Japan's Hanyu fumes at rival for 'intentional' collision

[MsZem]

This is going to be delightful. Will we hear about it ad nauseum like the infamous almost-collision between Jamie Sale and Berezhnaya/Sikharulidze in SLC?

While it's clear that Hanyu had right of way, I'm not sure how Ten was supposed to notice in the midst of a spin that Hanyu was setting up a 3A in his direction. But maybe I'm missing something.

 

[watchthis!!]

This is going to be delightful. Will we hear about it ad nauseum like the infamous almost-collision between Jamie Sale and Berezhnaya/Sikharulidze in SLC?

"Almost"? I thought Sale had the wind knocked out of her?

 

[bardtoob]

I hear there's more than one of them.

Another politically motivated comment.

 

[MsZem]

"Almost"? I thought Sale had the wind knocked out of her?

Oh, right, Sale skated right into them. It was her fault anyway See, eventually such details fade away and so they will in this case, too!

 

[mathil]

Getting into each other way can happen, that's true, but one skater getting into another skater's way as his music is playing for three times on two different days is definitely not as common. Which is not to say that Ten did it intentionally, as I have no way of knowing that (Hanyu is the one with footage as his trainer films all of his run throughs, but no video is available as of now of the incident).

 

[dawnie]

Denis Ten does not seem like the type of person to do this intentionally. Yes, it's odd that a skater of his caliber who has been around the scene for a while *may* have been oblivious to what is going on around him, but it happens. Do people really think Frank Carroll would put up with antics like that? No way.

 

[Jammers]

Hopefully Hanyu has put this in the past. He has more important things to worry about like winning another World title.

 

[SHARPIE]

I am saying go **** yourself for trying to draw me into that.

Um ... Not a great response. Please keep stuff like that off the forum.

 

[bardtoob]

Um ... Not a great response. Please keep stuff like that off the forum.

You are right, @SHARPIE

I will not respond like that in the future. I can easily say the same thing in a different way.

 

[allezfred]

Will we hear about it ad nauseum like the infamous almost-collision between Jamie Sale and Berezhnaya/Sikharulidze in SLC?

Sale did a great hockey check on them. Nothing almost about it.

 

[mathil]

Denis Ten does not seem like the type of person to do this intentionally. Yes, it's odd that a skater of his caliber who has been around the scene for a while *may* have been oblivious to what is going on around him, but it happens. Do people really think Frank Carroll would put up with antics like that? No way.

Which is exactly why you'd think Carroll would have warned his student to be more careful as well after that first incident. Or maybe he did, but to no effect.
It seems to me that there is an attempt to downplay what happened as if it was nothing - it wasn't. What happened could have been very dangerous, especially considering that Hanyu approached the 3A by going backwards and turning at the very last moment before jumping. Also, with Denis being in the wrong he could have handled the press in a better way, instead of justifying himself with jabs like 'Maybe Hanyu is not used to skating with many people on the ice' and throwing shade on Hanyu's behavior in that particular incident.
All in all an unfortunate affair, anyway.

 

[tas]

I definitely understand where Hanyu's anger is coming from, but I doubt Ten would intentionally disrupt Hanyu's SP run-through. Hope the two hug it out, and leave this incident behind them.

Also, is there any available footage of this incident (and the interview in which Hanyu accuses Ten)? Perhaps that would clear up some misunderstandings we have about what actually happened between Hanyu/Ten (thus silencing off-basis speculation) and bring light to the situation.

 

[overedge]

According to the Kazakh commentator, Ten is now being shitstormed by crazy Hanyu-fans.

 

[aftershocks]

You guys, we have it on authority that Hanyu is from another planet ya know. Maybe Earth's atmosphere is beginning to get to him. Check out the Men's sp press conference on IN. Hanyu's answers to some of the questions about how he's feeling at this competition are off the charts mysteriously strange. If Hanyu is already beside himself with weird feelings, then these coincidences with D10 at the rink must really be spooking him. Is there any history of bad blood between Hanyu and Denis???

What heck is going on anyway? Figure skaters routinely have rink practice sessions, and routinely get in each other's way and apologize and shrug it off. Three times with same skater... so what? Take a wide berth as best you can or ask for your own individual practice time with no one else there to bother you. Take it easy, Little Prince.

Seriously, Denis Ten seems caught up in his own world injury dramas, and bad season traumas. Under the circumstances, perhaps Denis is not paying enough attention during rink practices, but "intentional" collision?! Come on, Denis is a sweet wise anguished old soul who wouldn't intentionally harm an insect, much less #1 Male FS Honcho Ninja Warrior From Another Planet.

Puhleeze, isn't there enough drama going on already.

 

[arakwafan2006]

Denis Ten has basically been so fragile with injuries it sometimes seems like he's bubble gumed or duct taped together. I doubt he would deliberately crash into Hanyu or anyone else. This type of blatant crashing has been addressed several times in the media and skaters have said " it simply does not happen."

Ten was in the wrong but quite frankly, Yuzuru has a sense of entitlement ( hush about his damn music playing) that might be part of the problem. He fully expected Denis to stop in his tracks but nobody does that. Most skaters have a general sense of mindfulness about other skaters but none of them plan on kissing Yuzuru's ass.

Denis as well as other skaters should perhaps make a more deliberate attempt to show to the skater who has right of way a deliberate clearing of passage but Yuzuru is the one who had the bloodied crash during a warmup at another competition, not Denis. I seriously doubt that Denis who's been on the injured list repeatedly would would try and get in Yuzuru's way. He's the size of a female gymnast for shits sake anyway... Sounds like an intense, practice session.


BTW, remember Tracy Wilson going on and on during the TSL interview about YUZURU ALMOST CRASHING INTO A SKATER and being so nice to the skater and compassionate? I believe the other skater was acting like king of all assholes but Yuzuru supposedly was the consummate gentleman... TUH....

 

[VGThuy]

What makes you think Yuzuru has a sense of entitlement...at least more than is expected for any other skater who has the right-of-way or who doesn't expect a skater to not be in another skater's way not once, twice, but three times between two practice sessions at a World Championships?

 

[maatTheViking]

I'm pretty sure whatever outburst Hanyu has is because he is under intense, extreme pressure. He is an overwhelming favorite going into the event. He is stalked by fans and hounded by journalists. I doubt very many of us can comprehend the pressure he must feel.

So he blows up, which may be inappropriate, but can we please start treating skaters like athletes, and not contestants in a ms. manners contest.

He was upset, he got over it. THE END.

I doubt Ten did it on purpose, that doesn't mean Hanyu's anger wasn't justified.
They both seem really nice and personable (see ShibShibs videos from various shows, for instance).

 

[MacMadame]

Ten was in the wrong but quite frankly, Yuzuru has a sense of entitlement ( hush about his damn music playing) that might be part of the problem. He fully expected Denis to stop in his tracks but nobody does that. Most skaters have a general sense of mindfulness about other skaters but none of them plan on kissing Yuzuru's ass.

By your definition of entitlement, the person who had a green light is entitled if they assume the person with a red light won't go anyway.

 

[arakwafan2006]

By your definition of entitlement, the person who had a green light is entitled if they assume the person with a red light won't go anyway.

i didnt define a thing.

 

[skateboy]

I hope this is put to rest quickly.

 

[dinakt]

I hope this is put to rest quickly.

This. Nobody got hurt, nobody collided, and I am bothered by the ensuing drama.
It's OK, though not great, for Hanyu to lose his cool momentarily. It is not great, but not criminal for Denis to be concentrating too much on himself to notice he is in the way. It is not OK for anybody to make more of it than it was, to feel injured in any but momentary way. Media and fans must cool off. Move on.

 

[rhapsody]

This thread is a mess.

Denis is a ditz and Yuzuru's fans are acting as if he found a cure for cancer. What else is new?

 

[vesperholly]

So he blows up, which may be inappropriate, but can we please start treating skaters like athletes, and not contestants in a ms. manners contest.

He was upset, he got over it. THE END.

I agree, but when federations start making a stink about getting the ISU to warn a skater over some silly practice drama, that's too far.

And watching the video, Hanyu is awfully when he stops, dragging his feet and glaring. Ten wasn't even particularly close to him in those two instances.

 

[VGThuy]

I had no idea so many posters know so much about what's considered safe and acceptable behavior on elite-level practice ice to know whether Yuzuru's reaction and request was warranted in terms being able to practice and possibly safety.

 

[Edgecase]

I hear there's more than one of them.

Haha especially at CoC!

 

[GoddessMode]

I agree, but when federations start making a stink about getting the ISU to warn a skater over some silly practice drama, that's too far.

And watching the video, Hanyu is awfully when he stops, dragging his feet and glaring. Ten wasn't even particularly close to him in those two instances.

Theres a video of the whole thing?

 

[Nomad]

The video will "prove" nothing. Outraged ubers will see what they want to see.

 

[Doubletoe]

Deleted (Duplicate post)

 

[Willin]

I'd just like to point out that watching out for EVERY other person on the ice in and of itself is a hard task. Bring into account that you're practicing triples and quads at a world practice session, and it becomes even harder. At any normal practice session at any rink there are many MANY times when skaters get in each other's way. It just happens. While it is someone's run through, we have to remember that all these skaters don't know everyone else's choreography, so they can't necessarily predict which direction other skaters are going while simultaneously focusing on their own skating. People get in each other's way sometimes....it happens.

While it's clear that Hanyu had right of way, I'm not sure how Ten was supposed to notice in the midst of a spin that Hanyu was setting up a 3A in his direction. But maybe I'm missing something.

It is impossible to keep track of all the skaters on a session, however it is basic etiquette that whoever is doing a runthrough has right of way. Even if you cannot connect skater to music, at competitions they will announce the name of the skater who's music is about to start so you will know who to avoid. Generally, if I don't know a skater's choreography, I try to keep a very good eye out for them so I can avoid them. Even if I do get in their way, it is my fault for not being careful enough to avoid them when practicing a spin.

I understand that on these practice sessions it's hard to find a spot entirely out of the way at all times to work on spins, but there are spots that are very common to do certain jumps (corners/ends for toe jumps, left/right of center for edge jumps) so you could try to spin in what would not be one of those general areas. When you get into someone's way once, I could see it as an innocent mistake. If you get into someone's way 3+ times, you're definitely not being careful enough.

Denis Ten does not seem like the type of person to do this intentionally. Yes, it's odd that a skater of his caliber who has been around the scene for a while *may* have been oblivious to what is going on around him, but it happens. Do people really think Frank Carroll would put up with antics like that? No way.

I think this is the best explanation. Ten wasn't trying to sabotage Hanyu, he just wasn't being careful enough for whatever reason. The quote "never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity" fits this situation. If you replace "stupidity" with "carelessness" I think it would be something good to consider.

As for Hanyu's actions, I don't think it's unusual or childish for what some skaters do. It's common at some rinks to yell if you see someone in your way to let them know you're coming so they can get out of your way. Depending on stress this could be a 'watch out!' or a 'GET OUTTA MY WAY!' Same with punching the wall. If someone's relaxed, I see skaters just continue on or frown a bit. If skaters are frustrated (before a test or a big competition), they might stomp off. If kids get in my way doing stupid stuff (texting and skating, practicing the splits on the ice), I remind them it's dangerous and talk to their coach(es). Sure, it may not be polite, but it's dangerous to get in other skater's ways and it's frustrating when your music gets limited play time and it's crunch time.

 

[Doubletoe]

I'd just like to point out that watching out for EVERY other person on the ice in and of itself is a hard task. Bring into account that you're practicing triples and quads at a world practice session, and it becomes even harder. At any normal practice session at any rink there are many MANY times when skaters get in each other's way. It just happens. While it is someone's run through, we have to remember that all these skaters don't know everyone else's choreography, so they can't necessarily predict which direction other skaters are going while simultaneously focusing on their own skating. People get in each other's way sometimes....it happens.

Denis did not have to watch out for every other skater, only Yuzuru Hanyu, since Yuzu was in his program. If a skater is in his program and you aren't sure where he's going to be in 10-15 seconds, don't start a spin! Period! I am regularly on freestyle sessions with close to 30 skaters (including Denis Ten, coincidentally) and I make sure nobody ever has to change trajectory or abort a jump because of me. It's called awareness and courtesy. On the rare occasion I get in someone's way during their program, I apologize. From what I've seen of him, Denis is very much in his own world. Even if it's not intentional, it is inconsiderate.

I agree, but when federations start making a stink about getting the ISU to warn a skater over some silly practice drama, that's too far.

And watching the video, Hanyu is awfully when he stops, dragging his feet and glaring. Ten wasn't even particularly close to him in those two instances.

I actually agree that Ten did not look that close to Hanyu--at least from the camera's perspective--in the practice video from the previous day. I am guessing he was spinning right where Hanyu was headed for his 3A the next day, though. I'm surprised nobody has posted the video yet.