Chapter 130: Excerpts from Four Strict Pieces
The men's singles free skate not only allowed Feng Simai to turn the tide and win the gold medal, but also brought the debate about difficulty and execution back to the forums.
Because throughout the free skate, only Feng Simai had a green light on the real-time scoreboard the entire time, his score was relatively cleaner.
The team had sent a reporter over long ago to conduct a private interview. Xia Yuezi only spoke a few words to him and then stayed by his side.
There's still some time before the women's singles free skate begins. Yang Yiyan already has a lot of competition experience, and Yan Rui has her parents and Meng Xin with her, so she doesn't need to be by the athlete's side every moment, which will make things easier for her.
Shortly after the women's singles competition began, reporters went backstage with cameras to film, but most players only glanced at the cameras before turning back to their own tasks. The favorites on the podium were all in the last group, warming up in a room.
Zhang Meng leaned against the yoga mat, doing the splits and stretching her ligaments; Yan Rui swung the rope with both hands, jumping rapidly; Yang Yiyan sat next to Meng Xin, closed her eyes, leaned against the wall, had earphones in her ears, and tapped her fingers rhythmically on her knees.
The reporter looked at the woman standing by the door, not going in, and asked, "Coach Xia, aren't you going in?"
Xia Yuezi shook her head: "They are all getting into shape right now. I'll go in just before they go on stage."
Upon hearing this, the reporter waved to the photographers beside him, telling them to move away from the room. After shooting the necessary footage, the reporter turned off the camera, left the backstage area, and found a good spot to wait for their contestant to take the stage.
Compared to before, Zhang Mengyi's physical fitness has declined significantly, not only due to injuries but also due to her age.
Judging from her performance so far this season, she still maintains the 3LZ+3T configuration in the short program, but in the second half of the free skate, her stamina drops significantly, and even without the triple jump combination, it is difficult for her to clean up.
"If she competes in the National Championships in this form, her chances of qualifying for the Olympics this year are probably slim," Meng Xin muttered softly, looking up at the scores that had been released.
Xia Yuezi sighed softly, her gaze fixed on the white coach in the waiting area. He was wearing the Chinese team uniform, and his face did not show any obvious emotions, but through the micro-expressions on the big screen, it was clear that he was not satisfied with the results.
"The National Championships are still a long way off. The women's singles is changing every day. Who knows how things will develop later?"
The shadow cast by Zhang Mengyi was gradually overshadowed by the ice skating fans after Yan Rui entered the arena, and the commentators began their work amidst the cheers of the audience.
"Now on stage is Yan Rui, a young athlete from China. She is ranked fourth in the short program. Her best result last season was 196.88 at the World Championships."
"Her free skate this season is based on 'The Orphan of Zhao,' one of the four great tragedies of Yuan Dynasty Chinese opera. There are also many classic film and television adaptations, but the music she chose is not from movies or dramas, but from dance dramas."
The music in a ballet is not played throughout the entire performance, but rather it plays during certain scenes, while the dance interprets the plot and characters.
After confirming with Yan Rui, Xia Yuezi discussed with the choreographer and selected four pieces of music to create a four-minute complete program in the order of the story.
During her time in the youth group, Yan Rui suffered the consequences of insufficient performance skills, which meant that she had to rely on the performances of others whenever she wanted to stand on the podium in major competitions.
After being promoted to a higher level, my performance skills improved slightly thanks to the training from the coaches in the group. However, this improvement was limited to one performance style. If I were to switch to another style, my performance skills would revert to their previous state.
Yan Rui stood quietly in the middle of the ice rink, her gaze calmly fixed ahead, revealing no emotion. She parted her lips slightly, using deep breaths to regulate her rhythm and relieve the pressure in her heart.
The opening pipa music was crisp and clear. She glided forward lightly, waved her hands like wings, and as the music swayed, she lifted her foot to complete her first move, 3F+3T.
As the story unfolds, another percussion instrument is incorporated into the pipa music, sounding like a set of chimes, which intensifies the rhythm and makes Yan Rui's timing more accurate.
Feng Simai sat in the audience, looking at the real-time scoreboard above the screen, his brows furrowing slightly.
The score given was too low; it's as if the judges were deliberately suppressing her score. How can a perfect combination jump result in a score of only 0.43?
But the two coaches weren't focused on the score; they stood on tiptoe, looking into the distance, and couldn't help but make gestures to indicate the next movement.
The program then moved into the second piece of music, which, according to the storyline, was probably the scene of Cheng Ying offering his son, and was also the climax of the entire dance drama.
Yan Rui's footwork became more complex, but based on her own situation, the choreographer did not make the movements difficult to control, so the speed was not fast, but the blade changes were very clear.
"How many sets of patterns has she specified to practice now?" Xia Yuezi asked.
Meng Xin teaches most of the spins and footwork in the group, and occasionally trains with other ice dance athletes.
Meng Xin's heels returned to the ground without turning her head: "Six or seven, I guess. After she recovered from her cold, she practiced with the ice dance team. Coach Guo and I didn't worry about her much."
Speaking of this, Meng Xin stroked her chin and recalled, "But I heard from Bingwu that she has made great progress recently, and the choreographers have been able to work on difficult transitions. The difficulty of her two sets of footwork choreography this time is aiming for a high-quality level four."
While the two were talking, Yan Rui entered the jump in an "X" shape, using his waist to rotate upwards, but for some unknown reason, the triple jump turned into a double jump.
Meng Xin gasped, "Wow, what's going on today? One or two of the Lolita dresses are having problems."
Xia Yuezi continued, "It looks like there's something wrong with the shaft, but her training and music practice went smoothly, so it should be nothing serious."
As the show progressed into its second half, Yan Rui's intensity didn't diminish; instead, it became even more resolute.
This section of music becomes somber and gentler compared to the previous parts. At this moment, Yan Rui's role changes from Cheng Ying to the orphan of the Zhao family.
She completed 2A+3T, then jumped into a swallow spin, hooking her skates back with both hands to form a donut shape. After completing the full number of spins, she stood up and glided to the side to enter another set of spins.
Yan Rui transitioned from a windmill spin to a squat spin, with one leg flared outwards, almost the entire calf touching the ice, forming a T-shaped leg turn. He then switched feet and hopped into an "I" spin, gradually accelerating while maintaining a smile on his face, his movements carrying a hint of determination.
After the movement ended, she suddenly raised her head, and the music stopped at that moment, followed by the final section of the piece.
This melody is the most somber of the four selected excerpts, but by the end, it carries a sense of profound silence, as if everything has come to a close.
Yan Rui completed the last 2A, raised his leg high as if celebrating a victory, then turned around, stretched out his arms, and raised his head high.
Xia Yuezi pursed her lips, clapped her hands, picked up her coat, and walked towards the entrance, while also discussing things with Meng Xin.
"I think the emphasis in this piece could be increased a bit more, the footwork isn't tight enough, and there are some parts that could be improved."
Meng Xin recalled the performance just now and gently reminded her: "Let's revise the piece first. Listening to it in the venue, some notes are so low that they are almost inaudible, and some parts can be added with trills or twizzles, but it also depends on whether she has the stamina to keep up."
Xia Yuezi nodded, watching Yan Rui gradually slide back, indicating that they would talk about it when they got back.
The usually reserved little girl, with bright eyes and a radiant smile, threw herself into the coach's arms, revealing her true emotions.
Xia Yuezi touched her sweaty hand and quickly draped her coat over her shoulders: "You skated pretty well today, looks like you're in good shape."
Yan Rui sniffed, his voice a little muffled: "It's just a pity about that 3lo."
Meng Xin patted her head and comforted her, "It's good that you didn't fall, and it didn't affect your performance afterwards, so don't worry about it so much."
The waiting time was rather long, and the audience and contestants on the platform couldn't help but get impatient.
Based on past experience, the longer the wait, the more mistakes the judges see in the routine. When the final scores are announced, the three contestants in each division become memes.
Technical score: 63.47, Program component score: 61.18, Free skate score: 124.65, Total score: 192.07.
In an instant, Xia Yuezi went through the list of judges for the free skate in her mind, and then she remembered that there seemed to be no Chinese judges in this competition, but the European and American judges occupied six seats.
Although it's an unwritten rule that judges are strict with their scores at the beginning of the season, during the Olympic season, all the judges and ice hockey associations have started to exert their efforts, and the scores will be relatively more lenient. Moreover, she has just watched the whole process and has not seen any athlete get such a high score. Even Zhang Mengyi received normal treatment.
Yan Rui's performance last season wasn't bad either, and he even stood on the podium in some of the regional competitions. Yet, his treatment in his first appearance this season was even worse than at last season's World Championships.
Zhao Shuhua, who was watching the live broadcast from Beijing, saw the scores and wished she could immediately refresh the score sheet and write down all these people in her notebook.
These European and American judges had better pray that she doesn't draw the women's singles technical expert position at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, otherwise she will definitely treat everyone strictly.
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