(aired on Figureskate TV on 11 March 2017 in Japan) (from 6:30 of video)
(What’s your feeling now?)
Well, it’s the same pattern again [probably he is referring to another silver medal], but I feel it has been another luxurious [fruitful] experience. For, first of all, the result was a proper… well, I cannot say it was ‘proper’ per se, but the fact is that I managed to win a medal. In addition, I think I gained something [out of this]; a certain feeling of achievement. And also, the feeling of frustration, which has given me more appetite for training. So, all in all, I appreciate that I have been given great experience, again.
(What’s your strategy for the World, given the appearance of another rival?)
Sure, of course, I have been thinking that Nathan is great, and Uno has also (reportedly) landed a (4)Lo, although I have yet to watch it; I have already seen him landing (4Lo) in practice. So, I feel they are very promising, and at the same time, well… I am thankful to them. [Perhaps, he thanks them as they give him further impetus.]
(So, from now on, one mistake will be fatal; what will you do?)
Well, ‘my performance’ equals ‘a performance with no mistake’, for me. In addition, it’s not merely ‘no mistake’ but ‘a performance with complete quality with no mistake’ is my performance in my understanding. If I may say, I believe that no one can beat me if I executed such a performance. To ensure that this self-confidence should not turn into over-confidence, I think I will have to engage with further training with more precision.
(Have you prepared for the changes of elements during performance like this time?)
No, I hadn’t prepared for it, no, it was the first time. It was improvisation.
(Do you think you might do it again?)
Well, I don’t think so; as far as I can land (4)S, I would not be required to do such a thing at all. As it were, I would rather like to obtain more GOE for my 3As than obtaining more GOE for 4T, and then… No, it’s not a good way of putting it. I think, the quality of my 3A is definitely better than that of my 4T. So in this sense, rather than taking a risk with 4Ts, the best (strategy for me) would be to elevate the quality of 3A even more and to ensure landing two 3As in the second half.
(Is that your feeling after the FS this time?)
Yes, my finding after jumping two 4Ts in the latter half this time is that it’s actually easier to do the same jump [4T]. It was difficult to coordinate the techniques (do’s and dont’s) and feeling of different types of jumps when feeling tired. But in terms of doing the same jump, if I can land the first one even when feeling tired, I can do the next (same) jump with more confidence. So, (based upon this experience) I would like to think about this and that, including the methods of training from now on.
(What’s your training method?)
In any case, concentrate on short training. In the current situation where one has to jump lots of quads, the risk of injury exists if jumping quads in the latter half and the rotation ends up being insufficient. But such a mistake happens when one cannot keep adequate concentration, I think. So, I think it fits me best to train with concentration within a short period of time in an efficient manner, while thinking how to control one’s physical condition and how to take risks of injury.
(Towards World Championships)
As I said before, I aim at a perfect, complete performance for FS. To this end, I think I have started grasping a kind of training method for that purpose within this [4CC] competition. During this competition, the FS took place on the last day, so I was able to observe training methods of various competitors and their ways of jumping, which has inspired me a lot. So, based upon that, I would like to think about how to elevate my skills.
At 4CCs, I have only obtained silver medals (laughs), for which I feel very sorry to Fuji TV. (laughs) But I do believe the silver medal this time has taught me a lot more things as compared to all the previous [silver] medals [at 4CC]. So, I would like to take advantage of all [the learnings] and polish them further, and ultimately I would like to obtain a gold medal here in a year’s time.
END
170311 4CCハイライト＆ロングインタビュー by YzRIKO
Translated by Sophie Moroi in YHIFG, FB.
Source photos: mikarin
Source: yuzusorbet.tumblr.,
Source videos: YzRIKO
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