2010-11 Season: Senior International Debut
With the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver done and medals for the US, Russia, and Japan in the men's field won, it's time for another Olympic quadrennial. We'll see some skaters retire, some continue to push themselves forward, and plenty of new and fresh faces hoping to peak in the 2013-2014 season during the next Winter Olympics. Before we can get there, though, we just have to see how each season goes, one at a time.
Yuzuru Hanyu will only be 19 at the next Winter Olympics, and with the level he's at currently, it's a little hard to imagine him getting a medal there. A lot can happen in four years, though. So let's take a look at the season of his senior international debut.
Fresh off of both a Junior Grand Prix Final and World Junior Championships gold, Yuzuru entered into the senior field with fresh, new programs at the 2010 NHK Trophy in October, a qualifier event for the Grand Prix Final in December. The Grand Prix series is a major international event, so I can only imagine how nervous Yuzuru was--with so many adjustments to be made from Juniors, hardly any fresh seniors have a stellar international debut.
He skated his short program to Tchaikovsky's "White Legend" (see above). He executed a beautiful triple 3A [for a guide to skating terminology, click this link], landed cleanly and with speed, a slightly shaky 3Lz+3T combination where he broke at the waist and leaned too far forward after the Lutz, and a 3F that got an edge call because the take-off edge was a too far out. Yuzuru skated with impressive speed throughout, and his spins already had impressive speed as well, although little variation within each position. Although his "White Legend" still somewhat leaves something to be desired in terms of presentation, he does skate with drama and intensity, a clear admiration of Evgeni Plushenko and Johnny Weir present in his program. His step sequence started off with a flare, but near the end and during his last two spins he lost a little bit of steam. During the ending pose of his program, where he leans his head back and holds his arms out, he panted for breath.
He met with his coach Nanami Abe in the Kiss and Cry to receive his score: 69.31.
Yuzuru skated his free program the next day at NHK to Sarasate's "Zigeunerweisen" (see above), wherein one particularly exciting thing happened: he attempted and landed his first quad in competition, and it was completely clean. During this program, he completed a 4T (stunning), a 3A (a little too far back on the blade on the landing, resulting in a deep knee bend and a turnout), a 3F once again off the wrong edge, a clean 3Lz+3T, a clean 3A+3T, a clean but slow 3Lz, a 1Lo (which was meant to be a triple), and a clean 3S. This program lacked the drama of "White Legend," and his step sequences seemed to be a little bit slower--this was likely to conserve energy, as it's well-known that Yuzu struggles with asthma. At the end, though, the program did get quite playful as the music picked up in speed and pitch. By the end, during his ending pose, he was clearly struggling for breath, although he held it together well.
He was really excited while waiting in the Kiss and Cry; this was, after all, a pretty excellent showing for a senior debut. There were no falls, and although some of the jumping passes could have been cleaner, rarely any full programs are perfectly clean. His score for the free program was 138.41, making his total combined score 207.72 points. He landed in fourth place out of twelve at his first senior event, 27.07 points below the highest score of the competition and 36.04 points above the lowest.
2011 Rostelecom Cup - Yuzuru Hanyu Free Skate
At his next event, the 2011 Cup of Russia/Rostelecom Cup, he skated very similarly in the short program (the above videos are his short and free programs respectively). He got the same edge calls on the Flips as he did at NHK--a problem he should fix soon, or else it may stick with him throughout the rest of his senior career. Unfortunately, during his free program, he invalidated a jumping pass by breaking the repetition rule, earning him no points for that element. He ran out of steam during "Zigeunerweisen" much quicker than he did at NHK, and subsequently fell on his very taxing step sequence near the end. When it was over, he struggled for breath even more than he did after his free program at NHK. His total score was 202.66.
His placements of 4th and 7th during these Grand Prix qualifying events didn't qualify him for the Grand Prix Final, so his next competition was the Japan Championships in December of 2010 (above video is the short program). During White Legend, he executed a STUNNING 3A with a beautiful running edge coming out of it, beautiful in terms of its height, air position, and speed. He got another edge call on the 3F, but his combination was clean. He was 2nd after the short program, but faltered a little in the free program (see below).
He popped his 4T into a 3T. He hit the ice after his first 3A, his landing far enough back that he lost his balance quite unexpectedly. His 3F got an edge call (not a single clean edge on a 3F yet this season). The rest of the program went a little better, although Yuzuru clearly lost his stamina a little bit quicker than he did in the rest of the season. Despite this, he still skated with impressive speed and quality, and he landed a beautiful 3A+2T+2T combination. His last burst of energy was not wasted on a very nice spin to close out his free program. He earned 141.12 points for his free program for a total of 220.06, and finished 4th overall at the 2010 All-Japan Championships. As a result of this placement, he was selected to compete at the international competition Four Continents Championships, wherein skaters from the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Oceania can compete.
At the 2011 Four Continents Championships, Yuzuru was in third place after the short program with 76.43 points, during which he landed two of his jumping passes cleanly and got an edge call (plus a saved landing) on his triple Flip. After landing one beautiful quad and two incredible triple Axels (one of which was in combination), with just a few issues on other jumping passes, Yuzuru scored 151.58 for his free skate and totaled 228.01, finishing second in this major international competition. He placed just below his countrymate, Olympic bronze medalist and reigning World champion Daisuke Takahashi, and above American Jeremy Abbott.
Due to his placement at the Japanese nationals, he did not compete at the 2011 World Championships. He closed out his international debut season with a 2nd place at Four Continents.
Not long after, Yuzuru was training at his home rink in Sendai, Miyagi, Japan when the 2011 Tohoku earthquake hit. He ran out of the rink still in his skates, ruining his blades on the concrete, and the water pipes under the rink burst as a result of the earthquake. He stayed in a shelter with his family for days afterward, and had to move his training elsewhere. He skated in 60 ice shows to raise money for families whose homes and lives were upended by the earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 16,000 people and caused 360 billion USD in damage. (Most skaters participate in, at most, 4 ice shows over the off-season.) He stated that, in addition to raising money, he used these ice shows as an opportunity to train while his home rink was still being repaired.
Yuzuru Hanyu will only be 19 at the next Winter Olympics, and with the level he's at currently, it's a little hard to imagine him getting a medal there. A lot can happen in four years, though. So let's take a look at the season of his senior international debut.
Fresh off of both a Junior Grand Prix Final and World Junior Championships gold, Yuzuru entered into the senior field with fresh, new programs at the 2010 NHK Trophy in October, a qualifier event for the Grand Prix Final in December. The Grand Prix series is a major international event, so I can only imagine how nervous Yuzuru was--with so many adjustments to be made from Juniors, hardly any fresh seniors have a stellar international debut.
2010 NHK Trophy - Yuzuru Hanyu Short Program
He skated his short program to Tchaikovsky's "White Legend" (see above). He executed a beautiful triple 3A [for a guide to skating terminology, click this link], landed cleanly and with speed, a slightly shaky 3Lz+3T combination where he broke at the waist and leaned too far forward after the Lutz, and a 3F that got an edge call because the take-off edge was a too far out. Yuzuru skated with impressive speed throughout, and his spins already had impressive speed as well, although little variation within each position. Although his "White Legend" still somewhat leaves something to be desired in terms of presentation, he does skate with drama and intensity, a clear admiration of Evgeni Plushenko and Johnny Weir present in his program. His step sequence started off with a flare, but near the end and during his last two spins he lost a little bit of steam. During the ending pose of his program, where he leans his head back and holds his arms out, he panted for breath.
He met with his coach Nanami Abe in the Kiss and Cry to receive his score: 69.31.
2011 NHK Trophy - Yuzuru Hanyu Free Skate
Yuzuru skated his free program the next day at NHK to Sarasate's "Zigeunerweisen" (see above), wherein one particularly exciting thing happened: he attempted and landed his first quad in competition, and it was completely clean. During this program, he completed a 4T (stunning), a 3A (a little too far back on the blade on the landing, resulting in a deep knee bend and a turnout), a 3F once again off the wrong edge, a clean 3Lz+3T, a clean 3A+3T, a clean but slow 3Lz, a 1Lo (which was meant to be a triple), and a clean 3S. This program lacked the drama of "White Legend," and his step sequences seemed to be a little bit slower--this was likely to conserve energy, as it's well-known that Yuzu struggles with asthma. At the end, though, the program did get quite playful as the music picked up in speed and pitch. By the end, during his ending pose, he was clearly struggling for breath, although he held it together well.
He was really excited while waiting in the Kiss and Cry; this was, after all, a pretty excellent showing for a senior debut. There were no falls, and although some of the jumping passes could have been cleaner, rarely any full programs are perfectly clean. His score for the free program was 138.41, making his total combined score 207.72 points. He landed in fourth place out of twelve at his first senior event, 27.07 points below the highest score of the competition and 36.04 points above the lowest.
2011 Rostelecom Cup - Yuzuru Hanyu Short Program
2011 Rostelecom Cup - Yuzuru Hanyu Free Skate
At his next event, the 2011 Cup of Russia/Rostelecom Cup, he skated very similarly in the short program (the above videos are his short and free programs respectively). He got the same edge calls on the Flips as he did at NHK--a problem he should fix soon, or else it may stick with him throughout the rest of his senior career. Unfortunately, during his free program, he invalidated a jumping pass by breaking the repetition rule, earning him no points for that element. He ran out of steam during "Zigeunerweisen" much quicker than he did at NHK, and subsequently fell on his very taxing step sequence near the end. When it was over, he struggled for breath even more than he did after his free program at NHK. His total score was 202.66.
2010 Japan Championships - Yuzuru Hanyu Short Program
His placements of 4th and 7th during these Grand Prix qualifying events didn't qualify him for the Grand Prix Final, so his next competition was the Japan Championships in December of 2010 (above video is the short program). During White Legend, he executed a STUNNING 3A with a beautiful running edge coming out of it, beautiful in terms of its height, air position, and speed. He got another edge call on the 3F, but his combination was clean. He was 2nd after the short program, but faltered a little in the free program (see below).
2010 Japan Championships - Yuzuru Hanyu Free Skate
He popped his 4T into a 3T. He hit the ice after his first 3A, his landing far enough back that he lost his balance quite unexpectedly. His 3F got an edge call (not a single clean edge on a 3F yet this season). The rest of the program went a little better, although Yuzuru clearly lost his stamina a little bit quicker than he did in the rest of the season. Despite this, he still skated with impressive speed and quality, and he landed a beautiful 3A+2T+2T combination. His last burst of energy was not wasted on a very nice spin to close out his free program. He earned 141.12 points for his free program for a total of 220.06, and finished 4th overall at the 2010 All-Japan Championships. As a result of this placement, he was selected to compete at the international competition Four Continents Championships, wherein skaters from the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Oceania can compete.
At the 2011 Four Continents Championships, Yuzuru was in third place after the short program with 76.43 points, during which he landed two of his jumping passes cleanly and got an edge call (plus a saved landing) on his triple Flip. After landing one beautiful quad and two incredible triple Axels (one of which was in combination), with just a few issues on other jumping passes, Yuzuru scored 151.58 for his free skate and totaled 228.01, finishing second in this major international competition. He placed just below his countrymate, Olympic bronze medalist and reigning World champion Daisuke Takahashi, and above American Jeremy Abbott.
Due to his placement at the Japanese nationals, he did not compete at the 2011 World Championships. He closed out his international debut season with a 2nd place at Four Continents.
Not long after, Yuzuru was training at his home rink in Sendai, Miyagi, Japan when the 2011 Tohoku earthquake hit. He ran out of the rink still in his skates, ruining his blades on the concrete, and the water pipes under the rink burst as a result of the earthquake. He stayed in a shelter with his family for days afterward, and had to move his training elsewhere. He skated in 60 ice shows to raise money for families whose homes and lives were upended by the earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 16,000 people and caused 360 billion USD in damage. (Most skaters participate in, at most, 4 ice shows over the off-season.) He stated that, in addition to raising money, he used these ice shows as an opportunity to train while his home rink was still being repaired.
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