Yuzuru Hanyu to be coached by Brian Orser

[Loves_Shizuka]

Ugh.

[t.mann]

Does Yuzuru have solid jumps?
If so, this looks to be a good move.
IMO, Orser does not seem to be a strong technical coach.
(Look at Kim‘s 3Lo, Rippon‘s 3A, Gao‘s 2A&3fLz, Javier‘s jumps except Quad&3A. )

[Jaana]

I'm not sure I am happy about this move. I love Hanyu just the way he is. He really doesn't need to have his edges smoothed, he just needs to mature.

In my opinion Hanyu needs polishing and better choreography (just thinking of this season´s freeskate which was unnecessarily exhausting). This is a good move for him!

[os168]

Hmm really mixed feeling about this. Not sure if it is a wise decision.

Orser must have accumulated some major karma points in his past life to be getting 2 of the best prodigies in figure skating these past years. Yuna Kim who also made the bronze at her sr. debut season coming off as the Junior Champion, and Hanyu who just did and is. Part of Hanyu's success as been noted already has been the attention to detail in his training, particularly managing his day to day regime with varying degrees of delicate health conditions that Nanami has been familiar with for many years. She knows how much he can take, and needs to recuperate and take a break in small varying degrees on a day to day basis. I can only imagine the young and the restless's tendency is likely to go for it at 110% everyday and likely leads to big chances of injury. That is why a maternal figure can work very well in this case vs a testosterone driven coach who has a history liking to show off his students and have always shown a gunho attitude building them up to the press. Remember the amount of media hype he did for Adam Rippon and Christina Gao a while back with magazine covers and big feature interviews? Still, not much result to show for it.

Having Nanami's first priority full time vs Orser who seems to have accumulated a large stable of skaters with less possibility to have the proper one to one attention Hanyu is used to, this would be a major change. From the reports I have read, Orser seems to favour managed skaters in groups sessions, which was why Joubert and Verner have tried but left quickly not having used to this style where their flaw and weakness can be so exposed.

Thought of the day:
What is Hanyu in North America? HANYUNA = Han = 漢 = 漢YuNa = Male Yuna (in Kanji)
( sorry can't help it)

Hey mann.. whatever works, he is still my Olympic Gold choice Let's hope Mr. Triple Axels himself finally found himself a student with a proper consistent 3Axels that don't get deteriorated with coaching. Other wise I'd be seriously depressed for Hanyu.

Part of Hanyu's legend that I have enjoyed had been the fact he didn't buckle up the trend to get a big league coach or choreographer for what ever political / reputation incentivised trend that many skaters out there seems to do. I wish him the best of luck! And hope he doesn't loose out these unique pure qualities of his skating. I do think artistically he can benefit from David Wilson's playful experimental style, and certainly he can benefit from a world class COP team that knows how to maximize out of his best qualities in terms of scoring.

I wonder how the Canadian skating federation feel about this since Hanyu is likely to be one of Patrick Chans biggest threat in the next couple of years. Just no sabotage please.

[kittyjake5]

I don't think there was any issue between Yuzu and Mrs. Abe. Almost all Japanese skaters go train abroad at one point in their careers. The JSF encourages their top skaters to do so, and I believe the JSF arranges those moves as well. I remember reading Mrs. Nagamitsu said in one of her interviews that the JSF had told her and Daisuke to go work with Tarasova in Russia, so they did.

I think it'll be a great experience for Yuzu to be in a different environment especially when he is still very young. He'll have to learn to communicate in English, and that'll help him if he wants to be a World top skater.

I agree. It could have been the JSF idea and then it was presented to
Yuzu. We do not now the details.

Yuzu is on the fast track to Sochi and he is the future so this move does not surprise me at all. Of course I have no personal knowledge and I am speculating here but I think that the JSF is behind this change.

[DaiKozOda]

I'm feeling quite positive about this change. I think Hanyu is really on his way to become THE top contender in men's figure skating.
Nevertheless, it's kind of weird to think he is leaving Abe behind. They always looked so close!

[Zemgirl]

I think Nanami Abe has done such a good job with Yuzuru, and I really can't figure out why he (or the JSF) would want to end that collaboration. A new choreographer might have been a good idea, but a coaching change and a move halfway across the world? I don't know about that. With the possible exception of Yu-Na, Orser's work has struck me as more of a quick fix than a long-term solution, and Yuzuru doesn't need any quick fixes.

Orser must have accumulated some major karma points in his past life to be getting 2 of the best prodigies in figure skating these past years. Yuna Kim who also made the bronze at her sr. debut season coming off as the Junior Champion, and Hanyu who just did and is.

Hanyu won the bronze in his Worlds debut, not his first senior season - he made the move up in 2010-11.

Having Nanami's first priority full time vs Orser who seems to have accumulated a large stable of skaters with less possibility to have the proper one to one attention Hanyu is used to, this would be a major change. From the reports I have read, Orser seems to favour managed skaters in groups sessions, which was why Joubert and Verner have tried but left quickly not having used to this style where their flaw and weakness can be so exposed.

I don't think that's an accurate take on Joubert and Verner's rationale. Both were in Toronto in the summer of 2010, when the Orser-Kim breakup was in the works and there was probably all sorts of tension and drama going on. Orser's best remaining skater was Adam Rippon; I don't think they would have looked weak in comparison, not to mention that Verner was coming from Oberstdorf, where he trained for years alongside Carolina Kostner. He tried several rinks and probably just didn't click with Orser. And Verner's main weakness isn't his skating anyway, it's his mental strength. Joubert's MO has always been to get coaches to come to Poitiers, though he does do short training camps where he works as part of a group. Some skaters do very well in a group situation, others don't - but I doubt this is motivated by trying to hide flaws or feeling insecure. Whether or not it will work for Hanyu, I really don't know - though I do hope so, of course.

[NMURA]

I think Orser is one of the best technical (jump) coach in the world. What Hanyu needs (wants) now is technical arsenals to overwhelm Chan (and Plushenko). Pretty apparent the JSF is behind this move. The JSF may want to "hire" Orser as the coach for Japanese elite skaters like Morozov before. Probably Asada is the one most needed for Orser's help. Nobuo Sato is incompetent when it comes to teaching jumps. Kozuka still can't (most likely, never will) master the quad after four full season's struggles.

[kwanfan1818]

I had to smile at you young'uns who weren't around when every promising/almost champion skater 'had' to go to Carlo Fassi to finally reach the pinnacle.

The rationale was that Fassi could speak many languages and could lobby most of the judges in their own languages and eavesdrop on the rest, something considered extremely important when figures could make or break a skater.

Besides posture, Hanyu could use some lessons in musicality: he skated through that bombastic FS score with little relationship to it. If nothing else, Orser can hear music.

[arakwafan2006]

But the good news is maybe we'll get less WeirImitation.

HAHAHAHA.

I dont know if i agree with the coaching change but i would agree with a different choreographer. The coach has done a teriffic job with him. There must have been something that Hanyu saw in Brian. This is all assuming that he got as much input as his federation on the decision to begin with.

[arakwafan2006]

I think Orser is one of the best technical (jump) coach in the world. What Hanyu needs (wants) now is technical arsenals to overwhelm Chan (and Plushenko). Pretty apparent the JSF is behind this move. The JSF may want to "hire" Orser as the coach for Japanese elite skaters like Morozov before. Probably Asada is the one most needed for Orser's help. Nobuo Sato is incompetent when it comes to teaching jumps. Kozuka still can't (most likely, never will) master the quad after four full season's struggles.

Maybe he's overly masterful cause Cynthia Phaneuf's jumps are not looking too great these days. Perhaps his masterfullness is so off the charts that other skaters cant really comprehend?

[The Accordion]

Awww.I hope this works out because I love them both.

[Triple Butz]

I think this is good. And really hope Brian pays attention to his posture. I am ready to be a fan but I just can't take the hunched back. Dick Button would understand.

I agree. This coaching change could be a really good thing. Hanyu is a tremendous talent, but still has some very juniorish habits that hopefully Orser can take care of, starting with how to bounce back into character after a fall.

[jenny12]

I agree. This coaching change could be a really good thing. Hanyu is a tremendous talent, but still has some very juniorish habits that hopefully Orser can take care of, starting with how to bounce back into character after a fall.

I agree. I really enjoy Hanyu and think he obviously had loads of potential, but he definitely needs some refining. I think Orser will really help with this.

[jl22aries]

This will be a super interesting off season! For me, Hanyu has a very Russian aesthetic about his skating, and the Orser base couldn't be more the antithesis. Still, Hanyu looks like he could be incredibly versatile so I'm really looking forward to his new programs for next year.

Also, the NA training program is known for full program run throughs. Will that help Hanyu with his stamina issues? But his asthma...hmm.

I'm sure his off ice regimen will change as well, and perhaps help him get more core body strength and more muscle mass. For me, this is one major area that could be improved, as well as his posture. And then sky's the limit.

Also, any news on his ankle injury? He just looks so fragile. Here's to strength training Yuzuru!

[eurodance2001]

I just hope this North American "experiment" doesn't turn into Miki Ando's "lost" year when she trained with Carol Heiss-Jenkins..

[Nune]

Wow, this move is really a surprising one !!! Love and loved Yuzuru together with his previous coach.
I like Brian O., but up to now he didn't really convince me as a coach.

I just hope, that this change works for this fabulous skater !!!

[IceAlisa]

Yuna Kim wasn't a convincing job of coaching?

[skfan]

has brian orser notably fixed any skater's posture? i'm asking because i don't know, not trying to be contentious.

YNK's toe point wasn't fixed, and her jumps already had excellent technique before she arrived. christina gao still hunches her back 3 years into orser's tutelage.

certainly orser deserves credit for preparing YNK for vancouver olympics, helping her to give her best performances there. but i still see imperfection in elene G's posture, even though her jumps are now more consistent with him.

i'm not singling brian orser out--i just think in this era skaters AND their coaches have little incentive to improve basic skills like posture. yuzuru is clearly a star on the rise. i just wish i could believe that training with orser is going to improve both yuzuru and kanako murakami's posture, if indeed he is JSF's coach of choice for japan's next generation.

[NMURA]

IMO, Orser does not seem to be a strong technical coach.
(Look at Kim‘s 3Lo, Rippon‘s 3A, Gao‘s 2A&3fLz, Javier‘s jumps except Quad&3A. )

Fernandez's consistency and quality of quad jumps are outstanding. I think THAT is one important reason. Even if Orser can't be given the full credits, there are merits to train with the best quad jumper in the world.

I just hope this North American "experiment" doesn't turn into Miki Ando's "lost" year when she trained with Carol Heiss-Jenkins..

Ando's turn to NA was in the Torino Olympic season, wasn't it? Hanyu has two more years for Sochi.