Han Yan Uber Thread - Road to Sochi and Beyond

[jjane45]

Oh he was sooooo tiny! And indeed had a biellmann spin!!

[waltzNo1]

If Skate Asia was after Mar 6.2005...he would be 9..born Mar 3.1996.

Pretty impressive for a 9 year old.

You are right. My counting was a little bit off.

[Gr8Sk8]

I saw Han Yan at Junior Grand Prix Final last year - very impressive.

I think he will go farther than any previous Chinese male skater - has a musical sense as well as the technical skills

[ali_dorate]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml8XT32kOec

Watch this program that Han Yan skated at about 10 or 11 years old. You will see he has everything. Not only the technique, but also the presentation.

So cute!
I didn't know he did Biellmann spin. It's beautiful.
In an interview after his FS at the 4CC, he said he would like to practice spins more. Can't expect bielmman position from him anymore but I'm sure he'll be a beautiful spinner.
Yes, he has everything. And someday he'll have it all!

[os168]

So cute!
I didn't know he did Biellmann spin. It's beautiful.
In an interview after his FS at the 4CC, he said he would like to practice spins more. Can't expect bielmman position from him anymore but I'm sure he'll be a beautiful spinner.
Yes, he has everything. And someday he'll have it all!

Yes adore this. Very cute... I did speculate whether Hanyu would have kept his bielmman this time last year, and unsurprisingly he didn't. It is too difficult once you get to a certain age especially if you are a guy. I would love him to do the soundtrack to the life of Pi with a demeanor of play and adventure. Together with his thrilling jumps, it can be an amazing spectacle.

[spikydurian]

He's sooo cute. He already had so much speed at that age! BTW, is Han Yan competing in Senior Worlds?

[iceflame]

Happy 17th birthday!
Wish the best for him in the Olympic season

He's sooo cute. He already had so much speed at that age! BTW, is Han Yan competing in Senior Worlds?

He is on the entry list as a substitute. Basicly he will not compete there.

[misskarne]

Happy birthday, Han!

[jjane45]

Happy 17th birthday!
Wish the best for him in the Olympic season

He is on the entry list as a substitute. Basicly he will not compete there.

Someone received a ton of roses!! (for his gala program maybe? )

I wonder when will team China depart for Canada. Fans are still not giving up their hopes...

[Jammers]

Why did China not have Han Yan skate at Jr Worlds? WTF he medaled at 4CC but he's not good enough for Jr or Senior Worlds? China has a weird way of developing skaters.

[skatingfanfun]

Wow, he had such good edge quality at 9 years old! And the jumping technique! he's pretty good with music too. Really gifted! could be world champions before long.

[Marco]

Not that there is any surprise anymore, but yesterday at Weibo (Chinese twitter) he wished Li Zijun good luck at Worlds. Guess that means he isn't going to London...

[robinhood]

^isn't he friends with Nan Song?

this whole situation was so bad managed by the chinese federation

[Sophiesh]

FS: 3A hand, 4T3T, 4T fall, 3lz2t, 3f2t2lo, 3lo, 3lz, 3s
Nice try on 4T3T in domestic competitions

[Sylvia]

FS: 3A hand, 4T3T, 4T fall, 3lz2t, 3f2t2lo, 3lo, 3lz, 3s

Thanks! Yan's 4T fall in the FS was marked downgraded << in the FS protocol. He won with a total score of 228.95, 147.51 in FS.

Here's his SP video (3A, 4T, 3Lz+2T, 81.44) from the same competition (posted in the Chinese national competitions thread in Kiss and Cry):

video of Han Yan's SP

ETA his FS video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNmSnaYa8xs

[jjane45]

In LP YAN Han landed 4T-3T then fell on solo 4T.

Apparently the fall was bad enough that his weibo post claimed
"The fall killed me! I swear if another fall like that happens I'll walk off the ice."
ZHANG Dan: "Really?"
ZHU Qiuying: "...and Coach Jia will kick him back on ice."

Another weibo post:
"Competition over. Miserable fall and little meaningless (or bored?), but still got something... snatched the prizes!"
WANG Yi: "Brat, you just came to crash the party."
YAN Han: "Don't say it like that, I am also a part of it."
Disclaimer: liberal translation LOL

[robinhood]

his jumps are huge, specially in length...
this program is really long, though and he doesn't seem to get into the music as the one in his sp. Still, I'm amazed by the flow and speed he has, so rare for a chinese skater
He reminds me of a young Yagudin

[whispering]

Some fans are trying to translate the magazine interview of Han into English.Here is the Q&A part by courtesy of iocy3347

Q: What's your favorite book or movie?
A: I prefer reading imagination books like "The Grave Robbers' Chronicles". Movies I like Jason Statham's "The Expendables", "Blitz" etc. He is very cool, and the action films are exciting.



Q: What's your favorite fashion brand? What do you usually wear?
A:I usually wear board shoes, jeans and shirts. Favorite brands are those I am able to afford, such as G-star and diesel.



Q: Do you like other sports other than skating and why?
A: I love badminton though do not play it often coz I'm afraid of injury, but I used to play a lot.


Q: How do you think you can improve yourself?
A: Execution and spin. I've got dancing class.




Q: What is your biggest challenge at the moment?
A:I guess it's to surpass myself. My biggest rival would be Hanyu? Just those Japanese skaters.(<----Han is not good at remembering names and it seemed Hanyu is his most familiar name)




Q: There is one year to go before the Sochi 2014 Olympics, what do you want to say to yourself this time next year?
A: When you are experiencing difficulty that is a chance to improve yourself. There is a saying "If you are exhausted that means you are walking uphill. I was encouraged like this, and I believe I will get good results if I keep doing this.



Q: If you did not choose figure skating, what profession would you likely to be?
A: Probably I'll become a student, and may have bad scores, haha.



Q: Who is your idol?
A: Plushenko, when I was a boy I had all his posters on the wall of my room. Now is Patrick Chan, but he's much like a goal.


Q: Are you feeling happy?
A: Very happy, I can do what I like everyday, I have my life goals, my grandparents are healthy, those make me happy.

[spikydurian]

Good luck to young Han Yan. It's good to have a goal and work towards it. You have the goods to make it. And I agree for those in their teens like yourself, Joshua, Brown, Gachinski, etc. Hanyu is a class by himself and the 'kid to beat' post Sochi.

[VarBar]

Q: If you did not choose figure skating, what profession would you likely to be?
A: Probably I'll become a student, and may have bad scores, haha.

It seems that Han has a great sense of humor besides him having tons of potential as a skater. Wish him good luck for the coming season.