Japanese figure skating 2018-19 season news & updates

Anyone know what's going on with Ryuju Hino? I so enjoy his skating and personality but didn't see him listed on the national team and has not been selected for any GPs or Challengers.
 
rosewood said:
ETA:
Maybe they are already posted somewhere on this board but I post Shoma's new programs on this thread.
Shoma Uno SP https://youtu.be/9N7nQ3679F8?t=234
(Shoma debuted lots of programs this off-season. This video has three programs. I like the last one the best but anyways his SP is the second one in this video.)
Shoma Uno FS from THE ICE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlabJSzVcFM

ETA2:
Shoma's SP from THE ICE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQrtYoOIWLY&list=PL3EjtOeAr0JAFRvEiy2hVY2HCbya-3Fdm&index=7
Click to expand...

When I first learned Shoma was using "Stairway to Heaven" as his short program music, I was so disappointed he didn't choose something more original. After finally taking the time to watch the SP video, I was mesmerized! The music rendition (classical guitar) is perfect for his style of skating. The accelerating footwork sequence is exquisite!
 
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Rika Kihira won the SP at Ondrej Nepela with a lovely performance. She fell on the 3A but actually looked like she is jumping up into it more this year compared to when she was a junior. It takes guts to skate to Clair de Lune after Mao Asada, but I think her performance quality can justify the choice. In particular, her step sequence was so unforced and soft but maintained the flow and went perfectly with the music.
 
alexikeguchi said:
Rika Kihira won the SP at Ondrej Nepela with a lovely performance. She fell on the 3A but actually looked like she is jumping up into it more this year compared to when she was a junior. It takes guts to skate to Clair de Lune after Mao Asada, but I think her performance quality can justify the choice. In particular, her step sequence was so unforced and soft but maintained the flow and went perfectly with the music.
Click to expand...

I was impressed. If she had skated it clean, her score would have been in the ballpark of 76 points.

By moving up to senior international competition, Kihara is positioning herself nicely for world team consideration in Saitama this season.
 
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Rika brought it again in the FS and scored 147.37 with two 3As and stood up eight triples overall. I haven't seen score details yet, but all her elements other than a poor landing on the final triple looked textbook. Her performance quality has really grown as well. I hope she continues on this trajectory through the GP season and championships... It would be so exciting if she could medal at a home Worlds in her first senior season!
 
Risk IS amazing. So young and so perfect already. All she has to do is keep doing what she's doing and get the very best programs she can. I feel like I'm watching Mao's daughter!

Does anyone know who did her long program? I dont like it as much as her SP.
 
Rika updated the difficulty of Japanese ladies' programs in several years with 3A-3T together with another 3A! Woohoo! Her performance itself had wonderful quality too. I, by far, prefer this girl to be Japan's queen. The point must be consistence. Stay strong throughout this season, Rika Kihira! Well done at the debut competition in Sr field. :respec:
 
David Wilson did Kihira's SP (according to info posted earlier this summer); Tom Dickson and Cathy Reed are also listed as her choreographers in her updated ISU bio so I assume Dickson choreographed her FS ("Mercy in Darkness" by Two Steps from Hell is one of the pieces identified in addition to "A Beautiful Storm" by Jennifer Thomas): http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00054891.htm
 
This article says Kihira's SP was choreographed by David Wilson. Kihira is the person who chose Clair de Lune for her new SP since she loves the music.
https://www.daily.co.jp/general/2018/07/06/0011422050.shtml

I don't know what Cathy Reed did for her program(s), but this article says Kihira's new LP was choreographed by Tom Dickson.
https://article.auone.jp/detail/1/6/12/17_12_r_20180922_1537624532134931

This article was written in June. She said she was working on 4S. She was practicing take-off on both feet for 4S, but it didn't work well for her at the point, so she said she was going back to one-foot take-off. She also said she was working on 4T as well. As for 3A, she said that doing 3A is the only way to pile up experiences, so she'll never give up doing 3A through this season.
https://sports.yahoo.co.jp/column/detail/201806060004-spnavi?p=2

Aside from jumps, I felt she improved in skating skills during off-season. Her expressions still look auto-repeated ones but overall she has good lines and looks to have potentials to be an artist when she grows.
 
Out of all the ladies who landed 3axels internationally, I recall only Midori Ito and Mao Asada having done theirs in combination. Am I missing anyone? Otherwise, that would make Rika the third lady to have done a 3axel combination jump in international competition, and obviously the first to have done a 3/3 invovling 3axel.
 
Marco said:
Out of all the ladies who landed 3axels internationally, I recall only Midori Ito and Mao Asada having done theirs in combination. Am I missing anyone? Otherwise, that would make Rika the third lady to have done a 3axel combination jump in international competition, and obviously the first to have done a 3/3 invovling 3axel.
Click to expand...

Alysa Liu landed a 3A+2T at Asian Open in August.
 
I was very impressed with Rika's skating at the Nepela Trophy! She has by far the highest skating level among the senior ladies so far this season.

Is Wakaba recovering from injuries? I'm very surprised to see her so poorly prepared for a competition (Autumn Classic) and don't think she has skated this badly since the 15-16 JGP.
 
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rosewood said:
Regionals are ongoing. Here is a link to a JSF page (English). T Daisuke will skate in Kinki Regionals, Oct 5-8.
https://www.jsfresults.com/National/2018-2019/fs_e/index.htm

Just for a record, here is a link to a PDF which has the numbers of skaters who win through to next stage (in Japanese).
https://skatingjapan.or.jp/image_data/fck/file/2018_Figure/DomCompetitions/2018yosentsuka180919.pdf
Click to expand...

Everything is explained in a very detailed way over here in English:
https://soyouwanttowatchfs.com/post/177833738175/2018-19-japanese-national-qualifying-competitions

Daisuke is coming back on Sunday!!!! :respec::respec::respec:
 
I think this is the first time in five years and only the second time in the entire history of the JGP series that a Japanese lady hasn't qualified for the final.

Obviously, the strength and sheer number of Russian juniors on the circuit means it's unlikely for other countries to qualify, but Korea is coming on a strong (a year later than I initially predicted).

I don't think that means doom and gloom for Team Japan. Most of their seniors are still in their mid- to late-teens.

I do worry about Miyahara. Her jumps will not score high in the new +5/-5 system. She has excellent spins and PCS, but with so many jump elements -- that she's lost some of her trademark consistency on -- I think she and her coach need to do some math in the free. Doing a 3Lz+2T+2Lo with an arm variation on the doubles might be able to land her a +4, and doing two 2A+3T as her final jump elements for the 10% bonus seems smart.

Higuchi seems to be struggling as well. I don't care for the SP at all.

I think this is Kihira's season to shine, and she has the technical goods and improving artistry. Mihara is always consistent and I see her doing well, too.

Honda is still a wild card. Love her FS. I'm not sure what Hongo's coaching change will bring, but I find her dedication and enthusiasm a positive. She always tries so hard.

Is Matsuda injured? She wasn't trying very difficult elements at AIC -- up to the 3Lo, I believe. Her PCS have improved but they're not on the level of her top teammates so she needs those elements -- the 2A+3T+3Lo is still spectacular.

I find Shiraiwa so spunky but I think she's going to get lost in the shuffle. The SP does her no favors, either. Makashita is lovely but I think will need a season to develop.

That leaves Sakamoto, who is strong technically but whose programs do her no favors at all. She's like a mini Midori to me and deserves powerful music like her Moonlight Sonata short.

I predict Miyahara, Kihira and Mihara will end up at Worlds.
 
Sorry if it was posted and I missed it but did we ever find out what happened with Muramoto/Reed?
 
all_empty said:
Is Matsuda injured? She wasn't trying very difficult elements at AIC -- up to the 3Lo, I believe. Her PCS have improved but they're not on the level of her top teammates so she needs those elements -- the 2A+3T+3Lo is still spectacular.
Click to expand...

Yes, Matsuda could be recovering from some kind of injury. On top of that, she was having a coach-switching and is now going back to her former coach team at Howa Sportsland. The good thing about the move is that she'll get choreography from a new perspective (such as working with Abbott for FS). The thing to worry about is her jumps (Yura also has issues with jump rotation, and it's not for sure if any coach currently from Howa will be capable of helping her with that...)
 
I am so impressed that, with the stricter jump rotation calling this season and esp at Skate America, Satoko managed to get all her jumps called rotated. If she / the callers keep that up, she is the perfect skater. She will never really get the +4s and +5s on jumps but one can hardly fault anything else. Programs are beautiful, of course.

I have an issue with Kaori's landing positions and her general line, but she is FAST and amazing. Not my kind of skater stylistically but she deserves the high scores.

Poor Marin. Robbed in the short and bombed the free. It's already going to be hard for her to make the world team when at least 3 or 4 of her countrymates have skated strongly and medalled in their competitions this season and she bombed twice in a roll.
 
Marco said:
Poor Marin. Robbed in the short and bombed the free. It's already going to be hard for her to make the world team when at least 3 or 4 of her countrymates have skated strongly and medalled in their competitions this season and she bombed twice in a roll.
Click to expand...

She's maturing and probably learning new jump technique from Rafael. I think we need to give her some time. Practices went very similar to her performances. Her performance in the short actually went better than I expected. She connects beautifully with the audience.

Kaori and Satoko performed very much as they did in practice also. Both were doing full run-throughs.
 
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