Yoshia Onda

[MQSeries]

I read that Onda is training in Fairfax with Audrey Weisiger? There's no other elite skaters training there that can push Onda, and the rink is more like a mom&pop rink than a highly competitive elite-level training environment that she was probably used to. I'm wondering if this arrangement will benifi Yohisa at all and if this is only a temporary situation.

[NoVa Sk8r]

Good point.

I've seen Yoshie skating there, and she was working with several coaches. I think she is trying to refine or rather rebuild parts of her skating. For example, I saw her there one Friday morning, and for 2 freestyle sessions, all that I saw her work on were the camel spin and the layback. I must say I was taken aback at how bad here spins were.

Obviously, her jumps, viz. double axel, need little help.

I think she is also getting choreography help from Chris Conte.

But I thought these arrangements were only temporary (?)

Best of luck to Yoshie!

[LoopLoop]

Yoshie's training at Fairfax is not temporary (well, inasmuch as you can say that about any skater's training). Audrey Weisiger is her head coach, and she is also working with some other coaches on specific areas of her skating (spins, edgework, choreography, etc.). Her spins have already improved dramatically.

As for other elite skaters, don't forget that Tommy Steenberg trains at Fairfax, and he's landing a variety of triple-triples and is getting very close on a quad.

[MQSeries]

As for other elite skaters, don't forget that Tommy Steenberg trains at Fairfax, and he's landing a variety of triple-triples and is getting very close on a quad.

Well Tommy is still a junior and a guy. That can't provide the same stimulation as if Yoshia was training alongside her peers like she was with Yamada. I would feel better for her if she was trained by a coach who has a record of producing strong female champions, but the Japanese Skating Federation really screwed up its relationship with Callahan.

Best of luck to her and hope she enjoys her stay thus far in Virginia. I think the Japanese women field has more depth than the U.S., at least in term of potential anyway; it's going to be an uphill battle for Yoshie to get back on the World team.

[Dilng]

Yoshi is one of my least favorite Japanese skaters because she doesn't have much artistry to her skating, so I'm not likely to keep up with what she is doing. I wish that Yukina Ota was training over here because she is my very favorite Japanese skater. She is such a beautiful artistic skater. She could be a huge threat if she got some help with her jumps. They aren't very consistent, but if she cleaned them up a bit then she would be among the top skaters.