Ji Heyu was straining to maintain control over his core and balance, but the inertia and impact were not easy to overcome.
Since this body had only been exposed to figure skating for a month and a half at the very most,1 it was a miracle that he could perform like this today. However, the physical weaknesses were still impossible to fully overcome for the time being.
Not to mention, due to the influence of Ji Yuansong, Ji Heyu wasn’t in good condition today. Even before jumping the set of combination jumps, Ji Heyu’s brain had already begun to experience a lack of oxygen, and his vision was becoming blurry.
If it weren’t for his past twenty years of experience dealing with the ice, allowing him to judge his position on the rink even without clear vision, he might not have been able to find the correct take-off point. The soreness of his muscles wantonly assaulted his limbs, the moment he was in the air.
Even though his success rate for the 3Lz+3Lo combination jump had upgraded to 50%, that was under the premise of having enough stamina. A combination jump in the second half, which was considered a challenge for the youth group, was still a bit too difficult for Ji Heyu.
To control himself to stay in the air a little longer, Ji Heyu was rapidly depleting his energy. The sensation of staying airborne requires both skill and talent, and Ji Heyu happened to possess both. It was a pity that his physical stamina just couldn’t keep up.
By the time it came to land on the ice, Ji Heyu’s heartbeat was already in chaos to an unbelievable2 degree. The feeling of oxygen deprivation continued to accumulate in his mind, nearly causing him to suffocate and faint. This kind of bad feeling was exactly like the one3 that ended his professional career during the final free skate in his “previous life”!
Ji Heyu knew he wouldn’t be able to land smoothly. But he didn’t want to fall!4
The moment his right back outside edge touched the ice, a huge impulse struck his right knee and his ankle joints. Even though Ji Heyu tried to use his left leg to relieve the pressure, he ultimately couldn’t overcome his body’s limits.
Chen Changxing, sitting in the judges’ seat, had noticed this too. The boy’s jumping posture was so light and graceful that when it was judged that he was going to fall, Chen Changxing surprisingly felt a bit of regret and pity. How could such a perfect performance have a flaw?
The boy on the competition field was performing with such ease5 so much that Chen Changxing momentarily forgot that even the top male singles athletes find it difficult to achieve a clean performance throughout the entire routine on the competition field. This was only a sectional competition in the youth group of the figure skating club league, where most of the contestants weren’t even at a professional level.
The moment Ji Heyu’s body tilted sideways, he quickly used his left hand to support himself on the ice surface and then used the momentum to leap up and perform a small jump with a brief touch on the ice—he didn’t fall on the ice! The whole audience erupted into applause.
Touching the ice with one hand (to support yourself) falls under the category of recommended deduction in the calculation of GOE (Grade of Execution), but if the judge is soft-hearted and lets a little water out, it’s not impossible.
Chen Changxing instinctively breathed a sigh of relief. Before he realised it, he had already been awarded a positive GOE. Among the judges in China, Chen Changxing was considered one of the strictest, but today, his instinctive pursuit of and love for beauty led him to let a little water out for the first time.
Forget it, let’s just let water out.6
Chen Changxing turned sideways to observe the sponsor seated beside him. He thought to himself, that such a brilliant and artistic short programme, no, performance—would surely move even this cold-hearted sponsor.
Unexpectedly, the other party wasn’t even watching the boy’s skating, still playing on his phone, and even had a look of disgust and contempt on his face. This discovery made Chen Changxing very uncomfortable.
But after all, the other person was the sponsor of the competition, and he was merely a powerless judge, so it wasn’t good to say anything on this matter. He silently added the name “Ji Yuansong” to his blacklist.
Ji Heyu continued to glide across the ice. Following the 3Lz+3Lo, was a segment of difficult footwork and skating.
Choctaw, three-turns, brackets, twizzles— 7the boy was still relaxed and at ease as if the minor mistake of falling on the ice hadn’t affected his mindset at all. But in fact, Ji Heyu was barely holding on.
He had to do his best.
The combination spin wasn’t too difficult for Ji Heyu to handle. The challenge was the ending of the programme.
The new sprout having experienced the shroud and baptism of the spring sunshine, gradually grew from a tender bud in the winter into a thin branch full of hope. It held a lot of praise for spring and gratitude for the sunlight, wholeheartedly enjoying and loving the world that had given it life. It should be stretched to its fullest because it wanted to showcase everything it had, and to not betray the world’s tenderness and grace!
Therefore, Ji Heyu arranged for a Biellmann spin8 at the programme’s ending. Only a beautiful, standard drop (teardrop shape) could fully express the joy of the new sprout at that moment, ensuring that everyone’s eyes and hearts would remember this new sprout that was born in the depths of winter but always grew toward the sun!
The boy’s left leg kicked high behind him, and his hands grasped his toes with perfect accuracy. At the moment he achieved this position, the audience collectively gasped.9
The searing pain of tearing ligaments seemed to pass through everyone’s body. But they couldn’t look away.
The boy’s waist, abdomen and left leg formed a rounded, beautiful teardrop shape, while his right leg remained firmly nailed on the ground, spinning rapidly. The lights illuminated the boy, making the overflowing colours and dazzling sequins of the costume shine as if they were truly baptised in the dazzling sunlight. The sprout was sincerely and enthusiastically stretching, and spinning.
Chen Changxing in the judge’s seat suddenly straightened in his seat! This was a Biellmann spin—a Biellmann in the men’s singles!
The perfect Biellmann form required a high amount of flexibility, so usually, only the female singles could accomplish this movement beautifully. Currently, the number of top-tier male singles in the world that could regularly perform this move in an arena didn’t surpass five fingers.
Not to mention, the boy’s physical stamina was not outstanding, and despite a mistake in the combination jump and a rapid decline in stamina, he still managed to hold on and perform a Biellmann at the end!
was able to force himself to do a Biellmann after a flawed combination jump and a rapid decline in energy levels at the end of his program!
Chen Changxing’s evaluation was very pertinent. Because Ji Heyu was barely holding on at this moment.
The oxygen in his lungs was completely exhausted, and under the high-speed rotation, his vision already somewhat dizzy began to shake violently. He could no longer hear the applause and cheers ringing in his ears, relying solely on instinct to continue spinning on the ice.
He was even counting the seconds in his mind, encouraging himself to hold on until the last note of the music ended. Hold on, there are only a few more seconds left…
At this point, the soreness in his muscles had become secondary. Ji Heyu could only feel the constant metallic taste of blood rising in his throat and a burst of explosive pain in his lungs as if his entire body no longer belonged to him.
It seems I’ll need to focus more on lung capacity training when I get back, Ji Heyu thought in a trance.
Finally, the violin played its last note. The music came to an abrupt end. He did it.
At the same time, the enthusiastic applause that rang out around the ice rink was about to overturn the roof!
According to the figure skating competition traditions, at this moment, the audience who like the athlete will throw tokens of their affection onto the ice, to express their support for the athlete. In international competitions, some fans will even travel thousands of miles to bring gifts and flowers to cheer on their favourite skaters’ outstanding performances.
But today is merely a small and insignificant competition, so everyone won’t be as formal. Therefore, the applause from the audience was the best approval.
Chen Changxing in the judge’s seat, was quite emotional at this moment. Although he had observed countless major competitions, it had been a long time since he had seen such an infectiousness programme.
Yes, appeal. Appeal is a very subjective thing; it’s unrelated to difficulty. Many of the top athletes can perform spectacular quadruple jumps but are unable to accurately convey an immersive theme to the audience.
But, the young boy on the ice could.
Although the difficulty of this short program wasn’t particularly high, its appeal was exceptionally strong. Even a layman completely doesn’t understand figure skating could understand how a new sprout shoots, grows and even matures.
In addition, the other person’s “shocking”10 flexibility and that face, which strikes directly at the heart at first sight—this is definitely a good seedling!
Because he came here with the purpose of selecting talent, Chen Changxing had all the contestant’s profiles at hand. He glanced at Ji Heyu’s profile.
Age…
15 years old?
How come he is already 15 years old?
Chen Changxing’s initial joy was somewhat dampened. The boy on the ice had a slender figure and wasn’t very tall, so Chen Changxing didn’t expect the other person to already be 15.
If only he were a few years younger, there would be great potential.11 But Ji Heyu is already 15, and it doesn’t look like he’s entered the development milestone yet.
Members of the national team are typically trained from a young age, and they must develop a strong foundation of skills early on. As for Ji Heyu, although he can jump a 2A and a 3Lz+3Lo, for his age, this level of skill is actually what is expected for an athlete of his age.
Ji Heyu’s age made the enthusiastic Chen Changxing suddenly realise the crux of the matter. The programme’s appeal is great, but ultimately, the international community still places heavy emphasis on technical difficulty. The scores for the programme are too watery,12 and the nationality of Chinese is not a natural advantage when placed here.
Is it really necessary to take away other people’s valuable spot for Ji Heyu, a 15-year-old who might enter the development milestone at any time and has not yet mastered the top difficulty of the youth group?
The national team was not decided by him alone. While today’s short programme was indeed wonderful, but its emotional impact might be significantly reduced on video, and it might not convince the other national team coaches.
And those younger athletes, once cultivated, might be as good as or even better than Ji Heyu when they reach his age, possibly mastering even more difficult technical movements.
Chen Changxing sighed.
As the teenager on the ice began to face the audience, bowing and expressing his gratitude, Meng Xun reluctantly withdrew his gaze and then smiled, saying to his embarrassed-looking coach beside him, “See, he’s really good. The difficulty of that 3Lz+3Lo and the Biellmann spin isn’t low.”
Meng Xun added without any pretence, “At least I can’t do it.”
—But it’s just that I can’t do it now. Meng Xun added to his mind.
This is precisely the charm of competitive sports. Nobody rests on their laurels13 everyone is constantly advancing. Those who were defeated before could improve at any time, even improve ahead of you. And Meng Xun believed his efforts would be a waste.
Ji Heyu skated to the waiting area to await his scores. It was undeniable that his condition today wasn’t great because of Ji Yuansong’s sudden appearance, but he had done his best. Even though the landing on the combination jump was unstable, it wasn’t something he regretted.
Ji Heyu calmly looked in the direction of the judge’s seat. Without thinking, Ji Heyu could already figure out how many bonus points he’d get in the programme component score from Ji Yuansong
It would be zero.
He had come here in person and given 10 points to the two before him, isn’t this the purpose? Even though he (Ji Heyu) had no intention of competing or arguing with him, Ji Yuansong still wanted to suppress him.
This is just the kind of person Ji Yuansong was.
But with so many professional judges on the field, and so many sports journalists, and audience off the field.
Most people have eyes, and most can distinguish right from wrong (logic).
There were 6 places places to to enter the finals in the sectional competition. The provincial team coaches who had come to choose talents had all seen his performance. Ji Heyu didn’t think he had anything to worry about.
After venting in the short program, the heart that was somewhat hesitant settled. Ji Heyu found it excessively ridiculous that Ji Yuansong would come up with this kind of childish and embarrassing trick to make things difficult for him.
Is this the virtue of the eldest young master of the Ji family, who always boasts about being clever and capable?
The scores were quickly added up. “Contestant No. 3, Ji Heyu. The judges technical score: 37.12, programme component: 45.60, overall score: 82.74—”
With the high score, the host couldn’t help but briskly raise his tone.
But soon, his tone stiffened, and he even paused for a moment to double-check, and then he hesitantly and reluctantly reported Ji Heyu’s programme bonus score component.
“Programme bonus score, 0 points.”
The author has something to say:
Cheap family members are meant to be slapped in the face. QAQ. In the future, Ji Baobei will be his boss and won’t care about their dirty money (bushi).
J Baobei: I’m just quietly watching you.
PS: I totally made up the scores. Covering my face.
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(sxhbyc ᥫ᭡ footnotes:)
2. This idiom is making another comeback. Inconceivable (不可思议) – unimaginable, unbelievable, unfathomable. ⤶
3. Exactly the same/ like the one (滑一模一样) – Carbon copy. ⤶
4. Falling during the second jump in a jump combination gets you a -0.3 deduction. ⤶
5. Handling a butcher’s cleaver with ease (游刃有余) – Doing something skillfully and with ease. ⤶
6. Let out water (放一点点水) – throw out a game. Chen Changxing is ignoring the mistake Ji Heyu made – declaring it null. ⤶
7. Twizzels are rapid turns that are forward and backward continuously and smoothly down the ice. (1:05-1:30) ⤶
8. I haven’t made a note of this in a while. Biellman spin is a movement that involves the skater pulling one foot over their head. This move requires a lot of flexibility (mostly in the legs and back). A Biellmann spin by Denise Biellmann time stamp(0:11-0:15), if my explanation isn’t the best. ⤶
9. To agree by chance (不约而同) – Taking the same action without prior consultation. ⤶
10. Shocks the eye, astonishes the heart (触目惊心) – Shocking; horrible to see; a ghastly sight. ⤶
11. With great prospects for the future (大有可为) – well worth doing. ⤶
12. Watery/moist (水分) – This means that the programme’s scoring might be higher for other reasons that have nothing to do with skills – the scores are padded. ⤶
13. 11. Stuck in the old ways (故步自封) – Refusing to acknowledge new ideas; stagnating and conservative ⤶
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(sxhbyc ᥫ᭡ notes: I’m not an expert at some of these figure skating terms – so if there’s any mistake please tell me ᯓᡣ𐭩)
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