Thoughts on the top ladies after the season & looking forward to what's next JAPAN’S TOP THREE SATOKO MIYAHARA: I still remember seeing the video from Satoko’s free skate at the Japan Open before the season even began and I remember thinking there was something I liked about this girl- and that program. She’s this little, tiny dynamo and I can’t wait to see what comes from her next. She’s got such a light, graceful presence on the ice that is so pleasing to watch. She can struggle with jump deductions that cost her points, so hopefully she can grow and gain some strength for that bigger jumping power she needs. As a now World silver medallist, she has some more international credibility and I look for the judges to be more favorable to her next season. If Mao Asada makes a return to competition next year, Satoko will really be given a run for her money to keep her Japanese title. My biggest hope, though, is that her 80-s throw back short program dress (or anything like it) will never make an appearance again. RIKA HONGO: Rika truly made some improvements in her skating this year. There is much improvement left to do, but by the end of the season I could see that she was performing to her music better and her surprise win on the Grand Prix circuit brought lots of international competition experience her way. Her hunched shoulders have to continue to be worked on and she needs to push emoting on the ice as well. She’s got a big task in taking over the Japanese throne from Satoko or Mao and some big leaps in her skating would have to be taken for that to happen. There’s also some talent coming up from the junior ranks in Japan as well. To stay competitive, Rika needs to throw down mature programs that flow better and demonstrate some better jumping technique. KANAKO MURAKAMI: It was a scratchy season for Kanako. She had an inconsistent Grand Prix season and struggled at the Japanese nationals. She had a breakout performance in the short program at Worlds and it was lovely to see her skating at her best. She had issues in the long, but she still posted her highest score of the season at that event. Overall, though, I’m not sure Kana has the technical difficulty to break into the top 6 in the World. She runs an easier set of technical content and her season average score (174.46) was twelfth best. I love Kana as an artist, but she also runs a huge risk of being overshadowed by the other talent in her country. And please- no more Phantom next year? I did love that short program on her, though. But two POTO programs is really too much. Next? Part 3 Ladies of the US!
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About the Blog:Reviews, predictions and opinions in the magical, sparkly and dramatic field of figure skating. Archives
November 2017
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