Japanese skater/skating news & updates

[Sylvia]

Akiko is in Detroit working with Yuka and Jason and will be skating in a fundraiser for Japan on Thursday. I saw her on the practice ice on Friday and she looks really good. She was only doing doubles. She looks really happy. I'll report back late Thursday night or Friday morning about the show.

Here's the link to the Detroit Skating Club show thread with reports (including mysticchic's), photos and videos (June 9th show was to benefit Japan): http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/showthread.php?t=79107

I've started new threads for news and eventual reports, photos, videos for these upcoming shows in Japan:

Fantasy on Ice: http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/showthread.php?t=79133

Dreams on Ice: http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/showthread.php?t=79134

The ICE tour: http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/showthread.php?t=79132

[Ladida]

Does anyone know if there is an English transcription of this interview?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D6mR...ure=share&hd=1
I would be very grateful

[NMURA]

Mao Asada keeps the FP (Liebestraume) in next season.
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/news/11...1707000-n1.htm

[Akira Andrea]

This is an article in the web news site, “J-Cast” in Japan.
Translated from Japanese.
As for next season, Mao Asada performs "a princess"!?
June 21st, 2011 JST

The photo:
Mao Asada who is sitting on a high resilient mattress pad.
http://www.j-cast.com/mono/images/20...9048_pho01.jpg

Mao Asada was appointed to the brand ambassador of a high resilience mattress pad and the press interview for the announcement was held at a hotel in the Tokyo Metropolitan area in June 21st, 2011.
In the interview with enclosing her after the event, she revealed something of a theme of SP, saying "It is a story of a princess or queen", while saying that, as for the choreography of next season, the music is secret yet.
The high resilience mattress which Asada has gotten to publicize was sold since 2007.
It has the characteristic as follows,
(1) It is easy to turn over in bed.
(2) The burden which is imposed to the body decreases because weight is dispersed.
(3) The air permeability is high.
(4) It is easy to wash.
In Vancouver Olympics in 2010, about 70 players who contain Asada seem to have carried it to the Olympic athletes' village and used.
It is used for the first-class seat of All Nippon Airways (ANA), too.
Asada who says "I make it a rule to go to bed for 7-8 hours every day" emphasized the importance of the sleeping, saying "It feels like doing the best in the next day by getting enough sleep and it recovers from the fatigue, too".
As for the use of the product, she said "The body does not too sink, it wasn't too hard, it was just fit" with smiling.

The article:
As for next season, Mao Asada performs "a princess"!?
http://www.j-cast.com/mono/2011/06/21099048.html

[Akira Andrea]

This is an article in “Sankei sports” in Japan.
Translated from Japanese.
As for the free skating, Mao is going to skate to "Liebestraum" next season, too.
June 21st, 2011 JST

The photo
Photography: by Hirokazu Miyagawa
Mao Asada who does the talk session in the inaugural announcement meeting of a brand ambassador. At Teikoku Hotel in the afternoon of June 21st.
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/photos/...1707000-p1.htm

By Kyodo Press
In Jun 21st, former Worlds Champion Mao Asada revealed that, as for the free skating of next season, she skates to "Liebestraum" composed by Liszt as same as last season.
She explained the reason, saying 'I am not satisfied because I made "Liebestraum" finish while not doing my best performance, so I would like to perform the perfect one', because, in the worlds of April where she had aimed at the championship for two seasons running, she finished at the 6th place.
In Tokyo Metropolitan area, Asada attended the publicity meeting of the mattress which she is using.
She did not reveal the name of music of the new short program which uses a classic music, but she said "I would like to perform the heroine perfectly because it is the story of a queen".
In this day, I heard that she was coached by Nobuo Sato coach in early morning.
She fixed the eyes on next season, while saying, “I am reconsidering a skating and a jump. I would like to do the practice which I can feel to have become good every day even if it was only one thing per day”.

The article:
As for the free skating, Mao is going to skate to "Liebestraum" next season, too.
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/news/11...1707000-n1.htm

According to the article of Asahi Shinbun, Lori Nichol is in charge of the choreography as for FS as same as last season, but Asada suggested the minor change, saying, "Consulting with Lori, I would like to change it to the feeling which is different from this season.

[sarah009]

Daisuke Takahashi's new SP will be choreographed by David Wilson.

[NMURA]

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/wi...OHT1T00283.htm

says Ando skips GPs, could be a whole season off.

[nsima]

Benefit for East of Japan Earthquake Relief, June 29, Howa Sport Land, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan.

cast Ryuichi Kihara, Ryuju Hino, Shoma Uno,
Akiko Suzuki, Kanako Murakami, Ayumi Goto, Ayane Nakamura, Miu Sato, Ibuki Mori, Rika Hongo, Saki Kawakami, Sanako Noma
Mari Suzuki, Yuzuru Hanyu

Akiko's blog
http://ameblo.jp/suzuki-akko/page-1.html#main
http://ameblo.jp/suzuki-akko/page-2.html#main

TV News
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URVaZ-OtG5Q

[Ziggy]

Daisuke Takahashi's new SP will be choreographed by David Wilson.

Nooooooooooooooooooo.

[Sparks]

Hey. My cat could choreograph for Takahashi. Dai would still rock it and make it memorable.

[Meredith]

Hey. My cat could choreograph for Takahashi. Dai would still rock it and make it memorable.

That's absolutely the truth. IMO, of course.

[Sylvia]

Johnny Weir is in Japan for the Fantasy on Ice show in Fukuoka and tweeted about Hanyu (also in the show):

Just watched little Yuzuru practice amazing quad toeloop and salchow. Watch out skating world!

[Ziggy]

Reposting my post from another thread because it's much more fitting here.

Takahashi/Tran have presented what looks like their new SP at the Dreams on Ice exhibition. You can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBka3JurQm0

It's simply amazing.

Once again, fantastic work by Julie Marcotte (I don't understand why she isn't used more by other Pairs).

All elements are connected very well, the program flows beautifully, there is a lot of creative and original movements and strong transitions.

The dance lift into a low shoot-the-duck into death spiral at the end really floored me. Ina bauer dance lift into the pair lift was great too.

If PCS were judged according to the criteria, with no bias, they should be second only to S/S on some of the marks.

It looks like they are upping up the ante on the jumps too.

Last season they did 2axels and 3salchows as their side-by-side jumps. But in this performance, they went for sbs 3toes.

Also, they did a throw 2lutz, which I imagine is going to be a triple in competition.

In the past, they used to do throw 3toe and throw 3salchow so a throw 3lutz would be a big step up.

Shame that they aren't able to go to Olympics but I hope they have a long and successful career in front of them.

The progress they have made, from being bottom of the pile to Junior World medallists and top 10 at Worlds, is just incredible.

[NMURA]

Sendai rink was reopened first after the quake
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cHMSk-rOMI

Hanyu is practicing the 4S!

[Ziggy]

Very nice 4S in that clip.

Apparently he's been landing them recently.

[timmybopper]

Reposting my post from another thread because it's much more fitting here.

Takahashi/Tran have presented what looks like their new SP at the Dreams on Ice exhibition. You can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBka3JurQm0

It's simply amazing.

Once again, fantastic work by Julie Marcotte (I don't understand why she isn't used more by other Pairs).

All elements are connected very well, the program flows beautifully, there is a lot of creative and original movements and strong transitions.

The dance lift into a low shoot-the-duck into death spiral at the end really floored me. Ina bauer dance lift into the pair lift was great too.

If PCS were judged according to the criteria, with no bias, they should be second only to S/S on some of the marks.

It looks like they are upping up the ante on the jumps too.

Last season they did 2axels and 3salchows as their side-by-side jumps. But in this performance, they went for sbs 3toes.

Also, they did a throw 2lutz, which I imagine is going to be a triple in competition.

In the past, they used to do throw 3toe and throw 3salchow so a throw 3lutz would be a big step up.

Shame that they aren't able to go to Olympics but I hope they have a long and successful career in front of them.

The progress they have made, from being bottom of the pile to Junior World medallists and top 10 at Worlds, is just incredible.

Wow this was beautiful! So much potential! Confused though: why can't they go to the Olympics??

[Roxanne]

Wow this was beautiful! So much potential! Confused though: why can't they go to the Olympics??

Because Tran is not a Japanese citizen.

[jl22aries]

Reposting my post from another thread because it's much more fitting here.

Takahashi/Tran have presented what looks like their new SP at the Dreams on Ice exhibition. You can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBka3JurQm0

I've never been particularly attentive of this pair, and I am really glad I checked out this link. She in particular has an incredibly special quality, I love her carriage and extension!

[sunnydays]

Kozuka's grandfather passed away. R.I.P.

[Ziggy]

Because Tran is not a Japanese citizen.

And it's extremely hard to obtain Japanese citizenship and even if Tran could do so, he'd have to give up his Canadian one, which I am sure he would never consider.

I've never been particularly attentive of this pair, and I am really glad I checked out this link. She in particular has an incredibly special quality, I love her carriage and extension!

And to think they used to be low level skaters. In their first season, they looked rather .

Gauthier and Marcotte are a dream team.