i was originally gonna do both junior ladies and junior men but tumblr crashed on me the other day and i lost all my work so like, if i'm gonna have to rewrite everything, i'm not bothering with the men this time. besides, the junior ladies can murder the junior men in their sleep
since there was interest, gather around the fire, kids, and i will tell you about some of the ladies at the junior world championships this year. you think senior ladies are cutthroat? you haven't seen nothin' yet.
for streaming info, see here. for full entries and live results, see here.
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SO HOW THE HELL DOES JUNIOR WORLDS WORK?
skaters must be at least 13 but not yet 19 (or 21 for male pairs/ice dancers) before july 1st, 2017 to be internationally eligible for juniors in the 2017-18 season.
for the 2017-18 season, all junior singles skaters must do a triple or double lutz in the short program as their solo jump. this means that if they miss their combo, they cannot add a combo onto their solo lutz, because the solo lutz is required. the type of required solo jump changes each season.
placements at junior worlds determine how many spots a country gets at next season’s junior worlds, as well as how many spots they get on the next junior grand prix series. this chart shows how skaters win spots for their countries at junior worlds (same rules apply for euros and senior worlds). as long as a skater qualifies for the free skate, any placement lower than 16th still counts as 16th towards the spots count.
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THE LADIES
it's an understatement to say that russian and japanese ladies have dominated the junior level in the last four years. no junior lady from outside russia or japan has medaled at junior worlds since 2012, and in the last two seasons, only two (2) non-russian or japanese ladies have medaled on the junior grand prix series. basically, we can expect at least two russians and probably one japanese lady on the junior worlds podium again this year; only the order remains to be seen. but keep an eye out for south korea's rising stars, who likely won't medal but can potentially end up pretty high in the rankings.
ALEXANDRA TRUSOVA (RUS)
age: 13
ISU SB/PB: 205.61
SP/FS: big spender / the four seasons
notable titles: 2017 junior grand prix final champion, 2018 russian junior national champion
coached by eteri tutberidze; teammate of alina zagitova and evgenia medvedeva
this is her first junior season and first trip to junior worlds
she has landed 4S and 4T in practice and attempts a 4S in her free skate
yes. you read that right. she attempts. a quad.
she hasn't landed it cleanly in international competition yet but she might just do it this time
she can also do 3F3Lo and 3Lz3Lo combos
idk whether to be scared of her or scared for her. probably both
backloads all her jumps besides the quad, as expected of russian ladies these days
lots of speed, power, and energy, but a bit rough around the edges
she's won every competition she entered so far this season and will probably win junior worlds too
but she will face competition from teammate alena kostornaia and japan's rika kihira
not old enough for seniors next season
ALENA KOSTORNAIA (RUS)
age: 14
ISU SB/PB: 204.58
SP/FS: adios nonino / stella's theme
notable titles: 2017 junior grand prix final silver medalist, 2018 russian national bronze medalist, 2018 russian junior national silver medalist
coached by eteri tutberidze; teammate of alina zagitova and evgenia medvedeva
this is her first junior season and first trip to junior worlds
backloads all her jumps, as expected of russian ladies these days
pretty good awareness of music and movement for her age; she's more polished than trusova imo
i like her short program
placed second behind trusova in every direct head-to-head this season, probably a good bet for silver at junior worlds
i'm ngl she's probably my favorite eteri student right now
not old enough for seniors next season
STANISLAVA KONSTANTINOVA (RUS)
age: 17
ISU SB/PB: 199.68
SP/FS: corazon espinado, i like it like that / anna karenina
notable titles: 2018 russian junior national bronze medalist
this is her second trip to junior worlds, she placed 6th last year
won a bronze medal on the jgp this season
she was the first alternate for the olympics and almost didn't make the junior world team
if that doesn't tell you everything you need to know about russian ladies...
(russian ladies are fucking terrifying)
pretty decent skating and expression but not super consistent
might medal if she's on, might place pretty low if she's not
ugly tanos
RIKA KIHIRA (JPN)
age: 15
ISU SB/PB: 192.45 / 194.24
SP/FS: kung fu piano / la strada
notable titles: 2017 japanese junior national champion, 2017 japanese national bronze medalist
coached by mie hamada and yamato tamura; teammate of satoko miyahara and marin honda
this is her second junior season and first trip to junior worlds
she is the first lady to land a 3A3T combination in competition and the first lady to land 8 clean triples (including a 3A) in the free skate
and she hasn't even turned senior yet
at junior nationals and senior japanese nationals this season she landed both a 3A and 3A3T in her free skate
best known for her 3A but has pretty polished skating as well (though i'm not a huge fan of her programs this season)
finished 4th at the jgpf two seasons in a row
buuuut she can be inconsistent sometimes
has a good chance of medaling anyway but will need to avoid silly mistakes
will be old enough for seniors next season
it's KIHIRA, not KIHARA
MAKO YAMASHITA (JPN)
age: 15
ISU SB/PB: 181.04 / 184.06
SP/FS: bohemian rhapsody / madame butterfly
notable titles: 2017 japanese junior national silver medalist
coached by mihoko higuchi and machiko yamada; teammate of shoma uno
this is her second junior season and first trip to junior worlds
she won two bronze medals on the jgp last season and a silver and bronze medal on the jgp this season
the only yamada/higuchi student who doesn't flutz
her jumps scare me but she lands them (usually)
pretty solid all-around skater
unlikely to medal at junior worlds but could place pretty high
will be old enough for seniors next season
YOUNG YOU (KOR)
age: 13
ISU SB/PB: 177.70
SP/FS: don't rain on my parade / pirates of the caribbean
notable titles: 2016 & 2018 korean national champion
coached part-time by ghislain briand at the toronto cricket club
this is her first junior season and first trip to junior worlds
she was the youngest lady to win korean (senior) nationals, at age 11
there's been a lot of hype surrounding her since then
her jgp debut this season was a bit spotty but she won nationals again in dominant fashion
bit rough around the edges but solid jumps, good expression. i think her programs suit her
unlikely to medal at junior worlds but could place pretty high
not old enough for seniors next season
EUNSOO LIM (KOR)
age: 15
ISU SB/PB: 186.34
SP/FS: rich man's frug / grand guignol, oblivion, libertango
notable titles: 2017 korean national champion
this is her second junior season and second trip to junior worlds, she placed 4th last year
rough around the edges but big jumps, nice arms, lots of #face
i like her free skate this season
but she's struggled with injuries and inconsistency lately
won a medal on the jgp this season, one of only two non-russian or japanese ladies to do so
could place pretty high at junior worlds if she's on
she got into skating because she saw yuna kim on tv and thought her costume was sparkly
she likes baking in her spare time
her exhibitions are *fire emoji*
i hope i can be half as fabulous as her when i grow up
(i never said this preview would be unbiased)
she will be old enough for seniors next season
OTHER LADIES TO WATCH:
YUHANA YOKOI (JPN): 17 years old, 4th at 2017 japanese junior nationals. had a bit of a breakthrough this season. brilliant 8th-place finish at senior nationals won her a spot on the junior world team for the first time. can be inconsistent, but a fun performer.
TING CUI (USA): 15 years old, 2018 US junior national bronze medalist. finished 6th at her jgp debut this season. big, powerful jumps when she's on, but can be inconsistent. this is her first trip to junior worlds.
EMMY MA (USA): 17 years old, 2017 jgp latvia bronze medalist. one of only two non-japanese or russian ladies to medal on the jgp this season. very expressive and musical skating, but jumps are kind of scary and she can be inconsistent. this is her first trip to junior worlds.
It seems like Rika suffered a fracture of her left ring finger in January. During practice she tried her new SP layout and succeeded in landing the 3A. Best of luck for tomorrow Rika! (x)
