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Queen Yu-na thrills the judges

Posted December. 13, 2013 07:43,   

한국어

“It seems the judges were incredibly thrilled (by her performance).”

“Queen” Yu-na was absolutely in a different league from others. Korean figure skater Kim Yu-na captured the hearts of figure skating fans around the world with her first performance in the international competition this season after recovering from an injury, despite a fall on her signature triple jump combination.

Kim scored 60.60 points in TES (Total Elements Score) and 71.52 points in PCS (Program Components Score) in her free skate for a total of 131.12 points including one-point deduction, in the 2013 Golden Spin of Zagreb held at Dom Sportova arena in the Croatian capital on Sunday. With the total score of 204.49 points including the short program score of 73.37 points on the previous day, Kim claimed a landslide victory. Miki Ando who scored 176.82 finished a distant second. Kim’s total score was the fifth highest of all her scores in the international competitions.

Kim fell on her first jump, a triple lutz-triple toe loop combination, of the free skate program, choreographed to a tango piece titled "Adios Nonino." She could have earned a much higher score if she had not made this mistake. Because of the mistake, her TES remained at 60.60, but she staged a stable performance sufficient to raise her PCS to 71.52.

The four Korean international judges of the International Skating Union who thoroughly watched Kim’s performance spoke highly of her artistry in unison. Judge Ahn Na-yeong, a professor of Keimyung University, said, “(Kim’s performance) was impeccable from an artistic perspective. Most of the judges gave her over 9 out of 10 points. If there had not been a fall on the first jump, she could have got 10 points.”

Judge Lee Jeong-soo said, “Except for the mistake at the beginning, I felt Kim’s skating had reached the level (of perfection). Her skills in the use of skate blades, steps, transitions and so on have got much more flexible and smoother than before. And she looked very composed during the performance.” Judge Lee Ji-hee said, “Skaters are usually shaken once they fall on the first jump. However, Yu-na was steady even after the mistake. And she was skillful enough to add a triple toe loop jump to the triple lutz jump to make up for the mistake.” Judge Goh Seong-hee belonged to the panel of judge at the competition.

All judges said that “it would be easy for Kim to win twice at the Olympics at the current pace.” However, there are things that Kim should supplement until the winter Olympics in February. Ahn said, “As Kim said, her physical condition is not yet at 100 percent, so she needs to build up her physical strength. If she increase physical endurance, her performance will become more perfect.” Judge Lee Jeong-soo said, “Her performance is already on a different level from the rest. But I am looking forward to a better performance in Olympics because it is no one other than Kim Yu-na.”

In the meantime, Mao Asada of Japan won the ISU Grand Prix Final in Fukuoka, Japan on Saturday again after last year’s victory by scoring 204.02 points, 0.47 points lower than Kim’s score.