Japanese skater/skating news & updates

[Jun Y]

Nothing against Oda but he really is a headcase. On numerous occasions I saw him hit perfect 4-3-3 jumps in warm-up or practice sessions, only to screw it up in competition. He could do beautifully secure 3A-3t-3t since I first saw him live at 2005 Skate Canada, when he was 18. I love his knees. If only someone can fix his brain ...

[skate65]

Lynn Rutherford just tweeted:
Impressive FS by Nobunari Oda at Bavarian Open 178.06 pts w/2 4Toes, 3Axel, 3Lutz/3Toe, but 4th at Japanese nationals so no worlds

Great for him but that he didn't do this in December!!! Still, it's got to give him more confidence that he has a shot for Sochi next season. Fingers crossed someone was filming so it can show up on YouTube.

Yes, please someone post on YouTube. Would love to see the program. He is amazing and I hope he pulls it off next year and is on the japanese olympic team.

[NMURA]

2014 World Championships in Saitama City
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/figures...reskating.html

It's the same venue with Japan Open (about 15000 capacity). This year's Japanese Nationals will be held there too. Obviously they want to raise revenue as much as possible.

[Sylvia]

I saw mentions on Twitter today about Shoma Uno going to Junior Worlds - is there confirmation that it's true and, if yes, is he replacing Keiji Tanaka or Ryuju Hino?

Takahiko Kozuka is no longer listed in next week's Challenge Cup entries (not yet ready to compete?) -- he still has an assignment to Gardena Spring Trophy in early April.

[sleepypanda]

http://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/new...005219330.html

Uno is replacing Tanaka.

[pinky166]

http://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/new...005219330.html

Uno is replacing Tanaka.

Excited for Uno! Is Tanaka injured? He was so good at Nationals!

[Sylvia]

http://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/new...005219330.html

Uno is replacing Tanaka.

Thanks for the link. An online translation refers to "left thigh pain" for Tanaka and that the injury occurred in December which forced him to miss the national high school championships in January.
ETA that I think this the competition Tanaka missed (post #647 in this thread):

The Junior High School All-Japan Championsips of Skating have been taking place in Nagano. Shoma Uno won both the short and the free for for a third victory in a row with a total points of 202.01, while Riona Kato won in the Ladies with 167.09, ahead of Satoko Miyahara (160.20), who won the bronze medal at the Senior All-Japan Championships in December

http://www.chunichi.co.jp/s/chuspo/a...501002007.html

[npavel]

Takahiko Kozuka is no longer listed in next week's Challenge Cup entries (not yet ready to compete?) -- he still has an assignment to Gardena Spring Trophy in early April.

On Facebook Challenge Cup mentioned he is injured and therefore retired

[Sylvia]

On Facebook Challenge Cup mentioned he is injured and therefore retired

You mean "retired from the competition in The Hague" - the Facebook post reads:

Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) withdrew himself from the Challenge Cup 2013 due to injury. We wish him all the best and hope he will soon be on the ice again!!

I hope Kozuka is still recovering from the same foot injury mentioned earlier in this thread and that it's not a new injury.

[npavel]

You mean "retired from the competition in The Hague" -

yes, of course. Still hope he will be at Gardena Spring Trophy

I hope Kozuka is still recovering from the same foot injury mentioned earlier in this thread and that it's not a new injury.

I hope that too

[triple_toe]

Oh jeez, my heart skipped a beat there...

[skateboy]

Lynn Rutherford just tweeted:
Impressive FS by Nobunari Oda at Bavarian Open 178.06 pts w/2 4Toes, 3Axel, 3Lutz/3Toe, but 4th at Japanese nationals so no worlds

Great for him but that he didn't do this in December!!! Still, it's got to give him more confidence that he has a shot for Sochi next season. Fingers crossed someone was filming so it can show up on YouTube.

I hold out hope that he will get his head together for Olympic season! We know he still has the goods.

[skateboy]

Actually, sometimes I felt it was the judges holding him down, especially during this season's GP events. Low second mark etc. Because he had not been very consistent in the past, they were not giving him any favours which they would do for example Takahashi.

This. He should have won silver at Skate Canada over Chan.

[maatTheViking]

2014 World Championships in Saitama City
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/figures...reskating.html

It's the same venue with Japan Open (about 15000 capacity). This year's Japanese Nationals will be held there too. Obviously they want to raise revenue as much as possible.

Does anyone know how hard it will be to get tickets for foreigners? We have friends in Tokyo and it would be great to combine a trip with Worlds, even just one session!
(I would rather not burden my friends with obtaining tickets, of course)

[Akira Andrea]

This is an article in 'Jiji Com' in Japan.

Kozuka missed the Challenge Cup
February 20th, 2013 JST

It found that Takahiko Kozuka (Toyota Motor) had declined the Challenge Cup (February 21st-24th, Hague, Dutch) which he had scheduled to participate in, on February 20th.
Injuring the right leg before the Japan Nationals in the late last year, Kozuka was during the tuning aiming at returning to the competition. He had come off the Japan representative for the Worlds in March and is in the entries of an international event in Italy in April.

Kozuka missed from the Challenge Cup
http://www.jiji.com/jc/c?g=spo_30&k=2013022000936

Reference:
23th Gardina Spring Trophy (April 1st- 4th, Selva Val Gardena, Italy)
http://deep-edge.net/list.php?s=2012&no=221

[jiggs]

I wish him a speedy recovery and hope to see him and his great edges live at Gardena Spring Trophy

[DaiKozOda]

I hope Kozuka recovers soon. I love his skating

[Akira Andrea]

The message of Takahiko Kozuka from his official web site
http://www.t-kozuka.com/

Translating to English from Japanese.

The report.
February 15th, 2013

Everybody! Thank you (for the chocolates) on Valentine’s Day.
I ate it and it was delicious.

Thank you for anybody, too, whom I couldn’t find your name, because you didn’t write your name into the present of chocolate.

The following is the report.
Consulting with my coach, I decided not to participate to the Challenge Cup which is held in Dutch.
Speaking truly, it was the situation yesterday (at February 16th) that it had become somehow slowly till 3A at least but I could not help stopping attempting while disappointing as for 4T because it has burst 4 times continuously while I attempted it.

I became good gradually, but because I wasn't perfect yet, I decided not to participate to the Challenge Cup.
,
However, I feel that the upper part, the body and the lower part were reinforced, because I was trained well from January.
Therefore, I feel that it became better than before as for the skating, the balance, the ‘rotation speed of the spin' and so on.

The explanation of the photo.
It's like a "Mission: Impossible", isn't it?

In above mentioned situation, I am recovering gradually.

Please cheer me, because I intend to have done with the participation to Italy (Garden Spring Trophy) in April somehow!!

[Sylvia]

Japanese figure skating team to train in Armenia for 2014 Winter Olympics:
http://sport.news.am/eng/news/19938/...-olympics.html

[B.Cooper]

Japanese figure skating team to train in Armenia for 2014 Winter Olympics:
http://sport.news.am/eng/news/19938/...-olympics.html

Wise move on part of the Japanese federation to procure training facilities now, and with enough time between Japanese Nationals and the OLYs, that will give their athletes plenty of time to train and better acclimate to time change, etc.