Javier Fernandez

ISU Wait What: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAMLY83TYqM&feature=youtu.be I knew he is friend with Iker Casillas, but I didn't know that's why he supports Real Madrid. And that they are form exact same village!

honghe said:

An article (in Catalan I guess?) about the camp with a video: http://www.andorradifusio.ad/Esport...l-mon-dona-exemple-al-palau-de-gel-de-canillo

Click to expand...

First time I've ever seen or heard Catalan. Cool. I'm sure I could figure it out if I took the time.

cathlen said:

ISU Wait What: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAMLY83TYqM&feature=youtu.be I knew he is friend with Iker Casillas, but I didn't know that's why he supports Real Madrid. And that they are form exact same village!

Click to expand...

The village is called Navalacruz and Javi's father's family comes from there. Almost exactly one year they set up a statue and names a plaza after him: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkFuaIYSkb8

Plus a video from Grada 1 about fanboy-Javi and Iker Casillas and Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1GTpoCm59o (also from last year)

I had not thought about the Casillas connection with Real really, but it explains at least partly why they have been so incredibly nice to him all the time...

e

Kudos to Stars on Ice for posting Javi-related stuff recently: the photo of him playing soccer with Canadian skaters (I thought soccer was not very popular in Canada?), the spin video, and the photo with Eric and Andrew. Hope they continue

Even though I am not a Real Madrid fan, I do love seeing Javi talk about Real Madrid. You can see his eyes light up He is such a fanboy

Many people play soccer in Canada as kids, we all learn it, it's just we focus on other sports when pursuing a higher level in sports. I think more kids play it now than hockey... much less expensive, less dangerous.

Love that Javi does this. It is people like him, and camps like these, that will spread the sport into non traditional areas.

Well, there's the MLS, and Canada have teams playing in it. Eurosport have been showing matches and just recently there was one where Montreal were playing Chicago, so it's not like it's non-existent. (Even if it may not rank among the "big" sports.)

The show at the end of the camp on Friday night (or at least most of it?) on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMqCOJVJhRUakXNcGtLauvSELjmR4GIKG

Javi talks a lot in a number of videos, both in Spanish and English and does Black Betty at the end.

(BB on FB: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10153917422329065&id=154827304064 [you gotta be in FB to watch, though]
Exceprts from Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/BJThO3Ij_9_/?taken-by=riihimaentaitoluistelijat
https://www.instagram.com/p/BJTtbO0BgTr/?taken-by=noeeliaparra6)

Pics from Fed Hielo: https://www.facebook.com/fedhielo/posts/1424319150918681
And a couple of others from Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/BJVT8dFDKCZ/?tagged=javierfernandez
https://www.instagram.com/p/BJTfbJJhfrI/?tagged=javierfernandez
https://www.instagram.com/p/BJQNUN7h2G6/?tagged=javierfernandez
https://www.instagram.com/p/BJOCTxIhvBw/?tagged=javierfernandez

An interview from Onda Cero, a Spanish radio station, was also published yesterday: https://twitter.com/OndaCero_es/status/766894632760381440 (I think this is from April when he was in Spain for that week, there's no date... But I did not hear it back then, so was maybe not available as podcast. Mostly a recap of how he started to skate, etc. She asks also whether Javi and Miki could imagine competing together )

e

Someone got Miki flowers
https://www.instagram.com/p/BJaAsasDPRg/

The timeline for this is a bit funny, but Javi was kind of an example for skating in a Spanish tv show, Eso lo hago yo ("I can do that"):

http://www.lasexta.com/programas/es...e-hielo_2016081857ba1c100cf2738f2b8d8286.html

The show seems to be going on at the mo (https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eso_lo_hago_yo) although the video of Javi skating was apparently shot last year in April!: https://twitter.com/javierfernandez/status/590984037784760320

E

eppen said:

The timeline for this is a bit funny, but Javi was kind of an example for skating in a Spanish tv show, Eso lo hago yo ("I can do that"):

http://www.lasexta.com/programas/es...e-hielo_2016081857ba1c100cf2738f2b8d8286.html

The show seems to be going on at the mo (https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eso_lo_hago_yo) although the video of Javi skating was apparently shot last year in April!: https://twitter.com/javierfernandez/status/590984037784760320

E

Click to expand...

It's so nice to see the people at the show being so impressed by Javi. One of the judges even thanked they show for giving him the chance to see an athlete as great as Javi. Sounds like the show was shot last year too as they said "he just won the World Championships in Shanghai". The video was uploaded this year though...perhaps they got their info wrong which wouldn't be a first tbh

The complete show is here (http://www.atresplayer.com/television/programas/eso-lo-hago-yo/temporada-1/capitulo-3-programa_2016081000945.html) but i believe its geoblocked. Javi also comes to where the judges are and they talk about how hard it is skating, and Javi says he would help the guy to learn how to fall and not to break a leg. One of the judges is Italian and says in Italy they are in love with Javi's skating. I think next week Javi will be again because they probably recorded him teaching skating to the guy,im curious about how good he can skate after only a week haha. The show was recorded last year and for whatever reason they waited to air it now.

Thank you, Sol! It would be cool to see the other bits, too. You have to report next week on how it went!!

Puicgerdà is interested in having Javi's summer camp next year: http://www.regio7.cat/cerdanya-alt-urgell/2016/08/23/puigcerda-negocia-dun-campus-delit/375724.html#

Plus an interview, a longish one, from the Spanish skating forum: http://www.patinajeartistico.es/foro/index.php?topic=3685.15 (questions from fans, fairly good ones as well, plus interesting answers: my fave one is the fact that he will apparently NOT be wearing a gold and white Elvis jumpsuit...)

e

Sol said:

The complete show is here (http://www.atresplayer.com/television/programas/eso-lo-hago-yo/temporada-1/capitulo-3-programa_2016081000945.html) but i believe its geoblocked. Javi also comes to where the judges are and they talk about how hard it is skating, and Javi says he would help the guy to learn how to fall and not to break a leg. One of the judges is Italian and says in Italy they are in love with Javi's skating. I think next week Javi will be again because they probably recorded him teaching skating to the guy,im curious about how good he can skate after only a week haha. The show was recorded last year and for whatever reason they waited to air it now.

Click to expand...

Sounds like an interesting show haha. I am also curious about how it went.

eppen said:

Puicgerdà is interested in having Javi's summer camp next year: http://www.regio7.cat/cerdanya-alt-urgell/2016/08/23/puigcerda-negocia-dun-campus-delit/375724.html#

Plus an interview, a longish one, from the Spanish skating forum: http://www.patinajeartistico.es/foro/index.php?topic=3685.15 (questions from fans, fairly good ones as well, plus interesting answers: my fave one is the fact that he will apparently NOT be wearing a gold and white Elvis jumpsuit...)

e

Click to expand...

Thank you, eppen, as always, for sharing the links! It's nice to know that people are interested in the summer camp.

Oh and eppen, if I remember it correctly, you said you'd prefer early Elvis over later? Seems that Javi is of the same opinion (if I understand what he said correctly)

eppen said:

Thank you, Sol! It would be cool to see the other bits, too. You have to report next week on how it went!!

Puicgerdà is interested in having Javi's summer camp next year: http://www.regio7.cat/cerdanya-alt-urgell/2016/08/23/puigcerda-negocia-dun-campus-delit/375724.html#

Plus an interview, a longish one, from the Spanish skating forum: http://www.patinajeartistico.es/foro/index.php?topic=3685.15 (questions from fans, fairly good ones as well, plus interesting answers: my fave one is the fact that he will apparently NOT be wearing a gold and white Elvis jumpsuit...)

e

Click to expand...

I'm translating the whole thing if someone's having some troubles understanding it, hope to have it ready by tomorrow thank you for posting the link eppen!

xibsuarz said:

I'm translating the whole thing if someone's having some troubles understanding it, hope to have it ready by tomorrow thank you for posting the link eppen!

Click to expand...

Oh, thank you, xibsuarz! Did not have too much time last night for even more thorough commenting. There was a lot of interesting stuff there... Honghe, I do think Javi and I are all like-minded in this: early Elvis = the only good Elvis

It seems that some Hanyu fans have disliked his brief comments on Yuzu's new program - I think he basically says that Yuzu seems to be going for 4 quads which was kind of already said by Hanyu himself in the spring. It'll be interestin to see xib's translation to be certain, but the reaction (in Twitter) seems a bit exaggerated...

e

eppen said:

Oh, thank you, xibsuarz! Did not have too much time last night for even more thorough commenting. There was a lot of interesting stuff there... Honghe, I do think Javi and I are all like-minded in this: early Elvis = the only good Elvis

It seems that some Hanyu fans have disliked his brief comments on Yuzu's new program - I think he basically says that Yuzu seems to be going for 4 quads which was kind of already said by Hanyu himself in the spring. It'll be interestin to see xib's translation to be certain, but the reaction (in Twitter) seems a bit exaggerated...

e

Click to expand...

That's really the only thing he said The question asked more about both of their preparation methods throughout the season but he said he's not allowed to talk about that. I've already translated that part as accurately as I can (promise it will all be up here by tomorrow), hopefully that helps.

Thanks xib, you're a treasure! But, hey, did we not discuss this possibility (4 quads in FS) in the spring after the worlds? Like adding a new quad type into the FS (more likely than SP which can only have two quads anyway) makes sense only if you replace one the triples with it which means at this moment 4 quads. And Javi talked about the third different quad at TSL interview?

e

I usually refrain from talking about other fans but... sending nasty comments to Javi himself AND calling other fans to do the same seem a little bit extreme...

(Plus if I understand his words correctly, he said it seems Hanyu may put 4 quads, NOT that he knows for sure. The possibility of Hanyu considering a 4 quad program is basically no news to pretty much anyone. )

eppen said:

But, hey, did we not discuss this possibility (4 quads in FS) in the spring after the worlds? Like adding a new quad type into the FS (more likely than SP which can only have two quads anyway) makes sense only if you replace one the triples with it which means at this moment 4 quads. And Javi talked about the third different quad at TSL interview?

e

Click to expand...

Brian said as early as April that Hanyu might put the 4loop in his program: https://youtu.be/6OQnijoOAwg?t=5m44s . And Javi has been asked whether he, too, is considering adding a new quad more than once since Worlds, so it really isn't new information.
I guess technically you can also replace a 4S or 4T with a 4loop, but Javi said earlier that, while it requires a lot of time and effort, the difference in points isn't that large so it won't increase the BV that much.

I have not read what those Yuzuru fans are saying, but maybe reading the interview its that they misunderstood Javi's words, since he says he prefers at the moment to do his jumps good than adding another quad. Maybe they read too much into this and thought this was him trying to insinuate Yuzuru prefers to add another quad than doing his current jumps good. But what Javi meant is that at the moment he prefers to not add another quad himself and concentrate on doing the jumps he already has clean, i mean he and yuzu are diferent skaters and something that for one is hard for the other may be more easy, he even says this might change during the season so he might end adding another quad too.

As promised, here is the interview This one was harder to translate because the questions were pretty long and there were some local terms. But I did my best to do it as accurately as I could without making it impossible to understand in English.

FPA: You get to the venue, you go out to the rink for warmup, the crowd goes crazy, they scream your name, they pull out their flags, but you remain focused. How can you do that without a spiritual guide?
JF: Practice. I learned a lot competition after competition, specially personal strength, knowing I can do it, trust myself and knowing that all the work I’ve done previously during practice will pay off.


FPA: You’ve given so many interviews these days that there are few questions left to ask, but which is the question that you’ve missed the most these days? And which one has been the one you’ve been asked the most?
JF: The one I’ve been asked the most is when and why I started skating. That’s the one they asked me the most in my whole life. The one that’s been asked the least…they’re usually very similar, let’s see… (thinks a lot).
FPA: If you don’t have one then you don’t. Or something that you would like to be asked about?
JF: Perhaps about my friends, the way they are.
FPA: And what are you’re friends like?
JF: (laughs) That’s for another interview.



FPA: Going straight from Worlds to ice shows tours, will it have any impact on your full recovery from the injuries you went through during Worlds? (Giving such a huge performance, while skating injured gives a lot more value to that gold medal).
JF: If I hadn’t truly feel like I was ready to endure months of ice shows, I wouldn’t have done it. But I was in a good mood. It’s true that I had some pain, because it was the end of the season and my body was tired. But shows aren’t competitions, we don’t train as much, we don’t jump, we don’t push our bodies for shows, it’s to entertain the people, it’s much more relaxed. I’m still well in terms of my mood, it’s true that the infiltration is something I need to work on. I had the infiltration done when I was done with the ice shows, they’ve got me a set of exercises that I need to do when I get to Toronto because I haven’t had the time right now, and I don’t have any pain. It’s not something that doesn’t allow me to skate but they’re like pinches that bother me with certain movements.


FPA: Do you have any sort of lucky charm that you carry with you when you’re competing?
JF: I keep all the lucky charms they give me. And I have them well stored, for example, a keychain with a four leaf clover. Something someone from Japan picks up something for me at a temple, even though I don’t understand it. I don’t carry them with me but I keep them, I keep them, since my childhood I’ve been keeping everything people has given me for good luck. It doesn’t drive me crazy but I do keep them.
FPA: And a stone inside a lamp?
JF: Well, of course, I also have it.



FPA: Any hidden hobby, like, I don’t know, photography, gardening, bricolage (DIY)….
JF: I don’t know if anyone knows I like sports. I play padel and (Basque) trinquete. It’s like fronton but smaller.
FPA: Has Carolina Marín anything to do with that hobby?
JF: None at all, I’ve always liked playing fronton. It’s specially due to a cousin who plays trinquete at Leganés that I’ve come to like it, I can’t go too often and the people who play there are really good, but I can stand up for myself.



FPA: What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you at an airport?
JF: Staying all night at the airport until I fell asleep on a chair waiting for the boarding gate, opening my eyes and hear them calling out my name.
FPA: The whole plane was waiting for Javier Fernandez to arrive?(laughs)
JF: Yes, yes. I opened my eyes and there was no one at the waiting area, and they were calling me through the speaker to get to the plane. No one thought that I might have been in the waiting area, that I wasn’t an ornament, I had simply fallen asleep.


FPA: What’s your favorite movie?
JF: I like a lot. “Pacific Soldier” may be my favorite.


FPA: Are you obsessed with having everything clean and in order? Or are you one of those who doesn’t do the laundry until you run out of clothes in your closet?
JF: I’m one of those who doesn’t do the laundry until I run out of underwear in the bathroom (laughs). When I have to travel I do wash my clothes but if I’m in Canada during a long season, I pile up to two baskets (of dirty laundry).
FPA: My, you have two baskets?
JF: Yes, yes, I have two baskets and I wait until the last sock or the last pair of underwear.


FPA: What kind of music do you like? Do have a favorite singer?
JF: I know how to appreciate good music, whether it’s classical, rock, pop, everything. Regarding favorite singers, I also have many, perhaps Pablo Alborán, who is pretty popular lately and latin electronic Henry Méndez, who we also know personally, but I could mention a lot more.


FPA: Have you ever thought on doing something to your hair? Like an exaggerated toupee for your FS to Elvis? And the costume, can you give us something in advance? Is it inspired on the first stage of Elvis or on his “Las Vegas” phase?
JF: (regarding the hair he didn’t say anything, he just pointed to his forehead. You can see a bit of the toupee)


FPA: And the costume, can you give us something in advance? Is it inspired on the first stage of Elvis or on his “Las Vegas” phase?
JF: I didn’t decide this, but my team. They don’t want the chubby and sweaty Elvis….
FPA: So no white and gold costume
JF: No, not that one, but the young Elvis that drove all the girls crazy, whose outfits didn’t matter. Without sparkles/glitter…something much more elegant and normal.



FPA: Do you think it’s a good thing that another skater’s using the same music as you do, like Ivan Raghini? Does that add more pressure (specially for him, as you are the World Champion?)
JF: It’s interesting because we even talked about it. He said “what are you using this year?”, I said “Elvis” and he said “NO WAY! ME TOO!”. I told Brian and David later on and we were all like “How could this be? What a coincidence!”. It’s been years since someone used Elvis and this year there’s two of us, but honestly, according to what we talked about and given his reaction I think it’s just a coincidence. I don’t think there’s any pressure for either him or me, they are different programs, they may not look alike at all. Two years ago I used Barber of Seville and Brezina did too. And last year I used Frank Sinatra and someone else did too and there was no problem.


FPA: And going onto your future plans, knowing that you’re a video game freak, have you ever thought of performing an EX with video game music? Call of Duty, Prince of Persia, etc…
JF: I don’t think so. Because well, every year is different but we always like having a reference, so people can appreciate the reference and know what (the program) is about. Kim Lucine used Mario Bros, someday, I don’t know. You never know where an idea might come from, I may get a Pac-Man costume and will go out there and eat Pac-Dots (laughs).
FPA: Or catching Pokemons?
JF: Exactly, I don’t know.



FPA: There’s people who have criticized you for keeping the SP this year. What were the reasons behind this decision?
JF: Because it was a good but unexploited program. We think we already have the ideas for next year, for the Olympics, and for that, it was easy to do it this way. We also think that this SP has got more potential, it can get higher scores. And it’s a program that many people like. We’ll change things, like the costume, and specially the elements in the programs, but we think that, this way we’ll get two good programs this year.



FPA : And this Free, how did you come up with it? Was it David, Brian or you? And if it was you, why? Tell us how you’ve “trained” to make your movements similar to Elvis.
JF: David had an Elvis song recorder and he made a friend of his listen to it a few years ago and he asked “Who does it remind you of?” and she said “That’s Javi.” That happened some time ago and we thought about doing an EX, but then they thought about using it for competition. They told me and I liked it. We mixed 3 songs, two written by him and one which is only performed by him. So David just liked it.
FPA: And the hip movements?
JF: It’s hard, I haven’t been able to polish it. Elvis moves are Elvis moves, you have to dislocate your hip, they are pretty but hard movements, and it’s 10 times harder to do it on the ice. I’ll work on it, it’s proving to be very hard and I’m not close to what I consider his (Elvis) moves yet. but I’ll work on it and I’ll get it, that much is clear.



FPA: We see many skaters being very active on social media. Who is hopeless in that aspect? Who doesn’t put his phone down all day? Perhaps, Alex Shibutani? Maxim Kovtun?
JF: I have to say I know Alex very well and he likes all the things related to technology, videos. I think that, in the future, he wants to do something regarding the world of photography or videos, he likes playing with programs and cameras, it’s one of his hobbies. I don’t know about Maxim. I honestly just have my phone to gather dust. The least I touch it, the better. I don’t like it at all. I answer 40 texts and I have other 50, I have phone-induced stress. I use it just for emergencies and to talk to my mom. And it’s not just the phone, there’s also Facebook where I have 100 messages and Line, and others and I don’t have the time. Lately it’s gotten to a point where I see an incoming call and if I don’t know who it is, I don’t pick it up.

FPA: We made that book precisely because we thought about collecting things that you don’t have enough time to read. We thought about collecting all that energy that you don’t get, have you read it?
JF: Of course I’ve read it!



FPA: At the last World Championships, from my POV, both you and Meagan and Eric ended up with honestly perfect programs. Sincerely, I think that they will stay in the memory of many. The question is “What do they feed you in Canada?” (laughs)
JF: I don’t know what they give us in Canada, I don’t know if it’s the maple syrup (laughs). Leaving the joking aside, I think it’s the way Canadians work, and the talent that Meagan and Eric have. We can’t take that away from them, and with a complicated year like the one they’ve had, they pulled it off like that, and with the pressure on them, that’s admirable. Eric and Meagan are very close (to me), I know them and they are very normal people, and what really moves them is that happiness they have everyday.
FPA: Ergo, you feel happy too.
JF: Well, of course, If I’m not happy nothing works. If I weren’t happy I wouldn’t be in Canada, but someplace else.



FPA: We know that you love water. Once you leave the “frozen water”, have you thought about spending more time scuba diving?
JF: I hate water (laughs). No, seriously, sometimes I like water, sometimes I don’t. Drinking it doesn’t enthusiast me. I like the sea but I also respect it. I back off the moment I can’t see the bottom. Just snorkel. I don’t know if I will ever try scuba diving. I go down 4 meters and I feel like my ears will explode. I haven’t done scuba diving, I do snorkel, I can do it without getting tired and I only stop if I get cold. But I like being on the rocks, too.
FPA: So if you spot something you eat it (like a sea urchin)
JF: I would have to cook it first, right? (laughs) I know that people in Japan eat it, and here too.




FPA: Tell us about something fun that’s been thrown out to the ice for you. No plushies or flowers. And we already know about the jam!
JF: I don’t know. Not on the ice, they give them to me in hand. I’ve met people who has given me an iPhone or Gucci sneakers or a Louis Vuitton tie or belt. There’s people who do spend their money, specially in Asia.



FPA: On the 9th of July, you uploaded a picture with Henry Mendez and you left us wondering about a possible collaboration. Can you tell us something about it? Would you have an EX with that kind of music?
JF: We haven’t studied skating with electro latino to a 100% because it’s hard. but in favor of Henry Mendez I have to say he’s got a recording label and singers who are just starting, or that aren’t the most famous but with lots of talent and a collaboration could be done with them. With Henry as one of the big names in electro latino music, we want a collaboration. We don’t know as an EX or as an introduction to the people or what.
FPA: Depends on what you can do on the ice.
JF: What we can fit in, decide what to do or what. We can always try with one singer or another, (see) which guy has something we can work with or even with another label. We have a good relationship with Henry and we want to make the most out of it.



FPA: Going back on all the little things you’ve told us this years, tell us Javi. Spit it out, tell us the truth, what was harder:
1: Setting up the IKEA furniture
2: Winning…wait I’ve got to count….1,2,3,4 European Titles and 1,2 World Titles…IN A ROW!
3: Explaining the jumps over and over again to those who don’t watch that much skating
4: Managing to get into the forum
JF: Explaining over and over again the jumps, or why I started skating, or why am I not on the Rio Olympics. It’s tiring, they are asking me questions you can find online and everywhere. You are the one making the interview, do some research, you save us both some work. It’s tiring.
I tried getting into the forum twice and I dropped it, it’s hard for me to get anywhere.
FPA: We’ve already make a diagram, we’ll send it to you.
JF: I hope I get it. I’m leaving it aside at the moment but I haven’t forgotten, I’ve simply pushed it back. What has been really hard it’s Euros and Worlds, because I’ve ended up going through some very hard times in which I’ve ended up crying and getting home thinking “I want to forget about skating today”. Though you can’t forget about the good times, that was the hardest thing, of course.



FPA: These last two seasons the Yuzu-Javi rivalry has set the pace for the men’s field. He won the last two GPFs, you won the last two World Championships. Is this because the pure and hard competition has set it this way? Because what I’ve seen is that Yuzuru went from more to less throughout the year, and you, on the other hand, from less to more. Is this motivated by a different preparation method? As both of you have the same coach and Hanyu is a direct rival at the most important competitions, do you pay attention to how the trainings go for the other or each does their own thing?
JF: There’s stuff that I can’t talk about, I’m not allowed to. Specially about the strategies of one and the other. Specially because Hanyu is Hanyu and I can’t talk about what he does and why he does it. What I can say is that it’s true that we are both fighting for that medal and that carries an evolution in skating. For example, ice dance with Virtue/Moir and Davis/White. When there are two who are pulling apart from the others and one getting ahead of the other, you pull the car (raise the bar) so the rest (of the field) also push it to a faster pace, to take bigger risks. It’s like Plushenko and Yagudin, Kwan and Slutskaya. That’s what I’ve been told, it’s one of those theories that’s going around, there’s a faster evolution. It may be true or not, I only know what we skaters think. Now, for example, the French in ice dance have set themselves apart and there’s no one that can catch up to them and it may result in a plateau from the rest.
FPA: Do you think Weaver and Poje can’t get close to them in ice dance?
JF: There are thousand of theories. We don’t know how Tessa and Scott will be. Weaver and Poje are very elegant, with lots of talent, but we don’t know what might happen. Perhaps the other Canadians might get ahead. It’s what happened to me when Yuzuru added so many jumps to the program, I had to work to catch up with him. No one wants to be left behind, it becomes more demanding. This year it seems like Yuzu is about to do 4 quads. I won’t, at the moment, I’d rather do what I do well, but I’m just saying this at the beginning of the season.



FPA: For me it was a very smart move to keep the Short for next season. That program is very, very good! The best of all time for me, wonderful! Nothing to do with that Black Betty craziness, this is an absolute masterpiece! It’s pure Spain! When I see you performing it I feel so identified with everything in it that I get goosebumps. So, from a very humble fan, thank you for keeping it and letting us enjoy it another year. My question is whether this decision was made because you couldn’t perform it 100% perfectly on any of the big competitions last year. Do you want to get it out this year? Or is it because you have it absolutely mastered, it saves you a lot of time and you just have to polish a few details??
JF: Both of them. To spare ourselves the work and because we think we can improve a few things in the program and we can make more out of it. It’s a program with a lot of potential, and we like it and many people like it a lot, too.


FPA: Speaking of potential rivals, because there are more skaters below Yuzuru, could you elaborate a bit, rival by rival, on who you will have to watch out for next season in the men’s field? For example, how do you see Patrick Chan? Do you think that Big Patrick is past his prime or will we still see him sticking around for a while? And Shoma Uno? How do you see his future? As big as Yuzuru’s? And the flying Chinese Boyang Jin? Do you agree with a skater focusing only on these technical nonsense and leaving artistic interpretation aside, or do you agree that each skater should play their strong points how they see appropriate, even though you lose some of the essence of the sport? There’s also the Russians, Pitkeev, Kolyada, Kovtun, Kazhakhstan’s Denis Ten, but perhaps, out of all of them, I would like to know your opinion about who I think will be your successor in Europe: Daniel Samohin. How do you see him? Do you think he will be the one who will have to fill in after you? For me, this kid, is admirable, he’s got everything to be a big name in the sport after the 2018 Olympics.
JF: I obviously don’t know what they are working and improving on, I haven’t seen them since Worlds. I’ve seen Patrick on SOI Canada and a bit after that. It’s hard to say how people will react to the new programs, whether they are good or bad, I don’t have a crystal ball. It’s true that the last few years much more quads are being done, but we can’t forget that this is figure skating, the edges, the interpretation, the speed, etc. It’s like when I spoke to Boyang Jin at COC, he said it, he knows what his weak points are, he knows he jumps very well but that he needs to improve his skating. My next challenge is to learn more about skating and be a more complete skater in the future. There are skaters who, although they are not at 100% on skating, they know it and want to improve. We’ll see. Regarding successors, Samohin, you never know how an athlete will evolve. Perhaps he’ll keep going up and be a star and an historic skater, or God forbid, he doesn’t and he plateaus. We’ve seen it with many skaters that don’t get there, yet there are others who we may have never expected it from but they are up there all of a sudden…another crystal ball.




FPA: And I’ll finish with the famous Olympic Games, because the reporters will come again, those who know something about skating which I think you could count with one hand in this country, and those who don’t too, obviously. And they will ask you for a medal. There should be WOG for reporters and see who could get a medal out of them, from Spain I bet there would be none, it’s easy to talk. Anyway, do you think that Pyeongchang will be the last chapter of your competitive career? Or is there a chance that those who love watching you compete will get to see you another year? Please! Please!
JF: I don’t know who (reporters) will come to the WOG . The last few years they’ve gotten more specialized people, “educated” reporters.
FPA: Meaning, they were forced to “study” more.
JF: Exactly. When I go to Marca, As, RTVE, it’s the same person who already knows about skating. They are specialists and that always make sit easier.
We’ll see beyond Pyeongchang, once the competition’s over. If we see that I can get up until here, then I retire and that’s it. If I can see myself going for a couple more years, I’ll do that too. Or perhaps skipping Worlds but going to the GP.
FPA: So you don’t want to leave any doors closed.
JF: That’s right. My goal right now are the Olympics, and from there, we’ll see what I want to do and how far I can get or not.



FPA: Going back in time and remembering the music that Javier has used on his FS the last few seasons, it’s clear that the diversity in his interpretation is palpable. He can perform Rigoletto in Barber of Seville, Peter Gunn, Charlie Chaplin, Frank Sinatra and now it’s the turn of Elvis Presley. Even though they are different styles, they are all pretty “old” music (2 from the 19th century and the others from halfway through the 20th century). None of your music choices come close to the 21st century since Jack Sparrow, with Morozov as coach, from the 2010-2011 season. That’s why I don’t think Javi picks music that, going by his age, he shouldn’t know, so this is the question. Is it easier to get music from those wonderful years that can adapt better to your style than any current music? Or perhaps it’s music that both Brian and David know, because of age and experience, and see in you the ideal skater to perform them and you adapt wonderfully (to that)? And last one, technology, for evil or for good, is taking over everything. Do you think it would be possible to create original music adapted to a previously structured program? I mean, a program with everything in the technicals organized, for example, a 4S on second 20, a quad-triple on 35, step sequence after the 1 minute mark, spins here and there, and so on for all the technical elements in the routine. And then, using a program, you push a button and voilá! Here’s your music! Like a cigarette vending machine! Do you think that could be possible? Perhaps it’s already being researched?
JF: For some reason, characters that are older and of course people of all ages know, go well with my style. I like it, like Brian and David do, as we’re talking about music’s that’s been around for a while. One or two among those, it’s music that everyone knows already. It’s best to look around in the past than the present. There has been some interesting stuff in the past years but…I don’t know. We like searching in the past.
FPA: Well sometimes, there’s a successful track/movie (not sure because there was a big typo there) and 3 or 4 skaters use it the following year.
JF: Right, like it can be the case of Les Miserables. They’re there and there are many good ones (pieces), but for some reason we like going for music of the past because they were stars at that time, they were everything on their prime. It gives us the impression that they are memorable pieces, and that plays in our favor.
FPA: You’re really more of a classic guy.
JF: True, true. Regarding electronic music (custom-made), I think that perhaps it could be done, or perhaps it’s even being done right now, but I can’t know. What you can do right now is, for example, ask the musician to add a drum solo so the music is not cut off so suddenly.
FPA: There’s a case, Plushenko and Marton, his star violin player.
JF: Exactly. Anyway perhaps, in a future not too far away, there’s a robot that can play ten instruments at the same time if you ask him to. Who knows, there might be skates with propellers, to see who can be on the air the greatest amount of minutes. With how technology is moving forward, who knows!