Yu-Na Kim News UPDATE!

[lowtherlore]

I have seen Yuna live. As mentioned, below the ankle she is a great skater as well as an extremely beautiful jumper. But figure skating is more than jumps and speed skating IMO..

“Below the ankle” athletic? I don’t get what it means. All great athletes and performers are well- balanced in form IMO.

It’s not only athleticism that made Yu-Na a superstar. She became one because she’s a master PERFORMER and knows how to use her body – every part of it, big or small – in subtle, nuanced ways. She’s a natural dancer. Her lower body flexibility is just average, but her upper body flexibility and agility is exceptional. Add her uncanny ability in coordinating movements, and her feel for the rhythm/music and perceptivity to the themes, VIOLA! A star performer is born.

And how did she become masterful? By polishing after polishing until the core and pure choreographic elements are left free of redundancies, each of them complete by itself and seamlessly incorporated into the routine.

If you don’t get this, well, Yu-Na is not your cup of tea. I wasn’t saying she’s perfect, of course.

Anyway..

This is not exactly Yu-Na news, but Jin-Seo Kim, who is with Yu-Na’s management company ATS, placed 3rd after SP at NRW, with score of 69.65 (TES 38.33, PCS 31.32). He’s now cleared to go to ISU Worlds.

Jin-Seo Kim cheers after SP (with lots of Yu-Na's SP & interview photos)

[l'etoile]

OMG Am I seeing this right? Yuna's feet become parallel to the ice, FINALLY, and has a gorgeous stretch, the first variation, in this layback spin!

[Vash01]

“

It’s not only athleticism that made Yu-Na a superstar. She became one because she’s a master PERFORMER and knows how to use her body – every part of it, big or small – in subtle, nuanced ways. She’s a natural dancer. Her lower body flexibility is just average, but her upper body flexibility and agility is exceptional. Add her uncanny ability in coordinating movements, and her feel for the rhythm/music and perceptivity to the themes, VIOLA! A star performer is born.



Jin-Seo Kim cheers after SP (with lots of Yu-Na's SP & interview photos)

That's a very accurate description. The only thing I don't like about Yu na is her spiral, but that's a very small part of the program. She does many small/nuanced movements in her skate that make her extraordinary, artistically, and she is a very strong jumper.

[lowtherlore]

Yu-Na's LP - Video

I really like her long program. I like that it's not melodramatic. With more polish, it could be spectacular.

[IceAlisa]

To me, Yuna is one of the best jumpers ever. When she nails it, it's gorgeous, big, text book and easy. Besides, she generates immense power from her blades which allows her to cover the ice exceptionally well as in her spiral. Her spiral is a good example of wonderful edge control and power and poor above the ankle position. Another thing is I am not a big fan of her interpretation. I don't see her using small movements and details like Chan and don't see her performing all-out like Daisuke Takahashi or Kwan or Suzuki. I also don't see the gorgeous body lines like Asada or Cohen. Yuna rarely stretches to her fingertips, rarely extends.

That said, in the LP above, she does hit several nice, aesthetically pleasing positions. She obviously has the potential/ability to stretch and present a nicer body line but no incentive whatsoever.

[Vash01]

Yu-Na's LP - Video

I really like her long program. I like that it's not melodramatic. With more polish, it could be spectacular.

For someone that's been away from competitions for 20 months, she looks amazing. One fall, one singled axel, but rest of her jumps look solid.....two very good triple lutzes, including a 3L3t combination! She has not lost anything artistically. IMO for that program 201 are too high marks. Rest of the ladies should be worried though. Not many are doing even one correct 3lutz. The program looks simple choreographically, but I am sure she will add more complexity later. This is going to raise the standard of ladies skating again. May be Mao needs to bring back her 3A, since she cannot do a correct lutz.

[lowtherlore]

^ Yes, she’s amazing, isn’t she. 20 months is a long break to overcome in a short period, but she did. Plushy’s comeback in 2009-2010 at 27 after 3 years off was truly impressive, too.

I think Yu-Na’s Les Mis LP is packed with choreography. We may never see a clean skate out of it even when she gives it more time, since the program is packed. Still, I think it’ll be spectacular, even with a mistake or two.

[l'etoile]

^ Yes, she’s amazing, isn’t she. 20 months is a long break to overcome in a short period, but she did. Plushy’s comeback in 2009-2010 at 27 after 3 years off was truly impressive, too.

I think Yu-Na’s Les Mis LP is packed with choreography. We may never see a clean skate out of it even when she gives it more time, since the program is packed. Still, I think it’ll be spectacular, even with a mistake or two.

Not as much "packed" as Patrick's LP or Mao's LP(btw Mao's Swan Lake is just amazing coming from Tarasova AND Mao), though. I think there exist some room that she and David can fill in more marvelously.

[naan]

Not as much "packed" as Patrick's LP or Mao's LP(btw Mao's Swan Lake is just amazing coming from Tarasova AND Mao), though. I think there exist some room that she and David can fill in more marvelously.

I agree that Patrick's LP is packed with choreography and difficult transitions. I doubt if he can skate clean, because it looks so difficult! He definitely deserves to get huge PCS.
But I have to disagree about Mao's program. Her LP is lovely, but it looks empty to me. I don't see any difficult, special transitions or choreography in this program. Just very basic edges and steps which give the illusion of transitions. Her footwork is great though. I don't know why, but I prefer her SP. It's delightful!
As for Yuna's LP, the program needs to be more polished and refined, but I think it's a very great program. I love it
Not sure about her SP though I liked and enjoyed it before the step sequence. I think David is very creative, and makes a great program overall, but his weakest point is step sequence, IMO.

[lowtherlore]

Yu-Na's agent ATS said today that she will participate in ISU GP series events in 2013 season.

[lowtherlore]

New TV commercial for Maxim coffee mix

[riveredge]

Yu-Na's agent ATS said today that she will participate in ISU GP series events in 2013 season.

in other words.. she's serious about coming back and competing again..

[jenny12]

in other words.. she's serious about coming back and competing again..

Great! The ladies field will be much better served with her as a part of it.

[RunnersHigh]

New TV commercial for Maxim coffee mix

Sooooooooo beautiful!!! Breathtaking!

[giselle23]

That said, in the LP above, she does hit several nice, aesthetically pleasing positions. She obviously has the potential/ability to stretch and present a nicer body line but no incentive whatsoever.

I agree with this. It's difficult, I would imagine, to tell an Olympic champion, who is already receiving monster marks, to improve her "body line" or "stretch."

[lowtherlore]

Yu-Na won the Korean Nationals today and is now cleared to go to the ISU Worlds 2013.

It was a performance for the ages in front of the home fans.

FS – broadcast version with (too many) commentaries

Great fancam

It was touching that she seemed at ease and ready to share the moment with the fans. It was different from the last time she competed before the home fans at 2008 GPF, when she was suffocated by the huge expectations from the enthusiastic fans.

After the event she said, “I’m happy that I was able to give a good performance to the fans, at what could be my last competition at home.” When asked about her expectation for the Worlds, she said, “If I could stay healthy and prepared, I think I can do well. But the actual performance can be determined by many factors -- physical, mental, or others. I’m just one of the athletes who can be affected by those factors. All I can do is to be prepared and do my best.”

Photo: Ladies' podium - Korean Nationals 2013

[pani]

Happy to see again in competitions. She grow up and now its woman on ice. Wish all the best to her

[lowtherlore]

Good single-cam recording by SBS News of the FS at Nationals (with no commentary):

http://news.sbs.co.kr/section_news/n...id=N1001566891

[RunnersHigh]

Kween & Queen performing "Hero" at the 2013 PyeongChang Special Olympics closing ceremony.
And Flash mop with skaters - Kween's Gangnam style looked nice! Yu-Na! Shy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=ch_hig1RdvA


ETA: it's just for the record. Details are here at GSD.

[karlon]

The Sochi Winter Games: One Year To Go

http://olympictalk.nbcsports.com/201...-2014/related/
It's too early to know for sure which athletes will compete in Sochi, but some key names to watch are Lindsey Vonn (United States, Alpine skiing), Shaun White (United States, snowboarding), Yuna Kim (South Korea, figure skating) and Yevgeny Plushenko (Russia, figure skating).

Six questions leading up to Sochi 2014

http://olympictalk.nbcsports.com/201...-2014/related/
What about Yuna Kim?
The South Korean star is also looking to repeat, and looked great in Germany back in December, winning gold at her first event in more than eighteen months. She should lock up a spot in Sochi at worlds in March, and definitely looks to shine on the ice again, but Americans Ashley Wagner and Gracie Gold, who were both impressive at U.S. nationals last month, might have something to say about that.

sochi 2014 one year out video
36~39 yuna kim (bgm. One of the greatest Olympic performances I have ever seen!!!)