Yuzuru Hanyu and other figure skating talk part 34

Link to previous thread.

[Quote] If the management wanted to make Hanyu appear less gay, they'd first have a talk with Hanyu.

About what? About how he should stop being himself? That ship has sailed long before the guy even became a senior. So it never even crossed my mind that it could have a homophobic element to it. All I could think of was that Weir is now seen by whoever manages Hanyu's public image as someone Hanyu should probably interact less with if he doesn't want to do damage control for something he may unwittingly get pulled into later on because Weir is one of them hotbeds of potential risk right now. Not just Hanyu, but any skater who doesn't want to get pulled into unnecessary drama when the time can be better spent on healthier pursuits.

[Quote] where is the photo with hanyu grabbin stephane's ass?

Now *that* would be a palate cleanser. Would anyone be so kind...? (And yes I know who I'm quoting but for once, I actually agree with them)

We need a timeline documenting the deterioration of Hanyu and Weir relationship. Was that flower crown picture before or after lettergate

Taken, I mean.

Aside from the picture with Lambiel, there was all the hand holding/cuddling with Fernandez, the lifts, the girly costumes. It's not like Hanyu's new to being called "too gay" - that's something people have used to discredit his skating since time immemorial and it's not like that's stopped him from doing any of the above. I can't believe that some people on PH are actually taking Weir's bait and characterizing the tantrum as Weir understandably "venting" at the perceived homophobia.

I bet Weir is pissed that Hanyu didn't publicly say more about the letter and instead came out in support of his fans.

r5 They've just reached the conclusion that Weir is a butthurt attention whore.

r3 Lettergate was last week, the photogate was today.

[quote]Lettergate was last week, the photogate was today.

Thank you for your meticulous effort.

R6 oh I meant to say that who knows if the picture was taken before lettergate and he's just publishing it now.

Although I don't new when exam fly the photo wad taken. I guess it could have been taken before the Lettergate but I think Johnny would have posted it earlier to control the damage withn Fanyus.

Although I don't know when the photo was taken.

Lol @ the eagle person on PH. Like Hanyu has never taken a picture with weir when the latter was in more flamboyant getups before. And it's not as though Japan doesn't have its fair share of famous crossdressing personalities that are well respected by the public. And Hanyu's "sakura fairy" outfit from last season far outstrips whatever gayness that can be seen in that picture. Some people just wanna buy into the narrative they wanna buy into.

If Weir keeps this up, Hanyu'll delete him right out of his ISU bio when it comes time to update it (though I don't know why Weir and not Plushenko is included in the first place).

Weir is in the midst of a meltdown and Hanyu is just slowly backing away.

And for all we know, Hanyu's management could very well simply have been Hanyu himself talking through a team professionals.

Anyway, I don't think Hanyu will ever stop respecting Weir as a skater, even if he might now be realizing that it's a tougher gig to respect the guy as a person. I for one still feel grateful for the guy's influence in Hanyu's skating and his help in shaping his basic principals regarding it (even if I'm not a big fan of his particular style of skating). It's essentially part of what gave birth to Hanyu's style. The guy may not be the wisest or classiest of human beings, but he is an objectively lovely skater and a wonderful athlete. While it's too bad his tough life experiences hadn't seemed to have taught him any better, and only seemed to have created repressed anger and bitterness, he still deserves respect for that.

R13 I think that pretty much neatly sums up everything in a nutshell.

r12 More influenced by Weir's skating, would be my guess, and back when Yuzu looked to have more contact with Weir, costumes and everything.

It's changed though, Tbh, I kinda find it surprising that Plush, who used to trash his competition, is so supportive of a guy who is generally thought to have surpassed him. But maybe given the amount of hardware he has, he really feels he has nothing to prove and likes the idea of being another star's inspiration. It's a pity that Weir doesn't feel the same way, because Hanyu is even more his legacy than Plush's.

Most likely the photo had to be taken down because a similar one by one of the show photographers is going to be used in the photobook. But they may allow Weir to repost it again after they're done checking whatever needs to be checked. But this is turning into Ge-Med-Kanazawa again.

As for ladies popularity from the previous thread, Zagitova is more recognized and popular than Med now, but Masaru probably beats both of them. Kihira received a lot of attention this season and might have more name recognition among the public than Zagitova now. Most stations promoted FaOI either with Hanyu and Zagitova or Hanyu and Kihira. But again, Masaru has been quite powerful and is possibly visiting Japan next week for Airweave.

r11 that eagle person is definitely one of those delusional fanyus, "doing a program with frills, sparkles etc is more acceptable socially cos it's show costume, work costume. Like if one is a clown, one has to dress up & make up as one. Yuzu doesnt put on make up, or hair colour" . I thought they were a myth.

LOL. All other posters are like "wtf is that person on and how do we respond without breaking forum rules and calling her a homophobic moron"? No wonder this thread has become sort of a venting place for what can't be said over there.

R17 but wouldn't he have been told that instead and even with Weir's recent escalation in his tendency for dramatic spins, if that's what he's been explicitly told, he probably wouldnt have shaded the way he did. But who knows, you could be right. I certainly wouldn't mind if that were the case. Gotta love em anti-climaxes.

Maybe his team didn't want him to be associated with the trick ass hoe who is ready to stir up drama at any time.

R19 I agree. I thought it could be something as mundane as what JDC is describing but figured they would at least explain that to Weir. Maybe they did and he's just being a cunt.

R20 Fess up, you wanted to post that on PH but instead went with, "I think we're engaging in unnecessary speculation, guys. Let's move on."

R19 Whatever reason was given, Weir still ends up sounding petty and dramatic. Which I guess is his brand anyway??

R19 I think that's what happened with Zagitova and the other Alina (ensemble cast), and it happened last year. Everyone was able to repost the photos, so it never became a big deal. (But now that Weir is bringing the drama, he may never be allowed to post it again). I doubt Weir asked for permission and immediately posted the photo. And I think he's been in a mood because he's been criticized for posting the letter without consulting Makabe/FaOI staff and Hanyu didn't care for it. The rest of the FaOI cast hasn't been particularly enthusiastic about it either save for Ando. And Weir has been rather desperate to court his Japanese fans since the letter.

So he's desperate to crawl out the hole he put himself in? Well it's not working as of now.

[quote]Most likely the photo had to be taken down because a similar one by one of the show photographers is going to be used in the photobook.

If that’s true, then Weir is even that much more an attention whore. Petty shit he’s been doing with that letter posting as an “elder skater” and now this shade about hanyu’s Management. He’s acting like a slighted teenager. Hopefully hanyu can continue to cut ties with him in future. A 2020 FaOI without Med and Wier would be so nice.

Attention whore Wier can’t stay off the practice ice for even 10 minutes while they’re trying to film yuzu? He’s got shit flowing through his head, hope he can keep it in check and not create any drama for hanyu for one more show.

Weir is just throwing a fit. If off ice Hanyu could wear a pink minnie mouse bow tie on his head, I doubt a flower crown is new territory.

Should be interesting what Johnny says this season when Yuzu competes. I know he was an ass last season. I wonder if he'll bring it up a notch in being the aashole he is.

He's gonna a be full blown Chen stan. I have one (1) fear of Yuzuru keeping the programs.

I think otonol will be gone. Hanyu near perfected it. Origin is the question mark

I love Otonal though. Yuzu has a habit of keeping SPs rather than FSs. I love Origin too, but I think it'd be harder to adjust to new jump layout. He's going to and 4Lz for sure, may add 4A or 4F. He'll need a different choreo, one that's not so fast and has a breathing point in the middle.

[quote] Attention whore Wier can’t stay off the practice ice for even 10 minutes while they’re trying to film yuzu? He’s got shit flowing through his head, hope he can keep it in check and not create any drama for hanyu for one more show.

Like my guru Dave Lease said about Madonna, this is what happens when a narcissist doesn't die young. (and it takes one to know one, though not really...)

And with narcissists, if they can't get positive attention, negative attention will do just fine.

Someone on PH is playing the devil's advocate and doesn't like the fact that people seem to be making Weir out to be public enemy #1. Looks like they missed their calling as a DA. Or if that's indeed their profession then I must say that's one pretty serious case of occupational disease I'm seeing there.

StilI, valid as some of their points are, i could point out a few flaws, but...nah. They seem so convinced that there's a justification for anything and everything that it doesn't seem worth the effort.

People over there seem desperate to go back to somewhat mindless inane chatter now . Too bad. It was actually exciting for a few moments there.

Well, like the toddler who brings mommy a flower after his tantrum - are we all ready to forgive and forget and move on, still lovin' Johnny? (I'm not) Anyway, from his IG:

johnnygweir 16.6.2019 Toyama | photo: @alina.ustimkina | Today is the final show of Fantasy on Ice 2019. I have been a part of this tour since the beginning, ten years ago, and my passion for our performances has grown every year since. Thank you Mr Makabe & CIC for your invitation & partnership, thank you to the incredible artists who make up our cast, that I am lucky enough to call my friends & marvel at your brilliant performances. Thank you to our phenomenal crew who make doing what we love possible. And mostly, thank you to my fans and fans of the tour. I love you all & you make all our hard work mean something with your love and smiles. | #faoi #fantasyonice #figureskating

Can I get a Cliffs Notes version of what Johnny supposedly did that was so awful?

Mao is doing the 24-hour charity show this year, so Hanyu most likely won’t be in the event and today’s Toyama performance may be the last off-season Hanyu performance of the year.

The cat is finally out of the bag with Kelly Moran? Were Japanese forums and DL the only places that expressed suspicion from the start?

FaOI’s official twitter tweeted many photos during the tour last year, yet none this year, so there did seem to be some kind of policy change between the tours, but it doesn’t seem to be Hanyu-specific since there are no photos of anyone at all. There’s also been fewer photos from the media since Makuhari and fewer photos from the cast itself.

Hanyu may not have interacted with Weir during the finales, but they shared the ice during their solo rehearsals throughout the tour, and Weir was one of only two skaters in the private P&G events allowed to pass out flowers and interact with Hanyu’s fans, so Weir has received special consideration if anything.

The only other theory that’s been offered, besides the deleted photo being an official photography or broadcasting conflict, or the way Weir handled the letter, is that the crown came from a fan and Hanyu’s team doesn’t want to show favoritism or the fan is problematic. I think the lady who always makes Weir’s flower crowns also makes them for Ando, and Ando has some famous Hanyu-anti fans, including who one who regularly sends flowers to the shows, but I can’t remember if that’s the same person.

In any case, after spending so much time in Japan, Weir should know by now that just because someone lets you take a photo with them doesn't mean they're giving you permission to post it on social media. Even if Weir gets the OK, he probably won’t retweet the photo again because it’d make him look foolish.

Some photos from last year:

R35 not thinking past himself and need for attention. Questionable SNS posts that were unnecessary and brought negativity attention to Hanyu , his fans, and management. Not choosing silence over his insecurities. It’s like he can’t help himself. I wish him the best...

R35

- posted a picture of himself with Hanyu both wearing flower garlands on their heads, calling him his idol - deleted it - posted an unnecessary story about why he deleted it, saying vague things about Hanyu's management and image, which he had to know would cause speculation and drama - speculation and drama ensue

Let's not forget the drama the week before.

R36 Uh Kelly Moran? Name sounds vaguely familiar...whowhawhere?

R34 this sounds like a “thank you and farewell”?

R39 Kelly Moran is the Med Uber who used Hanyu's name to sell her album. Or has she done something else recently, JDC?

Jason Brown Short Program 2019/2020 - I Can’t Go On Without You (Kaleo); Choreo: Rohene Ward

Weir deleted his IG story. What a fuckin' child.

R41 So she's pretending to be Fanyus to sell her album? Wow that's a horrible thing to do.

R43 Kelly Moran is a musician who said that Hanyu's Origin inspired her latest album (her EP also called "Origin"). Got some free PR out of it as Fanyus + Olympic Channel talked about her. During the Med/Weir letter drama, the twitter account "zhenya’s unicorn @skaterkel" bashed Hanyu's fans for being total psychos and attacking Med b/c of her proximity to Hanyu. People realized that it was actually Moran's account (it's not hidden - she says it description). Moran went on a twitter rant, became all defensive when people pointed out that the letter writer was more likely a Med anti than a Hanyu fan (she responded that was just a matter of semantics [eyeroll]), and accused her of using Hanyu to promote her album. I don't know how old this woman is, but she acted like a 12-year-old drama queen. I don't kid when I say she went on a twitter rant. Here are just a few of the offerings (there's much more if you want to go to her twitter account):

[quote]Why are people mad about this? She absolutely does get harassment from crazy Yuzu fans- I’ve seen it myself bc I’m verified on IG and Zhenya follows me and *I* have had crazy Yuzu stans leave comments about her on my posts. There are ppl who make multiple accounts to do this!

[quote]Really pisses me off that people can’t acknowledge the simple fact that there are people who are fans of Hanyu who dislike Zhenya and send her hate. it’s a thing, I’ve seen it many times on Instagram and how they make multiple accounts to keep harassing her when they get blocked.

[quote]People are in denial-she’s been dealing with this for years by fans who are overly protective of Yuzu. she had to delete all her photos of him on her IG bc of comments from obsessive fans. Why do ppl get so defensive when we acknowledge there are some bad apples in the fandom?

[quote]Like take one second to stop and think about the fact that you’re more worried about your reputation as a Fanyu than Zhenya’s safety??? Christ.

[quote]by attacking me, trying to doxx me and twist my words, and trying to invent this narrative that i “blamed an entire fandom” (which i didn’t) you are all proving that this fandom does in fact have serious issues with bullying, harassment, and toxicity.

And, here is her ALL CAPS call for everyone to CHILL OUT:

[quote]NO ONE IS BLAMING AN ENTIRE FAN BASE FOR ANYTHING CAN YALL CHILL THE FUCK OUT?!?!

R41 That's entirely news to.me. Pray tell, where does one find more...comprehensive dirt, so to speak, on it?

R44 ...oh. Thanks. Didn't see this before I posted my question.

Sounds...complicated. Lol. She definitely stepped on quicksand right there.

Has anyone started demanding a refund for their purchase yet or is her album not even available on the market yet?

I forgot to make clear that most of the rant in R44 was Moran's response to people criticizing Med for liking that comment blaming "crazy Yuzu-fans" for the letter.

Another fansplanation about the flower crown. Don't know how credible so take with a giant grain of salt.

R47 I don't think anyone's attacking her music (even though she got all freaked out about it). She just kind of went nuts, responding to and inserting herself into a bunch of twitter conversations regarding the letter. At some point, she also implied that the people who didn't respond with the requisite compassion for Med had "subhuman levels of manners and empathy." It was all a little deranged and amusing.

R50 LOL she really sounds like a teenager

Well, I don't mean asking for a refund because they found her music offensive, just the way she chose to sell it. No people claiming they have been duped coming out of the woodwork yet? Unless her album hasn't dropped yet in which case, she may have very well just commited marketing seppuku. But maybe she'll have Med fans buying it instead? Like a sort of one door closing but another one opening deal? Albeit a much, much narrower door but still.

Zakarian livestreamed the opening today?

A fan’s husband had a long conversation with Plushenko last night at the hotel’s hot springs about nothing in particular.

About Toshi’s livestream yesterday, if it hasn’t already been shared: Toshi was crying most of the time and couldn’t speak much, but was grateful for the whole FaOI experience. I can’t find the original tweets and am not sure if it was Toshi or another band member who said that Suzuki injured herself the first or second day in Toyama and had to go to the emergency room, but still returned to perform. I think she hit her jaw, but I don’t remember her wearing bandages in TV footage. Zagitova also stayed late after a show (first day in Toyama?), to practice her jumps because she wasn’t successful during the finale.

R49 I don’t know who their source is, but some people have said the same about the fan handing the crown during the finale on various forums/blogs, but it's been getting the crowns for years, so you’d think FaOI would’ve stepped in a long time ago. (It’s also odd that he’s wearing the crown in the group photo.) Several people have also been saying that the Weir flower crown fan is indeed a known anti.

R44 Thank you. I knew she was a Med uber, but only heard that she’d been blaming Hanyu fans and didn’t know she’d been making multiple rants. By “dox,” does she mean noticing that she’s linked her fan account to her official account in her profile? It looks like she hasn’t been following Med or figure skating that long, either.

Getting more and more fed up?

Why didn’t any of you jealous bitches inform me that Lambiel has choreographed an ex for Med?

R54 she has too many exes to care

I wonder if it's a coincidence that med posted a fanart :)

2021 Four Continents to be held in Sydney

2022 Euros in Tallin

2022 Worlds in Montpellier

Tennell is doing Nuovo Cinema Paradiso for FS, choreo by Richaud

R56 A coincidence that she posted a fanart of a character (and styled her hair like it) that is deeply involved with the one people spent weeks picturing Yuzuru? I don't think so.

What fanart?

I can’t believe FaOI is over. Knowing yuzu. He’ll bring masquerade back when we least expect it. Like after he wins his third OGM. Kidding,..not kidding...kidding? Who the hell knows anymore. His fucked up ankle actually pulled off a 4Lutz, didn’t it?

Interesting final day at Toyama - Yuzu did Origin as an encore, wearing Masquerade outfit - landed 4T-3A in the opening - was lifted - anyway, here's a thread with more details, for those who aren't following it closely at PH or wherever

r60 Second picture

It's a fanart of Med in the FaoI outfit, but it's also Med-as-Asuka from Evangelion. Tbh honest I think it's reaching to make that fanart all about Hanyu. They all skated to the theme song, Asuka is a very popular character and Med does have the hair, lol. And it's a very nice fanart so no surprise Med posted it, especially since she likes anime.

R63 See, with Med I can't even look at an IG post of hers that may very well be innocuous without being suspicious of her motivations behind it. I guess I enjoy jumping on the conspiracy theory train when it comes to Med, given her attention whore track record, her odd and defensive responses to fans on IG and those strange product endorsements. And now with this whole hate letter thing...I can't take her seriously.

The most awaited news of the month

Sondre Boe's FS: Loving you/Wildfire by Seafret. Choreo: Mark Pillay

GP assignments will be decided next week

I'm excited about hearing the GP assignments. I'll guess the men, just to be doing something.

Chen, Hanyu, Zhou can't meet. So to give each of them the maximum rest between events, I'll guess:

Chen #1 America (Vegas) Oct 18-20 & #4 China (Chongqing) Nov 8-10.

Hanyu #3 France (Grenoble) Nov 1-3 & #6 NHK (Sapporo) Nov 22-24.

For Zhou then, #2 Canada (Kelowna BC) Oct 25-27 & #5 Russia (Moscow) Nov 15-17.

Uno, Jin, Kolyada can't meet - so Jin at #4 China & #6 Japan. Kolyada at #5 Russia & #2 Canada. Which leave Uno with #1 America & #3 France. This was hard - I tried to keep Hanyu and Uno from meeting but couldn't manage it if avoiding back-to-back weeks -- and assuming the top men in each country compete at their own country's GP.

Could probably swap Hanyu's France with Zhou's Canada. Only a 2 week gap for Zhou, but it's probably not important to give each of the top three men three weeks between comps, and it makes more sense - separating Hanyu and Uno - and letting Hanyu stay in Canada for his first GP.

[quote] See, with Med I can't even look at an IG post of hers that may very well be innocuous without being suspicious of her motivations behind it. I guess I enjoy jumping on the conspiracy theory train when it comes to Med, given her attention whore track record, her odd and defensive responses to fans on IG and those strange product endorsements. And now with this whole hate letter thing...I can't take her seriously.

I may be a pearl-clutcher but I find Med shockingly rude.

#1 The gifts thrown in the hallway in 2017 and being bratty when called out about it. #2 Attacking Zag for picking a song that Med had just happened to mention she liked – I mean, many seasons, more than one skater has the SAME fucking music, so pick it anyway, bitch. #3 Making Misha stay back to annoy Hanyu by asking for a photo AFTER the comment that he was upset by press conjecture. #4 Then pouring salt on the wound by provoking Hanyu with the bracelet on social media WTFFF? #5 Liking social media comments that are either shippers or just flat out RUDE to others. #6 Annoying Brian by demanding all his time (I don’t care if she WAS used to more attention – suck it up, you’re in a new place so show some grace, like anybody with a brain and an ounce of humility would have the sense to do.) #7 This newest shit with the fan letter – what skater doesn’t get hate mail? And to try to commandeer attention at Hanyu's ice show plus make your host country feel bad?

Who does all that? A JERK.

Oh and possibly managing to block Zags from FAOI last summer - though I guess we don't know if she did that. But who else would?

R70 Why is this even a question? The man in charge of FAOI came out and said Med's butt hurt was THE reason Zags was not invited. Who, besides Med/her team, would have communicated this to him clearly and persuasively enough for him to listen and exclude the ladies OGM (who, besides Hanyu, would have been the biggest draw for the show).

Sorry R71. It's just starting to sink in. I mean, till yesterday, I thought it was Zag's choice not to do FAOI. WHY are these otherwise intelligent, mature adults letting this little girl bully run everything? Her body is misshapen (ergo, she's not even pretty) She's trashy (see laxative drinks and appalling manners). Her skating skills are appalling (as per Meagan Duhamel or whatever other skating friend of Lease said). Her jumps are small, ugly, flutzy. She doesn't even have Alina's 3Lz-3Lo (and Alina is beautiful, kind, mannerly). She brings discord and disruption wherever she goes - whether it's the training club or an ice show. WTF does Med have other than chutzpah - which makes all these otherwise sensible adults fall at her feet?

I guess Johnny thinks this is in good taste?

R73 good taste has never been Johnny's schtick. Johnny seems in heat and desperate, for attention and/or cock. Is he too old fashioned for Grindr? I think getting laid would alleviate some of his issues.

R72 That's what I'd like to ask Orser. I still don't understand what he was thinking when he agreed to coach her.

And you good fraus here say Med should have just shut up about the haters? Just look at r72 and tell me she's not an insane hater and it's all fine and dandy.

R76 Med is a nice girl. She did nothing and still got involved in stupid shit. She doesn't deserve all the hate she gets.

And remember victim blaming regarding Ensoo and Mariah? Fuck me sideways if I'm not witnessing it right now here regarding Med. The girl gets hate mail, has the temerity to show it to people and the reaction here is whitewashing the fans - nope, nothing like r72 out there - and ripping into the person who got the hate mail instead. What fucking hypocrites here.

Nah, all the power to Med for calling out haters and a hate letter...except her fans immediately called out a fandom for it despite mere speculation and Med liked it. You know, pretty ironic thing because I'm wondering if she ever called out her own rude fans for attacking Alina for the "copied" song choice, oh wait, she liked a rude comment instead.

We can agree the latter was bad and no one should be bullied like that, but this doesn't erase Med's others behaviours. People are not black and white, I don't understand why her stans keep pushing the "sweetheart" narrative on her when it's clear that she's not that nice. But whatever, her true colours are finally showing.

Whether Med is "nice" or not is irrelevant. She was and still is a mediocre skater and so all this angst over her is ridiculous.

I think we can discuss the skater and the person separately? Btw, I don't think it's ridiculous since, unfortunately, the judges don't agree on her mediocrity, and what we get is that joke of a 3rd place at WC. Said that, for me her skating and personality are on the same low level.

Rumor has it that Plush is cutting down on shows and isn't doing Faoi next year ?

Who will be most WTF GP assignment? Unknown Italian girl? No, well, she has a decent shot given the SB list, so it wouldn't be a shock. Belarus Ice Dance team? You can bet it will be at Rostelecom.

R83. Is there faoi next year? Olympics? Just curious.

2020 Olympics is July 24 to early august. So doesn’t overlap with FaOI. I would think if plu is cutting back but still doing any show in japan it’d be FaOI, rumors from good source?

Does anyone remember the brouhaha regarding Med and a Russian blogger who was a psycho Zagitova anti? As I recall it, the blogger wanted to punch Zagitova in the face (or encouraged others to do so) and Med befriended her. I see people referencing it, but I don't recall the blogger's name or the particulars of what happened. Does this sound familiar to anyone?

Looks like we have to register to post on DL now (for those like me who were slow to see this). I'm glad to get the image previews back!

R84 I predict Megan Wessensomething with 2 GP assignments this time!

Med stans don't like to admit she is the original obssessive Hanyu fangirl.

You don't have to register to post, but the times to post are more restricted if you don't.

Alexander Plushenko’s next program is Edvin Marton’s “Tango Amore.”

Moran is now criticizing Hanyu’s team for getting the Weir photo taken down?

Hanyu let out a roar after throwing his glove during Masquerade. Moir was air-guitaring the guitar solo in the opening. Weir and Hanyu hugged. Plushenko spanked Hanyu. As Zagitova turned to leave after she and Hanyu had high-fived during the finale, Hanyu gently pat her on the back.

Despite the stormy weather, Plushenko and Zagitova greeted fans who were waiting outside the venue after the show, and took their time to sign autographs and take selfies with each person who asked.

Without any context, on the night of the second day of FaOI Kobe, Sputnik News, which has always backed Medvedeva in Japan (her other supporter being The Answer), published an article about the stolen music (Bad Boy) accusations.

A week later, conspiracy news blog Tocana (owned by gossip publisher Cyzo), released an article accusing the Japanese media of hiding the possibility that one of Hanyu’s fans wrote Med’s letter because Hanyu has become even more powerful than the JSF.

R85 There is, but Hanyu wasn’t used in the P&G FaOI campaign for next year, so there’s speculation that he might not be in it due to Olympics-related promo obligations. There'll be many events leading up to the games.

r87 I was under the impression that Rodina (?) is more than just a fan blogger and appears in the Russian media from time to time. I think she's the one who followed after Zagitova once and screamed abuse at her.

Sambo’s diva blessed Uno with his presence:

Did Plushenko put him on his lap

I've never been to an ice show, didn't even watch all of FaOI this year, but I loved Masquerade & CM. Hanyu's been like a man on fire this FaOI. Hanyu always looks like he gives everything after Masquerade so I am astonished he was able to skate Origin right afterwards. Whatever happens to Hanyu in the latter half of his career, whether or not he gets the medals he wants, he has my respect for his courage.

R91 Thanks, JDC. Yes, Elena Rodina was the person I was talking about. I did a quick google search on her and the hate she has for Zag is disturbing (she physically threatens her). I think you're right - she's more than just a fan blogger. She interviews younger skaters and I think even Averbukh gave her an interview.

I can't wait for the Toyama broadcast. I don't think we've seen a roar since 2012.

R94 Romeo + Juliet in Continues With Wings has a legit roar. You can hear his scream echo in the arena even on the broadcast.

Med and Zags will be phased out next year, but at least Zags will always be an OGM and retire with her dignity in tact. She gets far more hate than Med, sometimes encouraged by Med herself but you don't hear a peep from her.

Ok. This explains why Elijad balde is on FaOI.

Glad Toshi is enjoying a resurgence. He's been though some bad shit.

I hope Plushy's hand knows what a lucky bastard it is. Hanyu's ass has been especially delicious this FAOI.

Zags is OGM and World Champion too. And numerous times I saw Plushy standing by her, taking pix with her, etc., but he didn't seem to have time for Med. (granted, I haven't seen anywhere near all the behind-the-scenes stuff). Also, maybe Yuzuru will remember her in the future when staffing any shows he might run - or be the headliner of. Having OGMs seemed important to him, in that talkshow with Nobu and the woman (sorry I can't remember her name.) So maybe that'll help her out in the future, having those two guys on her side.

But for whatever reason, Med has TAT on her side.

R97 Elladj Balde is a charismatic entertainer. He's also a very smooth emcee. He'll never lack for a job in ice shows/FS.

R100 and kind of a bad ass skater... in previous post someone mentioned why him since he is not so medaled, but this video is hyped

Hanyu mostly follows Plush around at ice shows during group numbers, it’ll be sad not to have him at the next one. His skating isn’t to my taste but the Japanese crowd sure loves him.

Oh Plushy, you could just pat Yuzu on the back, why spanked him? Was it too tempting not to touch the ass?

And so the Hanyu drought begins again.

R102 What are you talking about? Hanyu does not follow Plush around in ice shows. He's too busy playing host and interacting with various people. In fact, it's often Plush who's looking to get Hanyu's attention.

R103 plu has the heterosexual privilege, like a football player, spank with pleasure and a pass

So if Masquerade isn't one of his competitive programs this upcoming season, it means media day and the big reveal is still coming. I feel like I need to prepare to be disappointed. I love Masquerade and scoffed when that one DL anon went off on it. That was a waste. If his program isn't up to par to Masquerade I will be the one raging this time.

Masquerade is impossible as a short program. It is too rigorous and a whole minute longer then a short program should be. I think we all need to keep realistic expectations . Do you really want Hanyu to have an asthma attack!

R106 jajaja I could post an IG story with Hanyu's cock in my mouth and the fraus would still think we're just great rinkmates.

^that is me, Javier. I messed up my own joke post.

Me and Yuzuru Hanyu's cock are not acquainted in any manner, shape, form or taste

Masquerade and CM are the first programs I've ever watched where the magic of the program doesn't stem from the choreography or the music or jumps, just something incandescent about the skater that comes through.

TSL 6/16 – Part 1 - “Quad Race...” - Lots of chit chat to open – about Hollywood stars’ homes, like O J & Nicole Simpson’s that D saw w/his dad on a vacation; how Kris Jenner wd be a great skating mom; 10 Kwan: “I like how Michelle’s spins haven’t improved in 20 yrs”- D binge-watches Joan Rivers selling Faberge eggs & Lisa Rinna hawking dusters on QVC. 16 Taylor Swift has a Pride music video starring RuPaul & Adam Rippon (who’s replacing Weir as the mainstream token gay) + Adam’s book is better than Weir’s… 24 Igor is now coaching Eteri’s daughter Diana Davis & also Nikolai’s daughter Annabelle. 32 H/D’s “Let’s Be Bad” looks good. Hubbell as Marilyn Monroe cd be just right-or maybe too campy. Should they ban Zach from social media? He’s like the dopey guy drinking milk straight from the carton; he loves to feature his crotch on IG while walking his dog. 36 If you pay him $20, he’ll say hello to you on IG – Karen Chen will too, for only $7. They love Zach’s mother who once told them that she carries a concealed gun. C/B & T/M updates. 39 “Pair camp” & Misha Ge “the hustler” posting dance videos from the camp – some skaters looked great but some, like Chris Knierem, had absolutely no ability. 45 Chris just isn’t cut out to dance w/Misha Ge, he needs to go fishing… well, I give up – on & on about the pairs’ dancing skill or lack thereof in Misha’s videos.

TSL 6/16 – Part 2 - 48 D: HANYU did the quad Lutz, Jonathan! D says Hanyu’s weakest jump is Lutz & now he’s said that, “Hanyu fans are exploding!” D:”It was landed like a Meagan Duhamel throw” (J: the ‘shoot the duck’ position) J: Should he be doing this after the injury? Yet he wants to push the sport forward. D: He’s still tallking about the crazy quad axel that I don’t think we’ll ever see. J: Just stop with that. D: But you know his fans believe it’s gonna happen, w/baited breath. J: At what cost? Until he like just explodes? But what bothered me about Patrick was he had this dominance but never pushed himself beyond the status quo, so I do have to admire someone who’s not resting on his laurels. D: He’s not gonna accept 2nd place to NATHAN; he says, “I’m gonna push it & I’m gonna win” & I respect that—it makes it exciting. Nathan can’t add more quads – he was at a show last night saying he was exhausted – of course w/all these shows + school. You know it’ll catch up w/him. 50 But it’s interesting – Hanyu is taking away Chen’s advantage w/the jumps because if he lands 4Lz (& he also tried a 4F) – if he can stay healthy -- he already has components over Nathan, who’s gonna have to continually push the artistry. We did see Nathan work w/Shae again.

TSL 6/16 – Part 3 - 52 Nathan’s doing big angular movements but needs to perform w/as much confidence, projection & extrovertedness as Hanyu. Rafael shd have him dance w/Misha Ge, who cd be his personal Jeff Buttle, like Hanyu has. They’re dying to see videos of that! (back to Misha’s pairs video: US pairs dance like gritty diner waitresses) 54 Aljona’s having a girl which D predicted but Meagan hasn’t announced, “She’s a couple weeks behind Aljona, in life & in skating.” J: We saw JASON’s SP – also a video with Rohene yelling at him! Very funny. “I’m gonna kill you if you do that!” D likes that he’s getting grittier w/Jason. 56 MED tried 4S; landed on 2 feet. D:”She’s probably talking to Hanyu & getting tips on how to jump...She’s a tough, gritty Katarina Witt type. 4S is her only hope.” D mumbled: “But Ghislain isn’t working w/Med.” “But Hanyu has 7 handlers to give him a tissue to blow his nose, maybe Ghislain is working with him.” (D mentions twitter drama over flower crown) “Listen, these fans post what kind of food Hanyu likes to eat, I mean it’s ridiculous. There’s a Hanyu calendar coming out in Sept.” J: “That 4Lz entrance, he’s just skating w/no speed, completely casually, then one shift of the weight & bam!” D: “I love that – BAM!” J: Especially after watching old videos where they stalk the rink just to do a 3S, it’s incredible what he can do in such a short space w/so little speed. Remarkable.

TSL 6/16 – Part 4 - 59 SHOMA left for Russia Thurs. Also to Germany for med eval? There’s speculation Eteri has wanted him since March. Just a tryout but you know she’ll put all her attention on him IF she believes in his potential. Otherwise she’ll brush him off a la Raf. “Oh - it seems that EUNSOO is no longer w/Rafael...& David went to Korea to do her programs (& Lee’s). She’s prob going back to Yuna’s coaches who she worked w/before.” 1.02 D said he talked to Raf who said there was nothing abnormal going on in their rink & he told D, “If skaters pretend they love each other, you know they’re lying.” 1.03 J: “Eunsoo’s movement quality is superior to Yuna’s.” D: “Oh Jonathan don’t say that! 50 fans will come after us in the comments” Anyway, ZHOU is going to work w/Hamada in Japan, not full-time but more than window-dressing. He’s w/her a lot, & also working w/Tom D on his movement after getting progs from Lori. 1.06 Another coach (equestrian) commited suicide – some say it’s the accusations but is it the narcissistic injury of being exposed? Safesport needs more funding. Then chatter about GP Vegas (they’re both going), then Worlds ($3000 tickets!), J: Aliev posted a pic of him on the podium when he beat Samarin, saying ‘Happy Birthday’ to him, D: that’s like Tara posting a photo of herself with half of Michelle cut off, but then not getting the ‘joke’ when D razzed her about it. END

Thanks TSL Troll. Please, Nathan doesn't have to work on anything. His PCS are bought and paid for in advance. He just needs to land the jumps. I love Raf's honesty, but it's too bad Lim is getting shipped back and punished for her run-in with the Slasher Queen of Lakewood (or is it Anaheim?). I wonder what will happen to her career now.

JFC When did Yuna Kim turn into. 40-year-old Korean frau?

I've gotta hand it to Adam Rippon, he's managed to parlay his mediocre skating results into an impressive media career. At this point more people probably remember him than Olympic medalists like Sarah Hughes and Sasha Cohen.

R117 Agreed. The fact that TSL even said that, I don't like them much but I know they're not that stupid. Nathan working with any choreographer doesn't matter at the end of the day. It looks good in the beginning and then later he strips away most of the choreography anyway.

It’s hard to tell how much of TSL is true, hype or click baiting. Thanks to the TSL troll, cause I tried to watch but D is so manic and twitchy and keeps interrupting Jonathan. I just couldn’t do it.

As for Nathan, the Isu pretty much told him if he lands his jumps he’ll get GOE candies and inflated PCS. Forget bullet points and transitions and all that. I didn’t know this was still up for debate.

R118 she's always been 40 in spirit

R119 Many skaters would kill for Adam's skating results. I guess "mediocre" is relative.

According to rumor on PH, Hanyu's Kose deal was around $3 million and Kose is eager to renew.

I read P&G is not longer his sponsor

R125 P&G announced they were ending the Yuzu Days campaign. I don't know that there's been any info about whether the sponsorship will end.

Awww I loved those commercials where he played with the detergent pods, did laundry, and iron shirts. Come on. Yuzu the housewife is FUN!

Yuzuru's Bride of Frankenstein look - especially picture #4.

Oh and where can we get one of those calendars Lease was hawking?

R127 may be he doesn't enjoy it as much

R124 I hope he goes with Kose again and he continues beauty blogging. His tips were life changing.

And there's the Ghana chocolate, with him making hot cocoa or candies or whatever - and the individually-shaped pillows, where we see him in bed in his pjs. Was it Ghana that had him skating in the bright red shirt - that was hot! We need a new batch of ads!

I also wish he'd get back to acting. He was great as that "Date" or whatever it was, wearing the traditional outfit with his head shaved. Though I'd rather something a bit more flattering. He's such a bishōnen though - maybe something more flattering? (Dai would make a good motorcycle gangster or something like that - if he could get off the booze and get his looks back)

I mean, I love his skating, but like Jonathan, I'm worried he's gonna fuck his ankles up permanently and I don't know if there's a fix for that ?? (there probably is, with prosthetic joints and stuff, but probably not good enough to skate on - but hopefully he'll stay mobile)

R113 I wonder if Adam's mainstream success is causing Johnny's meltdown - Adam has his book, YT channel, appeared in that Taylor Swift video with other prominent gays, has a cute, steady(?) bf, won DWTS, was offered but didn't want the NBC commentating job etc etc. Johnny, on the other hand, has mostly retreated to FS and spends his days on SNS showing off his sideshow circus aesthetic. How does Johnny still make any money? I can think of the cooking show, bit part in the Netflix show, bit player in ice shows. NBC (but NBC doesn't have him working all the FS competitions and when he does commentate, sometimes they don't even send him to the actual event). Johnny's ex also bled him dry in the divorce, so he had to start over financially. What's Johnny's steadiest source of income nowadays?

Maybe Lysacek can introduce Johnny to Dang's cousin.

R128 Saw this on IG. Hilarious.

Johnny's always hanging around these middle-aged women, I assume wealthy ones? Reminds me of Truman Capote, who was the darling of the Hamptons-type ladies, till he stabbed them in the back with his tell-all. Anyhow, why can't Johnny take Evan's place at Vera's side? Now that Evan's married and all. At least Johnny's not dumb as a rock, like Evan proved to be on DWTS (I don't think he won either? but then, the show was a bigger deal in his day than when Adam won it.)

Anyhow, Johnny has (or could have had) a lot going for him, but his head's not screwed on straight. In the past year or so, though, he and Tara have not only done the wedding cake reality show - but also emceed the Westchester dog show and the Kentucky Derby. And are they really phasing Johnny out of skating - or is NBC phasing skating out of tv altogether? I think I read that for the first time, Canadian tv isn't showing short programs this year (or comps at all?) WTF? Is it really doing that badly? Although... who in the hell does Canada have to promote anymore? Gabby? Keegan?

I guess there's little Stephen but he's still not old enough for seniors - will he be in 2020-21? Will anybody in Canada still care? How the mighty skating nations have hit the skids. And south of the [Canadian] border, our nation turns its lonely eyes to Nathan (and Alysa Liu). The few eyes still bothering. I think I read the American ice show was a financial flop this year. Lease said it was too "low brow" for Adam Rippon, lol. Now that's sad.

R124 If true, 3 mil is nice given that it seemed to require minimal engagement from him. Most of it was for the use of his image.

R131 I don't think Hanyu can act. He's always just very much himself, no matter what costume (or bald cap) they put him in. That's why the Kose campaign is so clever. They're using him for their ads and the blog, but he's just being himself and the product is kind of along for the ride. It seems that approach is successful though if they want to renew.

R88 I hope a GP with

Megan Wessensomething

Unknown Italian girl

Alexia Paganini

Lidfors

Peltonen

all together

Oh well, that is a line up Dider could come up with to be sure French girls won't finish dead last

Yuzu was sooo kuyashii at FaOI, I hope he chills out a bit before comps. I would really like to see an injury free year.

Adam has grabbed the younger crowd, but my coworkers don't know him and adore Johnny and Tara's commentaries. They don't care for figure skating and watch whatever just for the commentary, so I guess that's why NBC still cares. It's for the others even when the skaring fans barf at their inaccuracies and tryhard selves.

R138 Americans who are non-FS fans who watch figure skating are just looking for American dominance, so the hyped up narrative works for them.

R139 Exactly. Also, one of them confessed that she watches during the Olympics if not for Tara and Weir, then just to count how many times the skaters fall or for their costumes. Outside the niche fans, that's the appeal. It's not taken seriously unless it's an American leading.

R136 And with Karen Chen flying all the way from Ithaca, only to WD after she does the SP.

R133 lmao that's fair

The NBC ratings for figure skating in non-Olympic years are consistently terrible. I don't even watch it anymore and have no plans to renew my NBC Gold Pass. There's only so much of "Did you know Nathan is a student at Yale?" that I can take.

R143 Nathan Chen goes to Yale? Did he have to juggle that and figure skating?! Inconceivable!

R144 You would?

2019 Worlds on NBC got 1.83 million viewers on Saturday night (23th march). That's Men FS, I think

US Nationals got 3.04m on Friday night. That's Ladies FS.

Free Dance on Saturday on NBC Sport got 404,000 viewers

2018 US Nationals

NBC Sports

Men FS 804,000

Short Dance 300,000

Men SP 371,000

Ladies SP 230,000

NBC

Ladies FS 4,480,000

So the US hype is working! Smart thinking ISU, there is your future.

[quote]Oh and where can we get one of those calendars Lease was hawking?

R128 Who uses wall calendars anymore, but here you go, old fart.

Tursy and Shoma! Tursy also as an IG story of Shoma already passed out on the floor of the gym.

What a cute pair of 12 year olds

Tursy has her own Jason Brown now. So adorable!

When will the Eteri Triumvirate start fat shaming Uno?

Doesn't Shoma muscle his jumps? Plus, at least this past season, he nearly passed out from exhaustion after his packed 4 minute programs, when he used to have 4.5 minutes so more time for little breaks. I would think making him diet would make him weaker? I think it would be a whole new ballgame to take a grown man, who's worked out his way of doing quads, and change his body weight to any great extent.

The ISU isn't penalizing his pre-rotation so to heck with worrying about that. Maybe work on tidying up his landings because he torques his knee so much that could cause injury - and he's had some ankle issues too. Maybe a little weight loss would help.

Oh I'm rambling - I'll go with what Dave Lease said. Maybe a little help "checking" his landings - and some sort of discipline to improve his consistency. Eteri's been good with that - lots of full run throughs until muscle memory kicks in better? Or whatever techniques to get him to repeat the same things over and over so he doesn't make stupid mistakes. But I doubt starving him would help, and if she's excited about having him, she also wouldn't want to run him off. (her girls though are a dime a dozen so there's less fretting about them flouncing)

Eteri teaches ugly jumps. Why is nobody talking about this. She was never considered a top coach as far as technique. Just the warehouse full of short skaters with pre-rotations and poor technique.....oh never mind....I answered my own question as to why Shoma is there

So, Evgenia uploaded an IG story with a screenshot of a Twitter post where Megumi Ogata (the original Shinji's voice) said that Hanyu was Shinji and Evgenia was Asuka. Maybe it's nothing, but I feel that she wants to be shipped so badly... (I mean, she was wearing Asuka's "cat" hair clips for the show)

Everyone knows Shinjii's true love is Kaworu. Asuka who

Med, gurrrl, this is starting to get embarrassing (okay, more embarrassing).

Why does everyone coo and squee over Shoma for absolutely nothing? All I see is a potato-shaped blob on the floor. The emperor has no clothes.

R158 I think when your crush holds a press conference denying any romantic relationship with you and you continue to persist, the "embarrassing" ship has sailed and landed in "stalker" territory. Actually, you've invaded stalker territory and given the natives small pox, and they are so over it, but you refuse to leave.

My theory is that Med is doing it on purpose to piss off some fans. She seems petty and mean like that.

R161 Yeah, this thought crossed my mind too. She and her fans have made a big deal out of the psycho IG accounts that tell her to stay away from Hanyu, so I think this is her way of provoking them.

These are the shippers and not once he’s she denied them, Hanyu tries nothing but to distance himself.

She is doing it to provoke yes. The best strategy fanyus can employ is to ignore the obvious and act like she's a harmless sweetheart. Wait, they already do that, good for them :)

Sure hope Jason is back at TCC to wrangle his troublesome bestie.

Brian, you're a fool. Trading Gogo for Medbrat.

According to Tursy, Shoma has a Japanese-English interpreter with him. (according to someone in Shoma's GS thread)

And he's the third tallest skater in this photo of eight of Eteri's brood.

R156 Well, when you fail to become famous you can always become notorious

R149 Shows how much you know. By my reckoning, wall calendars are *very* useful. Especially ones like the one you just linked to.

FaOI’s music producer Satoshi Takebe had violinist Mayuko Suenobu on his radio show “Sessions.” They talked about the skaters and musical artists: park.gsj. mobi /voice/show/12762

On Tuk: Suenobu composed “Infinity” to be a very linear piece, but Tuk’s movements are naturally sexy and her choreography was smooth and soft, which was very unexpected (“shocking”) and the violinist enjoyed adapting Infinity to meet Tuk’s style.

Zagitova – Both Takebe and Suenobu kept saying Zagitova was “super cute,” “beautiful,” and “wonderful,” also “sexy” (according to Suenobu) when performing.

Takebe said the three Russian ladies (Tuk, Zagitova, Medvedeva) seem very mature and passionate when they perform on the ice, although they come off as young and their age when backstage. Suenobu said that each performance (each night) felt different, which made the tour all the more fun.

On Hanyu: Both Takebe and Suenobu were surprised by how powerful Toshi’s voice was, but to Takebe, the collaboration with Hanyu was like sparks flying and it was thrilling. Suenbo said the resonation from the crowd was so powerful, it was as if the arena would collapse. Takebe said that watching Hanyu skate is like watching someone from another world and Suenobu agreed (“even during rehearsal”). Both said the skating is beautiful and Suenobu added that you can also sense a strength in Hanyu’s performances. Takebe: “That’s what you call a star (athlete).”

On Oda: According to Takebe, the piece (by Suenobu) that excited the crowd the most was “Mission Impossible” and Oda was amazing. Suenobu said Oda's performance had many surprises. Takenobu: “Oda is not just a figure skater but a true performer.” Then they laughed about Oda’s performance of Julie's "Katteni shiyagare."

Mao has a new commercial with her poodle “Aero” for Airweave. When she asked the Airweave president why the company immediately made a mattress for Masaru while they never designed one for Aero when the poodle had been using their mattresses for 10 years, it was decided that Aero would appear in Mao’s next commercial.

Toshi just posted a video with his dog at FaOI.

Bunshun has a long interview with Fernandez and Najarro about Flamenco on Ice (and a little about Seimei and Hanyu’s intense gaze): number.bunshun. jp/articles/-/839695

The shipping does keep Medvedeva’s fans entertained, but I don’t understand why she keeps promoting her fake vegan/vegetarian lifestyle. (Is that why super vegan Duhamel was complaining about her skating skills to TSL?) She had Kobe beef only a week ago:

Is it just me or Dai looks a bit like Michael Jackson here. Did he get more work done or photoshop?

R170 'More' work? What do you think he got done? Lol. The picture is from 2015. Same photo session most of the pictures on his official website are from. It's the result of strategic lighting and an obvious retouching job.

Why does Alina get so many pervy comments? It's disturbing. Daniil is the worst of them all with the choreo he has her perform.

R171, she is beautiful and looks like she has a nice personality too. Noticing such things does not make one "pervy".

Fedor Klimov appointed to ISU Single/Pairs Technical Committee to replace Coughlin as athletes representative.

Racheal Flatt is engaged.

R169 Thank you JDC! I was skeptical of her 'vegan' diet from the beginning but I didn't know she had Kobe beef. Geez. Not even smart enough to make her lies believable

Judges draw by country for 2020 Worlds/Euros/4CCs will be held on October 10 in Geneve

R175 Here's a photo of her at said Kobe beef restaurant (sitting next to Zags no less). Maybe she didn't eat any of the beef, but I somehow doubt that.

Unless med has beef in her mouth it is all conjecture.

R175. I'm vegan and I laugh reading her nonsense. Does she understand that vegan means absolutely no meat or dairy products?

R178 once she runs out of money, there will be plenty of beef in her mouth.

She's covering her face to hide the big chunk of beef she has in her mouth R178

R180 but why beef is expen....ohhhhhh

Don't forget Yuzu is doing IG live with Sekkisei on the weekend, DLers! I'm hoping for beauty tips!

R183 can't wait to learn what day of the week it is.

R184 God me too

Med already said she eats fish. From where I am, you are not considered vegetarian if you eat fish...

pescatarian then

Pescatarian except add beef

For someone who has been nominated for Oscars so often, it's interesting how so few of Steep's films have withstood the test of time.

Okay R189, now post something about Hanyu's ass in the Meryl Streep thread to balance things out.

R190 maybe he is not pedophile

R191 Hanyu is, in fact, not a prepubescent child. I'm sure even you can figure that out.

R191 Shhh, there there Daitroll, the pill cart is just right around the corner.

R193 Yout mother needs more? You re broke ?

Minimum TES are the same as last year. So Dai needs to score 34 in SP and 64 in FS for Wolrds. 28 in SP and 46 in FS for 4 Continents

R195, was he even close last year. I’m interested but not enough to look it up myself. Because if he couldn’t meet that TES last year, what’s changed except he’s a year older

Toshi is doing another livestream on Friday from 9PM. He’ll talk about FaOI and have a contest where you can win FaOI-related presents. Details and instructions in the link.

R178 She said she was going to be eating meat, just like she told the press that she was going to be eating fish in Kanazawa and was eating sushi and other fish products.

R195 At least he doesn’t need to get minimums for the GP. He won’t be getting his new SP until August and his SP last season was the stronger program. He’s doing two shows a day for Hyoen at the end of July.

Shoma vs Plush and Buttle vs Rippon

R196 Never did an international competition. So we don't know how he would be called or scored there. His Japanese National TES scores in the FS would have not been enough. This doesn't bode well as Nationals are usually more genenous. However, Japanese Nationals are probably more strict than Mentor Cup

R197 then Med is just an ignorant drama queen and I feel bad for Brian next year

Will Dai get any GP assignments then? I’d love to see him go up against hanyu. Since we’re rehashing old careers, let’s rehash old rivalries.

aisuke has confirmed he will compete internationally this season. I bet he will at least get the nhk host pick & possibly 2 assignments. I wonder who in team Japan will suffer bc of this.

Japanese media has been rehashing the old rivalry story ever since he announced his come back, calling it the revenge after x years. Lol

*Daisuke

I'm checking all FaOI pictures because I'm sad it's over and is it just me or Yuzuru looks fucking weird in jeans

R203 It’s just you because I think his thighs look delicious

R203 Agreed. He just needs to take them off.

Hanyu's two FAOI programs this year were magnificent. I've rewatched them many many times. Also, his ass and thighs look even more amazing than usual.

r201 Rehashing the rivalry between Dai and Hanyu? How the fuck they can be speaking about revenge when Dai has no chance of beating Hanyu? Unless something is lost in translation?

It's nothing but a rehashing of the hatred and bitterness some of the Dai crazies have for Hanyu. I have no interest in it.

R208 speak for yourself

R201 I love it. Fuck worlds. JNats-LET THE GAMES BEGIN

R208 yeah sure becaue fans of dai believe that dai would win with hanyu lol you re embarrasing

I want to see Sota get an assignment. How (un)likely is that? I think he has a 4s now.

An important moment in slut history.

R211 I don't think it's likely. He won two events but considering one of them was over a guy from Chinese Taipei and the other's claim to fame is that Dr. Valtter was once on the podium.......plus he's still 25 points below what Tanaka and Tomono can score. I hope he has a breakthrough with his quads this season and makes another good impression at Nats, then maybe next year.

R198 Little(r) Uno was so cute. I don't understand people who hate him intensely. Of course he's an overscored little aspie troll, but it's hard to dislike him as a person.

[R214] except for what his management/the media & what his grandpa has done in the past in support of him, I guess.

What's the dish on grandpa Uno? I remember he was an artist? Hope he's also a whore.

What's going on? r210 writes like the Daitroll but responds to missing posts that I assume is Daitroll?

Yeah, r215, what's with Uno's grandpa?

R216 in one of his interviews he showed a painting of Shoma being surrounded by people cheering for him, and a fallen Winnie the pooh at his feet. Subtle much?

R217, R210 Is Daitroll. Maybe you have the wrong person blocked. The block function has gone sideways recently and doesn't always work, but fortunately, Daitroll is easy to spot.

r219 Thanks, you're right, I must have blocked by accident.

R218 LOL Anyone have a link to the pic?

R218 That detail was surprisingly unclassy, and Shoma was probably mortified but couldn't say anything.

I don't think his grandfather's input helps him any. He gave an interview once where he wished Shoma could be a little taller because it'd make him more proportionate for skating. Then he said Shoma should be interested in women now but if he were he wouldn't pay attention to training, so he has to choose one or the other.

R214 R16 R217 here is a screenshot with grandpa uno showing off his painting with a pooh bear at Shoma's feet.

R223 this... this... this is why I love the DL

R223 That skater looks more like Hanyu though. Haha.

There has also been instances where Japanese media stole other peoples (namely yuzu) 's title to prop Shoma. I assume Shoma's management must have a hand in this.

r223 Wtf. Does the pooh bear bear symbolize Hanyu defeated? Lol, that shit is awesome.

I spot daitroll with how they write you re. They always have that space between you and re. lol

R227 I was told that interview happened after pchang. Wow bitter much?

R227 And Pooh is pantsless. Is grandpa Uno a DLer?

R230 Pooh is always pantsless. No pants, crop top. If anyone's a DLer it's Pooh himself.

R231 So true. Crop top, pantsless and presenting hole. Pooh is definitely a DLer. Can't believe we're just seeing this now.

You whores! I get the touchy feely squeeze from hanyu all the time. Take a black light to me... you will be amazed.

But wasn’t there criticism towards Shoma’s grandpa BECAUSE his painting resembled Hanyu more than his own grandson? I’m not sure but that’s what I remember most of the talk was?

Those 'mistakes' happened before PC, right? Even so, nah, I ain't heartbroken for Hanyu. Guy's already so accomplished even then that he could spare an international title or two. And sides, if they do that list again now, it'll be interesting to see what they would put for Hanyu under main accomplishment. He only had one Olympic title then. With two now, and they can't pick one over the other since they're both Olympic titles, I guess they'll just have to list both? Or just combine them and say 2x OGM? If the main accomplishment has to be a win, then Uno has a 4CC one now but changing it to 4CC after he had allegedly won Worlds seems a step down somehow. And even if they continue to stick Hanyu's world title on him, it still pales in comparison to 2x OGM and the fact that that most would know that WC title also belongs to said 2x OGM with Uno's own real accomplishments ignored just makes the whole thing sad. Like, even though most of his own accomplishments were cause of him getting insanely propped up, they're at least real. And people still aren't happy enough with those they had to do what they did. At this point, it really isn't Hanyu we gotta feel sorry for cos the guy is so accomplished he's made sure it's hard for anybody to feel too bad about it (thanks Hanyu), it's actually Uno.

And I gotta say, whatever the old guy wanted to say with the painting, it's a good painting. I like it a lot better than the ones of Hanyu done by that American painter (whose name I forgot) going for six figures right now.

R235 wow I have no word. Just wow. I hope you will never get your major accomplishments stolen from you multiple times just because others think you "could affort to spare some".

Hello

one more

R238 Thank you, what a lovely way to start off my morning

R236 Not saying that it's right. Just that it's happened and I prefer to take a less negative stance over it. Just the way my brain is wired so I don't end up angsting over things I have no control over. And it's thanks to Hanyu in the first place that I'm able to. If he didn't have his Olympic title, now titles, I have a feeling I won't be able to be as chill about it. In fact, if I knew about this pre-PC, might be less zen about it. As of now, this thing's a few years in the past, and Hanyu now has not one, but two titles, and Uno still doesn't have a single WC title to his name (but he does have an OSM), which makes this little happening funnier, if you looked at the bigger picture.

R240 I guess because I have been shown time & time again how yuzu's being thrown under the bus one way or another by Japanese media, so I found these hard to forgive.

ok one more

R238 Stay healthy, beautiful man.

What we’re posting random hot, not ass pic of Hanyu...fine, take this

And this

This should keep you entertained until Hanyu’s talk show this Saturday (15:15-15:40) at least. Kozuka is back in the tabloids!

According to Nikkan Taishu, Asagei Biz, and Shukan Shincho (so take with a grain of salt), Kozuka has stopped paying child support and living expenses for his wife and daughter since April. It’s believed he’s trying to force his wife’s hand in their divorce negotiations which have grown ugly. During April, he was also seen with a number of women (likely at hostess clubs) in Kokura, Fukuoka, drinking through the night to the point of throwing up (but perhaps not pissing his pants). On May 9th, he posted a photo of Chateaubriand at a high-class restaurant. Ten days later, he had aged beef, and on the 8th of June, he posted another assortment of expensive meats with a friend.

Nikkan Taishu called Kozuka an “unfaithful” and “cheap” “affront to men” and “lowest of the low,” while Shukan Sincho described him as a “trash husband” and criticized him for not showing remorse for his actions.

R234 I can’t find my own post, but the hosts and guests on the show where they interviewed Grandpa and showed his works were all convinced it was actually Hanyu (I mean, even the costume) and were laughing about it. Fujio Uno is a fairly internationally-recognized Nihonga artist, but he’s 92 and might’ve forgotten which skater is his grandson.

R236 I think it's more of a case of lazy staff not doing their research than stealing.

One of Fujio’s books:

R246 thanks for the update on Kozuka. How does he still get work/commentary gigs with this kind of reputation? I thought Japanese society as a whole is pretty conservative & not that forgiving.

Also, one media outlet making a mistake is one thing. But when there were 3 all being "careless/lazy"..... Come on, what were the chances? Japanese ppl are known to be very rigorous after all.

Hope the link works. This is my favorite of Hanyu.

Since we're all posting photos and stuff, here's a video of Hanyu heavily breathing whilst adopting a similar pose as Weir at R73. Believe me, I've looked for another angle of this, but have thus far been unsuccessful.

Ughhh. No more Wier connections to Hanyu....let him boost and esteem Chen all he wants...hopefully he won’t mention ontonal or try to kiss hanyu ass anymore

R we or r we not back on ass, this thread is going at lightning speed

R249 link doesn't work

I'm tired of Weir. He's a caricature with those over the top hairdos and tacky costumes. Good thing he knows he should retire because his skating has only gotten worse.

Kokuka seems pretty dumb. He needs a publicist or somebody to keep him from looking dumber and sleazier in the public eye. Guess he's like his father.

Hmmm. Unless that's his style, the pudgy way the body is painted screams more Uno than Hanyu to me. But if that's the way he paints all his human subjects, then I guess it's up for debate. Like, he couldn't tell for sure which is his grandkid but for sure it's gotta be the more successful one, right? That kid's every grandparent's dream so why can't it be his?

TBH, despite the Japanese being highly meticulous especially when it comes to things like this, I'm more inclined to give the benefit of the doubt and think it's an honest mistake by one outlet with incompetent staff that got replicated by other media outlets with even less competent staff (copy and paste is the new research, babe) but if all those really did stem from ONE mistake, it was a real huge one. And like I said, I feel more embarrassed for Uno than sorry for Hanyu (cos it wasn't like he didn't make history in that one competition and burned into everybody's memory who that competition really belonged to), and even more so now when looking back.

And I've got a couple of pictures I'd like to share as well, one work safe and one slightly less so. But with the sudden influx of pix now, I think I'll share them later when the water runs a bit dry.

I scrolled through the google image results for the search linked at R248 above ("Yuzuru Hanyu Ass") and DL (specifically, these threads) appears as a result. We've been found, guys.

JDC, I think this was your post on Uno's grandfather. I'm just going to copy the post as well as link to the article you provided (it was in the first Hanyu thread):

[quote]Uno studies sports medicine at Chukyo University where they have their own skating club. Mao, Miki, and Kozuka also went there. They specialize in Olympic level sports programs, so I assume athletes aren't expected to attend class full-time. He's also an employee of Toyota although in name only until he retires.

[quote]It seemed like Itsuki was being used to help Shoma's popularity in the beginning because the latter doesn't speak much or well, but Shoma won over the public during the Olympics with his quirky personality and Itsuki's presence is becoming a nuisance to Shoma fans, so there must be something more to it if the media is still bringing out the younger brother. All of the other siblings who've been promoted in this way were skaters themselves and the media wasn't gushing about them this much. Another weird thing that happened with the Uno family is the grandfather, a painter, showed a painting he supposedly did of Shoma on TV but there's a Pooh bear on the ice and the figure kind of looks like Hanyu.

Based on google translate (so nitpick all you want, JDC, you detail Nazi) it seems Grandpa started drawing the picture before Olys and wanted to give it to Uno if he won. Even though he didn't, Grandpa thought the painting was good enough to stand on its own despite the minor deviation from reality and could be viewed as a portrait of figure skating and not necessarily of Uno. I think he also says he sees Uno once a year.

Grandpa was really painting me.

Saw this on twitter. Oda living up to his reputation as skating's ugliest ugly crier. Missy Lysacek living up to his reputation as a grade A cunt who was destined to spend his days trolling for cock in the Equinox steam room.

This is too funny. Uno's Grandpa watching him skate at Olys: "This is my grandchild. I am deeply impressed. Tears are coming out. [Blinks hard. No tears]." Doesn't show he was actually watching Uno though; it could have been Keegan Messing. They're practically twins.

Jack Gallagher (G) interviews Phil Hersh (H) , June 15, 2019. ICE TIME PODCAST. 3 SHOMA to Eteri? H: Since the Oly long, when he was 7 pts behind Yuzu, who was “other-worldly” in the SP, Uno botched two jumps and ‘might’ cd've beat Yuzu, he doesn’t seem like the same skater – lots of inconsistency, incl 2 botched flips at Worlds & off the podium for first time in yrs. Clearly he needs to do something which will get his jumps on more solid footing. H watched him work w/Ouriashev in Chicago & he seemed consistent in practice. Maybe Mishin or Tom Z cd get the kinks out of his jumping? But he’d be like the older brother to all these little Russian girls who're setting the world on fire. I give him credit for considering the move. 9 ETERI: H: A damning film was taken down – uh, “she’s a very very demanding coach.” Like daily weighing her skaters, similar to controvery w/gymnasts in US. But everybody’s judging her w/o knowing what’s really going on. Tsurkaya did say she was very demanding – but does she cross the line? Not for me to say… A lot of ppl in Russia, incl other coaches, don’t like her. But amazing results – esp turning Zags around after ‘18 Worlds disaster, bad Russian Nats & Euros. But then skated wonderfully at Worlds ‘19. Maybe due to Danlil but you have to give Eteri some credit. 16 Strange past: Eteri had a rough time in US. Had her daughter w/some man named Davis; was in Oklahoma City in hotel across street when the bombing happened; then she banged around in an old used car – tried coaching in Cincinnati etc, & was totally below the radar until Lipnitskaya… Then got very lucky. After a bad 2010 exc Plush, Putin decided to throw money into skating, then Yulia came along, a generational skater, and now Eteri’s on the map.

Hersh Part 2 – 19 G: YUZU: G: Will he skate in Beijing? H: I’ve learned: Never count him out! If he wants to compete, he’ll be there. His will is stunning. To the point where it’s almost self-destructive. 24 G: Was Orser a better skater or coach? H Great at both. In Sarajevo, he won short & long (lost due to compulsory figures). “Yuna’s Oly win, given pressure from her country, is still the greatest Oly performance by a woman I’ve ever seen.” 28 Yuzu in Helsinki - Greatest of all skates? H: It’s certainly in the top 5. Boitano’s ‘88 Oly skate shd have sweeped judges – you cd put that skate in 2013, it wd be top 6, it was that good. Javi in Boston ‘16 is one of greatest. Yuzu has had better whole perfs but not a better freeskate than in ‘17. In ‘15 at NHK and GPF – those = his 2 greatest perfs in the same comp, but in Helsinki, he was artistically perfect, all the jumps were there. When I wrote 'is Yuzu greatest ever’ I said it’s difficult to compare across eras. It’s harder now than in Button’s era to dominate. Is he greatest of all time? He certainly at times has skated like he was - he will forever be in the discussion of greatest of all time. That alone is amazing. Underneath that apparently gentle exterior there is a fierce fire about wanting to do his best, to win, to push the sport, to be a memorable skater – that’s separated him from everybody else – a great artist, a great jumper, and an unbelievable internal desire. 36 G: What about DAI’s return? H: I watched a couple things on video – inconsistent jumping kept him from getting to levels his artistry wd have taken him in his earlier career. Does he have a chance for medals now? Absolutely not. But does that matter? Absolutely not. It’s great that he’s back. Skaters respect him – he grabs your attention. Misha Ge is another one who does that – he made you stop and watch. Dai wd keep your attention riveted on him, even with mistakes.

Hersh Part 3 - 40 G: What 4 minute men’s FS? H: I thought it would be more of a challenge. It’s great that Chen and Yuzu do all the quads, but Nathan said that in many ways, he was a better artist at 12 because he didn’t have to do as much stuff, so taking out 30 seconds? I’d prefer they had more time to breathe. And I don’t think they needed to change the bonus for 2nd half. I’m glad they’ve shaved the pairs programs because that’s so physically hard to do, so many fall apart at the end. But French & Chinese awesome – pairs has gotten better last 5 or 6 yrs. Don’t think 30 secs coming out had much impact – BUT maybe they shd limit progs to 4 quads. Maybe that’s when someone wd do a 4A. Now it’s gonna go wild on women’s side w/Russian jrs moving up. 47 G: NATHAN’s at your alma mater – how long can he balance school & skating? H: He’ll definitely pull back. He told my colleague Rachel Lutz that he was gonna go back to Yale in the fall. Last season, he was just awful at the Japan Open but he adapted. Yale’s been good to him – and he has plenty rink time. Maybe not training as much is a good thing. Why mess with something that’s working, at least next year? Raf’s adamant about wanting more of his time but Yale doesn’t like giving 3 semesters in a row off. He had friends Mariah and her boyfriend Ponsart in Cali – but now he has other ppl around, equally accomplished in other fields, which seems like a good thing for him, but it’s not easy. Didn’t think he’d do well at Worlds but he did. He was overwhelmed in Pyeongchang but nearly unbeaten since. Sort of like Yuzu was. I’d tell him to try again one full yr, even if he doesn’t win another world title. ZHOU going to Brown but likely to defer a year but weird (a mistake?) bec he’ll have to defer again for Oly yr. In recent yrs, no one has done both – Wylie did better after Harvard. Debbie Thomas at Stanford had difficult time. Flatt went to Stanford and was never the same skater again. It was hard to find ice time – but for Chen, it’s been better.

Hersh Part 4 - 59: G: Skating’s decline in popularity in USA? H: I’ve never liked the int’l judging system – reductio ad absurdum. Those who cover sport even have a hard time understanding it – god bless Jackie Wong who can figure this math out. I don’t think SLC pairs killed it--I’ll always think the Russians deserved gold – the biggest thing is there’s not a great woman skater in the US now. Look back to ‘06 with Kwan withdrawal & Sasha didn’t win/Meisner won – then you have to go all the way to ‘16 to Wagner winning Worlds medal. It’s always been driven by women skaters in the US. Are Hamilton/Boitano even still known? Kwan was dominant for so long; I did think Lipinski shd have won, but Kwan was the single most respected skater in history of women’s skating. In the meantime, the rise of Russian girls, and JPN: Mao for a long time, Shizuka surprised us by winning Olys – Mao was the Michelle of JPN skating – now a whole new crop. Kihira seems unbelievably personable – so you’ve got winners for ppl to watch in JPN and Russia. Then came YUZU: His popularity is unprecedented in the history of this sport. G: I agree. H: He’s globally popular. Something about him – he seems like the most vulnerable guy you can ever imagine. On one side you want to protect him, on the other, you admire his fierceness. But also, the incredible availability for other sports crowds out skating – there’s too much else for ppl to watch. And in US, university sports – men’s basketball and football – you can watch every game at any time. And no real stars to look to, so harder to maintain interest in skating in America. [Hiwatashi will have trouble making it w/Chen/Zhou so technically dominant - and Hersh won't write a book because nobody wd care in US.] END

Ooops... thought it was the end. THIS is the end. Part 5 Hersh: 71 H: All comps should be held in Japan! Why not?! Not counting the crazies, Japanese fans are great to all the skaters. They applaud everybody. Do they want Yuzu and Rika to win? Sure. Unless you’ve fallen in love w/a skater from another country but their sportsmanship is stunning. Japan is number 1, Russia number 2, if you look at ice shows. The sport wd not be hurt by having all major comps in Japan – or at least one major every year. At least till things change. G: Jr grand prix – nobody’s in the stands, literally 100 ppl. So why don’t they hold the comps in Japan? H: I’ve never asked the ISU but it’s a good question – JGPF never in Japan? stunning to me. should be an easy decision! wd be sold out. 78 G: All skaters are coming to Japan for ice shows; fans fill arenas. So heartbreaking to see jrs skate to no crowds in Europe, but the ISU is trying to expand – but it’s a big money loser for them. Host feds have to suck up losses. But you don’t want a 1-nation sport but for yrs, though it was = the US, until Russia came along w/pairs and ice dance,they didn’t have anybody for yrs. All ice shows were in the US back then – starting with Henie coming to US after ‘36. These things are cyclical. But now? The only 2 US figure skaters w/name recognition after Olys? Mirai and Adam, despite no singles medals. You need not only medals but also personality. Adam has made the most of it and more power to him. The top US woman can’t break in top 10 in Russia Nats or top 5 in JPN Nats. In Russia, Oly top two cdn’t even podium!

JNats

Japan Nationals will be in Yoyogi National Stadium in Tokyo, from 12/19-22.

So JSF scheduled Nats a week after gpf?

Thanks for the sum up. Hersh seems less of an ass when speaking than when writing.

Just finished watching the broadcast of the Sendai show. Although the shortest of the three long broadcasts so far, and the youtube upload has its audio and visual about a second or so off-sync towards the latter half, it's the most nicely edited. The Kobe one especially seems choppy and full of awkward cuts.

Someone once commented that ATS and FaOI are about the same except that FaOI was better in a certain minor respect. Unless ATS has aerial shows, live musicians, acrobats and isn't predominantly all about one skater, I fail to see how they are the same.

R268

[quote]isn't predominantly all about one skater

Excuse you. My grandson owns that show. I am so proud!

R211 Sota is #47 in SB list. He is borderline for 1 assignment. No way he gets 2

NHK's host pick would solve the problem. If they are not using it for Takahashi

I assume Takahashi would qualify for the "comeback skaters" rules and can get 2 GPs

However, I am not sure it is wise for him. Technically he was still behind last season. Maybe he can start with Challenger Series. Some East Europe event during GP series. No major competition....win and get the minimum TES because JFS can make a deal, in exchange of generous GOEs by Balkov, Babenkov, etc, they can help an unknown Belarus or Estonian skater to get the minimums too.

Which grandson are you talking about, gramps? The one that people say is in your head or the real one? If you mean the latter, then he does currently own the show he is headlining for even if he doesn't require the formula of the show to revolve around him and him only. If it's the latter, then I suppose you're less senile than some think you are, but still senile anyway.

It's hard to fault Takahashi for wanting to try for the world again, since he doesn't seem satisfied with his post retirement pursuits and it's not like the Japanese field is currently teeming with great talent that he feels he doesn't have a chance at all. The gap between the top few and the rest are almost gulf-like so maybe he feels he has a chance to close the gap a bit. Plus he'll undoubtedly draw a bigger crowd than these other younger maybe up-and-comers.

All in all, his presence in the international circuit would surely make the next season more exciting, although the media hyping it up as though he is on the same level with Hanyu and Uno (with the previous gunning for "quad king Yalie" Chen and the latter gunning for both Hanyu and Chen) would be pretty cringey and lol. That is, only if Hanyu doesn't manage to take himself out of contention again, of course. Because if he does, then Takahashi's presence may prove more useful than we think. Anyway, cringey media spins or not, maybe that's the way he likes it because he'll at least be talked about again, and not in any way related to piss.

Sorry. The first paragraph is for r269

Ack. The first "latter" is actually "previous".

Thanks for writing up the interview with Phil Hersh, interesting stuff.

Thanks guys - I was a little embarrassed spamming the thread with Hersh but with what he said about Hanyu, this uber couldn't resist.

Great job TSL troll! They also agree with what we’ve been saying about FS in the US...it’s popularity is in the dumper and it’s all about the women. Liu is really their only up and coming hopeful and she’s a few years from seniors.

Thank you R276. It's a weird podcast with the real-time Japanese translation interspersed - it takes patience! But anything for Yuzu ;) I think they're interviewing Nathan soon. (I think I'll skip it)

And JDC, thanks for the dirt on Kozuka.

[quote] Nikkan Taishu called Kozuka an “unfaithful” and “cheap” “affront to men” and “lowest of the low,” while Shukan Sincho described him as a “trash husband” and criticized him for not showing remorse for his actions.

I'm gonna be real upset if he continues to be a successful host/emcee or whatever he's been on mainstream Japanese television. WTF? He doesnt' deserve it. More Oda! And that gorgeous tennis guy who loves Yuzu so much. And, well, just nearly anybody but this creep. And I don't know why I'm so worked up about it. I guess like Hersh says, Yuzu makes you feel protective toward him - even though I know I'm upsetting the poster here who hates that we don't remember he's a capable, very capable adult... I know I know....

shape appreciation

So, Misha Ge is at the Cricket Club, I guess there's still a chance to get Geisha Ge...

Hanyu on learning the choreo for Masquerade: "The video from #Shae only arrived right before the show. I watched it and studied the choreography in my room from 23:00 - 4:00. (laughs) After memorizing the choreography I slept for 3 hours and then performed it that day. (laughs)."

r277 By gorgeous tennis guy, do you mean Shuzo Matsuoka? The one who often interviews him and around whose neck Yuzu hung his Pyeongchang medal? If I didn't know Matsuoka was married with kids, I'd ship them

r279 Now, Misha and Med need to do something controversial so that we can fill the rest of this thread with bitching about them.

r280 I wonder what that choreo could have looked like if Yuzu and Shae had a couple of days to week on it.

Yes, that's him! It's a sacrilege that I forget his name. I love that guy :) He's a good looking older man too. I agree, I'd ship 'em. Or even him and ToshI. It's frustrating worrying about Yuzu's love life LOL. (I think I'd qualify as one of Hersh's 'crazies')

I'm looking forward to Ge posting on social media another hate letter for Med to get out of TCC. But it'd be even better if Med was the one to post a hate letter written for Ge for him to get away from TCC. It's what best friends do.

Oh lord only knows what those two schemers will cook up. Sometimes I want to strangle Orser (metaphorically speaking of course.)

Actually, I think Javi has more to do with this fiasco than clueless old man Brian. Javi, you're cute but brains have never been your strong suit.

Anybody in the mood for some Yuzu humpin?

R285 Check out dat ass on my grandson. I am so proud!

REDRUM, REDRUM

R287 LMAO!! Poor Mr. Wilson is not aging well.

R287quick, someone needs to save those poor souls

[Quote] Something about him – he seems like the most vulnerable guy you can ever imagine. On one side you want to protect him,

Yuzuru Hanyu does not need protecting. Au contraire, he needs protecting *from*. This picture paints a thousand words. Then, of course. somebody actually went and painted them.

Au contraire, I agree he does not need protection on the ice when competing.

But off the ice, evil forces are at work...

GP assignments are coming out in a few hours. Any last predictions?

I predict the JSF will be inept as shit and screw its ladies over. I also predict there will be Russian lady wank, also per usual.

This is probably a no brainer to most here but Takahashi getting at least one assignment is most likely a done deal. He must've gotten JSF to agree, which I don't imagine is anything remotely difficult, or he wouldn't have announced his 'intention' to compete internationally. Unless he really simply means B comps but how likely is that, when the GP is easily available to him and JSF was willing to give him the 3rd WC spot last year even without fulfilling the tech requirements? While GPF is probably out of the realm of possibility (although at this point I probably should not put it beyond JSF and ISU to pull something if they wanted him there badly enough and he doesn't bomb super hard), a second GP assignment probably isn't far-fetched for him.

R293 Dai is as embarrassing as Plushenko was when he took that Sochi Olympic spot over Kovtun. Yes, it's all competitive and potential scoring and the rest of the home country field is maybe weak, but I still roll my eyes at blocking younger skaters. Dai is so lucky to be well-liked by his home country like Plushenko was, as well as internationally that people are more welcoming of his international comeback than not.

You know fully well that all young skaters would bomb anyway at Nationals in order to hand the third spot to Tanaka (who as usual peak in late December-January). So Dai can take it, Tanaka had his fair deal of opportunities.

I'm sad, Misha is in Milan now. I'm afraid that Med's geisha program might be good if she gets the choreo done by a decent choreographer, but no fun for me at all :(

I thought it was already announced Wilson is choreographing Geisha for Med. Or have I imagined this myself?

You're sad? I'm not sure what the context is - but I'm glad that Misha is not at TCC. I guess I'm not over that weirdness last summer at FAOI with Med and Misha annoying Yuzu. It worried me having them both at TCC when Yuzu's there trying to do his usual thing. I hope that won't happen a lot, though it would probably be fine. Just so much weirdness with Med. Why can't she just put her head down and stay busy, like Tursy or Ali or one of the regular skaters in Toronto. Just seems to always be some stupid drama - fighting about song choices or posting nasty fan letters, like nobody else ever gets any - I mean most all of them do, especially if they have any standing.

Well, I'm rambling. Hope you're right about DW and Geisha - but Misha did come in to rescue Med from that silly Orange Colored Sky and WTF were they thinking with that dated cheesy song anyway, that suited Med about like it would have suited Yuzu. Sheesh.

I imagine dai would get the nhk host pick if not more.

Hmm, I feel differently about this. Blocking younger skaters is one thing but at the end of the day, it's all about potential. If an older skater who's well past retirement age has better chances at medalling than you are, then you're either not good enough or not hungry enough or both. Unless of course you're neither but just plain unlucky when it comes to injuries in which case, it's simply not meant to be. These are competitions where you've got to prove yourself. The candies and gifts will only come after. Plushenko was miles better than Kovtun was or ever will be even with all his spinal injuries, and he was integral in the Team Gold Russia won back at Sochi. I don't imagine Kovtun would've been as heavy of a hitter or as integral a contributor.

Takahashi, even coming out of retirement, has more in the bank than what these other younger skaters have built up thus far, and this is more on those skaters themselves (and for some, their less than fortunate circumstances) than it is on Takahashi, I feel. Plus, he will pull in a far bigger crowd than anybody who's not Hanyu or Uno. His tech may be dismal but his performance is still there. I am, however, rolling my eyes at him because when he declined that WC spot last year, instead of admitting he wasn't ready for it, he chose to paint himself in a holy light instead, saying how he didn't want to deny younger skaters opportunities, which makes him simply look like a hypocrite now.

R300 hypocrit indeed. Dai couldn't even hit the tes min requirements in Japanese national. I doubt he was able to hit it in an international competition.

R298 Oh, I agree with you that it's better for everyone if they stay miles away from each other, but on the other hand I would have loved Med's FS to be a complete flop so I could rant on it. But seeing the latest DW works, there are high chances for it to be a flop anyway, so who knows...

he would have met the TES requirement at that competition held in a shopping mall in Israel....where every ice dance team of this world got the minimum TES

More bargain needed. Rumours of GP assignments to be delayed to tomorrow

[Quote] Plus, he will pull in a far bigger crowd than anybody who's not Hanyu or Uno.

Sorry. Allow me to self correct. As far as Japanese competitive skaters go, he will pull in a far bigger crowd than anybody who's not Hanyu, period.

Not a clear indicator for what he would get internationally as R199 said, but at Western Sectionals Dai's TES was 41.61 in the SP and 74.61 in the FS. And they weren't overly lenient with him there except for overlooking his flat to maybe slightly inside edge on the Lutz. And he wasn't astronomically overscored on PCS (SP:41.95 / FS: 86.5). Without a doubt numbers he can achieve internationally and deservedly so when he performs the way he did at Western Sectionals. With his combined score of 244.67 he would have medaled at 4 GPs last season in theory. That said, I doubt he's getting any GP spots nor does he give off the impression that he's interested. In interviews at the award ceremony last Saturday all he mentioned were B comps/Challengers and Worlds. Link to translation on FSU:

and where is the list? Some idiot here posted that it would be a few hours

While we're all waiting for grand prix assignments, Ashley Wagner will be competing in an event called the Aurora Games in late August.

Tanja Flade said it will be today. Is she "some idiot"?

It is only 15:15 in Annecy (where the GP assignments are being decided)

... and Gracie Gold is landing triples in a long program runthrough.

Some ass as we wait for gp assignments

Let's see where Alexia has been assigned

I want Alexia at NHK

[R311] So VincentR made his insta public again?

here we gooo

Men.

Ladies

Pairs

Dance

Veronik MALLET got a GP

Paganini not at NHK but Lindfors is! NHK ladies comp is gonna be lit.

Thanks. Unless Kolyada has great performances and Hanyu not so much, looks like he's on his way to his first ever SC gold.

How did Camden Puliknen sneak in for 2 GPs?

R323 He was guaranteed 1 by World Standing. I would assume everyone in Men and Ladies guaranteed one got a second

NHK trophy has one host pick-Daisuke has a chance

R324 not Alexei Krasnozhon, unless I misread it? I'm not a huge fan of his skating, but I would've thought he'd get a second GP over Camden with a year of seniors under his belt.

Does JSF not like Rika? She's got a tough assignment.

So China got the American girls released

They got a Skate America invitation for Chen/Sun passing over better ranked teams

What will they give back to USFSA?

R326 Krasnozhon has Rostelecom Cup.

I suppose he is also in contention for the Skate America host pick

Krasnozhon was indeed guaranteed one by WS like Pulkinen

In Season Best list Pulkinen was #36 while Krasnozhon was #49

I'm so bitter about Rika assignments: Sasha, Med, Alina and Alena? Are they serious?

it is Shimada (by 1 position) and especially Orzel's picks that seem out of path of following SB list after having filled host picks and guaranteed spots

Only 1 to Yelim Kim?

But 2 for French girls and 1 not host pick for Andrews?

And Caroline Green/Michael Parsons wouldn't be eligible for a not host picked assignment under any ISU rule but as always they don't even read their own guidelines.

The state of Pairs is so desperate that they had to give a spot to Ambrosini

I was anxiously waiting for the NHK host pick....

Laurine Lecavelier switched coach to Magri

R328 that would be a tough fed level back door negotiations. Nathan v Boyang, I don’t think either country would give up a chance for gold.

Skate Canada all event tickets almost already sold out

r330 What are you on? Those Russian girls have to go somewhere. Elsewhere there are Schcherbakova and Tursy, how's that any better. And remember that Rus fed is even more powerful than Jpn fed, they may have been unable to push Kihira where they wanted. Plus, the courtesy of giving the champion the assignment they want? I bet Zag wanted NHK, she'popular there, and since it didn't conflict with host picks, Jpn would look like asses if they fought it.

I thought Kihira got tough assignments too at first glance, but the ladies field is so deep next year, it's hard to see where else they could have put her to make things easier.

SKATE AMERICA

MEN: Messing, Jin, Brezina, Ponsart, Koshiro Shimada, Tomono, Cha, Aliev, Roman Savosin, Brown, N. Chen, TBD USA

LADIES: Mallet, Higuchi, Sakamoto, Yamashita, Tursynbaeva, Lim, Konstantinova, Anna Shcherbakova, Tuktamysheva, K. Chen, Tennell, TBD USA

PAIRS: Alexandrovskaya/Windsor, Ruest/Wolfe, Peng/Jin, Pavliuchenko/Khodykin, Zabiiako/Enbert, Cain/LeDuc, Denney/Frazier, TBD USA

DANCE: Fournier Beaudry/Sorensen, Chen/Sun, Lauriault/Le Gac, Sofia Shevchenko/Igor Eremenko, Stepanova/Bukin, Zagorski/Guerreiro, Smart/Diaz, Carreira/Ponomarenko, Hubbell/Donohue, TBD USA

SKATE CANADA

MEN: Kerry, Nadeau, Nguyen, Sadovsky, Fentz, Rizzo, Hanyu, Tanaka, Vasiljevs, Kolyada, Lazukin, Camden Pulkinen

LADIES: Cotop, Daleman, TBD CAN, Kihira, Mihara, Yelim Kim, Young You, Medvedeva, Sakhanovich, Alexandra Trusova, Paganini, Tennell

PAIRS: Ilyushechkina/ Bilodeau, Moore-Towers/Marinaro, CAN TBD, Feiyao Tang/Yongchao Yang, Boikova/Kozlovskii, Tarasova/Morozov, Jessica Calalang/Brian Johnson, Scimeca Knierim/Knierim

DANCE: Gilles/Poirier, Marjorie Lajoie/Zachary Lagha, Sales/Wamsteeker, Fear/Gibson, Evdokimova/Bazin, Popova/Mozgov, Caroline Green/Michael Parsons, Hawayek/Baker, Hubbell/Donohue

somewhere in a Grenoble's bathroom

MEN: Nadeau, Aymoz, Ponsart, TBD FRA, Kvitelashvili, Samohin, Uno, Samarin, Anton Shulepov, Voronov, N. Chen, Tomoki Hiwatashi

LADIES: Hendrickx, Lecavelier, Meite, TBD FRA, Higuchi, Sakamoto, Shiraiwa, Alena Kostornaia, Sotskova, Zagitova, Bell, Ting Cui

PAIRS: Ziegler/Kiefer, James/Cipres, Hase/Seegert, Anastasia Mishina/Aleksandr Galliamov, Pavliuchenko/Khodykin, Zabiiako/Enbert, Cain/LeDuc, Denney/Frazier

DANCE: Soucisse/Firus, Lauriault/Le Gac, Papadakis/Cizeron, TBD FRA, Guignard/Fabbri, Kaliszek/Spodyriev, Zagorski/Guerreiro, Smart/Diaz, Chock/Bates, McNamara/Carpenter

CUP OF CHINA

MEN: Messing, Jin, H. Yan, TBD CHN, Chih-I Tsao, Rizzo, Tanaka, Cha, Lazukin, Roman Savosin, Camden Pulkinen, Zhou

LADIES: Daleman, Hongyi Chen, Yi (Beverly) Zhu, TBD CHN, Lindfors, Honda, Mihara, Miyahara, Tursynbaeva, Samodurova, Anna Shcherbakova, Tuktamysheva

PAIRS:Ilyushechkina/ Bilodeau, Peng/Jin, Sui/Han, TBD CHN, Ryom/Kim, Della Monica/Guarise, Efimova/Korovin, Kayne/O'Shea

DANCE: Fournier Beaudry/Sorensen, Chen/Sun, Wang/Liu, TBD CHN, Komatsubara/Koleto, Evdokimova/Bazin, Sinitsina/Katsalapov, Skoptcova/Aleshin, Chock/Bates, Hawayek/Baker

ROSTELECOM CUP

MEN: Litvintsev, Nguyen, Brezina, Kvitelashvili, Tomono, Uno, Vasiljevs, Aliev, Samarin, TBD RUS, Krasnozhon, Zhou

LADIES: Ryabova, Hendrickx, Hongyi Chen, Lecavelier, Miyahara, Shiraiwa, Yuhana Yokoi, Konstantinova, Medvedeva, Alexandra Trusova, Paganini, Bell

PAIRS: Ziegler/Kiefer, Walsh/Michaud, Hase/Seegert, Ghilardi/Ambrosini, Boikova/Kozlovskii, Tarasova/Morozov, TBD RUS, Lu/Mitrofanov

DANCE: Gilles/Poirier, Marjorie Lajoie/Zachary Lagha, Turkkila/Versluis, Galyavieva/Thauron, Reed/Ambrulevicius, Kaliszek/Spodyriev, Skoptcova/Aleshin, TBD RUS, Hurtado/Khaliavin

NHK

MEN: Orzel, Sadovsky, Aymoz, Bychenko, Hanyu, Yamamoto, TBD JPN, Dmitriev, Kolyada, Voronov, Brown, Tomoki Hiwatashi

LADIES: Linfors, Meite, Kihira, Yamashita, TBD JPN, Lim, Alena Kostornaia, Samodurova, Zagitova, Andrews, K. Chen, Ting Cui

PAIRS: Moore-Towers/Marinaro, Sui/Han, James/Cipres, Della Monica/Guarise, TBD JPN, Anastasia Mishina/Aleksandr Galliamov, Kayne/O'Shea, Scimeca Knierim/Knierim

DANCE: Soucisse/Firus, Wang/Liu, Papadakis/Cizeron, Fear/Gibson, Guignard/Fabbri, Komatsubara/Koleto, Sofia Shevchenko/Igor Eremenko, Stepanova/Bukin, Carreira/Ponomarenko, McNamara/Carpenter

[R333] The details of the split couple rule are pretty unclear but the general consensus is that so long as both halves of the split couple (in this case Parsons/Parsons) and their federation all agree then one half of the split couple (i.e. Boy Parsons) and their new partner can use the SB or WS points of the previous team (i.e. Parsons/Parsons) in order to become eligible for as a GP pick - USFS probably then politicked on their behalf (invited Mallet to SKAM) in order for them to get the SCI spot.

In reality...MEN

SA: Jin (maybe) ,Chen SC: hanyu FRA; Uno, Chen COC: Jin, zhou, cha RC: Uno, Zhou NHK: hanyu

The rest are fillers.

For WOMEN-agree...UNPREDICTABLE BLOODBATH

R334 Pairs isn't dead, RusFed is just doing it's usual bit to ensure as little competition as possible for the Russian Teams.

Also there are rumours the TBD spot is being held in case Stolbova can get ready in time in which case they'll want to try and make sure she doesn't come last even if she ends up Stolbova-ing.

After the last two years I don't even want to make predictions regarding GPF men. 2017 were without Yuzu, Javi or Boyang - who at the beginning of the season seemed like a shoo-in. 2018 was without Yuzu or Boyang.

And with girls, even if I wanted to make a prediction, I couldn't. There's no way in hell to predict who will get through. Theoretically, the whole Worlds podium could all get edged out.

I would be very surprised if Dai gets/wants the NHK. Not sure if he can emotionally handle being overshadowed by Hanyu.

R341

In the guidelines ISU wrote split couples rule can used by those who were in top 12 at ISU World Figure Skating Championships in the past two seasons (2017/18 or 2018/19)

If only ISU would be bothered to write the actual rules rather than random sentences.

Actually it is even worse...

"Return of a Split Couple - “Returning Split Couple” Pairs or Dance Couples, who were previously in the top 7 to 12 of an ISU World Figure Skating Championships in the past two seasons (2017/18 or 2018/19) but who split and now have a new partner, may always be chosen as an Organizing ISU Member Skater as per paragraph 2.2. f) and in addition, may be considered as an Organizing ISU Member’s Choice as per paragraph 2.2. g). They will be ranked in the list of Grand Prix Season’s Best scores by taking the season’s points of their partnership with their most recent previous partner, if proof is given in writing by their ISU Member that they intend to continue their competitive career and their return is announced and confirmed by the date of the annual Selection Meeting. Such Pairs/Dance Couples are defined as a “Returning Split Couple” and such Returning Split Couples do not need to fulfill the requirement of a minimum Grand Prix score."

they basically wrote the split couples rule is valide for 7-12 at Worlds but they forgot to add it in the passage about 1-6 at Worlds...

ISU always have problems with cut and paste

I thought Dmitriev had retired. He's the one who did the YOLO quad axel(s) last season. Here we go again?

What is it with all the psychotic whining about Daisuke here?

yes they are obssesed with that skater, dunno why

R343 Russia always find obscure skaters to fill their GP

Also, the judges. Each skater brings a judge with it...so if you invite obscure skater from Uzbekistan, you get a nice Uzbek judge overmarking you.

Stolbova may be ready. Didier maybe.

346 I know it's not in the rulebook but this is definitely the protocol that has been used before for a split couple.

China attempted to use it last year for the planned team of Xie Zhong and Li Xiangning. Xie Zhong was a former Junior World medalist (from 2017) with his previous partner and he and Li Xiangning were able to get GP assingments as a brand new team using his SB from his previous partenership. Obviously Li Xiangning ended up getting injured and so they never competed at all but they were definitely assigned GP's based off this variant on the Split Couple Rule.

From what I understand the Returning Split-Couple Rule that you've cited is slightly different as it deals with teams that do not have a SB from the previous season.

R342 has got a point though. The gap between the top of the field and the rest is so wide, if everyone remains relatively healthy by the end of NHK, it's actually very easy to see who at least 4 of the final 6 are going to be, with the toss-up for the last 2 being only between 3 or so names. Or at least it's easy to see who ISU wants to see in the Final. But since we're reaching a climax of the quad era, injury-related WD chances are...definitely not lower than the seasons before, so who knows? It's sad that it's for reasons like this that we can't predict with higher certainty which singles men may ultimately end up in the finals instead of for the same reasons we're unable to predict which singles ladies will remain. Ladies field looks to be the survival of the fittest this year. Hard to say if we'll see even Kihira and Zagitova in the Final, at this point.

R349 He's pretty hot topic now and people here like hot topics. I'd rather whine about him than about people whining. And speaking of him...

R345 Yeah with Hanyu being assigned to NHK, it's less certain now whether he'll go for it. And besides, like someone upthread said, the guy seems more intent on smaller international comps. And if Hanyu finally manages to make to JNats this year (which would be like the Olympics for him because it's been 4 years since his last JNats), then he'll be meeting Hanyu anyway. Wait, why are we talking as though Hanyu's like Takahashi's personal bogeyman or something? Not that it isn't an amusing thought...

R349 No worse than your psycho hate for Uno or r306's delusional cut and paste from Dai's GS fan fest. I'm looking forward to the new SP because let's face it, Dai sucked last season - jumps, spins, everything was sloppy. I'd even argue his performance wasn't even all that riveting. I think it was Wilson's shitty program though because the FS was better.

R354 you hated on Ten back then and it was ok, loser??? Pathetic moron

I can’t believe Zhou, with his INFLATED PCS at worlds, is considered a contender with Hanyu, Chen, and Uno.

Isn’t Dai also performing in Hyoen with Lambiel and Arakawa? Is this show not successful? Or is it simply Dai is an attention whore and can’t stand not being in the competitive spotlight even though he is not competitive.

R352 I know they generally do this. And in the end GP is basically an invitation competition where they can select whoever they want for 80% of the spots. However, if they want to be taken more seriously, they could at least attempt to write down their own rules when they have them. It is like the replacement list rule that is not well explained (even if they actually wrote it down) and sometimes ignored.

wait...I just noticed it...

forget Ghilardi/Ambrosini and Sun/Chen

how the hell did Chih-I TSAO get the assignment?

He is at #70 in the Season Best list

#59 in World Standing

#30 at Worlds

#17 at 4CCs

[quote]Isn’t Dai also performing in Hyoen with Lambiel and Arakawa? Is this show not successful? Or is it simply Dai is an attention whore and can’t stand not being in the competitive spotlight even though he is not competitive

The show is next month, dumbass.

The article about Takahashi only being interested in b-comps is from January. Last Saturday, he said he wouldn’t put limits on himself next season and will go as far as he can if given the chance. He also mentioned needing minimums to do the GP (which isn’t true), so might do a b-comp to get the scores.

He’s getting his new choreography in August and he’ll most likely be performing his new SP at FOI, and there’s a very good chance he’ll be invited to JO.

r357 None of the days are sold out yet and there are seats still available in all sections last I checked. It’s quite expensive (although the production costs should be much higher than a regular ice show), especially given that it’s short enough that they can manage two performances a day though adding Lipnitskaya probably helped sell some tickets.

Takahashi at JO makes sense. He can pretend to leer at Zagitova in person.

Thanks JDC.

I remember a book translation saying Dai was a hope that never came to fruition. I still think if he would have passed the torch in a more humble, respectful way to Hanyu in 2012, this fandom rivalry would have been minimized...maybe...or he may just be an egomaniac who needs to dupe his older female fans into turning over their retirement money...he is turning out to be quite the mystery

Dear God, may Yuzuru break all the records at NHK. Thank you, amen.

R354 I don't know. I think Dai did pretty well coming from a small fed (at the time), being the first Asian to break onto the scene. He should have had 2 world titles, frankly, along with the Olys medal, GPF, and 4CC wins. That's hardly a hope that "never" came to fruition.

As for Hanyu, others might be able to remember back further, but I can trace Dai's resentment of him back to the medals ceremony at 2012 WC, where the audience roared for Hanyu, who was jumping up and down like a little kid and so happy for that bronze. You could see it clearly on Dai's face (at 4:10 linked below). To top it off, at the presser, Hanyu failed to name Dai as one of the skaters he looked up to, despite naming Chan and despite people in the audience yelling "Dai, Dai" AND with Dai standing right next to him. All of that in addition to losing to that cunt Patrick Chan would drive a man to drink.

R365 Don't jinx him please.

Sorry forgot the link

Most possible scenario: Yuzuru will compete at that shity competion in canada in september, next skate canada in october then he will "twist" his ankle after nkh(sacrificial face during intervievs and bandaged leg) he will say that cannot compete at japan nationals and grand prix final , he will "start " with worlds in montreal. If wins and like every year he will be saying that he lives only due to pain killers and he sacrified so much, if he loses he will be mumbling about how it was hard for him because he was injured wit pain killers

R365 From the DL to God’s ears, although not sure if that connection actually exists...then again, God did gift the DL and figure skating

R369 One of my favorite pictures of him (at least of the ones that don't feature his juicy ass).

R366 I misquoted, it’s from Road toOlympic Gold by Shirota And the section is titled

[quote]The Promise Never Fulfilled: Daisuke Takahashi

R368 can't tell whether you're wishing for it or complaining about it, daitroll. You're so complex!!!

R372 I am not wishing it. Thats how it looks like almost every year

I’m already having FaOI withdrawal.

How does the NHK TBD spot work? Are they going wait to see if Honda, Yokoi and Shimada have a fighting chance and if not, then they assign Takahashi? Last year, they assigned Kihira pretty quickly, but duh.

R374 Hanyu's programs were amazing. I want to see the Toyama roar.

I’d like to see Shun Sato get some international experience at NHK and also skate with Hanyu, his hometown hero. Maybe hanyu can make it happen.

Masquerade was phenomenal. I really want to see Toyama and Origin. I hear no plans to televise it though.

Shun is still junior though right?

For pete's sake, r366 can you not post baby videos of the man whose ass we're accustomed to ogling?

R366 Apologies, my ire was towards r367.

R368. Wtf? Are you hoping Hanyu gets injured?

Lol, thanks this

*take

r381 I hate you. How am I supposed to oggle that ass and wank to the 3As now when I have this in my head.

Also, wtf is with DL, the block button doesn't work for me.

R380 don't worry about the resident troll

R380 Did i say that?? Jesus fucking christ , americans are dumb

R383 It seems every time I open a new tab (even if I'm in the same browser), Daitroll gets unblocked. DL's working out some kinks I think because it's only happening today (for me).

Oh God I had forgotten how awkward the small medal ceremony was.

R387 Hanyu's first kiss!

R384 yeah of course you always find excuses to explain WHY you see my post hhahahahahahhhahahhmm lest'c count DL's problems, mistakes by blocking someone else, like some idiot from yeaterday blocked other poster "by mistake" . And of course I change my browser from time to time because assholes see my posts and it is my fault... You re not smart, you re dumb, fagots

R388 so sad...

[quote]how the hell did Chih-I TSAO get the assignment?

And no Julian Yee.

R387 Can someone explain to me the question at 9:30? I couldn't understand what she was asking and it seemed everyone was confused. TIA.

R383 Here's Hanyu doing a backcounter 3A at 17. Your boner should do the right thing and just turn itself in.

R352 One interpretation suggested on FSU is that by ISU World Championships they include Junior Worlds. So they qualify through Caroline Green's placements at Junior Worlds 2018 and 2019. And the Chinese pair would have qualified through Zhong's results at Junior Worlds.

r393 Well. The result was predictable. Now I need some time to reflect on myself. Maybe join some group. See a priest.

R395 I imagine it’s kind of like this. You deserve a Toshi hug.

I meant like r396 without the crowd cheering that is

What are the chances that Hanyu will actually go to 4CC for that elusive gold this season? Especially since it looks likely that he'll break that Skate Canada gold curse this season.

I think 4CC is beneath him now. I’d like to see him focus on GPF, JNats, and Worlds

Call me superstitious, but 4cc men's gold is so cursed. Look at Shoma last season. I hope yuzu doesn't go for 4cc.

R400 I agree - you can't have everything. At this point, I don't want Hanyu to sweat the small stuff - just stay healthy and focus on the major comps.

R401 I agree. All I want is an injury free season for yuzu.

R392 I think that will be a mystery forever

Tuk has the second highest (well, WTT) Season's Best and she's only got 1 assignment. What was Mishin doing, judging kids on a tv show with Tarasova and Kovtun and twiddling his thumbs?

Tuk's at Skate America and Cup of China.

So far, one assignment only for these skaters: MEN: Bychenko, Chih-I Tsao, Dmitriev, Fentz, Han Yan, Kerry, Krasnozhon, Litvintsev, Orzel, Samohin, Shimada, Shulepov, Yamamoto – LADIES: Andrews, Cotop, Honda, Mallet, Ryabova, Sakhanovich, Sotskova, Yelim Kim, Yuhana Yokoi, Young You, Yi (Beverly) Zu.

Hope I got that right.

r405 I guess it's true what they say about wanking, I'm going blind.

The real outrage, where's Valtter Virtanen? They make room for that lazy bum Yuzu but give DOCTOR Valtter the shaft?

406, that sounds fair to me. None of those skaters have done well in the past season. Will Starr Andrews ever fix her hunchy posture and stop lurching around the ice? Same with Krasnozhon. Marin Honda seems to be circling the drain after all her media hype.

R354 Other than the scores from the results page nothing was copy & pasted from anywhere.

R362 The linked article translated on FSU covered comments from last Saturday and didn't mention the GPs, only B comps and Worlds. As always it seems there's a bunch of different articles with different quotes floating around.

Whatever he allegedly said, he didn't get a GP assignment, meaning he didn't forward his intention to compete on the series in writing before the deadline, as required to be considered according to the comeback rule. Or he's clueless about the rule, if he really thought he'd need minimum scores.

R371 I read that on PH. Do you know if there's a translation of the section other than the title? I'm curious if Shirota shaded him in her book.

R375 All contenders will be invited to test for the spot and whoever has the best result gets it. Provided they don't deviate from how it's usually determined. I'm rooting for Koshiro to earn the spot.

On his GS thread, someone said it was a 12 hour flight from Chonqging to Moscow. Why did they torture Zhou with back-to-back gps so far away from each other? At least Bradie's are SA and SC - probably the same time zone.

The women's events are stacked. My eyes are boggling looking at those lineups. Men, dance, and pairs look comparable to last year.

Could someone explain the yuna & Johnny situation back in the days? Someone on tw said Johnny had a history of biting the hand that feeds him.

Ladies field are stacked and competitive because they are around similar levels, when all things considered are balanced. The ladies make up in some skills what they lack. Some better on PCS, some better on TES, GOEs - fuck stupid scoring that says otherwise and ISU always trying to pretend the next upcoming skater is the best of the era because our scores say so. But I don't think the ladies' best is close to the men's best in skill level (Hanyu).

I'm so interested in seeing the jump in PCS in the new Russian seniors who may no longer be getting the junior PCS treatment. Maybe they'll break records right away, unlike Rika who unfortunately still had junior PCS at NHK, or maybe their first outing they'll actually be held back a little in the beginning and have to wow first to get that insane jump in PCS. Will Rusfed try to protect Alina and hold the other girls down or give her the Med treatment during Olympic season?

With quads in ladies now, I expect more splats in our ladies winners this year though.

[quote] Could someone explain the yuna & Johnny situation back in the days? Someone on tw said Johnny had a history of biting the hand that feeds him

This is intriguing to me. Being new to figure skating just since Pyeongchang, could you tell me what "tw" is? I'd hate to think I was missing out on some good old gossip!

I didn't know Yuna (Kim?) and Johnny had anything to do with each other! But had noticed Johnny has a contrarian streak, to say the least.

r415 Twitter?

R413 JDC talked about this in one of the earlier threads but I can't find it now.

LOL thank you R416. Even I know what Twitter is. Thought it was some messageboard like FSU or whatever, though those are biting the dust, alas. Please don't do likewise, DL!

Viveca Lindfors, the European bronze medalist of women's figure skating, has been selected as Helsinki Athlete of the Year. The Helsinki Athlete of the Year will award a scholarship of EUR 10,000, which will be distributed annually on Helsinki Day. Lindfors receives its prize at the Helsinki Day concert in Kaisaniemi.

Beautiful...

R413 Someone (JDC?) talked about it many threads ago. I remember it was something along the lines of back when Johnny was still competing he was invited to ATS. He got sick while in Korea, but the doctors didn't want to give him any meds as they didn't know what was banned for athletes. Johnny caused a stir (duh), and was never invited again.

R413 I saw that take. But I have a feeling it was more than that. Someone shared a video footage of Johnny talking at a fan meet & greet. He was talking about a photo, and how yuna's fans & managment no longer wanted him in Korea because he was becoming too popular. He basically one again presented himself as the victim, like he did in this year's faoi incident. Here is the video. Start from the beginning.

*sorry, supposed to be R421

Awww - here's Shoma and Sasha Trusova doing side-by-side cantilevers - or whatever you call that squat thing with them leaning back.

Whoever would have thought Shoma would have a "mini me" to train with!

R424 Shoma had to find pre-pubescent girls to be. Mini -Shoma

R422 Thank you. I don't have the patience to sit through 10 min of Johnny talking but just in the first 15s... "Her management team also thought I was becoming too popular in Korea...so they stopped inviting me."

Like, WTF?

Speaking of mini-me's, I think this should be Yuzu and not Nathan! Daddy Plush is the mother of all stage mothers!

R426 the beginning is the gold. So that's why I'm so curious about what happened.

Oh my god the way Johnny is talking - it's like a bad actor pretending to be posh.

I used to love Johnny, but he's really on my last nerve.

But thanks for posting that R422. I couldn't make it past loving Budapest/Hungary or whatever. Second hand embarrassment CRINGE.

I don’t see management and fans turning on someone because they are getting popular. There is no way in hell Wier would ever get more popular in S. Korea than Yuna. There was probably some incident.

Not unheard of. At this FaOI. He has the drama of posting Med’s anti letter which lead to blaming Fanyus (which Hanyu had to defend) then the flower picture, which he outed/made Hanyu’s management seem unreasonable and trying to create an “image”(implying Hanyu is not his true self). Based on these incidents, in the midst of a successful show would justify Hanyu’s Management and fans to not want Wier back. We said as much in the DL.

sounds like we need a KDC in this thread!

R427 that's interesting

R422 Thanks for posting that. JFC - I am floored by the passive-aggressiveness and the humble-bragging. What must go on inside Weir's mind if he thinks Yuna Kim's management is afraid his popularity would eclipse hers IN KOREA. He's inconsistent too. First he says it's her management that is responsible; then he blames it on a small group of fans. He basically managed to insult so many people in one fell swoop - Yuna, her mom, her team, her fans. Weir and Kim were close at some point too (LOL - but I think there was a small group that actually shipped them). I hope Hanyu steers clear of this delusional cunt. The tricky thing is, if he's dropped from FAOI next year, he'll say it's because he stood up against bullying and is being punished for it.

Playing victim we're used to. Playing victim AND explicitly saying it's all because omg!!!I am too popular!!! is a whole new level of cringe. Med still has lots to learn from Johnny senpai!

I still need feel the need to support Weir after the ISU fucked him over for basically his whole career, so I'm begging him to make easy for me.

Still feel the need*

He can't eclipse Hanyu in his own country, how can he even think that he'll eclipse someone the Koreans call a Queen in her home country? He didn't learn from all the hate Adelina and even Med got on their social. Fanyus are nothing compared Korean netizens.

R435 ISU (and commentators and other skaters) did treat him terribly, but Johnny was also lazy, a diva and a poor sportsman. He's admitted he thought he was a queen and was dismayed USFSA didn't treat him as such. He's also bailed on competitions by faking injuries. He admitted all of this in his book. Same hubris that's getting him in trouble now. Obviously he hasn't learned or grown up.

Everywhere Johnny goes, some kind of sordid drama follows. Some people just have a knack for that. I felt sorry for him when he split with that grifter husband, but there's a common denominator in all of this.

R365 Imma aim lower and simply hope for the guy to end the season relatively healthier than the previous two seasons. Heck, I'll consider it a win if the guy gets to end it without having to pop painkillers.

R411 Nothing to be done about it if all the others want Chen and Hanyu and none of them can meet. He has to take the leftover comps and the leftover comps, whom I imagine would likely rather have one of the other two, have no choice but to take the leftover of the WC podium. I'd feel sorry for the guy if he didn't present himself as such a prick. Well, his chances are still good for coming out on top, still, if Jin remains as inconsistent as he did last season though I'm really hoping that Jin will finally grow into his potential this season and hands him his ass at CoC, especially since I'm really rooting for him to be one of the finalists. I'd love for him to be on the podium as well but I'll start small and just hope he'll manage to be one of the top 6.

R435 I'm happy for his post-competition success but it's sad what a train wreck his personality is. I think after all that's happened to him back when he was competing and in his personal life, he basically thinks that whatever happens, he's the victim by default now. I'm not sure if he believes what he says deep down but I'm guessing he's used to feeling sorry for himself and doesn't want to see the situation properly.

I’m hoping for boyang to pick up his game. He has a great personality and his interactions with Hanyu are adorable.

R441 Boyang should annoy me because his off-ice looks are total hypebeast, but he doesn’t seem to behave like a hypebeast.

I wasn’t the one who wrote about Weir and Yuna in the past and I was also under the assumption that it was Rippon who was considered close to Yuna, and some of Yuna fans used to ship them.

Takahashi was one of the special guests on “Waratte Koraete” on Wednesday to promote Hyoen. The special guests are always hidden from the regular guests when they’re first introduced on the show and the regulars have to guess who they are based on descriptions given by random members of the public interviewed on the street. Descriptions of Takahashi included: “A narcissist.” “Probably googles himself and gets depressed by what he reads.” “Obsessed with his bangs.” One of the regulars was finally able to figure out it was Takahashi after hearing the final clue (“recently returned to competition”), but struggled to recall his first name. Takahashi didn’t get to speak much on Waratte Koraete, but Amon Miyamoto, the director of Hyoen, was also on the show and appeared in their bar hopping segment. Takahashi did mention one of his brothers had a kid and he imitated Ken Shimura’s (a comedian) voice. I’m going to try to get to Haran this weekend because it seems like it has more material about his temper tantrums like Merenge.

R256 You and google made it sound so much nicer. Grandpa said he painted three pieces all showing Uno winning the Olympics and the one in the article was the completed piece. At first, Grandpa planned to give the painting to Uno if he won, but it turned out well enough to be used in exhibitions, so he decided to keep it for himself. He also said (and this is why Hanyu fans don’t like him) that Uno and Hanyu are two totally different types of skaters. Uno is pure, artistic, and gives an honest performance because he’s brave. Hanyu acts. Grandpa did say that he only sees his grandson once a year because he’s so busy traveling the world for exhibitions, but he was already 90 back then and they live in the same city. Grandpa also seems to have taken a liking to one of the female reporters who’s interviewed him in the past.

Zhou reunited with his love at last!

Thanks JDC. Perfect description of Dai. I’m surprised Japan’s FS fandom is not at war constantly, or is there a clear winner with only small fractions...

[Quote] He also said (and this is why Hanyu fans don’t like him) that Uno and Hanyu are two totally different types of skaters. Uno is pure, artistic, and gives an honest performance because he’s brave. Hanyu acts.

That confirms it. Gramps really did get his grandboy mixed up. What he described of Uno perfectly describes Hanyu and vice versa. I think the old guy somehow managed to get it mixed up in his head and think Hanyu is his little Shoma. And if he was still somewhat uncertain back then, I imagine the fact that Hanyu ultimately won the title must have been the final nail in the coffin and the guy is now 100% convinced.

[Quote] “Probably googles himself and gets depressed by what he reads.”

I think this applies to most famous people, even Hanyu. Though with Hanyu, I think he now simply looks at posts tagged with his name on social media than run searches and he's doing it more to keep up with fans (guy seems to stalk fans' activities as religiously as we do his *shudder*) than to see what others are saying about him.

Thanks JDC. The dai part is hilirious. And gosh grandpa uno is a piece of work

Entire Uno family, mom and brother are a piece of work. How did hanyu luck out with a family that aren't drama seeking, inappropriate whores. .

R447 His old coach Nanami isn't attention seeking either and let him go after just getting his feet wet internationally and on the Worlds podium.

I don't think I've ever quite gotten the down low on Mrs. Uno. Maybe because I've never gone looking but I've only ever come across one mention of her and it was about her cooking up stuff for her son in the hotel room or something. I don't think I've seen any elaboration here either, at least not in so far since I started following this thread, so I might have missed a lot of things in earlier threads.

R447 Yeah. It's amazing how much all the people close to Hanyu shun the spotlight. Like they actively and aggressively avoid it. And the fact that Hanyu's following is bigger than any figure skaters in the past has ever had just puts the whole thing in even more stark contrast when compared to the families of others. Actually, even Hanyu himself is non-attention seeking off-ice. During off-season, when there are neither shows nor media obligations, his profile is kept so low that if it weren't for the occasional random IG posts that has him taking a picture with the owner, fans would've started thinking that they might have dreamed him up and everything about him is merely imagination. No wait, we do that anyway.

Whoops. Sorry. R450 -> R448 R449 -> R447

He basically does like a summer hibernation and only comes out in winter.

R450 100% agree

R438, lazy?? That is a ridiculous accusation, even if the rest is correct.

For the Attn of: The Contour Appreciation Society

R454 Weir's work ethic was famously poor - anyone remember the time he took off to South Korea just before Nats, got sick, missed the podium, porked out, went into some kind of depression, quit skating for a few months and ran out of money? Anyways, in his Aunt Joyce days, Dave Lease wrote a whole post on Johnny's flakiness and failure to train properly.

R455 Little Shoma's bottom is delicious. I am swelling with pride.

R456 watching some of those Wier videos, it’s hard to believe he is one of Hanyu’s idols. How many times did he just give up on the ice and create drama in the K&C? Obviously too many to count. So it’s been confirmed. Wier has always been a drama whore with ups and downs, so what’s up now?

R443 Surprising that the expression "to google yourself" exists in Japanese. I thought yahoo is the no. 1 search engine in Japan. Or was that a loose translation? Also interesting how frequently the term "narcissist" pops up. I recall Kanako calling Yuzu one too on a tv show recently and previously when they were both still in their teens. Wasn't it that the meaning in Japanese differs from how it's used in English? I think it was PH where I came across some explanation but can't quite recite.

Yuzu politely bitched about inconsistent judging during the Sekkisei live-chat today. Good on him! The talk was streamed on weibo with 320+ people watching (according to his fan fest).

That was of course supposed to be 320k +

R459 R460 320k was on weibo live alone. It was confirmed by the host. Not the fans. She told him & asked how he felt about that. He said he was nervous with so many ppl watching it live.

Yuzuru "I'm so straight" Hanyu. What's the point of not wanting him to wear a flower crown when he is such a little twinky queen anyway. They can hide him with ugly, unfitting suits and shoes and terrible haircut making him look like some poor straight salaryman from the 70s but it's not that easy to get rid of his natural flamboyance.

R462 the Johnny incident was never about yuzu's image as Johnny implied. He broke the faoi rule regarding not accepting gifts from fans directly & posting photos wearing such gift & tagging the person giving the gift. Ironically he made the same mistake last year. When will he ever learn? Apparently never & instead he plays being the victim as always.

R463 I know. It was a joke. He was just so queeny today at the live streaming event. Couldn't help myself.

I hate that suit. Jesus.

Nice color. Terrible everything else.

I'm astounded that nobody Hanyu works with has ever taken him to a decent menswear place and said, take this guy's measurements and make him something completely from scratch, we'll shell out for it. His pants sometimes fit but no off-the-rack jacket can ever be tailored to fit him right. His proportions are too unusual.

Apparently the livestream took place in Sendai, so it's good Hanyu's been hanging around his hometown. Also for those who worry about Mama H, let's hope she's been getting some.

I hate that hair.... No perm pls yuzu That suit was nice but fitting was tragic. He looked 1.5m tall at times. His poor super long legs..... I agree R466 his suits have to be tailored.

But his very own suits don't seem to fit him too well either? The best fitting suit we ever got to saw him in was for that Kikiyu ad. There's never been one like it before and not another one since. I'm thinking he likes them loose fitting (suits drape rather heavily and are restrictive after all, compared to the stuff he's used to) and that whenever third parties ask him for measurements, those are the ones he sends.

His hair doesn't look permed to me...but it does have that 70s/80s vintage look to it that they so like to stick on him. I stand by my opinion that no one does his hair better than himself. But that frumpy looking suit wouldn't have been able to do whatever he comes up with justice so it's just as well they make him look like he just stepped out of the set of Hitotsu Yane no Shita. It's an outdated look but it's at least consistent.

R469 I don't think he likes loose clothes. Otherwise his favourite everyday training gear wouldn't be super tight leggings and even tighter top. I think he just doesn't care and they probably go with papa Hanyu's measurements. Might as well be Hanyu Senior's suits at this point, who knows. He needs to go for female suit jackets if he wants it to fit or he could drop it altogether and just wear nice fitting pants and shirt.

R470 I dunno, man. Those track suits and t-shirts he wears when he isn't training look pretty loose to me. But who knows why really. Not sure if we'll ever live to see him in a properly fitted suit because as unique as his proportions are, he'd look out of this world in bespoke. He's got the shoulders, chest and waist that would cut a dashing figure...which isn't too bad of a trade off if you consider the little he leaves to the imagination with his practice gear and sometimes costumes (ie: LGC). It's a real shame there has to be a trade-off at all but I won't complain.

The jacket indeed looks like it might be Papa Hanyu's though. It is huge.

He looked good at the emperor's garden party last year and at his monument unveiling. I thought we'd turn a corner on ill-fitting suits. You can still his thighs bulging when he sits down, do there's that.

You guys are nit picky “plastics” mean girls. I think Hanyu looks 👍.

Hanyu cannot keep still. He even looks up the doll's dress at some point.

R472 the hair actually look nice in this photo. And it doesn't look permed. Thank you skating god for small mercy.

R472 Whoa. It didn't look that oversized from further away. I didn't know school principals are partial to shiny suits. Whether or not it belongs to pop, that suit is definitely borrowed. The only reason those pants aren't hanging off of him is probably cos of his thunder thighs.

473 Those fit well enough to be his own suits. While I wouldn't call them ill-fitting, they're not what I'd consider as well-fitting either. They're...passable.

R474 Hey it's all subjective. I'm no sartorial snob. I'd even go so far as to say that if they're going for an 80s to early 90s look, then they hit the nail right on the head. Or they would have if he had less muscles in his thighs to complete the billowy look. Stick a fedora on him and he'd pull off the 50s/60s mafia look as well.

Either way, I think suits that don't quite fit 100% is a trademark with him by now. Which I'm good with since his practice clothes and costumes fit him 110%.

R475 lmao

R477 his costumes' pants need to be tighter. Just saying.

R479 Are you suggesting something undignified, immodest and inappropriate? Good heavens, you offend my delicate sensibilities!!!

R479 LGC's the MVP in this domain. Think the others, the velvet-like stuff, may rip if overstretched. He'll then get his points docked due to costume malfunction and even if we would've gotten a glimpse of his dancing belt and/or a whole lot of skin, I wouldn't wish that on him.

Lol, we r like old men from the 20s, getting excited to see a bare ankle under a billowing skirt. The top of a dance belt and a peek at his stomach....ohhhh myyyyyy

R459 Google is far more popular as a search engine and we do use the expression "to google (something/someone)" (guguru) when talking about doing a web search using any search engine. The expression used in this case was "ego search," which you don't have in English so I used the closest equivalent. Yahoo Japan is popular for auctions and news.

The meaning of "narcissist" is similar to the English meaning and still negative. It's just that Murakami's explanation for calling Hanyu one didn't quite fit the definition.

Tailored suits with a tighter fit have been the trend for a long time, so Hanyu either isn't giving his measurements, or doesn't have time or doesn't ask for the suits to be tailored, maybe because his weight/size fluctuates. But this was worse than usual. R470 He has said he prefers loose, non-restrictive clothes outside training because his costumes and training gear are tight.

Well, the kinder ones may only chalk it up to costume malfunction and leave it at that. Then you've got ones like Ms. Riley up there who'll have him penalized for indecent exposure. Ironically, I think whatever glimpses we get are more chaste than his practice clothes. Those are just plain rude. Coupled with those brief flashes of underwear and skin, guy's a veritable tease and a minx. Dunno how people get it into their heads that he's this pure and innocent little flower.

I know I'm as good as asking for it with where I'm going but please don't post baby Hanyu pics.

Hanyu is the guy that "tight suit with skinny lapels and skinny tie" look was made for. But it won't happen.

I don't think anyone who dresses him (even sometimes his costume designers) takes into account how long his torso is. He's known for endless legs because they're shapely and he flings them in all directions, but especially out of skates you can tell it's his torso and arms that are long. That's why his ice show shirts always ride up more on him than any of the other men, and why a mass-produced jacket will never fit him.

R481 that's why he needs to ditch the velvet pants and wear something like Aliev's or even Kolyada's.

R486 That's why he just needs to ditch pants.

Looking at GP assignments and SB lists...in general, it seems they assigned, in whatever order, those guaranteed 2, host picsk and those guaranteed 1. Then they went through the SB list again to fill the rest (so second GP for those with 1 and high enough in SB list and first GP for others) with some exceptions:

Men - Following this method, Orzel and Tsao shouldn't have got anything in favour of a second spot for Bychenko (given how out of shape he was at beginning of last season, he is not worthy) and Maysuradz.

Ladies -Kim mysteriously didn't get a second GP despite being top 24 SB. Andrews's selection even makes sense if all those ahead of her still in Junior eligible were not submitted (unknown Italain girl, Harrell, Araki, Yoshioka, Sumiyoshi). Mallet and the not host picked GP for Chen (the Chinese, not Karen) are the out of line.

Pairs - no second GP to the North Koreans, Efimova/Korovin, Walsh/Michaud and Calagan/Johnson to give a GP to Tang/Yang, Rust/Wolfe, Ghilardi/Ambrosini and Liu/Mitrofanov. There are few spots for Pairs. They seem to have applied a logic to give a chance to the highest number of pairs possible rather than giving 2 GPs to second tier pairs.

Dance - only the second GP to Chen/Sun looks out of line.

Thanks for that R488 - that's interesting. Sorry to be so dumb, but do you know where I could find the top 24 list? I love the "data" side of skating, even though the score sheets will make you pull your hair out sometimes they're so inconsistent (or biased/cheated). Interesting that Yuzuru made a mention of the scoring issue at his interview thingy. It must be exasperating.

Last year, we sweated Rika getting a second assignment, IIRC. Maybe Yelim Kim will get another one, if someone drops out or something. Didn't Eunsoo win another spot for S Korea at Worlds, or am I confused about that?

And I didn't think about Messing going for 4A (as well as Dmitriev). Makes me nervous.

R489 Season Bests are half way this page

R456 after watching all those times Wier have up...

4:33. Hypocrisy at its best, Wier commentating a disastrous Gracie Gold skate -“it’s time to grow up and skate:

Thank you R490!

And I just realized that little Satoko also has the brutal back-to-back China/Russia that I was complaining upthread that Zhou got stuck with. But after seeing his upside down ok sign in the photo someone posted above, fuck him. (I'm not even sure what it means but don't want to think about it - already have enough reasons to not care about him - blah - makes Nathan seem interesting and that's sayin' somethin')

When you are out of ideas for bad guy's coreography...

I wish people would stop saying that Hanyu was "shading" the judges (Ambessi rt someone saying this). As always, he is gracious and adult about the fact that tastes differ and that this will sometimes account for inconsistencies in judging. I'm sure he's not naive enough to think it's all that is at play, but that's not what he's saying here (according to IK):

[quote]“...it is humans who judge us on whether we are beautiful or expressive, so I pay attention to how I can skate in such a way so that no matter how different someone’s values are they can still see beauty...”

The guy who apparently owns that Instagram account in R493 link - he's saying he's a banned judge who was blocked by Danlil ?? and he looks like he's 80+.

Is that a joke or could such a person be embroiled in the ZagMed song choice kerfuffle?

I thought Stephane was so gorgeous that nothing could really ruin his looks - but that glaring multi-color polyester wrinkled mess of a shirt has managed the impossible. He looks ridiculous imo.

Well, the original coreographer post this on her IG

What hanyu is saying about judging is his usual philosophy. He wants to make every element better then everyone else so comparatively they have to score him higher. Unfortunately he didn’t have the lutz for them to compare, and now he does.

He’s already adding steps/transitions at 7:50

R497 it’s copied to be sure. Legally, how much choreography do you have to use before calling it stolen? Don’t most people use Some signature moves from singers during their ex? I actually am asking out of curiosity.

R494 I like Max Ambessi but it wasn't wise to retweet someone's VERY loose translation (more like interpretation) of what they thought Hanyu was saying about the judging. In fact another person called out the girl who did that translation saying that this is how Hanyu's words get twisted and misconstrued, but she didn't care and doubled down on her belief that Hanyu was throwing mad shade when he wasn't.

Okay, looks like Ambesi wisely removed that retweet after all.

R499 The standard is whether the two works are "substantially similar" (incredibly helpful, I know). In a case like this, the bigger question is, how do you prove damages, that is, how much $$ Daniil made or the choreographer lost from the infringement. This choreographer seems content to just troll Daniil, which is a much wiser approach, I think.

R496 Lol. I thought this was kinda costume of faoi.

A bit of Boyang's new program (SP?) He's been working with Benoit Richaud, who's in China with him.

The choreo reminds me of Benoit.

Why is Yuzuru standing on his toes here?

Cos...the...dame he's standing next to is taller...? There were a few of them so he did it several times for the camera. None of them were so tall that he was completely dwarved to a point that tippy toes aren't able to fix, though, unlike that time when he stood next to Otani.

Also, I'm a klutz so I've somehow managed to block myself and can't see my own posts now. Anyone mind telling me how I can undo it on the phone? Tapping the eye icon didn't seem to have any effect. Please help.

Click on the bars at the top right corner of the screen and click on 'ignore', you should see your comments there. Just click on the X to stop ignoring yourself.

Thanks! It's a relief to be able to see myself again.

TSL 6/22 – Part 1 - “GP Assignments “ Guest: Meagan Duhamel (who moved to Toronto 2 wks ago.) They had to rule out US when she got pregnant due to healthcare; Skate Oakville’s near family. 10 She thinks Eric may choreograph rather than coach. 12 She was exhausted, touring while pregnant. 14 It’s not who’s #1 in standings but the world champion who gets first choice on gps, then 2nd place picks, etc. Some want nearby; some may not want to be at home due to pressure. 16 She was terrified about getting back to back events due to adrenaline crash, but some say they can keep it going. Skaters usually find out who’s where when everyone else does, but once (in Oly yr) she & Eric got a call to warn of stacked event: did they wanna switch? (no) 19 D: No US skater wants to go to China (too far/not as nice as Japan) or to Russia (where they’ll be hosed politically). She’s glad she/Eric never went to Russia, but they always asked for NHK, though it’s risky due to quick turnaround to GPF. 21 D: Conspiracy w/Zag shielded from quadsters? M wonders if Z will lose to Kostornaia on PCS. She thinks Rusfed just tries to maximize medals. 24 M: Russians are the skaters least likely to want home gp due to pressure. 26 D:Will Karen even appear so maybe 2 US TBDs? – M likes that US waits/watches. 30 M: Daleman works w/Lori @Richmond Hill where her old coach is. 33 D:So much focus on Med vs Trusova but the real deal = Rika. D/M agree Rika has better SS than either of them or Zag. Rika can do 3A in SP but Trusova can’t do quad, so RK has advantage in SP. GPF may be 5 Russians + Rika. D: Eteri may dump Tursy now, esp w/Uno. 37 D: Ting’s had injured ankle several months/not jumping, but her father thinks he can coach her & has her skating=a mess. PT took her skates away so she used old ones.

TSL 6/22 – Part 2 – 40 MEN: D:CAN gp easy: Hanyu, Kolyada & then everyone else. 44 D:Torgashev has more potential than Krasnozhon & should get TBD. 46 D:Japan may have picked Jason (as they did Adam) because they like crowd faves. 47 Zhou’s in Japan for 2 mos this summer working w/Hamada. 48 M: America is a weak GP for PAIRS. Throws being worth a lot more than jumps helps Denney/Frazier. Could T/M finally have good prog w/Charlie White? Luba/Dylan vs MT/M: Interesting. D expects new a Alexa/Chris (either stronger or “beginning of the end”). He had elbow surgery but they’re bringing in big guns to help: Frank/Gordieeva/Raf – 52 Usfed will have 2nd office in Cali. 54 “Battle of Blades” may keep Vanessa from competing early. (Meagan had wanted to do that show). It’s Oct thru Nov & it’s live. Eric/Dylan/Morgan will probably be coaches on the show. 59 NHK has the deepest pairs field. 1.00 DANCE: not as exciting. W/P retiring. 1.05 M: But Ice Dance is insanely deep. Green/Parsons are pairing up. Early comps help so you don’t go in blind at first GP. 1.09 M will definitely do shows after baby but never that long thankyouCanada type tour again. She doesn’t miss skating but expects to be up all night w/the baby watching gps. 1.12 They discuss Sasha Plushenko’s career – he has 330,000 IG followers. M feels sorry for Plush’s older son. 1.13 D: Yagudin is opening an academy in Belarus. M: They host a lot of events in Minsk. M’s group is called “Skate Oakville Pairs” M: Do you have a better name? Bruno is the “pairs director”. 1.15 End of Duhamel part.

TSL 6/22 – Part 3 – Post-mortem/Gabfest: D:Our Skype connections are always worse w/Canada! 1.16 D: Starr’s is doing Dance of 7 Veils! But shd we really expect more from Derek? 1.20 D gossip about Karen Chen (+ 3yr lookback) – D thinks she may flop due to uni stress even tho she’s optimistic; got 2 gps bec US has nobody – no one to send to China! 1.24 Amber Glenn’s hopeless. Gracie’s looking better – D wants her in Vegas. 1.28 Kostornaia’s injured; J thinks she deserves higher PCS than Zag so may beat her? 1.30 Americans are always screwed in Russia: remember when Jenny was assigned there? She then just quit. D disses China – spent month in Beijing (they had to be taught not to spit or walk into ppl). 1.33 Weaver/Poje gossip. She’s like a Texas pageant queen – such a disconnect between the two. He’s been over it a while. They had to quit to do “Rock the Rink.” (Poje’s a jerk not to post a sweet goodbye like she did.) 1.49 Canada is hanging on by a thread – if there were an Oly team event now: Piper/Paul, Keegan & Gabby singing on IG. Gogo’s not ready/not a sure thing. And as Americans, we’re not judging: American ladies are not any better. Bradie: when someone calls you “hard working”, uh, you know it’s rough. 1.50 D loves the campiness of Sambo IG. Trusova improved her cantilever working w/Shoma. D: “I told you the girls will learn from him!” (but Sho’s prob scared to death) 1.52 D/J argued about doing a constantly-updating pyramid of which Russian girls are in favor as the gps happen, like Dance Moms had w/Abby Lee(?) D/J doing ‘95 Worlds on Patreon – everybody get excited about Olga Markova! END

Not sure if the most apt description of this picture is beauty pageant hopeful or bimbo hostess at some tv shopping price guessing game. In any case it's gold.

The lucky guy (obviously whipped).

Look like we found the perfect friend for Med. An attention whore who believes the entire world should know her and takes pleasure in sending her minions to bully an underage girl. What a pleasant piece of work she is. If you are that kind of human being who enjoys mob mentality instead of dealing with issues like an adult then don't expect me to be feeling sorry for you that someone took 15 seconds of your boring choreo and did not credit you.

Twinkling twink *-*

Do you agree with the statement that: “there’s no such thing as straightness around Hanyu.” Like due to his extraordinary androgynous appearance and playing with heteronormativity, his inborn grace and unique plasticity (at times almost feminine in its quality) even heterosexual males can feel a pull of attraction towards him. It seems that (at least partially) the BS Hanyu gets from his haters is due to a raging guilty hard-ons. Maybe conservative ISU judges hate the fact that they have to question their own sexuality while he is skating instead of simply pushing the GOE buttons.

R517 the great majority of judges are women. They are not thinking "maybe I am a lesbian because I can't find this Japanese twink attractive"

But maybe women judges are thinking "maybe I am a lesbian because I FIND this Japanese twink attractive" because he is so feminine ;P

Wow daniil throwing alina under the bus.

Gender balance in judging panels

WORLDs 2019

Men SP: 6 women, 3 men

Men FS: 6 women, 3 men

Ladies SP: 6 women, 3 men

Ladies FS: 6 women, 3 men

Pairs SP: 8 women, 1 man

Pairs FS: 7 women, 2 men

RD: 8 women,1 man

FD: 7 women, 2 men

EUROs 2019

Men SP: 8 women, 1 man

Men FS: 7 women, 2 men

Ladies SP: 7 women, 2 men

Ladies FS: 7 women, 2 men

Pairs SP: 6 women, 3 men

Pairs FS: 5 women, 4 men

RD: 5 women, 4 men

FD: 5 women, 4 men

4 CONTINENTS

Me: 6 women, 3 men

Ladies: 5 women, 4 men

Pairs: 7 women, 1 man

Dance: 4 women, 5 men...men finally win!

R20 lmao. 'It was OUR idea, so OUR fault.'

R514 What I always find hilarious is the complete diference in behaviour when Yuzu interacts with attractive men compared to average or ugly ones. When it's an attractive dude he will be super flirty and smiling non stop and his voice gets a higher pitch. Like recently with that cute make tv host who was interviewing him during faoi. When the guy is not attractive you can see on his face the 'abort scene' playing. It's so fucking funny. He is not like this with women since for obvious reasons he keeps his distance regardless of their looks.

R516 Oh yeah. That's definitely his customer service mode. His feminine wiles and charms are turned on full blast. And the ladies are all lapping it up. I'm guessing the frumpy suit look helps. There's not a single a hint of the alpha male we see in his more masculine programs (or the sadistic persona that comes out when he's with Oda). There isn't a single video of this where I don't hear a few "kawaii~le sigh~" (or the Chinese equivalent) on a frequent basis. The men who were there too, all became bashful schoolboys all of a sudden. . This guy is Lethal.

Not just his looks and demeanor, he's also super great with words and highly adept at spinning the advertiser's narrative into them, all while sounding honest nd sincere. Well done, Kosé. Well done.

R514 Ooooh this I must see. Which interview exactly are you talking about? Which stop and tV station?

Sorry I meant r523

R525 I think it was already posted in a previous thread. That bang fanservice at the end especially and the host's reaction. Get a room you 2.

I think this interview might have been meant...

R527 I mean I know it was in follow up to what he said about Oda's gag type programs and I'm probably reading too much into it but the chemistry was there and I think the host was more than willing.

R527 & r528 Thanks! Oh that one. Hmmm...just watched it again and I have to admit I can't tell either way. He's been interviewed by better-looking dudes before and I couldn't really tell with them either. The only times I can notice him maybe adopting a more flirtatious demeanor is when he's on the ice, usually when he wants something (or really doesn't want something). What about the one with the mission abort face? Maybe that one will be more obvious.

And I know it's an odd thing to say and feel about an Olympic and World champion but I feel.sorry for Zags. Then again, there's been many times I feel sorry for even Hanyu so there's that.

R527 r529 I see absolutely nothing. You fraus like to ship Hanyu with anything he stands next to. I'm surprised no one's brought up the doll. He was rough with her and even looked up her dress.

Poor doll. Can't believe her privacy was violated in such manner!!!

R430 and all the others who thinks that figure skating begins and ends with Y. Hanyu - you are embarrassing yourself, seriously. You need to lurk more.

Johnny Weir was invited to ATS, got sick, didn’t get proper treatment because Korean doctors didn’t know what medicines he was allowed to take as a competing athlete, flunked Nationals and did not get a spot on the Worlds team despite helping secure three spots a year before thanks to his bronze. Told the story to the press, and Korean fans being the beautiful reasonable level-headed individuals that they famously are, took it as Yuna bashing, started a campaign against Johnny and he never was invited to ATS again. But sure you know better how that went and what Johnny needs to do when he sees a hate letter.

R533 You're late. All that was discussed here many threads ago. Yes, including your version.

Did I miss the discussion of Daniil plagiarizing Jojo Gomez’s Bad boy choreography for Zags? If it was Med I imagine you would be all over that story.

R535 But it's the same story with Med's 7 Rings partially plagiarizing Jojo Gomez .

R534 It’s being rehashed on this very thread by R430 and others, and yes, they spew the same ignorant bullshit as many threads ago, because apparently, over 99% of their meagre brain capacity is taken by the images of Hanyu’s ass.

Then why Jojo Gomez only calling out Glejkhengauz and making him apologize (which he reportedly did and admitted to plagiarism)?

R535 yes, you missed it. He was a coward who couldn't shoulder all the blame himself.

R538 because nobody bothered to write to her about Med's Ex

Re: The TSL interview, why would Eteri want to drop Tursy? Given that she can keep competing for another 10+ years with little in-country competition ala Carolina Kostner, she seems like a fantastic investment to me. The Russians have much shorter shelf lives.

R533 r537 I’m rehashing it because we just saw the interview bashing “management” and “Lazy” videos of Wier. If you don’t like the topic, comment on Daniel throwing zags under the bus and shitty 15 seconds that was plagiarized.

Same problem with Wier then and now, his addictive attention seeking tendencies get him in trouble and he blames others for it. He couldn’t get Appropriate treatment because no one had a phone in Korea? Wier management couldn’t figure it out?, talk to USfeds if he was that sick to ok or not ok suggested drugs? Maybe he needs to better understand Asian culture, more specifically Korean culture. When he is invited as a guest on her show and something goes wrong, then it can be seen as Yuna being a bad host and everyone already know Koreans fandoms are batshit crazy. Lastly why give a fucking TV interview, handle it behind doors. So many similarities to FaOI drama.

He should not have posted that hate letter during FaOI. Take it to security and organizers, get appropriate safety in place for med if needed. Can talk about it after FaOI if he really can’t resist. . Hate letters are not new to Wier, med, hanyu or any other popular skater. It did nothing to stop the hate, actually promoted the anti, and just drove sympathy to med and criticism to Hanyu fans....again sounds too familiar.

yeah who cares abut zagitova and her copied Copy cat..the hate letter for med which shows hanyu fans in bad light IS the problem..poor hanyu, why he has such fans???

Italian Federation announces the 2019/20 National Team....it is is the apotheosis of the "Unknown Italian Girl" meme

Carolina Kostern, Lucrezia Beccardi, Marina Piredda, Alessia Tornaghi, Roberta Rodeghiero, Lucrezia Gennaro, Lara Gutmann, Federica Grandesso, Elisabetta Leccardi

Matteo Rizzo, Daniel Grassl, Gabriele Frangipane, Mattia Della Torre, Nikolaj Memola

Della Monica/Guarise, Ghilardi/Ambrosini, Contarino/Pauletti, Montan/Piazza

You have to scroll down a bit to see the picture of Vincent Zhou. I just can’t believe that’s the person who won a men’s WC bronze.

Zhou taking bronze was definitely the most bullshit thing to happen last season.

R533 Weir was full of shit and making up excuses again because he received a lot of criticism for jetting off to Asia for a charity show just before Nats. Aside from the other points R542 raised, it's unbelievable that they couldn't find one doctor in all of South Korea who could read the banned substances list, especially when they have elite speed skaters who are tested virtually every time they pee. Lol at Americans who lap up this story even though our broke ass medical system is probably second world at this point.

Can anyone imagine, with all his present skating and personality shortcomings, what it'd be like if Zhou goes on to have a career like Hanyu's?

Or, what if Hanyu had a personality like his?

R544 Kostner, not "Kostern", What's up with Americans and their habit of always misspelling names?

Hanyu should wear suits like the had it in the early 1800s.

R549 WTF? I'm going with Kostern from now on.

R550 ruffles are more in line with figure skating

Or late 1770s:

(I meant late 1700s)

[quote] Re: The TSL interview, why would Eteri want to drop Tursy? Given that she can keep competing for another 10+ years with little in-country competition ala Carolina Kostner, she seems like a fantastic investment to me. The Russians have much shorter shelf lives.

Dave added that since she didn't represent Russia, that Eteri was less keen on her than the others, in the first place. And also that her attention would be riveted on Uno, so there would be less for Tursy. - he also said last episode that if she wasn't excited by Uno's potential, she'd drop him like a hot potato and act like she had never been interested in the first place, the way Raf blows people off when he's not interested (the "Russian way"). It's partly the arch, snide way he tends to talk (about most everybody) but also, Tursy is relatively boring and yesterday's news, compared to her crop of new seniors and her first mega-star male. I don't think she's ever gotten a man on the podium, has she?

R555 Kvitelashvili was second at Rostelecom. But he's 24 already and represents Georgia, so she probably doesn't count him.

Oh that's right! Love Morisi.

But I do kinda agree with Dave. Doesn't she have a record of losing interest pretty fast? Yulia, Adelina, telling Med to retire and have babies, I can't see her continuing to support Zags all that much when her quadsters start winning (and Zags doesn't). And those are Russians.

* Oh sorry - Adelina had nothing to do with Eteri ?? I don't know what I'm talking about.

Mao Asada is the first skater announced for the Denis Ten show. Just been wondering who else do you think will go? I was wondering if Hanyu would go? But I can see how he’d be damned if he did and damned if he didn’t. Criticisms either way because of the past controversy right? Idk... I hope he goes. I was watching a few old vids with both of them and it seems like Denis and Yuzu got along well. Also the funny poses they did in pictures together. Idk.. I feel like the fans on both sides will make his appearance or even lack there of difficult either way. I’m curious, what do you guys think?

Well, if he's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't - and well known for picking and choosing his shows very carefully (and doing very few) - I'd say skip it.

It's in July. When the hell has Hanyu been known to skip training to do an ice show?

R561 True. Although it’s not a typical ice show, it’s a tribute for a fellow skater that was tragically murdered. Sure, I can understand not going because of training but could it not be a possibility because of the circumstance? Hm something to ponder I suppose. But yes it may be unlikely he goes.

R546, I don't like Vincent's skating, but he basically got bronze because the top contenders and better skaters messed up.

Meryl Davis get married to Fedov Andeev. When I was a skater he was known as a womanizer. I guess he's finally decided to settle down in his late 30s.

R563 because the judges gifted him a shit ton of points.

R564 Or Meryl will be cuckold quite a lot

R557 Yulia had anorexia and was hospitalized for like 3 months in Israel before she announced her retirement. She let Tursynbaeva back after switching to Orser. Med blamed eteri for losing the gold by not holding Zags back. I’m not a huge eteri fan but who did she really dump?

R562 I don’t think he’ll go. Hanyu will be in midst of training and no one says every skater is obligated to go or they are shitty people.

R565 Zhou basically got same PCS as Shoma and Kolyada - that’s a joke

R563 No, Vincent should not have been anywhere near the top contenders in the first place if the judges were in any way doing their job properly, so that even if Chen/Hanyu/et al. bombed, he wouldn't find himself on the podium. We've already discussed this in previous threads...there were links to some pretty detailed analyses regarding the scores at Worlds that showed the person who got the most help from the judges by far, even compared to Nathan, was Vincent Zhou.

Yes, his overscoring was outrageous and I still don't get why they decided to help him out of all people. Even more, when his UR were being consistently called up until that point.

R559 I don't think anybody expects him to go, just like I don't expect Uno or Jin or Chen or any of the other people in active training who didn't know him well. The usual ice show crew will attend, except Plushenko, because Yagudin will definitely be there.

Just you wait...this season or next, US commentators will say Zhou is artistically up there with Hanyu...I want to LMAO if this wasn’t a true possibility

[quote] Yes, his overscoring was outrageous and I still don't get why they decided to help him out of all people. Even more, when his UR were being consistently called up until that point.

I don't remember very well - but didn't Tom Z loudly complain about the scoring (or Vincent himself?) Maybe that did it. Sucks, if so.

Maybe Yuzu 'should' have shaded the inconsistent judging - though I know he didn't and one fan just said he did. Still - if that's what makes them defensive, might not be a bad strategy.

It's a shame the judges suck.

Sometimes youtube recommendations are great

Didn't Javi complain about the judging after the short program at his last Europeans? May have helped him in the FS.

Did the rant by Galustyan's father about Shin Amano help her??

It may depend on who the complainer is. And how the judges think it makes them look.

I no understand complaints. Score good. +2 on nice fall. All good. Help poor guy get minimum. All fair.

Link to new thread (part 35)

R577 exactly, and also which fed

R543 like most yuzu fans I have no issue with Johnny/Zhenya sharing the hate mail publicly, but I have problem with how Zhenya & her fans blamed yuzu fans and dragging yuzu's name through mud without a shred of evidence.

Zhenya condemned fanyus by liking that comment made by a troll account saying its fault of fanyus. Then her fans, including that Kelly Moran who pretended to be a fanyu in order to sell her album but who are in fact a die hard Zhenya fan decided that it was indeed fanyus' fault since Zhenya gave it her seal of approval. They all came out and attacked fanyus. This lead to various media outlets reporting the story this way, harassing random fanyus for comments, even trying to get yuzu to comment.

It's almost like Zhenya must be so flawless as a person that people are simply incapable of hating her because of herself. Zhenya antis don't seem to exist in this world, there are only evil fanyus.

But sure, spreading hate & blaming others without evidence is not a big deal to some people. The concept of "being a victim doesn't give you the right to victimise others" must be so difficult to understand.

“Daredatte Haranbakusho” basically covered Takahashi’s entire life, so I’ll try to stick to the new or lesser known info.

Takahashi was named after actor-singer Daisuke Shima. He said he has no interest in getting married right now, but would like to have children someday. Immediately, he was asked what type of woman he likes (a question that curiously seems to come up in all of his TV appearances lately). He said he likes women who are straightforward and severe, so one of the hosts asked if that’s what female skating coaches are like, and he replied that they are.

He has small feet. Dad, a construction worker, didn’t like big feet and made him wear tight shoes when he was little. (There’s no foot-binding custom in Japan, so this shocked the studio.) His hands are also tiny and smaller than Mao’s, which he finds embarrassing. His mom, a hair dresser, is very sociable and hugs everyone, including his friends. But she once became angry with him and hit him on the back of the head with an issue of Jump (a very thick monthly manga magazine). When she became stressed, she’d completely shave off her eyebrows or get a punch perm.

Takahashi originally wanted to do gymnastics, but the nearest club was too far away, while a skating rink was built right behind his home. When he was 8, his parents (?) tried to get him to play hockey since he was weak, but it was too scary for him, so he went into figure skating instead. He hated gym class at school, especially baseball or any type of ball game.

The family house was a rental, and his mom and aunt sewed his costumes to save money. His mom also took on a part-time job working at a bento place in addition to working at the hair salon to help pay for her son’s training. All of his clothes were hand-me-downs from his three brothers and the family almost never went out to eat. He first realized his family was poor when he went to Slovenia for a competition when he was 13. He was the only skater that brought a Boston bag instead of a suitcase. He begged his parents for a suitcase and he didn’t know at the time, but his mom set up a collection plate (a pet bottle) at the salon to help pay for his costs. His brothers wouldn’t eat dinner until he’d get home to make sure he had food to eat.

Takahashi was very shy off the ice and hated high school. He was scared of cliques and getting bullied, so tried hard not to stand out. He wasn’t very good at academics, either, and once got 3% on a mathematics test because he didn’t have time to study due to training and competitions overseas.

However, at university, he wore hair extensions and shaved his eyebrows. Even though he was famous at Kandai, he didn’t have a single friend because he was so shy and timid, and it takes him 5-6 years to befriend someone. (Having a meal or hanging out together a few times isn’t enough to call someone a friend.) During lunch, he’d eat in the park or at a manga café, and that was how he discovered manga. (A few years ago, I remember he said that he ate lunch in the bathroom stall, but I also remember him saying that he had friends after his first year at uni.)

Takahashi is very self-conscious about various parts of his body. He mostly wears black to hide that he’s bow-legged and to make his thick legs look skinnier. He also wears black to make his neck look longer and to hide his short stature and stout figure. To look taller, he wears shoes with thick soles about 5cm high. He keeps a goatee to make his face appear slimmer.

He carries a Fendi backpack and organizes everything into pouches. He has a Gucci pouch for 5 surgical masks. He keeps his earphones (three for practice, travel, and warmup) and chargers in a Prada pouch. He has another Prada pouch for beauty goods and tools, such as cologne, tweezers, a mirror, and a nose trimmer, which is his most important item because his nose hairs grow very fast. (Apparently, breathing in cold air through the nose can cause your nose hairs to grow faster.) He has a white Maison Margiela wallet and he changes his wallet every year. He also has a Refa, the expensive face roller that looks like a pair of silver balls you rub against your face. Despite all of his luxury brand goods, he always saves the wet tissues he gets from the bullet train to use to clean his house.

The show had him visit Kandai (where he mostly talked about having no friends in university again and ate his favorite yakisoba hotdog he used to have for lunch every day), the rink (his skate covers are in the shape of hot dogs and he has to change his boots every month), and the Takatsuki shopping arcade next to his first apartment.

I’m surprised they didn’t talk about Utako and how he lived with her.

He has a DVD coming out next month called “New: The Daisuke Takahashi Nobody Knows.”

Meanwhile, Takahashi was at a wine bar the other day and may have had one sample too many (especially in that last photo):

[quote]Zhenya antis don't seem to exist in this world, there are only evil fanyus.

*looks at this thread and erupts in helpless laughter*

r581 Ever heard of self-awareness?

r5844 Is the brand name dropping normal in Japan? Some sort of advertising or did the hosts ask him about the brands?

R585 I'm not sure how calling out Zhenya antis' existence in this world has anything to do with self-awareness. But sure, I'm glad seeing innocent people being blamed without evidence amuses you.

You are clearly one of those people who doesn't understand being a victim doesn't give you the right to victimise others without evidence.

Just so you know I supported Zhenya throughout the last season. I thought her move to tcc despite the pressure from all sides was incredibly brave and mature. Until she tactlessly blamed Alina's fan for the earthquake in Japan, her "stealing my music" argument with Alina, and how she and her fans handled the hate mail incident.

r587 Yeah, another post another evidence of lack of self-awareness. That's what amuses me, by the way.

R588 your idiocy is amusing to me too.

So Takahashi's drinking problem is a product of his self-loathing

r589 Clever!

R586 He had his bag with him and took everything out. Everything looked used, so I doubt it had anything to do with advertising. Takahashi just likes luxury brands and nice things. (His fans also gift him those things, such as his wallets.) But luxury brands and name dropping haven't been "cool" for some time now, especially since the economic downturn.

Made a new thread.

r492 Did he mention the brands in words or just showed them? Name-dropping that much makes people look like dicks but just showing how he organizes stuff and thus people seeing brands seems neutral.

R593 wait someone already made a new thread.

So which new thread are we using?

JDC- my Japanese goldmine of information. Thank you!

I was feeling kind of sorry for Dai in the initial description of his childhood, then realizing his only goal was fame and luxury items, no hate, but made him an average, not special, normal guy with insecurities. Then I realized he was just promoting his DVD...again can’t hate a guy for commercialism.

But this whole interview makes me realize why Yuzu is a phenom and dai faded away...

Let's use the one that was first created. It will trigger my OCD otherwise

Two threads with the same name? I didn't think DL allowed that. Yikes. Sorry about that.

How about ending with non ass sweet hanyu