Chapter 81 The Miracle That Replaces the Ordinary
Besides the youth group, several members of the adult group are also preparing for the new season.
Throughout the summer vacation, Yang Yiyan, a female singles player who is only 1.6 meters tall, weighed only 43.19 kilograms. After finally losing weight, she gained muscle to the point of numbness before the start of the B-level competition.
With tears in her eyes, she looked at Feng Simai, who was also in dire straits beside her, and suddenly felt that she could still grit her teeth and persevere.
Happiness is something that comes from comparison.
Feng Simai's summer vacation after the college entrance examination was even more arduous than the three months before the exam. She spent more time on land training than on ice training every day. Physical fitness, endurance, and flexibility training were commonplace. In addition, she also had dance and performance classes.
Xia Yuezi kept her word. Before resuming training, she took him to the hospital for a check-up to confirm that there were no problems with his body. After that, she helped him build muscle and started practicing new quadruple jumps.
At first, Xia Yuezi didn't intend for him to start training so early, but in just one offseason, many young players from his batch of trainees emerged like mushrooms after rain, especially Kevin from the United States, who was already able to consistently deliver 4T and 4T+3T, becoming the new number one player after Albert's retirement.
Domestically, Xia Yuezi had just returned from an exchange trip to Northeast China and learned from Song Qiao that Lin Ye was launching an attack on 4LZ.
Looking at the youth group, a number of men's singles players have gradually released training videos of their quadruple jumps. The success rate cannot be seen from satellite footage alone, but all signs indicate that an era of explosive growth in men's singles quadruple jumps is about to arrive.
Before the start of the school year, he only had a chance to catch his breath when the coaches took the youth group kids out to compete.
Last season, the women's singles team won two spots at the World Junior Championships. With six Grand Prix events for the junior group, there aren't enough spots for junior players this season. Fortunately, Changchun, Jilin became the host city for one of the events this year, which will give them three more spots.
Besides Yan Rui, another women's singles player in the summer group also secured a spot in the Italian Open. However, her ranking in the National Championships was relatively low, so this is her only tournament. If she performs well in the later tournaments, things will change.
The two contestants were scheduled to compete back-to-back, so Xia Yuezi and Meng Xin had to separate. Before leaving, Xia Yuezi instructed the newly joined coaches to pay more attention to the students and to adjust the training plan promptly if any unexpected situations occurred. She also sent several pages of detailed documents to the coaches' group chat.
Yan Rui performed well last season and was chosen as the second event. The women's singles player ahead of her chose the first event. Generally speaking, there are not many top players in the first event, and most of the players skate very tightly.
When she was choosing a station, Xia Yuezi was standing next to her. The two of them eventually chose Tokyo Station in Japan, which saved them the trouble of adjusting to the time difference.
Before the trip, Xia Yuezi introduced her to the opponents for this leg of the competition. The only ones worth paying attention to are Russia's Karolina, who was promoted to the next group this year, and the host country's player, Koike Akina.
Both of them are players who can master all five skills and consistently deliver high-level three-on-three performances.
The youth group competition went by quickly. Most of the participants were strangers to each other and did not interact as much as the adult group. Soon it was time for the competition.
Yan Rui only left the hotel for the draw and music before the competition; the rest of the time he stayed in his room watching movies. Xia Yuezi, on the other hand, was invited out for a meal by Ms. Qiandao.
Her short program music was the end credits song from the movie "Charlotte's Web". Although the International Skating Union has allowed vocals in the music selection this year, many skaters still chose classical music. Even those who chose music with vocals had some post-processing done.
Xia Yuezi couldn't stand it any longer, so she called the girl to her room the day before the competition. Her indifferent eyes stared straight at her, making the girl take a few steps back and lean against the door.
Xia Yuezi led her to the bedside, and the two sat there in silence for a long time. Then Coach Xia sighed and asked, "Are you very scared?"
Yan Rui didn't respond, then heard the coach ask, "Are you afraid of me, or afraid of the game?"
Xia Yuezi didn't give Yan Rui a chance to shake his head and continued, "You know that Xiaodeng did well in the last competition, and the higher-ups are considering adding another competition for her, right?"
Yan Rui lowered his head and whispered, "I know."
Xia Yuezi's eyes remained expressionless: "This year, only you and Zhuang Qingyun have won two events in China. Zhuang Qingyun has already finished the first event and won a bronze medal. If you don't perform well, the Skating Association can have Xiaodeng replace you in the second event at any time."
At this time of day, the hotel corridor was deserted, and the entire room felt like an isolated space, so quiet that Yan Rui felt uneasy, and his right hand, which was placed at his side, unconsciously tightened.
Xia Yuezi pulled Yan Rui, who was frozen in place, into her arms and silently patted her shoulder.
She knew that saying this was very cruel to a young girl who had just been promoted to the next level, but sometimes smoothing things over can actually increase a player's pre-competition anxiety. And that's reality, and that's the cruelty of competitive sports.
The rise of figure skating in China is an indisputable fact.
In the provincial team, Xia Yuezi saw mostly top performers in various national competitions. However, as far as she knew, the number of children practicing figure skating at the club this year was twice that of previous years. Apart from those whose parents were cultivating their interests, there were also quite a few promising talents with good results. No one could guarantee that they wouldn't become the next number one figure skater.
The sooner Yan Rui leaves the ivory tower, the better for her, provided that the child has enough psychological resilience.
"In sports, there are no irreplaceable athletes, only athletes who forge ahead. Shirai Nanako almost swept the podium during the Vancouver cycle. Before Yumikawa Ria appeared, everyone thought she would be Japan's unshakeable number one and would have another big battle with Sung Eun-hee in Sochi. We all know how it turned out."
“You trained with Yang Yiyan for a summer. You know how hard she worked to maintain her 3A level. Everyone knows that if she can’t maintain her current level, she won’t even have to wait until she is replaced. Her limited talent alone will be enough to drag her down.”
Yan Rui's stiff body gradually relaxed and trembled in Xia Yuezi's arms. She didn't cry out, but Xia Yuezi felt the dampness on her neck.
After a while, Xia Yuezi felt the child's breathing gradually stabilize, so she slowly let go of her, put her hands on her shoulders, and her voice gradually softened, carrying a hint of encouragement.
"You don't want to let down the Skating Federation's expectations of you, and you don't want to be replaced by others. But from another perspective, your career is still a blank sheet of paper. There is no structure on it. What color you paint it with is entirely up to you. So you don't need to care about other people's opinions and views. On that sheet of paper, paint the color you want."
…………
The competition venue was filled with Japanese figure skating fans, who chanted the names of the three host country athletes, their voices echoing across the ice rink.
Yan Rui drew the first spot in the last group, and in the same group was Akina Koike, also a student of Ms. Chishima, who had already entered the spotlight of figure skating fans with her gold medal in the junior division of the All Japan Championships last season.
Carolina has finished her race and is currently in first place with a score of 60.21.
Xia Yuezi stood outside the ice rink, occasionally exchanging a few words with Ms. Qiandao, but her eyes were fixed on her own child.
When Yan Rui left home this morning, she still had no expression, but her swollen eyes had already betrayed her emotions last night.
Xia Yuezi thought that the shock she received yesterday was too great and that she hadn't recovered yet. She had prepared a speech to comfort her after the competition, but she still failed to land any of her jumps during the sixth practice session.
As the announcement ended and the other skaters left the field, Yan Ruigang skated back to her coach's side and saw Xia Yuezi smiling and giving her a thumbs up.
"Go ahead, keep this mindset, and believe in yourself."
Yan Rui's cheeks were still flushed, and he didn't show much emotion. He just nodded heavily to the coach and turned to head to the ice rink.
Charlotte's Web focuses on the friendship and mutual help among animals, and can be viewed as a fairy tale.
Yan Rui, dressed in a bright yellow Costum, plays the little girl Fern in the film, and the original novel is also told from her perspective.
The children in the youth group possess a unique naivety and innocence, so their performances do not need overly elaborate embellishments to enhance their inner meaning.
As the melodious piano music began, Yan Rui placed his left hand on his chin, gently raised his head, and smiled slightly, just like the moment he first met Wilbur, radiating a childlike glow.
The weight on Xia Yuezi's heart was lifted a little, and she watched Yan Rui's gliding gradually relax as he stepped on the nodes to complete his first jump 3F+3T.
Ms. Chishima squinted and probed, "This new little one seems quite good. You must have put a lot of effort into training her, right?"
Xia Yuezi calmly pushed it back: "What are you saying? I treat every student equally. Besides, how can you train an athlete without putting in a lot of effort?"
Ms. Chishima choked for a moment, then chuckled dryly twice before turning her attention back to the program itself.
The show had now entered its second half, and vocal performances were gradually revealed, pushing the show to its climax. Yan Rui raised her foot and spread her arms to perform a swallow-style walk, just like the little girl in the movie embracing her Wilbur.
This innocence from her childhood allowed her to fully empathize with Wilbur's fear and loneliness. She thought she must let Wilbur see the snow in winter, just as she cared for him in the movie.
"Wilbur, I love you the most."
Most of the ice skating fans in the stands are adults. In their world, pragmatism outweighs idealism. Suddenly seeing such a program, they were subtly touched.
The last move of the show was 3LZ. Yan Rui put away his smile and jumped with a hint of determination, but after sliding out, there was a touch of warmth in his eyes.
This warmth is more about the children's affection and concern expressed in their innocent words. She watched as Wilbur found a spider as a friend, and the spider became Wilbur's new guardian.
She stood near Wilbur, witnessing its growth, while Fern also completed his own growth and transformation at this time.
Looking at Yan Rui's smile, Xia Yuezi suddenly thought of the lyrics of this song.
"That was just an ordinary miracle today, and we are all part of that ordinary miracle."
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