Marin Honda | Page 3 | Golden Skate

Marin Honda

Sandpiper

Record Breaker
Joined
Apr 16, 2014
I think, suffice to say, we just don't have enough data about whether training quad/3A is harmful to your other jumps. The sample size, especially for girls, isn't large enough. They do increase chances of injury and are quite a pounding if your body isn't fully formed yet. On the other hand, training a quad of a specific jump can probably strengthen the corresponding triple (IIRC, Miki continued doing 4S in practices even after she stopped doing them in competition, and guys who have 4S seem to have stronger 3S than guys who only have 4T--e.g. Brian Joubert has a stronger 3S than Evgeni Plushenko...though maybe that's a bad example since Joubert didn't do many 4S).

Maybe injuries just depend on the person and their training conditions. Mao seems to be fine, while other girls who don't do 3A have ended up with plenty of injuries. Not surprised to hear about Japanese ladies who want 3A or quads though. They're kinda known for this--Mao, Miki, Midori, ect.
 

TheCzar

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 30, 2013
I'd be afraid to jinx Marin in saying she's perfected everything now and have only the 3A and the quads to push for. It is a great start for her to have a true lutz, most of the triples and 3-3s, but at this stage when your body doesn't tell you what you're in for- MAINTENANCE is about as great a feat as a seven triple program. We see this all the time- great novices and young pre-pubescent bodies but they crossover and they take a year or more to recapture and stabilize what their bodies used to be able to do. Just look at Tuk, Mirai, Caroline and even Elene G.

I think there's enough pressure already on the Japanese ladies to keep 3 spots now that Mao has opted out and the team has all but dwindled, to be bearing the pressure of putting out a quad. Even spins. Pushing these bodies too early on may very well cause back problems. Even Kim couldn't hold on to a triple loop. Asada obviously suffered at the 2013 WTT with her chronic back issues. I feel that Lipnitskaia may be next in the coming years. As much as I would like to agree with Sandpiper, I think a body could only do so much until it becomes broken down and for an athlete to resort to turning bionic with bolts and screws like Plushenko.

Let's not push Marin too far just yet. However, I do agree that she's one of the upcoming shining stars of Japanese Figure Skating.
 

gotoschool

Medalist
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
I'd be afraid to jinx Marin in saying she's perfected everything now and have only the 3A and the quads to push for. It is a great start for her to have a true lutz, most of the triples and 3-3s, but at this stage when your body doesn't tell you what you're in for- MAINTENANCE is about as great a feat as a seven triple program. We see this all the time- great novices and young pre-pubescent bodies but they crossover and they take a year or more to recapture and stabilize what their bodies used to be able to do. Just look at Tuk, Mirai, Caroline and even Elene G.

I think there's enough pressure already on the Japanese ladies to keep 3 spots now that Mao has opted out and the team has all but dwindled, to be bearing the pressure of putting out a quad. Even spins. Pushing these bodies too early on may very well cause back problems. Even Kim couldn't hold on to a triple loop. Asada obviously suffered at the 2013 WTT with her chronic back issues. I feel that Lipnitskaia may be next in the coming years. As much as I would like to agree with Sandpiper, I think a body could only do so much until it becomes broken down and for an athlete to resort to turning bionic with bolts and screws like Plushenko.

Let's not push Marin too far just yet. However, I do agree that she's one of the upcoming shining stars of Japanese Figure Skating.

I expressed similar sentiments at the Wakaba Higuchi thread.

I like the comparisons (of Wakaba Higuchi to Miki Ando or Michelle Kwan and Marin Honda to Mao Asada), but I hate to build the expectations too high and jinx them because winning multiple world championships and setting world record scores like Mao and Ando (or Kwan) is a mighty tall order to fill.

Using your terminology, it sometimes appears as if skaters these days are expected to be bionic with body parts that are immune to injury. In my opinion, if you look back just 20 years ago, the flexibility, jump difficulty and even step sequences were far less acrobatic and demanding than they are today, yet skaters are actually skating longer because the introduction of prize money has extended their competitive careers. I believe this combination greatly contributes to the probability of life long injury, though I will admit to me it is more impressive to watch. But, how much can the human body take? I suspect that is one of the main reasons Mao "opted out" in the first place: back pain from doing the Biellmann (sometimes one-handed as in Bells) and perhaps the triple loop and axel from such an early age. She's not the type of person to complain, but I have heard that she had problems with feeling in her legs during Worlds 2013 because of this pain and she seemed to be in pain during her spins in her stellar Sochi LP. She also didn't perform a Biellmann in her latest exhibition program, "This Little Light of Mine." in the The Ice.

I thought it might be better for Marin or Wakaba to put the emphasis on just one new element- like the triple axel for Marin or the Biellmann for Wakaba, for example. The chance of success would be higher and there would be at least a little less chance of injury, but this still has its risks. As you said, I agree MAINTENANCE and perfection (through higher GOE) of what they already have should be at least, if not more important. However, I realize that in saying this I am a bit of a hypocrite because one of the things liked best about Asada or Plushenko are their technical elements.

I wish them both the best. They are both fascinating to watch. I just hope their bodies can stand the wear and tear of repetitive competition.
 

NMURA

Medalist
Joined
Jul 14, 2010
Marin has strong interests in diet and nutrition, mainly for the purpose of improving physical (muscle) strength. I have an impression that she is in a hurry to "master" difficult jumps. Apparently Marin has an ambition to set the new standards for ladies skating. In this video, she says (4:47) "men didn't attempt the quad before, but when someone started doing it, everyone followed". She is expecting the same thing could happen for ladies. At this point, Marin is not emphasizing on the 3A. I guess the main reason is not to be labeled as Mao II. Asada couldn't make the same trend for ladies as Chan did for men. The 3A (and the quad) can be the really threatening weapon only when someone with the 3Lz-3T and clean edges does.
 

gotoschool

Medalist
Joined
Mar 5, 2014

darazam

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 21, 2014
Oops sorry, of course, I meant to paste FS score from calculator but smth went wrong :mad:
 

angelfacehanyu

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 7, 2014
Important dates for Marin fans:

October 10-13, Kinki regionals
October 24-26, Novice nationals
November 22-24, Junior nationals
February 1-3, Junior high-school champs
 

gotoschool

Medalist
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
HERE Marin's interview from Patinage 2015 translated by ohlovesosweet, she is planning some crazy things, 3A, 4T and 4S :hopelessness: its exciting to see ladies trying harder elements but i hope she wont hurt herself in the process :bang: i wanna see her skating for long time :cheer:


Thanks so much for the interview matmuh. I loved her performance in the Junior Nationals LP last season. I hate to say it, but I really want to call her Mini Mao when I see that performance. She is such an elegant, expressive and musical skater with wonderful knee bends and such a beautiful tear drop shaped Biellmann like Mao, but I know she has her own unique style.

Here is the only link I could find to the performance that works:

Marin Honda Japanese Junior Nationals: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2c2fq0_本田真凜-marin-honda-2014-japanese-junior-nationals-fs_sport
 
Last edited:

yhmafan

Medalist
Joined
Apr 22, 2014
Actually Marin reminds me of Mao not only her appearance but also the way she skating.

Here are some pictures of Marin on the ice. she is photogenic :)

              
 
Top