Chapter 16 Bonus PB (Personal Best)
The women's singles competition at the Austrian Open started earlier than the men's singles, and the best seats in the stands were filled with spectators early on.
Yang's mother spoke a few words to Yang Yiyan backstage, and only after she warmed up did she follow Feng's mother and Feng Simai to the stage. As soon as they got up there, they found that they were surrounded by familiar Asian faces. Yang's mother wanted to go up and talk to them, but when she realized that the banners they were holding were all written in Japanese, she immediately turned around and stayed quietly in her seat.
Feng Simai sat between the two parents and explained in a low voice: "Japan is currently the country with the most promising future in figure skating in Asia. Many of its fans are full-time housewives who have plenty of time and energy to follow the competitions."
"But I didn't see this many people in the men's singles matches." Feng's mother mainly focuses on the men's singles. She also watched the Latvian tournament, and when the camera panned across the stands, there were very few people there.
"Among the four figure skating events, women's singles has always been the most popular, and Aria Yumikawa is already a Grand Slam winner in the junior division. In terms of attention and fan base, there are few in the entire junior division who can compare with her."
What Feng Simai didn't say is that the number of Asian men's singles players who can reach the A-level tournaments can be counted on one hand, and there are signs of their decline. Fujiwara Yoshino, as one of the most promising Asian men's singles players in the youth group, has not won any titles in the World Tour Finals and the World Junior Championships.
However, the women's singles competition is fierce, with Japan and South Korea vying for the gold medal in the senior group, while Japan leads the junior group, followed closely by China and South Korea, and is a contender against Russia.
Mrs. Feng nodded in understanding. The three of them sat in the stands for a while before the announcement came on. When the last group of contestants went on stage for their sixth practice, a huge uproar erupted in the stands, causing the three of them to cover their ears.
According to the order of the competition, the broadcast announced the information of the players one by one, and Yumikawa Ria was the last one to be introduced.
Xia Yuezi even heard the shouts of "Ganbatte!" coming from the stands. She glanced at the number of people in the opposite stands and thought that the organizers of this stop were quite good at making money.
They moved the women's short program forward and the free skate to the last day, worried that the audience would leave, so they even skated right after the opening performance in the evening.
When Xia Yuezi received the competition schedule, she stared at the last line, "gala," for a long time. She asked the staff, "Is there definitely going to be a performance skater after this competition?"
The staff member answered very confidently, and Xia Yuezi thought to herself, "They're probably here because of the popular contestants."
Exhibition skating isn't a part of every competition; frankly, it's a commercial activity. Popular skaters are willing to perform, and fans are willing to pay for tickets, so the organizers are willing to spend money to hold the event.
Yang Yiyan drew the last group and was the first to perform. When she was seen standing on the sidelines communicating with the coach, her mother was sitting in the stands, taking out a support banner from her bag and unfolding it.
Feng Simai sensed the movement beside him, turned his head, and was captivated by the vibrant colors.
Wasn't Yang's mother a designer? So her taste should be pretty good, but what's with this fluorescent red that hurts my eyes?
Feng Simai was full of questions, but he dared not speak them.
As soon as Yang Yiyan came on stage, she saw the banner in her mother's hand, which stood out among the group of people wearing light colors.
Her lips twitched, she waved in the direction of the banner, and quickly glided away on her ice skates.
Yang's mother seemed oblivious to her daughter's embarrassment and even said to Feng's mother next to her, "See? I told you this color would definitely catch her eye."
Mrs. Feng expressed interest: "Okay, I'll make one for my son another day."
Caught in the middle, Feng Simai silently cast a sympathetic glance at the girl on the ice, then silently shed tears in her heart: Mom, I don't need this kind of thing.
Yang Yiyan stood in the center of the ice rink, looked up at her mother's spot, and took a deep breath.
Yumikawa Ria stood to the side, watching the dancing girl with great interest. She landed smoothly on the ice during the opening 3F.
Yang Yiyan gently brushed her cheeks, followed the gliding trajectory with a small jump, and entered a bent-over spin.
This was the first time that Yumikawa Ria had seen Pearl Bellman in person, but Yang Yiyan did not stay in one place; her position shifted.
Thomas sat in the technical expert's seat with a slight frown. This spin had many elements that could be upgraded. If it could be presented perfectly, he would definitely give it a level four rating. However, the deviation that occurred at the end only allowed him to give it a level three rating.
Xia Yuezi stood outside the arena, and every time Yang Yiyan successfully landed her jump, she would clap along with the audience.
She looked at the contestants who were completely immersed in the music, a subtle smile in her eyes. Yang Yiyan was getting better and better with the show.
The girl on the ice had a serene expression, and every movement she made was perfectly executed, allowing the audience to witness the brightness and tranquility of the moonlight.
The selection of music for figure skating and concerts are similar in that music with a stronger emphasis can better move the audience's emotions. The reason why relatively soothing music like "Moonlight" is a favorite among many skaters is because its melody and mood are very much in line with the characteristics of figure skating. The choreography can be used to showcase the layers of music through physical movements.
From this perspective, Yang Yiyan's short program was very successful, and the audience cheered loudly at the end.
Yang's mother stood on the stands, waving the banner in her hand frantically. Yang Yiyan could only see a red afterimage when she looked over.
She bowed to the crowd with a sincere and warm smile, which touched many ice skating fans in the stands.
Feng Simai was pleased to hear the two European and American women sitting in front and behind him praising Yang Yiyan in English. He was about to thank them and explain the situation when Yang's mother, who was sitting next to him, was faster. She had already turned around and started talking to them, her eyes never losing their light.
It's clear she's very proud of her daughter.
He tilted his head slightly, glancing at his mother out of the corner of his eye, his hands clasped tightly in his lap. He actually wanted to ask Mrs. Feng if she felt as genuinely happy as Mrs. Yang after each performance.
Suddenly, Feng Simai was pulled by a force. Feng's mother hugged the child in her arms, but her eyes were looking at the waiting area on the other side of the field: "What are you thinking about? You're going to play tomorrow. Don't put pressure on yourself."
Feng Simai lowered his head, a slight smile playing on his lips, and gave a soft reply.
Yang Yiyan's short program score reached 64.78, marked with a PB, with her program component score reaching 27 for the first time.
Although the program's content score wasn't very high, figure skating scoring is mostly based on seniority. Those who are left with low P-point scores can only climb up little by little through medals and results, but once they get up there, it's very difficult for them to fall back down.
Xia Yuezi gave her a high five and smiled, "Well done."
Yang Yiyan blinked, her mischievous thoughts resurfacing: "Then can I go back to the hotel...?"
"cannot."
Before she could finish speaking, Xia Yuezi rejected her without hesitation: "The short program rankings haven't even come out yet, and the free skate hasn't even started, and you dare to make demands of me."
It was obvious that this girl was eyeing the chocolate again, but it was no use even if Xia Yuezi agreed, because she was afraid that she would soften her heart and store all the snacks with Yang's mother in advance.
"Okay." Yang Yiyan said in a drawn-out tone, looking aggrieved as she followed the coach off the field.
Ice skating fans watching the match frantically tapped their screens, capturing Yang Yiyan's expression and turning it into a meme that quickly went viral.
Alisa was the second to last to perform, and at this point, Yang Yiyan still held the highest score.
Her coach advised, "Just follow your usual training routine. As long as you don't fall and hurt the referee, we'll get you onto the podium no matter what."
She won the gold medal in the last competition, and even if she only wins a bronze medal this time, she can still make it to the finals.
France has never been a strong singles skater, and as the top skater, the French Ice Federation has poured a lot of resources into her, so she must do her best for her country.
Xia Yuezi didn't go backstage with Yang Yiyan, but stood on the sidelines watching the rest of the competition. Alisa still habitually did a loop when landing on her jump, but she drew the entire audience into her performance by hitting the music's key points.
The judges were very kind to this program, giving each move a real-time goe of over 0.5 points. Although the scores may not seem high, the seven choreographed moves combined are at least equivalent to the score of a triple jump.
Therefore, although Thomas caught most of Alisa's jumps, the judges still used the GOE and program component score to give her an edge over Yang Yiyan.
Xia Yuezi stared at the score on the big screen, which was less than one point higher than Yang Yiyan's, and felt as disgusted as if she had swallowed a fly.
Although Alisa has never made any dramatic statements or actions throughout her career and is one of the few clean people in the skating world, it does not stop Xia Yuezi from wanting to launch a full-scale attack at this moment.
Fortunately, Yumekawa Ria is next on the stage.
Her short program music choice was "Carmen." There's a saying about figure skating music selection: "Songs of the Goddess are everywhere, Romain Rolland is flying all over the place, and Carmen's mask is worthless."
This means that the four songs mentioned above are classic selections chosen by countless figure skaters. Before vocal tracks were made available, many skaters who chose these songs would end up playing the same tracks.
Xia Yuezi recalled that in one World Championships, three athletes in a row chose the same piece of music, and the judges immediately showed their pain.
As soon as the symphony began, Yumikawa Ria, dressed in a red knitted suit, tilted her head slightly toward the audience and gave them a flirtatious look.
Without a doubt, in this show she plays the role of Carmen, a gypsy woman, a woman entangled in a love triangle with a soldier and a bullfighter.
Ria Yumikawa's first jump was a 2A. She raised her hands and had an excellent sense of hang time. She even loosened her cross-legged position before landing, making it look like she jumped into the air.
The passionate, energetic rhythm, combined with Yumikawa Ria's gradually unleashing movements, is like a red rose struggling to bloom on ice—beautiful yet dangerous.
Xia Yuezi nodded silently in approval. Although her performance was not yet fully mature, she was already able to capture the audience's emotions.
Moreover, her choreographer must have referenced the choreography of the legendary Russian ice dance pair, as some of the steps and movements look very familiar.
As the performance progressed, Yumikawa Ria's smile became increasingly captivating. She placed 3lz+3lo on her last jump, and the entire audience erupted in enthusiastic cheers the moment she succeeded.
Xia Yuezi clapped along, her smile never fading. None of the athletes who managed to climb out of the ranks of figure skating refugees were truly outstanding, no wonder the judges' expressions grew increasingly grim as they looked at her.
Yumikawa Ria topped the short program rankings with a score of 67.89. Xia Yuezi, looking at the program's rather meager score, couldn't help but roll her eyes backstage.
Looking at Alisa, who was being interviewed, and thinking about the slight difference in scores between the two, Yang Yiyan became even more determined to perform a more difficult challenge in the youth group. Only in this way could she regain some initiative from the judges.
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
