Chapter 95: Changes in Women's Singles
He Hui's first competition of the new season is the Finland Cup in early October, where she will challenge the six-quad free skating for the first time.
The short program went smoothly. He Hui spun and jumped freely and flexibly on the ice rink to the tune of Mozart's piano music, and danced to the cheerful rhythm.
"I always feel that Mozart and you are very similar." Li Chumiao's comment was, "Both are child prodigies."
He Hui shrugged and looked away.
Child prodigies have their own problems.
He Hui is more worried about her free skating now. It has only been a week since she debuted 4S and 4Lo. She said that she can only make small steps forward in improving her success rate.
Li Chumiao sensed the difference in He Hui, paused, and said, "Take the Finland Cup as a drill."
"I hope the success rate can be improved a little bit." He Hui curled her lips.
He Hui suddenly thought of something and said, "Ophelia also released a new quadruple move - 4T, although I think the back outside ice should have appeared first."
“Okay, that’s right.” Li Chumiao agreed, “4T and 4S are usually the first quadruple jumps.”
"Besides, I heard that there are other contestants who will compete in four weeks in this competition."
"I heard about it." Li Chumiao nodded: "Tell me, I've seen you do so many quadruple jumps, should I try it too? Otherwise I feel like I'm behind the times."
"That'll definitely make your rock more powerful, no kidding."
He Hui knew that in the future, without a quadruple jump or a triple axel, he would completely lose the possibility of competing on the podium.
“But I’m no longer the fourteen or fifteen year old who has infinite possibilities.” Li Chumiao subconsciously felt that she did not have this ability.
"Why do you think so?" He Hui looked into Li Chumiao's eyes and convinced her sincerely, "No matter what age you are, you have unlimited possibilities."
Li Chumiao was moved by that pure look and suddenly felt full of confidence in herself.
"Since you said so, I must give it a try." Li Chumiao smiled.
He Hui stared at Li Chumiao and suddenly said, "You know what? Actually, you are a genius."
"ah?"
"If I say you are, then you are."
He Hui patted Li Chumiao on the shoulder and delivered a summary speech like a domineering president.
*
Perhaps no one expected that in a B-level competition at the beginning of the season, the women's singles quadruple jump would experience a boom that shocked the figure skating world.
Although Ophelia Park did not participate in this race, several junior competitors who had just set new levels of difficulty were promoted to the adult category this season.
Although it was their first time on such a big stage, they were already ready to shock the world.
The first player to take the stage in the last group was Russian teenager Lana Sergeyeva.
This offseason, Lana's coach posted a photo of the girl's 4T on social media. It has a decent height and amazing rotation speed, showing strong competitiveness.
In this free skating, Lana will challenge two quadruple jumps at once, which is very ambitious.
After the opening, Lana stepped forward at an extremely fast speed and made all preparations before jumping.
Lana's first jump landed in a not-so-beautiful sideways position amid the exclamations of the audience. Of course, the 2T that was originally planned to follow did not work.
Lana hurriedly climbed up from the ice, crossing her slender legs over and over again, and with a serious face she continued to prepare for the next jump.
"What a pity." Li Chumiao said.
"The axis is not quite straight. It seems like she is paying too much attention to the force when jumping off." He Hui analyzed the situation for her seriously.
Li Chumiao turned her head and stared at He Hui's profile.
"So...are you trying to give me some tips?"
"Yes." He Hui said as if it was a matter of course, "These are all small details that need to be paid attention to."
During the conversation, Lana on the field jumped again. This time she had obviously corrected the problem of the previous jump. The axis was very straight and it was a smooth start.
Lana maintained a good posture in the air, her whole body was very tense, and due to her light weight, her rotation speed was very fast, like a high-speed spinning top.
But the problem with the second jump occurred during the landing phase.
The moment Lana's ice blade touched the ice, the vertical angle was a little too large, causing her body to shift to one side and she lost her balance.
Fortunately, she reached out and held onto the ice, and the extra support prevented her from falling directly.
"I was obviously a little discouraged after the turn, so I couldn't hold on." He Hui is persevering in helping Li Chumiao's quadruple jump career.
"But can this jump be certified? The last jump was obviously a fall."
"It looks like the angles aren't that far off, that's pretty impressive."
Lana was a little depressed after failing to land two quadruple jumps, and her free skating performance seemed a little loose. But fortunately, she was able to hold steady in the subsequent triple jumps, which was considered to be a demonstration of her ability.
"The next player to play is..." Li Chumiao glanced at the lineup, "Japanese player Yuko Egami, who has just been promoted to the group."
"She has 3A." said He Hui.
"The last group is really easy." Li Chumiao sighed.
"Aren't you also in this group?" He Hui turned around in shock. "You're the fourth one to appear. You should get ready."
"Ah! Yes!" Li Chumiao suddenly realized and stood up gracefully, "I'll go warm up."
He Hui: “…”
Yuko Egami challenged 3A at the beginning.
What made He Hui raise her eyebrows was that although her 3A jump took a little long to prepare, it was completed smoothly, the number of rotations seemed sufficient, and the landing was also a great success.
However, the Japanese rookie made a mistake in the edge, and the hook could not suppress the outside edge, and was caught directly. In addition, the rookie's goe and p scores were relatively dry, with only one 3A free skating score for Yuko Egami, and ultimately failed to surpass Lana Sergeyeva's two quads.
The third player to take the stage was also a newcomer from Russia - Olya Petrova.
Also 14 years old, also a master of difficulty. Olya, who also studied under Natasha, is extremely good at edge jumps. Following in the footsteps of her predecessor, Tours, she jumped 3A in the youth group. In this off-season when she was promoted to a higher level, she even completed a 4S jump in one fell swoop, becoming a rising star in Russia.
He Hui became interested in her. According to netizens' discussions, Tours is joining the new star's team as an assistant coach, and she should have contributed to their continuous success in overcoming difficulties.
After the music started, Olya's skating was different from the previous contestants. Her stepping efficiency was higher and her skating skills were quite good.
With the speed increased, Olya's jump seemed more neat and powerful.
In a flash, a 4S was completed quite cleanly.
Um......
He Hui narrowed his eyes, recalling the entire process of Olya's 4S in his mind, feeling Olya's force and landing on the ice.
To be honest, the expression of such details is more vivid when seen with one's own eyes.
"You don't know how to do it, but you can still learn it again before going on stage, right?" Li Chumiao somehow got back to He Hui's side and asked with wide eyes.
He Hui nodded and said earnestly: "You can also learn from it."
Li Chumiao: “…”
No, He Hui, do you really want to teach me four ways? !
The opening 4S landed perfectly, which gave Olya Petrova great confidence.
Her free skating was very difficult and well executed. She fell on one of the two 3A jumps, but the other one was a combination jump that made up for the previous mistake, which shows that she has a high psychological quality.
In the end, her score was far higher than other players, and she successfully ranked among the best in the world.
Li Chumiao's appearance at this time seemed a bit disappointing.
——There is neither three and a half weeks nor four weeks, it seems like an "antique" knocked down on the beach by the back wave.
"Li Chumiao, you are a genius."
He Hui was the next contestant to appear. She stood up and shouted when Li Chumiao came on stage.
He Hui, who is famous for his calmness and confidence, suddenly shouted, causing all the contestants to look at him in surprise.
"You actually?" Li Chumiao was shocked. She didn't expect He Hui would do such a "middle school" thing.
He Hui raised his eyebrows, not caring about other people's looks, fearing that Li Chumiao didn't hear clearly, and repeated what he just said: "You have to believe that you are a genius."
"Okay." Li Chumiao agreed with a smile.
Li Chumiao seemed to have been injected with a shot of adrenaline. She walked onto the stage with firm steps and a confident smile on her face.
Her free skate this season was from the famous excerpt "L'assasymphonie", also known as the "Murderous Symphony", from the musical "Rock Mozart".
He Hui felt that this was the most suitable song for Li Chumiao so far.
Rhythmic drum beats sounded, and Li Chumiao, who was wearing a red skirt and smoky makeup, curled the corners of her lips and opened her arms powerfully towards the audience. The muscles on her arms bulged, and people could feel the strength through the screen.
In the French segment, Li Chumiao completed 3Lz+3T neatly and efficiently, with the second jump even higher than the first.
Li Chumiao's 3F single jump uses the edge clearly, overcoming the problem of some power-type players using the wrong edge.
After 2A, Li Chumiao did a handsome big split on the ice rink, entered the first series of rotations, and then followed up with a display of connecting steps.
With her powerful singing voice, Li Chumiao galloped across the field, her steps seeming to ride the wind and waves and break through any difficulties before her.
The second half started with 2A+3T, and the image of Li Chumiao as a rock girl came to the fore amid the passionate music.
That was a distinctive style that had never appeared since the opening of the women's singles free skating at the Finland Cup. It was unique and unforgettable.
The music suddenly slowed down, and Li Chumiao completed a beautiful triple jump - 3Lz+2T+2Lo.
In the main theme again, Li Chumiao completed the final 3Lo and 3S single jumps, ending the free skating.
I don’t know if He Hui’s encouragement really worked, but Li Chumiao felt full of strength when performing. Although there were no difficult jumps, she tried her best to perform her best in every jump.
In the end, she successfully surpassed Yuko Egami and climbed to third place.
"If the level of competition is the same as in the previous Finland Cup, I will definitely be able to get on the stage, right?" Li Chumiao was a little frustrated. No one expected that an ordinary B-level competition would become as difficult as the World Championships.
"You don't plan to change your plan?" Li Chumiao asked before He Hui came on stage.
"Of course not."
He Hui smiled, and the expression on his face showed that the championship must belong to me.
He Hui thought that no matter what the final success or failure of these six quadruple jumps would be, she would challenge it to the end.
The song selected for He Hui's free skating this season is "Dance of the Yao Nationality", and the recorded version of the music is performed by the country's top Capital Folk Music Orchestra.
When the folk music band was invited to produce the music, as soon as they heard that it was He Hui who wanted it, they not only produced it with great care, but also did not even ask for money at the beginning.
Of course, Miss He insisted on showing off her family's financial resources, and the other party gladly accepted it.
"Ahhh, as expected, my daughter is fulfilling her promise to everyone! I saw that the Capital Folk Orchestra even forwarded the daughter's competition notice, so proud!"
"I see He Hui is going to challenge six quads. Am I going to be the first to witness the myth of completing five quads in the women's singles?!"
"I always feel that He Hui's five quads are just a gimmick... To be honest, isn't it too advanced for her to complete all of them?"
"I'm speechless! I'll say it again, the strength of women transcends gender!!"
"He Hui specializes in dealing with disobedience. Just wait and see. I don't want to argue with you."
Ice hockey fans online were discussing the matter enthusiastically, engaging in a war of words over He Hui's explosive progress.
He Hui didn't know all this. She was trying to calm her heartbeat and get into the performance state.
She slowly closed her eyes and assumed the opening pose in the center of the ice rink.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
