? See insta pic with caption: Missing my boo 💚 #bff #bro #lover #sydney

I almost half remember Harley's drunken outburst aganst his girlfriend when she dumped him. Sadly he took it down and don't remember the details

R268 Thanks for dashing my dreams. Straight fratty guys who fondle other straight fratty guys to display their total confidence in their straightness and cocktease the gays are the fucking worst.

R269 I don't follow him on IG. I now see he has taken down all her pics. He used to have photos with her a couple of years ago when I looked at him (when he won Junior Worlds). This is her

R270 She's pretty in a trashy, Australian insta whorelet kind of way.

I hate Hanyu's antis. They are so vicious and so hurtful. Makes me wonder if they will ever stop. So much jealousy and hate from them. They should put that negative energy somewhere else. I hope one day this stops for Hanyu. Nobody deserves this kind of stupidity.

R272 Someone should point them in Uno's direction. He won't even notice and will let it all roll off his back and let his management company and attention whore brother deal with the brunt of it. Everybody wins!!

To be fair, I don't think hating someone automatically equals being jealous. Jealousy isn't the only negative emotion and isn't a catch-all for everything negative.

Everyone has crazy ubers and antis, it's not just Hanyu's or Dai's that are better or worse than others. Antis and ubers are different sides of the same coin: projecting your own discontent onto someone as a canvas for imagined perfection or imagined villainy. No one is that perfect or that evil.

R274 It is jealousy although not for themselves but for the skater they adore. And how magnanimous of you to play the relativism card to try and defend cyber bullying. Idols have sued for less than that and tbh if I were Hanyu's team I would sue them. They need to be shamed in front of a court.

Not everyone who hates a skater has a skater they adore. I never defended antis and literally said they're crazy, but wow, someone is projecting a lot. You can hate strangers for all kinds of reasons. I hate my neighbors for stomping over my head. Am I jealous of their stomping powers? No.

R275. I wonder how much more Hanyu will take of this shit from these crazy losers. I heard he is too nice but there is so much a person can and should take.

But seriously, none of us know who these people are. Are they right in the head? Are they harmless? It takes only one nut job. Look what happened to Selena.

The Brian vs Eteri crap is tiresome. Nobody is a saint and nobody is a devil here. They both have their faults, and in fact they are quite a lot alike in some ways. Both can be passive/aggressive, play favorites, and refuse to take responsibility for anything that goes wrong. Anyway, I want to hear some dirt about Japanese coaches for a change. Tell me about that Yamato Tamura.

R278 I second this request. I've been meaning to ask about Yamato Tamura for ages. He's gotten better looking, but also less flamboyant with age.

R277, Selena was killed by her agent who embezzled funds from her and Selena found out, so I'm not sure of the point you're trying to make. Also, if anything, Selena's murderer was an obsessed fan, not an 'anti'. Hanyu antis seem to me like barking dogs that never bite, they're few and rather pathetic, no one takes them seriously. I'd be more worried about his scores of overexcited fans, I'm pretty sure that bodyguard at ACI was there to protect him from fans with no notion of personal space.

Jason Brown was so neglected by Orser that some fans complained at his GS fanfest. Maybe he didn't mind but his fans must be disappointed. They were high af when it was announced he trained at TCC and they spent the whole summer to guess which competitions Orser would go with him. It turned out Orser even wasn't with him in the K&C at ACI and barely gave him any guidance in practice lol.

R281, yeah but that fan couldn’t even tell Orser apart from Ghislain, the complaint was Orser sat with everyone at the kiss and cry except for Jason. Fact check, Orser was not at every kiss and cry. It was just a bitter whine for nothing.

Seems like fans of TCC skaters are so sensitive and such whining babies when it comes to their favorite skater, and I say this as a Hanyu fan and admit it about our vocal majority. Also like that one Tumblr confessor op who somehow perceived and "can't forget" about Ghislain "openly dismissing" Javi last season. The guy isn't actually listed as one of Javi's main coaches.

R282 Orser clearly didn't pay much attention to Jason despite of being listed as his coach. He was with both Yuzuru and Jun in K&C for SP but wasn't there with Jason. Some Jason's ubers must be offended.

R283, I don't do tumblr, how did Ghislain "openly dismiss" Javi? I'm curious.

I'm putting something on here that I probably copied FROM here but can't remember - but anyway, maybe the Javi fan felt that by not mentioning Javi as hardworker while at the same time talking about Yuzuru - well, maybe they took that as a diss. But like R283 said, Ghislain isn't listed as one of Javi's coaches (but why not? isn't he the 'jump coach' and weren't jumps the biggest problem Javi had not only at Sochi but at Pyeongchang?)

"GHISLAIN TO A JAPANESE VIP: "Many years ago, I worked with Elvis Stojko, who was a work-a-holic. He had many injuries, including a bad recurring groin injury. It was such hard work, I promised myself I would never work with a work-a-holic again... (raises eyebrows, pinches lips together, shakes head, and sighs very dramatically) "...but then came Yuzu - and l've worked with a lot of hard workers the Japanese are ALL hard workers - but Yuzu is literally the hardest worker l've ever seen. He's spoiled me for the lazy ones. I hate working with lazy skaters now like [REDACTED NOT Javi, but another big name.] He/She is sooo lazy, and [REDACTED name I didn't recognize].. I decided - and I told Yuzu this - when HE retires, I'm retiring too. I just can't work with anyone lazy again"

Orser let on early that Jason wasn't his priority but a team effort, and that he needed Tracy to persuade him to even let Jason in at TCC, so I don't get Jason's ubers choosing to get mad now over Orser doing exactly what he said he would do.

Oh I forgot to mention that someone overheard Ghislain talking to a Japanese "VIP" and posted what they heard on a message board - that's where it came from.

Akiko apparently is getting/has gotten a divorce? Aside from Arakawa, the other once relevant international level Japanese ladies who are retired doesn't seem to be doing so swell in that area.

R286 I think you might be mixing up Ghislain stories. The conversation with the VIP was overheard at ACI (at least that was my understanding when it was posted a few threads ago). The assumption was that it was about Gabby, not Javi. This tumblr poster is referring to how Ghislain supposedly treated Javi last season.

The article about fans verbally assaulting Hanyu when they ran into him as they were waiting for Takahashi at the hotel in Sochi is completely new information. Shukan Bunshun is a weekly, but it’s known even internationally for its record of getting it right and having the evidence to back up their claims. They’ve been the first to report on major political and celebrity scandals in Japan. They were also the ones to break the story about Hashimoto kissing Takahashi and provided the photos. Reputable, non-tabloid papers have also reported on antis screaming derogatory names at Hanyu at past nationals and there’s video of ubers yelling whenever Hanyu tried to jump during the last Sochi practice (maybe they were the same group that harassed him at the hotel), so I’m inclined to believe Bunshun. The complaints about Hanyu and Oda were comments fans made when they were interviewed at Kinki regionals. I’ve never heard of other ubers/antis actually harassing skaters to their faces, although it does seem to happen at football/soccer matches in other countries.

R273 Itsuki already has his own antis! In fact, many of them are his brother’s fans (and probably his classmates) and they’re growing by the minute. But that’s a sign that he’s made it, so he must be pleased. (Those antis just whine in blog comments and don’t actually harass him thankfully.)

Oda’s updated his blog: ameblo.jp / oda-nobunari/entry-12411822924.html?timestamp=1539492640

This is going around:

R278 Mr. Pouty-face or Ikemen Coach (“The Hot Coach”) as he’s known in Japan, was just at the Yerevan JGP for Yuto Kishina and he should be at most of the GPs now that Kihira has joined seniors, Shiraiwa got at least one GP, and Miyahara’s first GP is next week. He also coaches Shu Nakamura who was second at Kinki regionals. Tamura was known for wearing wild costumes and having crazy hair when he skated singles. He did pairs for a short time. The tabloids once reported that he dated Arakawa, but he’s otherwise never been associated with a woman before, likes to dress in drag, kiss male skaters, and has a cute little dog. He rides a motorcycle and plays pachinko. He’s very protective of Miyahara and loves to skate with her. He’s from Tohoku and went to the same high school and trained at the same rink as Arakawa and Hanyu. Hanyu has said that when he was a novice, Tamura gave him the most attention and care out of all of his seniors. He’s the one who took the photo of Hanyu and Ten shaking hands after the Boston incident. He used to coach Marin Honda (Hamada’s the one who called her lazy) and there was an article critical about the amount of attention Honda has been receiving from the media the other day.

There are lots of great photos and be sure to check the side bar. Tamura’s old blog: www.jsports.co.jp /skate/yamato/

Oh I see R290 - thanks for the clarification. I wonder who the second skater at TCC was that Ghislain said was lazy (the person had never heard of this skater before.)

That's so sad to read about in R291, about the verbal assault on Hanyu at Sochi. No wonder he keeps to himself. When I first discovered who he was (Pyeonchang!) I read that Yuzuru said, "I just don't want people to hate me - no matter what I saw or do, I'm hated" (something close to that) and I wondered what on earth he could be talking about. Now, sadly, I think understand.

I hope it's not as bad as it used to be.

* no matter what I SAY or do...

R291 Thanks for this info. What was the angle on the Bunshun article - just reporting the facts or were they noting a trend with the antis? Has the harassment abated or gotten worse? Is there any concern about what may happen at Nats? Sure, all the top figure skaters have ubers/antis, some of them crazy, but they are content to keep the bullying online. Some of the Hanyu incidents you've described - like the subway posters, giving away his home address, harassing him in Sochi, disrupting his practices - sound so petty and deranged it's hard to take them seriously, but they do go beyond what figures skaters usually experience. Glad to hear about Itsuki's antis/rising status - I feel like he's the kind of person who might even relish that sort of attention.

R292 Tamura is a hot coach! And he sounds like a character to boot. Yamato was responsible for this:

Yamato in fishnets

Hanyu was also barely 19 in Sochi. I don't blame this on Takahashi, but between getting verbally harassed by Dai's crazy fans and getting berated by Hashimoto (I guess she would also qualify as one of Dai's crazy fans) before his FS, no wonder Hanyu wanted to steer clear of Dai.

Another Carmen...Ponsart is doing it for FS

R295 The harassment has been bad since 2012, but Hanyu has the general public on his side now, and Hanyu fans and regular skating fans will dwarf the crazy people if they show up at future competitions. The antis are freaking out about the article.

It’s funny in that if you only read the title, you’d think it was some anti-Hanyu story. The headline of the Bunshun article suggests there’s a “brawl” going on again outside the rink and Takahashi’s return is making Hanyu nervous. The talk about the antis was a small part at the very end of the article which was mainly about Takahashi and positive about his return. At the end, it mentioned that Takahashi’s press conference was the day before Hanyu’s award ceremony and reporters were not allowed to ask Hanyu about him (although Hashimoto was standing right next to him and would have been more embarrassing for her). Then it noted that Hanyu had a “not this again” look on his face when asked about Takahashi during media day. Not that Hanyu was annoyed by Takahashi’s return, but that he was being asked about the skater knowing how Takahashi’s fans have reacted whenever the two intersected in the past. That’s where the paper brought up the Sochi story and the comments at Kinki. Maybe they are expecting some drama at nationals. But the Sochi story was new and given Bunshun’s commitment to vetting their sources, they had to have heard it from someone close. Could it be the person who told them about Hashimoto and passed on the photos? But why wait four years to release that information?

Bungeishunju, which shares the same publisher as Bunshun, just published an 8-page article with Orser about Yuna, Fernandez, and how Hanyu is his pride and joy...

R298 Is it bad that the only thing I remember about Ponsart is that he's quite attractive from certain angles? There's also the Mariah thing too, but I don't care about her.

R298 No, it is what people remember him for.

Those who love minor skaters gossip can remember that the shortlive experience in being coached by Joubert that didn't end amicably

R301 LOL I just read a short L'Equipe article on their breakup. Joubert was deliciously bitchy about how Ponsart didn't like training in Poitiers because he didn't appreciate that he wasn't there to draw attention to himself or to party, but to work. Can't wait to see more of sexy coach Brian at JGPF!

WTF since when did unshun's shit articles become such a big deal ? When tabloids wrote about Yuzuru's romantic rumors with Med, no one believed and shit on them, when they wroted about Yuzuru's antis, his old classmates, his neighbors,... these tabloids suddenly become a reliable source lol. People just believe in what they want to believe.

R302 Yup, I remember also something on the line "he talked bad about Poitiers!!!"

Exactly R303. Ubers believe what it suits them. They dont want to believe that hanyu could have any relationship with woman,thats bullshit of course but when they publish some stuff on hanyu which is not positive from antis , they believe in eveything. And later, "oh poor hanyu, everyone hates him. So many antis, they are so jealous of him, leave him alone. No skater has so many antis like him.." jesus..

LOL, Daisuke's look of horror in that pic looks very real. Little did he know that in a couple years he WOULD be forcibly kissed, and not jokingly either....

R303 I thought you said you're fluent in Japanese and lived in Japan for a long time? How can you not be familiar with Bunshun?

The tabloids you're talking about Josei7 and Josei Jishin.

[R281] The person who posted that isn't even a regular on Jason's fan thread. The regulars are very aware that Orser is not his main coach and are just happy to see Tracy there.

R308 Those Jason "regulars" have been rushing to defend TCC and Orser whenever anyone criticizes the handling of Med. Apparently because Jason is now coached there, TCC can do no wrong. It was the same when Jason's team of Kori and Rohene were criticized; because they coached Jason, they were perfect (then) too. Those Jason regulars have also been using Hanyu in their arguments--Hanyu won two OGMs and so Orser MUST know what he's doing.

SKATE AMERICA will start the GP season next week

MEN

Nam Nguyen

Kevin Reynolds

Michael Brezina

Romain Ponsart

Moris Kvitelashvili

Alexei Bychenko

Matteo Rizzo

Julian Yee

Sergei Voronov

Nathan Chen

Jimmy Ma

Vincent Zhou

____

If in decent shape, Chen should win. USFSA will try to get Vincent into second place. Behind that the situation is fluid and depends on the day. Bychenko looked totally out of shape at Finland Trophy. Voronov looked decent at Nepela but he struggled more at an internal event last week. Rizzo is solid but without strong weapons. Kvitelashvili's score depends on how many times he falls on the quads. Nguyen did well at US International in a very messy competition.

LADIES

Loena Hendrickx

Alaine Chartrand

Laurine Lecavelier

Marin Honda

Satoko Miyahara

Kaori Sakamoto

Elena Radionova

Sofia Samodurova

Polina Tsurskaya

Starr Andrews

Bradie Tennelll

Megan Wessenberg

------

it looks quite open. The Russians here are weak. A nice internal battle between Japanese. Tennell will look forward to another good result (maybe a win)

do you care about Pairs and Dance?

Oh well, confess: how many entries have you never heard about?

Pairs

Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud

Minerva Fabienne Hase / Nolan Seegert

Annika Hocke / Ruben Blommaert

Alisa Efimova / Alexander Korovin

Evgenia Tarasova / Vladimir Morozov

Ashley Cain / Timothy LeDuc

Nica Digerness / Danny Neudecker

Alexa Scimeca Knierim / Chris Knierim

Dance

Katharina Müller / Tim Dieck

Lilah Fear / Lewis Gibson

Robynne Tweedale / Joseph Buckland

tCharlène Guignard / Marco Fabbri

Natalia Kaliszek / Maksym Spodyriev

Tiffany Zahorski / Jonathan Guerreiro

Alexandra Nazarova / Maxim Nikitin

Madison Hubbell / Zachary Donohue

Karina Manta / Joseph Johnson

Lorraine McNamara / Quinn Carpenter

r312 From Pairs, I know the Knierims, Tarasova/Morozov. I heard about Cain/LeDuc but I don't remember them. I'm better at Dance, I know most of them, I've only never heard of Fear/Gibson and Manta/Johnson and Muller/Dieck. I'm assuming that Buckland is the half of the former Coomes/Buckland team. Coomes/Buckland had a beautiful FS at Olys, such a pity Coomes couldn't heal from her injury.

r310 Brezina for the win!

It's a nice field, though. After the dearth in Pairs and Dance it's good to see familiar names, and the decent skill level. I don't know who will win, but I'm predicting either Ma or Ponsart at the bottom.

r258. [quote]and complaining about Hanyu at the recent Kinki regional, as well as complaining about Oda’s participation in this year's Japan Open.

I'm curious, what were their complaints?

[quote]Then it noted that Hanyu had a “not this again” look on his face when asked about Takahashi during media day.

Anyone's got link to that? I wasn't even aware he was asked about Takahashi.

I'm interested in the pairs competition mainly because it's the first time Max Trankov and Alina Savchenko will debut as rival coaches against each other. The Knierems were a mess at Nebelhorn, so it should be fun. I wonder if Robin Szolkowy will go too since he also helps to coach T/M. Also, Alexander Korovin is super hot and they might be able to grab a medal here too. Of course the judging will be heavily biased toward the US pairs as long as they don't fuck up, but they always do.

r314 So Savchenko might go up as a coach against Trankov and Szolkowy? C'mon Netflix, your plotlines are right there. Pity that Tarasova/Morozov have it pretty much in the bag.

Way to ruin a pretty costume with an ugly huge-ass belt. You have a guy with a tiny waist and beautiful body lines like Yuzuru and you do him dirty like this. Sad. At least there is still his pretty face and hands to admire.

R312 At least a few known names but the pairs field this season is really depressing.

[quote] I know most of them, I've only never heard of Fear/Gibson and Manta/Johnson and Muller/Dieck. I'm assuming that Buckland is the half of the former Coomes/Buckland team. Coomes/Buckland had a beautiful FS at Olys, such a pity Coomes couldn't heal from her injury.

Muller/Dieck are those with the Cancer themed Free Dance

Fear/Gibson are those with the 70's disco (Donna Summer medley, etc) themed Free Dance

The Buckland of Tweedale/Buckland is the brother of the Buckland of Coomes/Buckland. This Buckland used to dance with Olivia Smart

R309 Exactly. I'm fuckin' happy because I can find here someone who shared my thoughts. Since Jason and Med were coached by Orser, Yuzuru's name has been brought up CONSTANTLY by their fans to defend Orser and their favorites. Their skaters flopped, forgot choreo,... but it's okay because "look at Hanyu, he was like that too, he will be fine, so our skaters will be fine too, Orser must know what to do". Ridiculous. I guess they never pay enough attention to Yuzuru and other TCC skaters to know meltdown at the beginning of season is Yuzuru's thing, not exactly TCC's thing. They digged up Hanyu's first year after changing coach and made comparison. Yeah, comparison is unevitable, I was okay with it until they called him out everytime and everywhere, it was getting unbearably annoying. That's why, you could call me mean, but I want their skaters to do poorly and Yuzuru to do well so that they could know their skaters are not Hanyu and stop drag him into their nonsense debate and use him to defend their skaters.

R316 If his CM's costumes are counted, he officially has 10 costumes with that ugly waist belt now. I didn't want to complain but why it's always that shit belt. Well, at least, it isn't his competitive costumes, I should be fine with it.

I like the belt. I defend the belt.

r320 I like the belt too. My favorite is the one from Ballade 1.0, second favorite the golden Seimei from Olys.

Although I do think that Lotte costume would look better without the belt. Otherwise, it's such a Yuzu-style costume, if he got rid of the black on the collar and gloves, it'd be perfect for Otonal.

r318 Cancer-themed FS? Donna Summers? Did they leave a cake out in the rain? Boy, did miss out. If all those new teams are going to amp up the wtf factor, maybe this season won't be so bad. Thanks about the correction on Buckland, I hope the other Buckland and Coomes return to competition then.

There is nothing to defend about that belt. It's even worse than the one he uses for his costumes because those are at least tailored. Here it's more like a traditional obi, so much bigger and thicker like he gained 8kgs of fat on his hips. Criminal of them to put it on him and hide his beautiful shape like that.

R316. I actually love the belt. I swear he doesn't take bad photos. All his photos are gorgeous. (the pictures when he is skating don't count lol) everyone has ugly face when jumping in competitions.

R321 The Cancer FS starts with a voice over saying "everyone of us will die from cancer" or something like that. I am not sure if there is an happy ending and they survive

It is not scoring too well. They were supposed to become German number 1 given Lorenz/Polizoakis split but at Nebelhorn they lost to Koch/Nuchtern doing Notre Dame de Paris (with Nuchtern doing Quasimodo...) and the Urban/Steffan.

Fear/Gibson are having problems with the Tango compared to Buckland#2 but Donna Summer is winning them quite good scores in the FD

R313 They were complaining that it isn't fair Hanyu does whatever he wants and a retired skater (Oda) had to be brought out in his place at the Japan Open because Hanyu wouldn't participate.

I don't think there's any video footage of Hanyu being asked about Takahashi, but it was reported by the print media there on media day. Hanyu said Takahashi is someone he admires, and he looks forward to watching him perform and skating with him at nationals. He also said he wasn't interested in a battle according to Nikkan Sports (linked below), although Sport Hochi chose to omit that part of his answer in their articles. I mentioned this on media day and may have linked to a different paper that also reported the same answer.

R319 Wtf what a reaction just because they mention your Hanyu, and not even in a mean way. I actually do see some connection between Hanyu's first season and Med's or Jason's, more in a way of it being a throwaway year. Like personally I would rather forget all of the FS programs that DW choreographed for Hanyu during his early seasons with TCC. Although them using Hanyu to not criticize and instead praise TCC is stupid. So do you also wish for Dai and Uno to fail because their extreme fans are Hanyu's antis and actually wish him ill?

R325 It's funny those antis don't realize the only real reason Hanyu isn't ever at Japan Open is that he most likely isn't actually invited because he'll 100% overshadow their precious IMG products, currently Uno.

R326 It seems like you have some problems with reading comprehension.

r325 Huh, their reasons re Oda surprised me, I thought their beef would be "why Oda and not Dai? Dai's the current skater!" I had no idea it'd circle back to Hanyu.

Are all Japanese skaters at Japan Open from IMG? Is there a possibility that Hanyu does get invited but turns the offer down? Since he apparently cares more about his results that money, maybe he turns it down because he prefers Challengers which give him World Standing points whereas Japan Open is just a fun, therefore a throwaway com that'd just interfere with his training? On the other hand he does seem to like competing in Japan.

What are the examples of Yuzu "doing whatever he wants?" according to those malcontents?

R327 Nope, maybe you do? I added the bit about my own take on the comparison of seasons, but this was the overreaction I didn't specify in my response but mainly found cringe:

[That's why, you could call me mean, but I want their skaters to do poorly and Yuzuru to do well so that they could know their skaters are not Hanyu and stop drag him into their nonsense debate and use him to defend their skaters.]

This is the reason that Hanyu fans get called out, even if they're just stooping down to their level. Wishing skaters to underperform because of fandom, ironic because Hanyu has some toxic fans as well.

You guys are pathetic and i was right, this is nothing but an Asian fetish thread.

R329 , R330 you are right , they are mean and selfish.

R329 They should try something new to defend their skaters after already bringing his name up like thousand times. I already said I had no problem with it until they dragged him into EVERY debate. The reasons he chose TCC, his first season with Orser, relationship with his old coach,... Well, it seemed they went too far. Maybe bringing 2 times OGM is the most efficient way for them to shut up antis.

To be fair, can't blame only Jason and Med's fans because some Hanyu's dumb fans also joined them as if they were afraid the world would forget his name if they stop mentioning him for a while and they feel it's their responsibility to remind people visiting those threads how much Yuzuru had improved through years and how great he is now.

R328 As time passes I get the feeling that he enjoys going back to Japan less and less (apart from getting back to Sendai/the Tohoku region). He could do more shows or tv appearances for instance and interact more with team Japan and fs people there but he doesn't. I'm really curious if he will go back to live there full time once he retires. Something tells me he won't. Unless he stays hidden in Sendai the entire time, his life there won't be easy.

Don't tell me you are one of those dumbs fans. I swear no words could express how much I hate them.

R332 Hanyu is the most popular and most decorated at TCC so no surprise about his recurrent mention. But he's also made some of the biggest comebacks each time he's written off. I would guess the hope is that Med and Jason rise to achieve more gold medals in the same way, hence Hanyu. There's more realism but less fun comparing their trajectory to a nobody, especially for Med who has too many other medals. In figure skating the talk goes back again and again in circles anyway. Well I'm not in FF and am ignorant of histories of other figure skating greats, so maybe it doesn't bother me so much.

R299 Thanks for describing the article. Why would the antis be freaking out? Do they think the article makes them look bad because it describes what they do?

Is the 8 page Bungeishunju article available online?

R336 There are more Hanyuubers then his antis, I supppose. Dont you think?

R319 I know what you mean about being so irritated at their fans that you want Jason & Med to not do well. It's not rational but it's certainly understandable. Med's fans in particular have good reason to be skeptical about Orser and David Wilson and I'm tired of those Jason ubers always trying to shut them down. Anyone who really follows Yuzu knows that the last thing his fans would want is to have David Wilson choreograph a competitive program for him.

R338; The last thing skating fans want is David Wilson choreographing anything.

Does he have the money to return to Canada? He recently had a paid event in Japan as way to feed himself dinner.

R333. I agree with you and also believe Hanyu will probably live elsewhere and not in Japan. He will likely visit though. As you said his life will be difficult living in Japan.

*** I say he should try the U.S. life is so hectic in the states he probably wouldn't get noticed.

This might be unbelievable for some of you, but get this: Japan has its share of nationally known and recognizable stars and some of them never venture outside Japan (or not as long as Hanyu) and they manage to live privately. Hanyu's hype will die down eventually once he retires and another Japanese star rises; he won't be constantly mobbed forever. Mao is as much a star and as publicly beloved, and she hasn't kicked up a fuss about living in her home country, I don't see Hanyu doing it either. Also, I still haven't seen a recent picture of Hanyu's father or sister so I don't see him and his family getting some privacy in Japan after his retirement as a problem.

If the JSF - and ISU - have any brains (and probably not, but still) hell yes they'll let Hanyu do whatever he wants. Anything to hold off the day he chucks it in and they have to search for someone with even half of his drawing power.

A series of... folders? Photo cards? I'm particularly fond of the shot where he's holding the ice cream bar and coyly wiping the corner of his mouth.

R342 ISU has brains. Japanese ladies are underscored in PCS, but look at the number of JPN sponsors on skating boards at competitions. ISU are laughing on their way to the bank. Meanwhile, JSF has Uno and all the judges and ubers like to pretend he's as good as Hanyu. In Japan and at Japanese hosted events that fills up anyway he probably is. NHK for Uno this year makes sense, and is a great test run also.

Drawing power: Everyone likes winners, and bandwagon fans who can see skills that aren't really there are a thing. Once Hanyu goes, they'll still continue to create their own skating stars. Many figure skating fans won't stick around anyway, so the new and improving formula in the COP era works - as long as they have record breaking Queens and Kings every year, that will draw its own crowd.

ISU shove scores down our throats that we have so many exciting Queens who manage to break world records revolving through the door. One of them will stick, like Med for a while and now Alina.

ISU has also managed to figure how that works for men's. If you give high PCS to quad jumpers we'll also have a new revolving door of world record breaking Kings soon.

r326 Uno is USM.

Japan Open is organized by IMG and sponsored by Kinoshita Group (both also responsible for SOI Japan, The Legends, and The Ice). JSF and TV Tokyo host. Past participants are listed on their Wikipedia. Miyahara is sponsored by Kinoshita and Sakamoto is signed with Sysmex, but both are also featured on IMG’s client page. Oda is TLAROCK and Kanako Murakami is USM, but both also work for TV Tokyo. I think most of the foreign skaters are in IMG.

R328 Kinki regionals was at the same time as JO. Takahashi wouldn’t have been able to skate even if invited. There were no other examples given of Hanyu doing whatever he wants. It was just a tiny part of the article, which was mainly about Takahashi’s performance at Kinki. The only other negative thing mentioned was the ticket scalping at regionals. One fan paid 30,000 yen and some tickets went for as much as 60,000 yen while the original price was 2,000 yen.

R336 I think they’re freaking out because it shared new information and Bunshun is the best-selling weekly and widely recognized for the credibility of its reporting, unlike tabloids like Josei7 that have covered Hanyu in the past. If it’s in Bunshun, people are going to believe it. In reality, it was just a little article overshadowed by much bigger stories about the imperial family, politicians, sumo, etc, so it probably won’t get that much attention from the wider public. I think the antis were also caught off-guard. Before reading the article, the clickbait headline seems to suggest that Hanyu’s afraid of competition from Takahashi and the first page just covers Takahashi’s comeback in a positive light. But as you get to the end of the story, it describes the antis and you realize it’s suggesting Hanyu is uneasy about Takahashi’s ubers, not his skating.

The kindle version of Bungeishunju is available on amazon. I haven’t seen a free copy of the article online. Orser is also coming out with a book called “Team Brian: A New Journey” (my translation, don’t know the official English title) on Nov 1.

I think Yuzuru looks very awkward in those photos. He's not a very good model, sure he's pretty but doesn't know how to pose and stuff like that.

R345 Thanks again for the info.

[quote]But as you get to the end of the story, it describes the antis and you realize it’s suggesting Hanyu is uneasy about Takahashi’s ubers, not his skating.

I'm surprised by this - wouldn't Dai's ubers be happy that Hanyu is uneasy? Isn't that what they're trying to accomplish by harassing him? I'd think they'd be pleased rather than freaking out.

R347. Ikr? You would think they would be popping champaign or whatever and wearing t-shirts that say mission accomplished.

Random thought: All the members of the Canadian world/Olympic men’s team in the last quad - Kevin Reynolds, Keegan Messing, Nam Nguyen, Jeremy Ten … yup … P. Chan was the hot one.

r347 r348 meh. No one likes to get called out on their shit.

And if they're like a lot of crazies, they probably think that what they do is justified and are angry that anyone would suggest otherwise.

R349 Jesus, why would you do that to us? If you had the decency to include pairs/dance, we wouldn't have to go there at all.

Speaking of Canadian dance, this is for the Poirier ass lover, to make up for all the Hanyu ass posts.

I may be the only Dave Lease and TSL fan here but the latest video is out (and I’ll try so hard for brevity which is very hard for me): Beginning: a lot about Gracie GOLD’s mental health (suicidal ideation, cursing out somebody at Champ’s Camp) - details about some scathing interview done by an idiot that Dave saw before it was taken down -- then straight into Gabby DALEMAN being ignored when her issues (increasingly photoshopping her body to shreds etc.) were so obvious and someone should have stepped in to help her; (Dave mentioned he actually asked Raf who would replace Daleman/Larkyn/Choi at Skate America and Raf didn’t know yet ??), he touched on Larkyn & Choi's issues

– anyway at 27 minutes, a bit of making fun of MACHIDA’s 9 minute artsy-fartsy skate, referencing Nureyev/Nijinsky/Mahler, and no triples till 6 minutes, but still they think he’s great and he and Oda should both do Nationals (w/Dai) – NATHAN at 32 minutes and he should cut his effin' hair so mommy must not be there, and that he'll probably be like Kwan and drop classes etc. – 40 minutes in, Med/Hersh/Eteri rehash which they’re even sick of

– 41 JAVI/Prometo/Dave loves it/Jon hates it – 44 LAMBIEL is trying to turn Deniss into himself and sorta succeeding though Deniss is always behind the beat unlike Steph but he’ll get there – 46 ZAGS vs SATOKO (SM wins) – 48 DAI Time! Dave communicates with a Dai uber named Genki who sends him special previews/clips, more mild piss taking – 54 they LOVE DANIELIAN, he’s everything – 1.03: more ETERI stuff and her method vs US method, and 1.08 TRUSOVA 4Lz

– oh and Dave is doing a video series: scoring all the women at Sochi with new system to see who'd win, the short-program jump video is already out (Yuna won) – he's doing all the top women's scores to see who he would score as winner. This is like the one with Hanyu Uno Brown but more women being scored (and all their jumps) THE END THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE - I guess I'm no longer the frontalist - I'll be the Dave uber - well, maybe both and there's not enough Hanyu in this post...

* who'll replace G/L/C at Skate Canada - not Skate America - sorry

R354 When did he contact Raf?

We know Mallet and Pinneault replace Daleman and Austman.

Lim (coached by Raf) is at the top of alternates list. So I wonder if Skate Canada has not contacted the international replacement yet or if they have skipped her

I don't know R355 - he just mentioned it in passing, I think it was like "I asked Raf and he didn't know" - something like that. It's probably between minute 20 and 27

R347 As r350 said, they don't want to be seen as the bad guy and Hanyu as the victim. They'd rather everyone believe Hanyu is the bad guy who's also afraid of competition from Takahashi in skating and popularity.

I've posted a video about Briand helping Miyahara with her jumps on the other thread. He said, "I don't mind working with people who are willing to do a change."

Karen Chen withdraws from Finland GP

And Radionova from Skate America.

Ensoo Lim should finally get that second spot, there are 2 at Finland fill, 1 SA. Dabin Choi's spot at NHK went to Miete.

I'd like the Australian Kailani Crane to get a spot, I enjoy her energy despite the lacking tech, but she was pretty far down the SB last year. Decent World Standing though, at #40.

With Radio out, Leonova could get a spot, or Sakhanovich a second one. Hicks or Wang could get a second spot. How on Earth did Matilda Algotsson get a French GP assignment? She's really down the list in both World Standings and Season's Best. Was she the only one they could be sure Miete and Lecavelier could beat? I guess it'd look bad if all 3 home skaters ended up at the bottom, and it sure looks like it'd hapoen without Aglotsson.

R359

I think the Ladies vacant spots are 1 at Skate America (Radionova), 1 at Skate Canada (Dabin), 1 in Finland (Karen) and 1 at NHK (Dabin).

Meité got the Chinese girl's spot at NHK. Dabin's is stil up for grab.

r360 Ah, ok, thanks.

In the original assignments

France and Russia went down to Algotsson and Paganini skipping Kim and Craine.

In Men Russia went down skipping Dolensky to get Zandron (who withdrew anyway). And Finland skipped Dolensky for Philip Harris

SA practices start Thursday. I don't think anyone who trains overseas is going to have enough time to organize everything to go, especially if they need a visa. I don't know if they will bother replacing Elena. She looked dreadful 2 weeks ago - why did she wait so long to withdraw?

The judging panel for Men at Saitama Worlds will be

Canada

China

Taiwan

Croatia

Czech Republic

France

Georgia

Israel

Mexico

Poland

Spain

Switzerland

Turkey

R350 R357. No question in my mind they want Hanyu to be the villain in all this. Hard to accomplish when one side (Hanyu) is staying mostly silent on their bullying and the other side (antis) making pages and spreading rumors. It would be nice if they did take it as a victory and move on. He would finally get some peace. The over the top fans are a different story now......

Why din Radionova withdraw? I don't think she looked dreadful, or if she did, others did too and didn't withdraw.

Judges at 4 Continents

Men: Australia, China, Taipei, Hong Kong, Japan, Kazakhstan, Mexico, South Korea, USA

At Euro Championships

Men: Belarus, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Great Britain, Italy, Norway, Poland, Russia, Spain, Turkey and Ukraine

At Junior Worlds

Men: Australia, Azerbajan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Great Britain, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Japan, Sweden, Turkey

Turkey was lucky. They kept drawing them!

They were drawn for Ice Dance at both Worlds and Euros too.

Such a shame Russian Fed doesn't let skaters choose level to compete. Why Daria Panenkova turned senior while Anastasia Gubanova who has same age as Daria is still competing in juniors ? Senior field is deadful, Alena Leonova, Radionova, Konstantinova seemed done, Sofia Samodurova, Polina Tsurskaya are struggling. Why did they keep Gubanova in juniors when juniors field is already too packed with many talented girls.

[quote]Why din Radionova withdraw? I don't think she looked dreadful, or if she did, others did too and didn't withdraw.

A Russian lady, a former World medalist, who can't even eke out a decent 3-2 combo is not competitive, full stop. She would have only embarrassed herself further.

haha NO canadian judge at Worlds for ice dance! So president of Skate Canada doesnt send HERSELF to Japan .. .Omg why? what happened? ;)

R370 She was even present at the draw

"the draw for Judges by number for the above-mentioned Championships was held on October 11, 2018, at the Grand Hotel Kempinski in Geneva in the presence of Mr. Alexander Lakernik, ISU Vice-President Figure Skating, Mr. Charlie Cyr, Sports Director Figure Skating, Ms. Krisztina Regöczy, Sports Director Figure Skating, Ms. Patricia Mayor, Sports Manger Figure Skating, Mr. Frédéric Laurent, Sports Coordinator Figure Skating, Mr. Grégoire Weber, auditor from BDO AG and Mrs. Leanna Caron from Skate Canada."

She is someone big there. thats why she can do what she wants. She is not gonna be a judge anymore, (in important competitions ) coz V/M is out

R372 we don't know who the referee and the technical controller are. She may get ISU to be appoint her there (TC more important than Referee IMO). Skate Canada will have to work for a medal for Weaver/Pojie or Gilles/Poirier.

JFS is already lobbying French Fed to get Phillipe Merriguet as their nominated judge for Worlds?

(for those not following the joke, Philippe loves Shoma)

G/P has no chance to medal. W/P but only bronze ( with clean H/D) So no chance for gold or any serious threat for P/C . Not like V/M like season. She had to take matters in her own hands ;) Now theres no point to risk bending the rules.

R375 G/P have a chance to medal if Skate Canada decides they are their top priority instead of Weaver/Poje. Otherwise they will finish 5-6th (top 4 will be P/C, H/D, top Canadian couple and top Russian couple). Skate Canada operates with strict internal order in ID and everyone follow it (look at W/P scores before, during and after V/M's comeback). But yes, she doesn't need to appoint herself because other Canadian judges are the same.

Russia has Russia, Ukraine, Hungary, Bulgaria, Turkey, Israel in the Worlds panel. But they need a friendly technical panel for Stepanova/Bukin as Stepanova's levels are shaky.

I know what you mean , but I think G/P are not on that level yet to be top couple from Canada. I know that W/P were screwed after V/M comeback and suddenly they became medal contenders. But they are better then G/P/ I dont like that overscoring some couples , without any reason so suddenly coz other were retired like S/B . Thay are guaranteed to have silver rmedal at Euro, it seems

Nice. Finally a good quality closeup on his face and hands so that I can ignore the ugly belt.

Oh what the fu-

Is TSL that desperate for likes?

R380. I doubt. But the dude chose the right pic, good.

Somehow that belt makes his waist look big R378. And he'd be the prettiest girl ever in R380 if the photoshoppers could make his shoulders narrower and his hands smaller. Oh and maybe longer hair - can you imagine him with Nathan's do?

How did they find a belt that makes Yuzu look fat? Well, not fat but thick-waisted?

R382 His hands are ridiculously small already, any smaller and it would actually look weird unless you are into Trump' s kind of tiny hands.

R383 That has been my question since yesterday. Another one is when will some Japanese auntie finally upload the scan of this picture which I have only seen twice so far in crap resolution. Look as if he is dancing.

Well, small hands for a man R384 - but I still think they'd look kinda big and rangy for a girl - maybe if he got some of Gabby's super-long glittery fingernails, they'd look more feminine? (not that that's what he's going for - looks like a K-Pop guy to me - well, if he dyed his hair blond - and DON'T do that, Yuzu!)

R386 His hands are very feminine and could pass as a girl's though. Even his nails are long and always manicured. It's his forearms rather than his hands or shoulders that would give him away if he were trying to pass as a girl.

This gives me a chance to post one of my favorite tiny little videos - the cute little thumbs up at the end reminds me of how playful Yuzu is. And to me, his shoulders look broad and straight across, especially compared to Nathan, whose shoulders slope down (and really are narrow). But no reason they both can't have girly shoulders lol. Not sure what to think about Keiji's - btw, I think he's the only one who doesn't have skates on - he's about the same height as Yuzu - and taller than Nathan.

Thank you all for the Hanyu photos. This guy is so pretty. I can't even. I used to think Johnny Weir was the prettiest. He got beat by Hanyu. He wins hands down.

Hanyu is so gorgeous that he doesn't need fake press-on nails to look hot.

It is creepy

Well, he'd need to do something about that honking Adam's apple R387

The Adam apple thing is strange becauce very often East Asian guys have it more prominent than other ethnicities (some, not me of course, would say that it's to compensate for the size of their dick) and I have also noticed that quite a lot of androgynous guys have a very visible one as well. Here Ukrainian ballet dancer, Sergei Polunin. Not sure what's the reason for this.

r380 Lol. They'll turn off their regular viewers, most of them are hardly Hanyuj fans.

What now, r379?

Even in the midst of the most important competition of his life, Yuzuru was selflessly thinking about DL's needs. A truly generous and giving soul.

vr393 For a moment there I thought it was Megan Duhamel.

Radionova WD bc of a back injury.

Aw c'mon I don't think that butt wiggling has any warm up value.

That's a weird theory R393, the compensation thing. It's even counter-intuitive. Testosterone is what makes the Adam's apple enlarge at puberty - and testosterone is what makes certain other body parts enlarge at puberty as well.

R395 That ass wiggle itself is worth an OGM. Did you notice that slight smirk on his face at the end of the video? So camera aware. He knows what his fans want.

@ R88 video, how did he pronounce his name? I need a phonetic transcription.

R399 It was a joke. However it's true most Asian guys don't exactly have the biggest dicks, yet they often have Adam apples more prominent than the most endowed porn actors.

I think you mean R388 ? If so, this is what I think they're saying - and just as an aside, I love Yuzuru's curves compared to the boring straight boxy bodies of the other two - sorry, can't help the drooling:

"Hi, this is Yuzu [or Yuzuru] Hanyu"

"This is Nathan Chen"

"Hi. Keij (pronounced Cage) Tanaka"

YH: "We" - KT: "use" - Nathan "John Wilson Blades."

This thread needs some straight Javi

There's a lot more Johnny Weir in Javi than we give him credit for.

Ah I see R402 - I didn't know about the bigger Adam's apples, in general - maybe Asians have skinny necks?

Is that photoshopped or did Javi actually wear those sexy outfits R405? (I'm new to following skating and I've only seen him in the dull stuff)

R401 I don't think his surname has ever been correctly pronounced outside Japan. Maybe that's throwing you off? It's ha-nyuu, but non-Japanese usually say han-yu. Yu-zu-ru instead of yuu-zuru, although the "zu" is not actually "zu" (ず) but "dzu" (づ) (or "du" when typing), but sounds close to a shortened "zu." The difference is subtle but why many like Jason Brown always writes Hanyu's first name incorrectly in Japanese.

Speaking of Brown, when did his IG get hacked?

r407 Javi had his moments. Excellent ass, dull stuff or not.

R408 Jason sent out this tweet yesterday

R407 No photoshop. 100% authentic fabulous. Pretty sure it's from Javi's 2008 SP Requiem for a Dream. Javi was a lot more pingy before they decided to repackage him.

R411 yes, it was 2008. Judging by the scores it was 2008 Euros SP.

Verner was in the lead ahead of Joubert and Lambiel. The hodious Van Der Perren was 4th. Someone called Kristoffer Berntsson from Sweden was 5th (I don't remember him but he lasted many years according to his ISU bio).

Voronov was 6th. Brezina was 14th. Javier was 16th. Ruben Blommart (24th) was still doing Single and was still Belgian. Alber Ucar (29th) was still doing singles

Here's a video of 14-year-old Anna Scherbakova's recent 4Lz jumps (in the beginning of the 1-1/2 minute video they show Yuzuru doing a 4 Lz) -- anyway, I can't figure out something at the end - is she sitting in Danlil's lap or just really close to him?

The ISU is making good use of Yuzuru to announce the new Grand Prix season - if you click on the link, there's a pretty good "frontal" of Yuzu (they feature him again on their home page).

R412 LOL your knowledge of FS history and gossip, both significant and obscure, is truly impressive,

Link to someone who is planning to rabbit Skate America

R413: It looks like a Toddlers and Tiaras on Ice. The Russians are getting creepier every year.

r380

DL poster: Hanyu doesn't look like a girl. DL Fanyus: Them's fighting words!!!

Other Forums: "He looks like a woman" Me: "I can no longer tell if this is supposed to be a compliment or an insult"

I read somewhere (maybe here), that Hanyu finally got a manager. Anyone know if this is true? What company?

Oooh boy - I wonder if Autumn Classic made him wake up and smell the roses: time to think about Exit Stage 1 - now Stage 2: life post-competitive skating. I kinda expected to see him start making moves that presaged the future. I remember a documentary with him spreading out numerous notebooks covering every year, opened up revealing all manner of mathematical notations and insights - and especially plaaaans. Perfectionism doesn't just come and go haphazardly.

r419 I faintly remember reading about the manager thing here before ACI.

R418 Dirt Czar will likely have the answer, but the only reference I've seen to Hanyu's "manager" was from the French oversharer who recounted details of her conversation with Ghislain at ACI. In the post regarding fans crowding around Hanyu's car, she mentions that Hanyu's manager was driving the car (or in the car with him, I forget which). I think if you read it here, that's likely it. Not sure Frenchie is the most reliable source of info and her idea of "manager" may be different from a management company.

I’m pretty sure Hanyu’s “manager” is just his mother, who was at ACI as well

She said his manager was in the car with him but not his mother, I think it was not Shirota either because the French girl must know her. Actually, I won't be surprised if he has one.

R385 Is this the picture you are looking for? I don't understand the obsession with these clear files. I don't even know what they are. Just a bunch of pictures of Hanyu smelling his fingers.

Sorry, the link doesn't seem to work. Here's another.

He's not model material. People like him for his skating and that's it

Maybe Itsuki can offer to share some tips on modeling.

R427 Sorry, but my allure and charisma are not really things that can be taught.

R425 Yes, that's the one, thanks. This is a really beautiful shot. I hope they will release the filming of this.

R426 if "they like him for his skating and that's it", why is he in ads for chocolate, pillows, bath salts, Xylitol, Nintendo, the Red Cross, an airline, skating blades, etc.?

I think Mao has done ads as well, and I don't think most people would call her "model material" -- other than the fact of her massive fame, which makes not only model material, but a very high sought-after high-level model, or actually a level-up from model, a spokesperson, who sometimes functions much as a model.

R430 Actually there was a tv program a few months ago where they were showing one of his photoshoot filming and the guys on the tv show were praising his model and star quality.

I agree, I think he'd be a great model even if he weren't mega-famous, R431. I'd love for him to do more acting, so we could see him after he retires - and I think he's talked about being a singer, but so did Dai - I don't know how likely/serious that was or if he can sing (does it matter with the equivalent of photoshopping for singing?) Anyway, barring health issues, he could probably do ice shows for a long time, as another way to stay in the public eye (like his fans would like.)

I think I jumped at the manager idea because I'm so anxious to see what he's going to do - but maybe even he doesn't know for sure yet.

Hanyu is not signed to any agency. The director of the ANA skating club, Noriko Shirota, acts as his manager aside from his mom. But I think the ACI driver would most likely be someone locally-based (although Shirota did go into hiding in Canada while her home in Japan was being raided in 2006). After Hanyu had to stop taking the bus to TCC, members of the Japan Society or the Shokokai supposedly got him to and from practices, so maybe the driver is a member of one of those associations.

Shirota, AKA “The Empress (of the figure skating world),” was a former ice dancer and ISU judge who was forced to resign from the JSF executive board along with seven other members in 2006 for embezzling funds. The eight members had been receiving monthly payments for fabricated expenses for years. The former JSF president Hisanaga was also arrested and convicted of skimming from events and overcharging the JSF for rent and accommodation through his event company. Shirota was his right-hand woman (and lover?) and it was believed the surplus was passed onto her, but the prosecutor was unable to find enough evidence to charge her. She was allowed to judge Cup of Russia in 2008 and return to the federation in 2009 in a smaller capacity.

After Pyeongchang, it was rumored that there was a falling out between Shirota and Hanyu’s mom after the former kept trying to force Hanyu to do more ice shows since he could earn 2 million yen per show. Without Shirota’s help, he supposedly cannot do commercials or appear on TV programs.

There’s also a theory that the president of CIC (the event management company that runs FaOI, DOI, CiONTU), Kikuo Makabe, also acts as Hanyu’s manager though I’m not fully convinced. Makabe is the married man rumored to be the father of Ando’s child. It’s also believed Shirota helped Makabe establish his company and they share a close relationship.

Also, Hanyu is so embarrassed of his singing voice that he will only lipsync on camera. That's why he was the only athlete who wasn't actually singing for the NHK project. He also believes acting should be left to the professionals, and he only appeared in that film for his hometown and because the scene was very short. And it's true that he isn't really considered great model material (in the traditional sense) when it comes to his ads, which are often perceived as cute but a little awkward to downright weird or creepy (like the one in the tub).

Wow - thanks for the details JDC! I hope we don't drive you crazy over here - your details are invaluable!!

200 million yen per show? That's like, 1,5 mil dollars... For a single show? Or for a tour? Because is that even possible for a single show, there are about 20 skaters plus the crew and expenses, the audience would have to pay some $1000 per ticket on average? I thought he was getting like $100k maybe. Holy crap.

The "can't do commercials without Shirota" sounds so wrong. He'd have to have some contract signed to be this restricted because otherwise what would prevent companies to contact him or his mom personally for endorsements. I'm guessing Hanyu's waiting to the end of his competitve career to be free of her and ISU and then he could start cashing in on his fame.

I thought the “fall out between Shirota and Hanyu’s family” post pyeongchang was reported by Josie Joshin or Joisei seven, it’s one of those tabloids I’ll take with a grain of salt.

Also Hanyu was not the only one that didn’t participated in the singing part of the NHK “Hana wa Sami” video project, Uno and Ayumu Hirano (the snowboarder) also only participated in the acting only department. There could be more athletes that be didn’t join the singing part, but these two came to my mind without having to rewatch the video. But yes, Hanyu has no interest in pursuing for a career in showbiz, and I guess his work for the commercials and photo shoots are not too bad for an athlete. No he’s not your traditional model type but he has his own charm, including the occasional awkwardness, when it comes to these non skating side jobs.

The above should read “Hana wa Saku” video project. Should have double checked spelling before I post. Sorry about that.

R435 Were you thinking of dollars? I wrote 2 million yen but I was actually missing an extra zero, it's 20 million yen. Mao earns 2 million.

R435 No, Asagei released the story a month before one of the Josei's and the other papers, but that's also why I said it was a rumor. The stories about Hanyu/Hanyu's mom and Shirota go back years, although Josei Seven claimed Hanyu's mother and Shirota were buddy-buddy until recently.

You're right. Hirano and Uno also didn't sing. But according to NHK's blog, they (Hanyu & co) asked not to sing and NHK tried to accommodate them as much as possible because they didn't feel it was their place to force the athletes even though they wanted them to sing. He also held his microphone away so he couldn't be heard when he was supposed to be singing Happy Birthday to Fernandez at Continues.

R433 The ones he did for AnAn and Aera were praised to the moon. Same with his ads for that mattress company. Plenty of photographers have praised him as a model and there is even this famous painter who took him as a muse. I don't think the consensus on his photoshoots is that they are awkward or creepy. Far from it.

Very interesting R438 - I may have got this wrong, but I tried to check and 20 million yen is $178,320 (today). So is that what Yuzuru would make for one show?

I remember this past summer, for quite a while, it was reported that Yuzuru would only do two of the Fantasy on Ice appearances - and then after a few weeks, it came out that he would do them all (along with Nagano Heroes and Future Heroes or some such, which I think was a separate thing.) I wondered if he was reluctant and finally either talked into it or forced -- and I also wondered if he was negotiating the fee (or someone was doing it for him.) Anyhow... I'm sure we won't know the details. Well, maybe JDC will! (or do we have more than one "insider" here?)

And I tend to agree with you R439 - when you're extremely popular, I'm not sure it's as important to be slick or look like a typical model - or even act or sing like a typical performer. But Yuzu is a perfectionist, so I imagine he wouldn't want to act or sing unless he thought he could do it excellently. As a spokesperson/ad-maker or whatever, it looks like he's willing to go along and not expect to be a pro at it, but do what they ask of him and be playful with it - I mean, people are interested in watching him for reason other than how skilled he is as an advertizer/product-pusher. Maybe that won't last (I think Mao's ad/show rates are going down -- maybe he has more staying power than she does).

Anyhow, when you're already established, especially to the level he is, I think the typical rules don't apply, as to whether you're awkward or smooth or whatever people generally expect in adverts.

Oh hell, I don't know, there's nothing to do but wait... Maybe he'll still be competing at Beijing and all this conjecture is just a waste of effort. I'm sure we can trust him to figure his own future out lol. I just hope he'll be content with it. So many ex-superstars seem to struggle but for some reason, I don't expect him to be a Michael Phelps or even a Daisuke - I think he'll choose carefully and then commit himself and be just fine. Might as well think that since it makes me happy.

r438 Thanks, I don't know why I saw the extra zeroes. 20 mil yen/ $170k is more along what I thought he'd be getting.

R440 When it was announced he was doing two first shows, many fans guessed they were going to release the cast one by one and he would be added to at least one more show because he was scheduled to have a P&G talkshow ( fanmeeting ?) at the same day as FaOI in Kobe. So even if he was forced to do all shows, it was fixed before two first shows were announced.

Kobe is the third destination of FAOi tour after Makuhari and Kanazawa.

Miki has my complete respect and admiration. Within the span of a year or so she was able to work what the good lord gave her to secure a meal ticket for herself and quality Spanish dick in admirably rapid succession. She dated Javi before the kid, but aint no way those Ando eggs were gonna attach themselves to flakey, non-blackmailable, non-moneyed Spanish seed. She did her chores and then went out to play. I like this girl.

R439 I'm speaking of the reaction of the general public, not the reaction within Hanyu's fandom. His ads and magazine shoots are definitely not praised to the high heavens outside his fans, and the reaction to the Red Cross commercial and the Babu or Bathclin commercial in the tub was particularly bad. Photos of him skating or from events and interviews where he's in his natural state have been warmly received, if it makes you feel better. The famous artist you're thinking of is Elizabeth Peyton and she was inspired by his performance on the ice, not by one of his ads or photoshoots for a magazine.

Everyone is starstruck by Hanyu, but I wouldn't take public compliments by photographers and staff too seriously and they're speaking of him as a non-model. Uno and Chen have received the same words of their photoshoots, and most of the other figure skaters have probably heard the same thing when they've done ads. I also wouldn't take compliments from skaters too seriously either, like when Uno praised Chen and some here thought it meant he was a huge Chen fan or secretly dissing Hanyu.

Even as a FS fan, I think Hanyu's ads are cringey (like the xylitol one where he's in a white suit with gold ruffles). They can be enjoyed in a silly, campy way, but that doesn't make Hanyu a good model or actor. But he doesn't need to be, he's Yuzuru Hanyu! I don't think these companies hire him based on his acting/modeling skills.

Dirt Czar - how much influence does Shirota still enjoy within the skating community? Has she been able to rebuild her reputation? Would it be bad for Hanyu if he ever broke off with her?

Plush has been confirmed for ROI, but the bombshell they were promising won't be revealed until next week. They sure are milking this. Better be an actual superstar and not like Patrick Chan or something.

The only good thing that came out of the xylitol white commercial with the white suit was a split second where you could see his delectable ass. I don't think it even made it to the actual commercial, just a "making of" thingy. It was looking enticingly round, pert and embarrassed to be in that shitty costume in the still that I saw. I wish I could find it again.

R447, I was so sure “da bomb” of the cast would be Virtue Moir, now that you bring Patrick into the equation....that’s highly possible too, aren’t they good buddies? I remember Patrick giving high praises of javi and considered they are the ones that truly embodied artistry into figure skating instead of getting carried away by the quad craze. I wouldn’t be surprised if part of the Canada Thank You tour cast joining the December shows. And they can promote this as the “team gold medal” cast. That could be quite the bomb that they are trying to keep people guessing.

R449 V/M or Patrick would be really annoying. No disrespect to them, they are stars, but they have been touring endlessly, and their presence in Javi's show would hardly be a bombshell.

V/M ?Stars ? who wanna see that cow and dwarf making orgasm faces . Better watch some soup opera

R445 I wasn't just talking about the 2 or 3 weird ads he did but in general all the cute or beautiful ones, the photoshoots, the hundreds magazine covers he's bewn on etc. And if you are going to disregard professional photographers but insist on him being a bad model because some insecure men or antis within the general public called him okama or kimochi warui then sorry but I can't take your argument seriously. So let's just agree to disagree on this.

R449 Yeah either V/M or Yuna. Yuzu/Javi fans on Twitter who get pissed off over people mentioning that no way Javi would invite Yuzu and have him overshadow him make me laugh. To me it's so obvious that Javi is not exactly ecstatic about his relation with Yuzu and especially about the media and fan circus around it. I doubt he wants that for his post Olympic medal win show.

R436 I don't think Yuzu can sing or act and I believe he is fully aware of his shortcomings although in the case of singing it must frustrate him a bit as he seems to really love it. I don't think he wants to pursue a post fs career as an idol in Japan but rather do something for the sport so this will not be an issue anyway.

I don't think those of you criticizing Hanyu's "modeling" abilities know what you're talking about. Companies don't want perfect generic models hawking their products anymore; they want the latest hot celebrities. And from what I've seen of his ads and commercials, Hanyu is doing just fine.

Entries for Innsbruck Challenger have been published

Kovtun comes back there

Adam Siao Ham Fam, Daniel Grassl, Camden Pulkinen and Tomoki Hiwatashi will compete in the Senior event

Sadovsky is entered and may win the whole thing.

Tarusina will compete as Senior.

r455 Juniors getting those WS points for the next year, aren't they. It'll be interesting to watch. Now I know I'm actually a FS and not just ass fan, I think a no-big-names, mostly-junior plus a has-been competition is intersting.

r452 Would Takahashi qualify as "bombshell"? The Madrid show is after Japanese Nationals.

I am going to Madrid . Dai would be nice there :)

R456

There are some "never been" too

Slavik HAYRAPETYAN

Manuel DRECHSLER

Luc MAIERHOFER

Roman SADOVSKY

Shuai FANG

Radek JAKUBKA

Tomas KUPKA

Georgii RESHTENKO

Daniel Albert NAURITS

Aleksandr SELEVKO

tValtter VIRTANEN

Joshua ROLS

Adam SIAO HIM FA

Catalin DIMITRESCU

Jonathan HESS

Thomas STOLL

Harry MATTICK

Adonis Wai Chung WONGt

Mattia DALLA TORRE

Daniel GRASSL

Jari KESSLER

Igor REZNICHENKO

Se Jong BYUN

tSunghoon PARK

Maxim KOVTUN

Konstantin MILIUKOVt

Marco KLEPOCH

Gabriel FOLKESSON

Lukas BRITSCHGI

Micah Kai LYNETTE

tTomoki HIWATASHI

Camden PULKINEN

Well well well the Revolution on Ice website introduces Plush as "El mejor patinador de la historia" (The best skater in history). I think that should settle it for those holding out hope for Hanyu. There can't be two bests in history. LOL. Yuna would be the only true bomb. Also, Javi and Yuna have the David Wilson connection.

r460 Did any fans really think Hanyu would participate during the skating season?

R460 Yes, some of the hardcore Yuzuvier fans on my TL. I think I need to follow different people. Hieloespanol eliminated Hanyu last week (basically what you said, the shows are during Grand Prix). The hint they gave was: it is someone (singular or plural) who has never skated in Spain before. Someone suggested Florent Amodio. I think they were kidding.

I have no idea which Hanyu fans you follow. I'm very picky who I follow. My Twitter account is also for other things besides skating. Some of these people have Twitter just for skating and Hanyu. I love Hanyu but I also enjoy tweeting about other things. Probably why I haven't seen much of this javi show stuff on my Twitter tl. And I'm happy about that lol.

R460. it says plushenko the best skater in history? I have to disagree. What are they smoking?

R463 Most of my twitter is not about skating. When I started using twitter for skating, I followed a bunch of people who looked like they had up to date news and have gradually started unfollowing when I've gotten anime, shipper type stuff on my TL. One, however, has excellent ass pics, so maybe that's why I have all these dumb retweets and likes on my TL. I don't always make sound life decisions.

R464 I don't know, he definitely wouldn't be my choice, but I think there are a fair number who believe this.

What planet are you from, r464, that you've never heard of hyping up the people that are coming to perform? "John Johnson, the best jazz player in the country!", "Tina Tnnis, the greatest ballet dancer of her generation!" What did you expect them to advertise Plushenko as, "Evgeni Plushenko, the posessor of the largest collection of medals from the 6.0 era"?

R466 Well, here is the description for P/C "Harán las delicias del público, especialistas en danza" (Google translate: they will delight the public, dance specialists). Lolz.

r467 Well, maybe the hype is reserved for Olympic winners? Do they have V/M or Savchenko/ Massot?

I'd also guess Yuna, since I believe David Wilson is actually choreographing the show and Yuna probably has a renewed taste for the screams of adoring crowds now.

It could have been Hanyu if he only did one or two shows - he could plausibly have done the first date (between his European GPs if he wanted to give his programs an extra outing) or last date (after JPN nationals). Then Fernandez would get the publicity and shine of having Hanyu attached to his show, he'd still have the spotlight for all the other stops, and he'd have repaid Hanyu for inviting him to Continues With Wings and gushing over him. It sounds like he's out of the running, though.

R465. I have only unfollowed two Hanyu fans. Apparently they were also bts fans and I'm not into bts. My timeline was a bts mess.

The ship stuff I don't do. I think it's ridiculous. I feel yes Hanyu is pretty, cute, handsome or whatever else. I also believe he deserves respect. That he is human and has feelings. Call me crazy but it's how I feel.

Poor Yuzu. Not that I think he would find anything to say about that description as he is the number one Plushenko fanboy and even once corrected the announcers on a tv show for forgetting Plushenko's Olympic team gold. It's just sad that Javier seems to be so important to him and the reverse isn't true. Like for his Continues ice show with the whole merchandise with Javier's name on it just next to Yuzu's, only for Javi to do a 30 sec half assed skate from Madrid on the last day obviously completely drunk and not giving a shit. Yuzuvier fans cheered and said Javi was amazing for waking up so early to do that for him, as if the guy wasn't getting paid to do so. Then you have all the interviews where Yuzu keeps praising Javi and saying he is a very important person to him while Javi makes passive aggressive comments.

I was one of the fooled ones R471. I used to like Javier only because of how happy and how important he was to Hanyu. But after Javier said he wasn't friends with Hanyu I started looking at him differently and I unfollowed him on social media. I too feel bad for Hanyu. Such a nice guy.

Jesus, "Poor Yuzu" again? Can't you just stop projecting on him? Just that you feel butthurt that Fernandez's world doesn't revolve around Hanyu doesn't mean Hanyu feels the same. He actually seems like a guy with a good head on his shoulder. It's like you're wanking to the idea of "poor, unloved, unappreciated, hated, dismissed Yuzu" I just can't phatom what you get from this stupid fucking narrative.

Either this thread is full of moron stans or full of concern trolls that pretend to be moron stans. I'm really fucking hoping it's the latter.

r469 No way would Hanyu devote any of his precious training time to skate in a show before GP. After Nationals, maybe.

r471 If Fernandez had been so important to him, Hanyu would have accepted some of those dinner invitations. Don't exaggerate.

472 I just can't with the hypocrisy.

R474. Perhaps he could have. We don't know the reasons. Javier said he is not friends with Hanyu. Anyway I love how we all look at things here differently. One of the reasons this thread is fun.

Lmao I think Yuzuru is quite alright without Javier's love or friendship or whatever the fuck. I like to think his brain right now is 4Axels in an endless loop.

Javier ans Yuzuru have both said they’re friends numerous times. Javi has even said they were friends after that interview where he said they weren’t that close. They certainly seemed friendly enough at all the FaOI shows, hugging and holding hands while skating around the rink. Fuck, I’m pretty sure that they interviewed Javi at FAOI and he said they were friends. Friendship isn’t black and white, they don’t need to be glued at the hip and people have different levels of friendship with different people. We only see a fraction of their interactions anyways, so all this speculation about if their friendship is “real” or not is just nonsense. If they said they’re friends, they’re friends.

Im not sure why there’s so much fixation on this one thing that Javi said one time during a high stress season given he’s said different since and his actions make it clear he doesn’t dislike Yuzu. All this “poor Yuzu, Javi doesn’t like him” crap is ridiculous.

I don't get the angst among fans about whether skaters are friends or not. Why do you care and how will you ever know for sure? Relationsihps are complex. This is a lot of projection, not just liking a guy but wanting your favorite people to be best buddies. SMH

And as a Hanyu fan, I agree that he's not a great model because HE IS NOT A PRO MODEL. Modeling takes training just like any other career, and I bet Hanyu is not too insecure to admit that. Being butthurt because not everyone thinks h'es the great model ever is so ... I don't even know if this is trolling or not.

I like this thread for not being banned from talking about Hanyu but man. Who's excited for GP? Let's talk about something that isn't poor Hanyu's mental state related. How will everyone perform?

R478 I said he can't act or sing to save his life so it's not like I believe he is perfect in anything he does but for the model thing I and quite a lot of people happen to think he is a good one. As for his relation with Javi, I don't care about them being best buddies and going out for drinks but when one side constantly praises the other and shows how genuinely happy and grateful they are thanks to them and the other seems annoyed most of the times it's a bit jarring. Plushenko as well has been asked to say something about Hanyu for years by the media yet he doesn't get pissed off about it.

R478 The thread is fine when there's actually something going on, like a competition or meaty gossip. It's just people stick around to shoot the shit - and sometimes it goes off on great tangents, sometimes not. I'm really curious to see Nathan. It should be an easy win for him. Barf. I honestly have trouble getting interested in the current ladies. They'll all be gone in a few years anyway when the little quadsters turn senior. Satoko has a nice tango and maybe we'll get a glimpse of her cute coach.

Here is Vincent's current insta post to start off SKAM. I've noticed this before about him - he often uses words incorrectly or awkwardly, like "defaced" in this post. It's like he checks the dictionary definition but doesn't understand how the word should actually be used.

R462 Is it possible the bombshell guest isn’t even a skater and they’re trolling with the “never skated in Spain before”?

R446 Her nickname, “The Empress,” came from somewhere. She was able to return to the fed just three years after admitting to misappropriating funds, fleeing the country, and nearly being arrested for more serious charges. With Hanyu’s current popularity, he should have leverage over her and no one’s forgotten about her embezzlement scandal, so the public would take his side if he ever broke with her/ANA. But she seems to have the right connections and Hanyu probably doesn’t want to burn too many bridges (yet) since he plans to continue working for the skating community after he’s retired. Shirota also butt heads with Arakawa’s mom (Shirota was allegedly taking kickbacks from Arakawa’s appearances) and had some weird thing with Mao.

r452 I was speaking about the reception by the general public to his ads, not his antis nor his fans. (And I never called him a bad model, by the way.) Which reminds me, Itsuki Uno has also been highly commended for his modeling skills and good looks by media and industry people, particularly during the bizarre off season following the Olympics. If you weren’t from Japan you might think he was some kind of supermodel adored by the whole country by the constant praise he’s received. Here’s his model profile again:

No Chock/Bates at GP Finland. The field got even worse. I wonder what's their reason for withdrawing.

Yuna will be skating at javi’s ROI show, that’s the bomb!

R482 she got a surgery after 2018 Worlds.

Lim got the vacant NHK slot. I guess Skate America will leave it vacant. So Megan What's her name can beat the vacant slot for 11th place

I think the ROI marketing team needs to rethink their strategy. FS is such a minor sport in Spain and most of Europe that retaining the info on the cast for so long is counterproductive. Most Europeans won't travel on such short notice as it is expensive and as popular as Yuna is, she doesn't have the crowd of diehard fans who will travel the world and spend thousands to see her (at least not anymore), so I doubt the effect on the ticket sales will be that visible. From what I read it is not selling well. I think instead of focusing on skating big names which no one but 3 peope in Spain know about, they should try to market the show itself as a fun and original thing. Have more visibility on social media etc. Otherwise if that's Javi's strategy to make fs more popular in Spain in general I have some serious doubts on its efficiency.

I watched the first ROI and it was a really nice production with live musicians, etc. If it's more of a variety show like Art on Ice, it can appeal to the masses. As a skating fan, I think the lineup is totally underwhelming. But then, I'm not a fan of Plushenko or Yuna at all.

R479, JMO, I think Hanyu's constant praise of Fernandez is getting overkill. Let's be real, Fernandez is a good skater and entertainer with his fair bit of charm, but his technical prowess is limited especially in recent years, and he's always failing just short of delivering a solid clean performance. Hanyu constantly praising him to high heaven is starting to look like he's mocking him or something. If by any chance he feels like me, then I can see why he seems annoyed, and I can't say I blame him.

R487 Lmao Who constantly prasied him to high heaven is his PR machine coach- Orser, not Hanyu. Hanyu never praised him for being an amazing technician or anything as far as I can remember.

R487 This is ridiculous. I'm not the biggest fan of Javier but he has quite a few clean and enjoyable performances and it's even more ridiculous to think Yuzu is exaggerating or faking his admiration. The guy literally inserted Javier' s entry into the 4S into his SP program. As if he would do that if it were mere mindless PR talk.

Getting Yuna is a real coup for Javi! After she retired, I don't think she's done anyone else's ice show. R485 You don't think Yuna's fans will travel for her? Outside of Hanyu doesn't she have the most devoted fans? I thought she is still the biggest name in women's FS (or am I wrong, I don't really keep up with FS fandom). Her appearance dates are also two months away, so that might be enough time for some European fans to book tix. It is around the holidays though.

R487 As with his praise of other skaters, Hanyu is pretty precise in his praise of Javi - in terms of technique, he mentions his 4s (I don't remember what else in terms of tech); and he praises his kindness. That hardly seems overboard.

I wonder how Javier managed to convince Yuna to skate in ROI. She hasn't done any show abroad for years and even in Korea she does only a few. I guess Wilson was involved somehow.

Anyone else here not give a damn about what kind of relationship, if any, Yuzu and Javi have? That's so junior high.

R492 Not unless they're fucking and I doubt they're fucking. Hopefully, fucking is not a junior high thing these days.

With some promising KR skaters that are actually breaking the ranks again, Yuna realized she needed to do some PR for the team. Jk. Didn't she just headline an ice show recently in KR? Maybe she realized she wanted to skate again, even if just for ice shows. Javi came from a small fed so I like that two champions from small feds are sticking together, even if how they got connected is a mystery.

The Japanese ladies field is stacked, maybe not as much as Russia's, but I feel like some right now will stick around for a bit (maybe not Satoko or Mai if her illness becomes a problem) unlike the Russian girls. Hopefully that actually translates to them getting those bonuses internationally as well.

Skate America is a snooze fest. It's sad I'm probably more excited about Vincent's antics than anything the quad king does. Doesn't matter what Sakamoto put out, unless Satoko and Bradie literally wipe the floor I don't think JSF and USF will let her get ahead.

R491 I think Yuna's participation in ROI is less about Javi than about Yuna just making her way back into the spotlight again. David Wilson was blabbing in August about how she's planning new things for her life, so I guess ROI and her recent show in KOR are part of it. She's slowly getting into Orser's territory though! He's probably pursing his lips wondering about which of his pets she will move in on next. I always did love the shadey, passive aggressive public sniping we saw at the height of their break up.

They fucked once R492 and Yuzuru is still all hung up about it. Javier is pretending it didn't happen. P.S. This is a joke.

I guess this is new but I can't read Japanese so I don't know why Yuzuru is also suited and booted and on the cover of this (recent?) article?

I know he'll never live up to supermodel Itsuki Uno standards, but I think he looks quite dapper :)

OK - I tried Google translate, good grief (below) -- BUT, does it mean that Yuzuru had graduated from Waseda now? (the first line??)

"New employee on Waseda University graduate company posted on company HP – lol - I feel like interviewing. Instead of being at the age this time # Moreover, if you are an employee, you can not put your hands in your pockets like this Even # please look. #It is a Moe sleeve #But I do not need a suit moon sleeve lol" #Please fix it before taking a picture"

R497. I usually call Hanyu pretty on this thread but that photo he looks very handsome. Whoever gets him will be one lucky person. And if he has graduated then congrats to him. So much dedication and hard work to anyone that has and is going to college.

He looked innocent 4 years ago. Some fans like to say he didn't age but he actually has aged a lot, his aura also is different from when he was a teenager, he looked almost the same on ice, especially in training gear though.

R481 Thank you! The underbelly of FS in Japan is both interesting and a little depressing. It works like that in many places, I guess, but these young skaters have to navigate so much besides just the skating itself. I guess with Hashimoto against him, Hanyu had to ally himself with someone similarly powerful to get the support he needed. I remember reading a translation of Shirota's book that someone posted on PH. It's an interesting read, especially given Shirota's shady and influential role in JPN FS. We don't hear much about her, but Hanyu's mother must be a force to be reckon with if she's the one going toe-to-toe with these people.

r497 r498 It’s a four-year old interview from the JOC’s “OLYMPIAN 2014” magazine. IGer was just saying that it looks like one of those interviews with a new grad employee you often see on Japanese company websites. (It does.) The article is available for free but you need to enable flash player: www. joc.or.jp /olympian/2014/db/embedskin/index.html?page=7&initEmbedSkin=508_359_0%22>

He does look older in the P&G photo tweeted today. He was appointed their official “Thank You, Mom” Ambassador. If you click on the youtube video, you can hear him read his speech. Waseda’s undergrads graduate in March, so when Hanyu graduates, it’ll be in March of some year.

R501 Thank you. I also think Hanyu’s family is very careful and smart about what they do.

Amazon JP is taking pre-orders for the new “Team Brian” book and you can see the cover: amazon.co .jp /dp/4065123666/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_VPcYBbQT9KTKX

R 502. Thank you for this information.

R500. Yeah I see comments like he still looks the same a lot on my Twitter tl. It's obvious he has changed. He looks more mature. Handsome.

I'll be watching skate America even though I believe Nathan will win. Unless he has a horrible skate.

Can anyone convert SA times to GMT? Yes, I'm aware that I'm lazy and stupid.

R505 Here's a timezone converter.

r504 It'll be interesting to see what shape everybody's in. I'd expect them to improve as the season moves along, but if the last season is any indication, that's not a given.

Yes, thank you R502. I brought the four-year-old photo here from Instagram and should have been more cautious. It's difficult to follow Japanese social media and not get it wrong - at least for me. Mainly I look at pictures on IG and have no idea what they're on about. It's great to have some explanation!

I've been thinking about something upthread - that Yuzuru might decide to move away from Japan post-skating, and I find that hard to imagine. He seems to really hate having to deal with English, or finding Japanese food abroad, and he also seems to be extremely patriotic and devoted to Japan and helping, however he can, with their future efforts in rebuilding after disasters - and also in the skating field. I think his homebase will be in Japan. I've never heard him say anything to the contrary - unlike Dai, for example, who once said he felt "freer" in the West.

R508 Many expats feel more patriotic while far from their country. I'm one of them. You tend to remember and miss only the good things but once you go back home you see all the negative sides even stronger than before you left and that makes you want to leave again. I don't expect for Yuzu to be living abroad full time, especially because he will want to see his family and will still have a lot of responsibilities and activities in Japan but I can easily see him continue doing what he has been doing for the past 6 years: between 6 and 10 months in Canada and the rest in Japan (or the opposite). I alsi don't believe not mastering a language indicates anything about how you feel in a country. I know many immigrants who have been living here for 20/30 years and still barely speak or make a lot of mistakes, yet they genuinely love living in that country.

Does anyone have any idea on when they will announce the athletes for 4CC?

Nathan will win with a horrible skate R504

R510, usually the worlds and 4CC teams are announced after nationals for Canadian, American and Japanese skaters, so we will know by December for team Japan, and Jan for Team Canada and USA. I think Korea Fed has a similar selection process for their skaters? But they have multiple domestic events throughout a season usually so I’m not sure about the exact timeline for team announcement. As for skaters from other feds, most likely we will find out when ISU release the entries closer to the competition time.

R512. Thank you! I looked at the 4CC individual event tickets and they seem ok. So if Hanyu goes to that event I may just try to go.

2019 Grand Prix Final will be in Strasbourg

Junior GP 2019 events will be

Courchevel

Lake Placid

Riga

Chelyabinsk, somewhere in Russia

Gdansk, somewhere in Poland

Zagreb

Egna, somewhere in Italy

Minimum TES for 2019 Worlds

Men

SP 34 (36 if achieved in last season)

FS 64 (66 if achieved in last season)

Ladies

SP 29 (29 if achieved in last season)

FS 49 (49 if achieved in last season)

Pairs

SP 27 (27 if achieved in last season)

FS 47 (46 if achieved in last season)

Dance

SP 31 (30 if achieved in last season)

FS 45 (43 if achieved in last season)

Good , GPF in Europe. Maybe I will go

ISU Technical Committes appointments

Single and Pairs

Skaters rep: John Coughlin

Coaches rep: Patrick Meier

Ice Dance

Skaters rep: Alper Ucar

Coaches rep: Maurizio Margaglio

I don't have an instagram account but is it possible to accidentally watch ig stories and if not, what was Javier doing there.

R518 LOL No, it's not possible to accidentally watch IG stories. Maybe he didn't know what he was clicking on. The more interesting question is whether he follows that account. It's pretty heavy on the Yuzuvier shipper lust.

He was obviously looking for new photos for his personal folder, duh!

Nathan Chen is better looking than Yuzuru.

Is Nathan 's mother posting here now?

R518 Such a pity these days a man can't watch slo mo vids thirstily documenting his rinkmate's every body part and facial feature without everyone knowing.

R522 No, but Raf is.

Piece of...art.

R525, What a nice pic, he looks delicious R518, I went to the instagram looking for that story, but I didn't find it. In other words, why is the first GP of this season (SA) so uninteresting in terms of lineup? Or maybe I'm just jaded.

Article about Nathan with some quotes from Raf.

R525 I don't know if it's the tiny waist which makes the butt look so plump or the plump peach which makes the tiny waist look even tinier. In any case it's beautiful.

Jackie Wong says Nathan's and Vincent's practices went well. Nate brought back 4F and Vincent's practicing 4s, t, lz, f. I guess his back injury has gotten better. Hopefully we can soon go back to making fun of him without mercy.

R527 Raf seems really annoyed at the whole coaching situation with Nathan.

R530 Don't blame Raf. Sounds like they barely communicate, much less see each other.

Skating order Men SP

Ma

Yee

Ponsart

Brezina

Reynolds

Nguyen

BREAK

Zhou

Kvitalashvili

Rizzo

Chen

Voronov

Bychenko

What's the start time tomorrow for skate America? Thanks in advance.

19:30:00tUS time for Pairs

21:00:00 US time for Men

Does NBC Sports gold make sense to get if you already have cable? Unfortunately I'm forced to keep my cable because it's included in my association fee but I was looking at the Gold package anyway - it's $59.99 right now. Xfinity has all the major competitions and I'm not interested in any US sectionals or regionals. Xfinity has both regular TV and streaming services. The only advantage I can see for getting the package is that you can replay everything longer but Youtube will have everything eventually anyway.

Is there something I'm missing? Is this directed more toward people who don't have cable?

R535. I got the gold pass because I can watch the event on replay. I live in the U.S. and many of these events will be either while I'm sleeping or not home. It's nice to know I can watch the event when I am able to.

The callers at Skate America are

Men and Ladies: Scott Davis (USA) and Ikuko Ishikawa (Japan) *controllers are Lise Jensen from Norway (Men) and Anna Sierocka from Poland (Ladies)

Pairs: Soltan Kokoev (Russia) and Veronique Fleury (France) * Controller is the Polish woman who is also doing Ladies

Ice Dance: Maria Bowness (Canada) and Andrzej Dostatni (Poland) * Controller is Alla Shekhovtsova from Russia

Davis was the most successful one of this lot. Twice US champion, top 10 at 1994 Olympics and 3 times at Worlds in that period

I let some of the Japanese moles to dig out when Ishikawa competed and how crap she could have been

Fleury was 31th at Worlds in 1996 as her top result

Bowness was 12th at Worlds in1981.

Dostatni was 17th at Olympics in 1988 and 13th at Worlds in 1990 and 1991. And he once showed with this fabolous costume...

r530 I'd be too if I had an Olympic podium contender move to the other side of continent but still expect me to coach him.

Does anyone know whether Bychenko arrived? He withdrew from the FS at Finlandia Trophy.

Ah, Anna Sierocka was one of the judges voting for Berezhnaya/Sikharulidz over Sale/Pellettier in the Salt Lake City 2002 scandal

R538 Bychenko's practice notes from Jackie Wong: : 2A, 3T, 3S, 3F, 3F, 3Lz, 2A, 3A, 3Lz1/2Lo3S, 1A, 1A, 1A, 1A, 3A(step), 3Lz3T

R538 Practice report on Bychenko is that he landed all his triples, no 4t.

The 4 1A in succession could lead to a wonderful FS. Something rivaling his SP score in Finland

R542 LMAO. Poor guy.

Thanks for updates on Bychenko! Hope he gets himself together. Dude finished 4th at Worlds just a few months ago, there must be something left in him.

Now, if only Krasnozhon didn't give off such douchy vibes, he'd be nice to look at.

For comparson, Krasnozhon giving off douchy vibes.

Official Livestream for the Holloween Cup in Budapest for those interested

Non-news but amusing nonetheless: Fernandez spotted creeping this Fanyu, Yuzuvier shipper account's IG story.

Linked is part of a run-through of Nathan's free skate at Skate America.

His planned layouts:

SP: 3A, 4F+3T, 3Lz

FS: 3Lo+3Lo, 4Lz, 3F+3T, 3A, 4T+3T, 4T+2T+2Lo, 3Lz

R548 he must be changing it for competition. He can't repeat 3 triple/quads.

Surprised he's only doing 1 quad for the short. He doesn't need it for this comp but you would think he would want to get practice on it in a low risk event

I think that must be wrong - got it at GS.

Jackie Wong: Practice notes Nathan Chen: 3F, 3T, 3A, 4T3T, 4T1Eu2S, 4Lz, 4F3T, 4Lz, 2F, runthru (3Lo, 4Lz, marked F, 3A, 4T3T, 4T2T2Lo(step), 3Lz)

Also at this link - scroll down to second video and it's Part 2 of Nathan's fs run-through. This IG account also has Satoko's runthrough and some others.

Could Zhou beat Chen? He says his back is 100% but his runthrough was messier than Chen's but he's being more ambitious, it sounds like.

Vincent's Planned Program Content:

SP: 4Lz+3T, 4F, CSSp, FCSp, 3A, StSq, CCoSp FS: 4Lz+3T, 4F, 4T, FCSp, ChSq, 3A+2T, 4Lz, 4S, FCCoSp, 3Lz+1Eu+3F, StSq, CCSp

Jackie Wong: Practice notes Zhou: 3T, 3Lz, 3A, 3A2T, 3A, 4S, 4S, 4T, 4Lz3T, 4Lz3T, 4F, runthru (1Lz, 4T, 3A3T(ur?), 4Lz(step), 1S, 3Lz1Eu3F) Ma: 3Lz, 3T3T, 3Lo, 1A(step), 3A, 3A, 4T, 4T, 3A, runthru (4T, 3Lo(fall), 1A, 3Lz1Eu3S, 3F), 4T(fall), 3A2T, 3A2T

Oops didn't notice on the practice notes that I copied Ma's right after Zhou's. Sorry.

r551 nah. Only if Chen bombs again.

R551 It's unbelievable that out of Zhou's jumps in the run thru only one triple combo seemed UR. Anyway, international judges can always play with Zhou's TES and PCS so he can score before or after their favorites, much like Satoko who is dependent on a panel with calling her jumps (that is sometimes inconsistent between the SP and FS). All this to say I don't believe Nathan has lost the golden boy spot just yet, and Nathan can still bomb and get ahead.

I ended up pulling the trigger on the NBC Gold package thinking that I'm pretty sure it won't be worth it but I've spent a lot more than $60 on things that were completely useless. It looks like, at a minimum, it'll make life more convenient.

Predictions for Skate America

Men: 1. Chen 2. Zhou 3. Voronov

Ladies: 1. Satoko 2. Sakamoto 3. Tennell

Dance: 1. Hubbell/Donohue 2. Zagorski/Guerreiro 3. Guignard/Fabri

Pairs: 1. Tarasova/Morozov 2. Knierem/Knierem 3. Efimova/Korovin

Christ on a cracker, the pairs field looks anemic. I had to google some of the pairs to even pick a bronze medalist. Pretty sure that T/M could fall 3 times and still win this event. Don't follow dance so just went with the worlds order. Ladies looks like the event to watch here - curious if Bradie can create momentum in spite of her showing at JPN Open - she seems to be pretty mentally tough. I think Satoko is still judges' pick in spite of placing behind Sakamoto at their last even. This is pretty much a walk over event for Nathan and Vincent to get gold and silver... unless they skate like they did in their first events. Even then, I expect them both to medal. Men's bronze pick is a toss up - when the entrants were first announced I picked Bychenko but after that showing I'm going with the other geriatric.

Ladies panel have BOTH Balkov and Babenko in it. It should be fun

Belgium didn't brother to send a judge for Loena

I bought the NBC Gold pass (don't have cable) when IceNetwork ended, mainly because Hanyu decided to keep skating. I wish I could work up more enthusiasm for some of the other skaters but so far it's not happening. I don't blame the skaters; I blame the ISU for fucking up the scoring system.

Is NBC free of commentary though? Because I might consider it. Otherwise I can't stand the commentary.

Zhou and Tennell both still present very junior-ish to me. That Tennell outscored Sakamoto in PCS at the Japan Open is yet another example of how meaningless the PCS is. It'd be laughable if it weren't so infuriating.

I went and made a new thread just in case this one is finished before I get home later today.

I think Tennell's slender and long-limbed frame make her seem more "junior-ish" than she really is. FS is not a sport that favors taller skaters. And she also did lose quite a bit of time recovering from back fractures. It will be interesting to see how she develops her performance skills this season, the area she has said she wants to focus on.

As for Zhou, I don't know what the hell to think of his skating right now.

If Med and Zags can be on top of the skating world with constant hunching, melodrama, small UR/flutz jumps, miming, in varying percentages between the two of them - I'll give Tennell a break.

Yeah I actually don't get the Tennell hate. She's not super good but also not horrible. I think her jumps could benefit from a little bit more height but Meds and Zags also have ugly jumps so

I die a little everytime Alina and Med fans proudly flaunt how they "dominate" the field with their inflated scores. Objectively, both should be barely pulling ahead if everyone skates clean.

Anyway, how would y'all rate Russia's Samarin vs Zhou? Both have nothing but jumps, but I've actually seen Zhou fans claim he deserves higher PCS, especially at last year's Nationals just because he had a standing ovation.

Well, I checked them both out - I'm really new at all this - but they both made me appreciate Kolyada, Aliev, Chen and even young Cha (and the Japanese guy that Lambiel coaches - Shimada?). Though I haven't taken the time to watch multiple skates. Samarin is a big boy and lacking finesse - Zhou has more control over his body (I think) but his jumps are not as impressive - at least in the two short programs I picked out. I could see Zhou developing more artistry, possibly, but he seems to lack conviction or confidence or something.

Oh I don't know - I'm absolutely the I don't know anything about skating but I know what I like type. I also like Uno, he has a kind of depth or "all in" sort of heart - and as wacky as some of his landings are, I like the punctuation he puts on his jumping, the swooshing arms - reminds me a little of Hanyu using both fist pumps sometimes and almost always, that gorgeous flow out, that makes the jumps seem even more important. It's like they're a chore for Chen, a checkmark on a mental list to put out there, instead of a magnificent work of art (Kolyada can do that too, when he manages to land them.)

Oh I don't know what I'm talking about - Samarin and Zhou are boring, I'd say, and need a mental breakthrough (Zhou - plus landing his damned jumps) and/or a physical one (Samarin needs more finesse and control.)

Samarin is better than Zhou, in my opinion. His jumps are better and his spins have more speed. Zhou has better upper body control than Samarin but that's it. However, there's not a huge difference between the two tbh both of their footwork is meh and their jumps passes are shitty as well.

Alina is much nicer to watch than 90% of the current ladies and especially compared to Medvedeva and she has better jumps than the latter as well, not telegraphied like Medvedeva.

r563 I think people in general reputation judge skaters. Bradie's improved a lot over the last couple years though the poor girl still has zero charisma. Not sure how much that can be developed. But I've been spending a lot of time testing different scoring sheets and I think closely examining every aspect of a skater's performance has made me appreciate the skating more. I thought Bradie was choreographed pretty well and her elements are strong.

I've switched from a form where I just enter a GOE to a form where I actually mark each bullet to get the GOE and subtract the deductions. It's amazing how much of a difference that can make. Even though I've always done that in my head, having the system force me to break it down on paper has changed some of my scores 2-4 points.

R567 Alina is a much better athlete than some, but better to watch than 90%? Lmao. Her skating looks labored. She bends over too much. Her programs are all quantity over quality. She doesnt actually intepret the music, just hits the notes sometimes. Ick.

Can someone tell me why she is practising with such a short skirt and super thin and transparent tights. Does she think Hanyu will look at her chicken legs if she does this.

Alina is better to watch at then medviedeva, but still. she is so robotic.It is obvious that she" learned " those programs by heart. She has no flow , after sje jumps , her transistions(especiallu those on one leg) are so wooden without any flow . Painful to watch

R570 Don't understand how everything must connect back to Hanyu. Not here for the slut shaming of ladies either. And I don't get the outrage when ladies basically just wear tights and underwear under skirts at competitions, and has to constantly flash.

She's trying to channel her inner sexy R70 and who's slut shaming what the he'll are you talking about

r537 Ishikawa was the Junior national champion in ladies singles in 1977. She’s been a technical specialist for almost a decade. She’s a member of the Hokkaido Skating Association. She last judged Kinki novices. Most searches bring up a different Ikuko Ishikawa (who also writes her name the same way).

Deniss Vasiljevs has upped his baking skills.

R572 It's not slut shaming and I actually liked her fs costume at ACI but during practise you just want to be warm and have some layers in case you fall repeatedly, not look sexy. Like female sprinters have very short and tight suits during competitions but train with long comfy training pants most of the time.

Zags and Med made this last ladies quad a big snooze fest. I basically stopped paying attention. The younger Russian/Japanese girls look a lot more interesting.

R572 I don't see anything inappropriate about what Med is wearing. Has the "underwear" portion of the ladies costumes gotten skimpier? They used to look more like briefs. Now they're cut so narrow and high I'm surprised we don't see more errant labias.

R574 Well, at least Denis has found another career path in case skating doesn't work out for him in the end.

My bad about the slut shaming then, but I don't get calling attention to what someone decides to wear unless it is wildly inappropriate and here she is still covered. Maybe she wanted to practice with less clothes on the bottom that day for the sake of less weight.

Oh my god I love the Hedgehog, well done Deniss! Looks yummy too.

r569 I like Alina, but I actually completely agree with this. Her elements are great but, except for transitions, all her PCS are too high. And actually, I think even her jumps are judged a little high - she gets a lot of 4's and 5's when they should probably just be 3's.

r576 I think it's fine as well. I wear pajamas everywhere I go but every once in a while even I just want to feel pretty. What's wrong with that? Compared to what they wear in competition, this is conservative - it actually makes sense to practice in clothes closer to what you wear in competition anyway.

r574 Ping! Ping! Ping!

(Though did anyone actually have doubts before this?)

I think Med was being filmed and so opted for a more sexy look.

She might be dressed up for filming that day, but Medvedeva has been wearing "sexy" practice clothes and heavy makeup since the summer. She's 18 and probably going through an experimental phase trying to appear more grown up. There's also Nathan with his floppy hair.

If she is sexy, I am a goddes

Yeah I agree. She's rather late, I'd say. Most teenagers start experimenting with clothing earlier.

I liked Nathan's old curls, but I'm not really into his new 'do. It makes his head look strangely shaped.

Then again, during college I went through a "fuck appearances" phase and didn't cut my hair or shave for about a year and a half, so who am I to judge?

Nathan's hair is currently in the shape of a triangle. On the positive side, it does conceal his unfortunate ears.

R570 Her waist size... I wonder if she feels ashamed when seeing Hanyu's small waist everyday ?

Hanyu might see her waist and feel even more proud of his than he already does.

Halloween Cup

Ladies SP 1) Toth 53.5 2) Paganini 53.21 3) Sorensen 52.41 4) Brezinova 50.64 5) Ostlund 48.08

Men SP 1) Kerry 70.3 2) MASZLJANKO 50.19 3) Newberry 55.47 4) Loupolover 52.25 5) McAllister 52.17

MINSK

Dance Final 1) Evdomikova/Bazin 168.12 2) Turkilla/Versluis 159.51 3) Tessari/Fioretti 157.46

Ladies SP 1) Serna 60.75 2) Vandersaaren 55.98 3) Ryabova 55.67 4) Algotsson 53.47 5) Galustyan 52.19 6) Williams 50.95

R588 I doubt Hanyu spends any time looking at any part of Med's body. If anything, he's probably (secretly) annoyed that she's invaded his training space.

r573 If you don't see the slut shaming in that pist, you're a moron.

Contrary to belief, I think Hanyu's waist is small but also emphasized by its relation to the rest of his body. Since he's taller than Med, has broader shoulders, and she is super skinny as well, their waists could be equal or his just slightly smaller. Med doesn't have an hourglass body though, that's for sure.

Let me be more clear, r573 If you don't see slut shaming in r570, you're a moron. Especially when there was no sluttiness involved on Med's part, so that was basically straight-up Med hate.

r592 Wtf was that post.

[quote]Ping! Ping! Ping!

R580 LOL I think the whole crew at Champery has moved well beyond ping ping ping onto 3 alarm flames territory.

Geez you guys are tough customers. There's is nothing wrong with Med's looks or body. She's very pretty. It's her skating that's the pits.

She is not pretty . She looks like Sid from Ice Age

R594 Huh? It was my too serious response to R587. Just wanted to throw an observation and too much thinking about it out there.

R592 Her waist is clearly wider than it should be. Actually her body looks unbalanced and weird, with skinny toothpick legs and arms but much bigger trunk.

r597 Your answer to stupid trolling is being an obsessive nut who compares Hanyu and Med's body parts? Great.

R599 Well, because of what I pointed out, Russians said she looked fat and some DL posters even said she looked like she was pregnant during summer iceshows.

I don't think you're going to find many "hourglass" shapes in figure skating, unless the skater has had some " enhancements" a la Mai Asada.