Kim Yu-Na to Be Dethroned at 2010 Figure Skating Worlds?
Kim Yu-Na is Overrated; Mao Asada is Underrated
I am one of many people who believe that Kim Yu-Na is overrated as a figure skater. Before you point out to me that it's not all about the jumps, I agree! Figure skating is also about other required elements such as spins and spirals. Mao Asada can spin circles around Kim Yu-Na. The speed as well as positioning of Mao Asada's spins are superior to that of Kim's.
Additionally, Mao Asada has more extension to her spirals than does Kim Yu-Na. In fact, during the 2010 Winter Olympics, a figure skating commentator pointed out that Brian Orser, Kim Yu-Na's coach, had been having a hard time trying to get his athlete to work harder on her spirals, and that Yu-Na didn't like practicing spirals.
And it shows. And Kim Yu-Na also must not like practicing spins, because they are on the slow side, and there is nothing extraordinary about the positioning. A big deal was made about Kim Yu-Na breaking figure skating score records during the Olympics. What people fail to realize is that the figure skating judging system is relatively new, in place only since the previous winter Olympics.
So it's to be expected that records will be busted on a recurring basis. In fact, it won't be long before Kim Yu-Na's new scoring record will be broken again, perhaps by another figure skater, perhaps at the 2010 World Championships in Torino, Italy, March 20-29.
It's easy to think that Mao Asada's two triple Axels (one in combination) during the Olympic long free skate should have racked up more points than Kim Yu-Na's jumps, which included a triple Lutz, triple toe loop combination. But a commentator said that a triple Axel, double toe loop, is worth the same as the triple Lutz, triple toe loop.
But what about Asada's other triple Axel? I'm sure that got her some nice points, but I guess Yu-Na's complete jumping package edged out that of Mao Asada. However, that doesn't explain how Yu-Na ended up with so many more points. Perhaps it was little things here and there that simply added up, such as tossing in a third jump (a double) following a triple-double combo, in which one arm was up in the air, the so-called Tano jump?
Perhaps it was the footwork? I didn't see it. It couldn't have possibly been Kim Yu-Na's spins and spirals! So what was it? Was it expectations?
Perhaps it was a comment that Kim Yu-Na had made at some point prior to the long program (and perhaps prior to the short program). The comment was well-publicized, and to paraphrase it, she stated that if she failed to bring home the gold, her entire country would turn against her. (Some fan base, huh!)
Imagine feeling this way about your home country, and you're only 19 years old. And I'm sure that Kim Yu-Na was right, too; I bet indeed South Korea would have turned against her had she not won the gold. The judges knew this, and maybe that's why they scored Kim Yu-Na so high, because they felt sorry for her being under all that pressure from her entire country, the poor thing, even though in 2009, she collected over $8 million in endorsements.
That's a lot of weight to bear for a 19-year-old, and the judges perhaps decided to "give it to her," ensuring Kim Yu-Na's win by awarding her so many points. Whomever has the best long program in figure skating doesn't necessarily win; remember that it's the TOTAL points that determine the winner, and the short program obviously factors into this. But again, even considering that Kim Yu-Na's short program was superior to that of Mao Asada, I still don't see where the total point difference comes from, even when I consider that Mao made a few errors in her long program.
And I wish the voice-over would stop referring to Joannie Rochette's skating as "grace." That's an insult. Since when is grace the same as athleticism? Rochette is pure athleticism, on fire, and all she needs to do is tweak a few things here and there and she could be a serious threat to Kim Yu-Na.
I'm not saying that Yu-Na isn't a great skater. And I'm not even saying she shouldn't have gotten the gold. What I AM saying is that she is overrated, and the point spread between her and the silver and bronze medalists is highly suspicious. And why shouldn't it be? We all know what happened at the Torino Games, don't we? Figure skating judging is notorious for being unfair.
In fact, the 2010 Olympic figure skating commentators were aghast at how low the scores were for Johnny Weir's long program. But the commentators also spoke of Kim Yu-Na as though she had landed quadruples and tossed in a few triple Axels in the second half of her program.
American Mirai Nagasu, only 16, is on course for surpassing Yu-Na, easily; her spins and spirals rank well above those of Mao Asada! And come 2014 in Sochi, Russia, there's bound to be female figure skaters who will trump Kim Yu-Na -- figure skaters we haven't heard about yet, but who will roar onto the scene in the next few years and set new standards.
Published by Jillita Horton
Freelance writer for fitness print magazines and fitness Web sites; ghost writer for fitness Web sites View profile
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189 Comments
Post a CommentInsecure... Grow Up!!! As if this will make a difference... Trying to make a name for yourself... Useless article...
*to prove that the judging system is being very suspicious.
I think there is a lot of money involved to make the "Queen" Yu-Na so big in the figure skating from the Korean Media. Most part of the commentators talk about her as if she is the only female skater, seems like the others are "nothing" and that SUCKS.
Hi, I'm from Brazil and love figure skating.
First of all, thanks for the article, Jillita. That's exactly my point of view.
No one here said that Mao Asada is better than Yu-Na ;-)
What we cannot understand is the huge difference between their total scores at the Olympics. I agree that Yu-Na Kim has more speed, artistry and higher quality jumps. But I still think that Mao should have gained more points because she landed two triple axels and made a beautiful interpretation also, even with the mistakes. I'm one more in thousands of people who think that Yu-Na is overrated. I prefer not to talk about "having the full package" when it comes to jumps, as Yu-Na doesn't have a triple axel and Mao didn't go on a 3-3 on the last... 3 seasons?
What about the 2010 Worlds in Torino? Kim had a fall in the triple salchow and lost the double axel. Mao had a clean program and still got lower points. And Patrick Chan is there too, to prove that the judging system i
I'm sorry that you hate and resent Yu-Na Kim so much for playing the scoring system better than Mao Asada. Performance-wise, Mao Asada could have done better and Yu-Na Kim had a clean program. Even though I'm a more of a fan of Yu-Na, I like Mao too. She's definitely more flexible. That, plus the triple axel, however doesn't mean she's better than Yu-Na. Mao skates slowly compared to Yu-Na, her jumps are smaller and less transitions. Mao's been kind of boring these past years, triple axels but she needs better choreography. While there is argument that Yu-Na was over scored, the judges were pretty fair on Mao. Mao is definitely not underrated.
Sorry for the repost, I thought logging in would allow people to link to my profile - apparently not.
The link to my profile is, however, on my article about problems with the new ISU judging system for figure skating and recommendations for change:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6064182/problems_with_the_new_isu_judging_system.html?cat=14
I always felt Kim Yu Na was very good but also very overrated. And I feel that the figure skating system rewards people who do the basics extremely well but has very little reward for those who put the time and effort into executing the more difficult elements which take huge amounts of time and practice to accomplish. Read my two part article for the full details: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6064182/problems_with_the_new_isu_judging_system.html?cat=14
I always felt Kim Yu Na was very good but also very overrated. And I feel that the figure skating system rewards people who do the basics extremely well but has very little reward for those who put the time and effort into executing the more difficult elements which take huge amounts of time and practice to accomplish. Read my two part article for the full details: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6064182/problems_with_the_new_isu_judging_system.html?cat=14
would make up for her mistakes. On artistic aspects, which the author never mentioned, the difference between Yuna and Mao is that Yuna's programs have themes and personalities. Yuna becomes a sexy Bond girl with some element of flirt on her SP, and then she turns into a beautiful elegant fairy on her LP. I'm not sure what Mao was trying to convey during her programs. Not to mention Mao used the same music she used in the previous season. Also for Mao's program, same music repeats over and over. For Yuna, the feel and tone of music change throughout her program, and she shows different emotions as the music changes. This brings life into her program instead of making it look like she's simply moving from one jump to the next. This is why so many commentators refer to Yuna as not just an athlete, but also an artist. Now having said all this, I do think the score difference was more than it should have been. But, was it to the extent to suggest controversy? HECK
To respond to your comments on technical aspects, yes Mao did her 3A's. But, none of Mao's combination jumps were followed by triples. Yuna did three combination jumps followed by triples. This is due to the fact that Mao loses speed on landing whereas Yuna maintains her speed throughout the landing, which allows her to follow her first jump by triple second while maintaining the same quality between her jumps. In addition, jumps are not just about what happens in the air. Yuna transitions from one jump to the next seamlessly connecting all different elements, e.g. transitioning to 2As from Ina Bauer and Spread Eagle. Overall, Yuna executed all six jumps whereas Mao didn't do single Lutz or Salchow. All of these factor into overall program composition. Don't forget, Mao struggled with the landing on 3F and missed one of the jumps in her LP. Frankly, I agree that Mao's spirals and spins are better, but slightly at best, and definitely not to the extent that it
Frankly, I'm tired of people accusing Yuna with controversy. It's a grave accusation, and it amazes me how easily people throw it out there. The ISU is dominated by Japanese sponsors. The changes made to the scoring system this year that favors high level jumps INCLUDING 3-Axel (I wonder who would benefit from this..) demonstrates whose side ISU is actually on. Seriously? The judges gave Yuna gold since she was under immense pressure? You think Mao was there for a picnic? You think Japan didn't care about Mao? Please....