Weekend Crush: Yuzuru Hanyu

Before last Wednesday I had no clue who Yuzuru Hanyu was. And I would not have cared. Typically, typically male figure skaters hold little interest for me. Oh there are some I love--especially the sort that skate on wet ice or that push the limits of sexy. Maybe it's the difference in body type but there is definitely a distinct flavor, something about the faster jumps and the silhoutte they create in spins. Yuzuru? Still difffent, but clearly his own brand of amazing amongst figure skaters.

He turns BBQ eating music into magic.


The music... I'm thinking Famous Daves. If I just lost you, they serve BBQ with a steady stream of blues playing in the background. Not my favorite, not anything I would listen to if I was not eating my weight in all things covered in barbeque sauce. But! You cannot look away from musicality to anything. Even if you are distracted by a Pavlovian impulse to dine out. Or at least I can't. Arms in sync with the changes, body moving right along with the tempo. And oh, oh! I am in love with the footwork around 3:02. It is perfect with the music rahter than existing soley to add points to the program. Why do so many skaters and dancers overlook this?

And the spins. And the record breaking.

So I was intrigued and forgot to get up for my glass of water. Missing that super flexibility was not an option, and rewinding the action would have been a waste of time. Whatever that sitting looking spin is--sit spin?-- it was flawless. To my eye anyways. Since Sasha Cohen wasn't up for Olympic ice this year I didn't think I would have a reason to salivate at the thought of Sochi. But there's the musicality, thoughtfulness in choreography, and obsession with detail I love. My eye was not in error; Yuzuru set a new record for the highest short program score. Woosh! Yup, I will definitely be tuning in for the Winter Olympics in Sochi. And here I leave that same program for you to contemplate: