Last updated: Sunday, August 13, 2017

As summer shortens and we hurtle towards the new skating season, Patrick manages to find time for fun, friends, flips… and interviews, of course!

August 12: Richmond Training Centre Photo

I’m sure this was taken the other day when Patrick was still in Ontario, but it’s nice to see him give a thumbs up!

August 10: Interview with Chinese Media

Patrick gave an interview to the Chinese media that was published on Weibo. He talked about the different mindset he has for the 2018 Olympics, and his journey to inner peace.

Here is the interview text and English translation. My thanks to fan Violet Bliss for contributing to the translations below!

 

2017年8月9日 爱滑冰
August 9, 2017 Love Figure Skating

 

2016-17赛季是陈伟群回归赛场的第二个赛季，这个赛季，与全新的教练组合作，在节目构成中加入新的四周跳，这一切的改变都是更好的备战明年平昌冬奥会。在赛季末世团赛后，陈伟群接受了包括爱滑冰在内的三家媒体的联合专访，回顾本赛季的表现，也谈及奥运赛季的计划和准备。(采访链接：网页链接)

The 2016-17 season was the second season of Patrick Chan’s return to competition, during which he collaborated with a new coaching team and added a new quadruple jump in his program. All of these changes were made to better prepare to compete in next year’s PyeongChang Olympics. After the World Championships at season’s end, Chan accepted a joint interview by three media organizations, including Love Figure Skating. He looked back at this season’s performance and discussed his plans and preparations for the Olympics (link to interview).

 

记者：世团赛是本赛季最后一场正式比赛，你如何评价自己这个赛季的表现呢？

Reporter: The World Championships was the last official competition of this season. How do you judge your own performance this season?

 

陈伟群：回溯整个赛季，我认为这是一个很成功的赛季。即使赛季中间的表现有起伏，我很高兴自己心态始终保持乐观。我从每场比赛中获得提高，也一直在学习，尤其是心理方面，当然增加新的四周跳也是很大的变化。赛季初我的计划仅是（自由滑）完成两个后外点冰四周和两个阿克塞尔三周，而到了赛季末，我可以在自由滑中完成三个四周跳，这对于我来说是一个不小的突破，当然我知道对比有些选手这不算什么令人惊讶的成绩。我需要按照自己的计划和目标前行，同时我对自己依然有能力掌握新的跳跃、取得进步、保持位列于世界男单前五表示高兴，我始终对领奖台充满渴望。这还是有可能的，我希望保留登上奥运领奖台的可能性，为此我需要继续提升自我，而这一年正是此过程中很重要的一部分。

Patrick: Looking back, I think this was a very successful season. Even with the ups and downs, I’m very happy to have kept my optimistic mindset. I’ve improved from each competition, and I keep learning, especially in the psychological area. Of course, adding a new quad was a big change. At the beginning of the season, my plan (for the long program) was to just complete two quad toes and two triple axels; yet by the end of the season, I could do three quads in my free program. This was a breakthrough for me, though of course I know it is no big deal to some of the other men. I just need to stick to my own plan and goals. Meanwhile, I’m happy to to be able to master a new jump, keep improving and stay in the group of top five men in the world. I always have a desire to be on the podium. It’s still possible. To keep my Olympic podium hope possible, I will keep improving myself, and this year was a very important part of that process.

 

 

记者：去年休赛期，你做了一些改变，譬如更换教练，在节目中加入新的跳跃，你认为这些变化对你这赛季的表现起到了怎样的意义？

Reporter: During last season, you made some changes such as switching coaches and adding new jumps to your program. How do you think these changes affected this season’s performance?

 

陈伟群：我认为这些改变是积极的，同时也很有必要。换教练并不是我的决定，我之前的教练（Kathy Johnson）决定休息一段时间，不再担任教练。所以我选择了 Marina（Marina Zueva），她正好有时间，而且经验丰富。我的另一位教练 Oleg（Oleg Epstein），一直都与 Marina 合作，也是一位非常出色的教练。同时这也是我们互相学习的一个过程，Oleg 没有太多执教单人选手的经验，不过他有丰富的学识，这些与我个人对单人滑的认识结合在一起，我们可以取得成功，找到适合我的技术。

Patrick: I think the changes were positive and also necessary. It was not my decision to change coaches. My former coach (Kathy Johnson) decided to take a break from coaching so I switched to Marina, who happened to have time for me and is very experienced. My other coach Oleg has worked with Marina for a long time and he is an outstanding coach. We learn from each other. Oleg doesn’t have much experience coaching Singles but he’s very knowledgeable, so with my understanding of Singles skating, together we find success and appropriate techniques for me.

 

记者：自由滑 A Journey 主题是友情，也是非常富有感情的作品，随着赛季的深入，在节目表达上有什么变化吗？

Reporter: The theme of the long program, “A Journey” is about friendship and it’s an emotional piece of music. Were there any changes in the expression of your program as the season progressed?

 

陈伟群：感情一直都在，外在的表现和内在的情感一直都一样。唯一变化的是技术方面，跳跃安排多次变动，加入了后内结环四周跳。遗憾的是随着技术难度的增加，我告诉自己避免在节目中融入过多的情绪，因为我需要专注跳跃，尤其是四周跳，所以在表达和感情上或多或少会留有遗憾。

Patrick: The emotion was always there. The external expression and the internal emotions were always the same. The only changes were technical, with several changes in jump arrangements to incorporate the quad salchow. Unfortunately, with the increased level of technical difficulty, I told myself to avoid too much emotion because I needed to focus on the jumps, especially the quads. So about how much expression and emotion there was, I have regrets.

 

 

记者：服装方面有什么考虑吗？

Reporter: Did you have any costume considerations?

 

陈伟群：没什么特别，我只是很喜欢这个颜色。整体效果比较抽象，取决于个人的理解，每个人看到的方面都不一样。有人喜欢，也有人不喜欢，我不会在意别人对服装的看法，（服装）舒服、看着好看就足够了。

Patrick: Nothing special, I just like this colour. The overall effect is abstract, letting others interpret and have their own viewpoint. Some liked it, and some didn’t. I don’t mind what others think about costumes. As long as it’s comfortable and looks nice, it’s fine for me.

 

记者：下赛季难度方面的计划呢？

Reporter: What is your plan for the technical elements for next season?

 

陈伟群：显然（短节目）包含两个四周跳。我希望能够在短节目中持续稳定的完成两个四周跳，赛季初我从没想过要这样，虽然这次短节目出现了失误，但（尝试两个四周跳）也是参赛目的之一，也许还会考虑在自由滑中加入后内点冰四周跳（Flip Jump）。目前而言，短节目对我的挑战最大，现在我不法确定能否在自由滑中顺利完成后内点冰四周跳。也可能短节目中只包括一个四周跳，一切都取决于到时的情况。不过为了与顶尖男单选手竞争，短节目两个四周是必备的。

Patrick: Obviously there will be two quads in the short program. I hope to have two consistent quads in the short program. I never thought of this at the beginning of the season. Although there were errors in the short program, attempting two quads was one of my competition goals. I may even add a quadruple flip in the long program. Meanwhile, the biggest challenge is the short program. I’m not sure if I can successfully complete a quad flip in my long program. Or maybe there will only be one be quad in the short program. It all depends on the situation. However, to compete with the top men, two quads in the short program is a must.

 

 

记者：所以下赛季将包括后内结环四周跳和后内点冰四周跳？

Reporter: So there will be a quad salchow and a quad flip in the next season?

 

陈伟群：这赛季我才将后内结环四周跳加入节目编排，世锦赛时又对跳跃顺序进行了一些调整，我没有太多在比赛里完成这个跳跃的经验。夏天休赛期时，我会花更多的时间练习，利用这段时间提高成功率。至于后内点冰四周跳，目前还没开始练，需要看我能否完成，存在很多未知的因素。但我想去尝试，推动自己去再学一种新的四周跳。

Patrick: I just added the quad salchow to the program this season, and we made adjustments to the jump layout at Worlds, so I haven’t had too much experience with doing this jump in competition. I will train more during the summer, using that time to raise my success rate. As for the quad flip, I haven’t started training it yet and will need to see if I can complete it. There are many unknown factors. But I want to try to push myself to learn a new quad.

 

记者：你有非常出众的滑行技术，是通过怎样的练习才达到现在的成就呢？

Reporter: You have outstanding skating skills. What kind of training did you go through to achieve this level of success?

 

陈伟群：滑行是从小伴随我长大的事情，是需要时日不断练习，不是一年内你花时间学习就可以变得更好。就我个人而言，良好的滑行取决于很多因素，我的身体条件，肌肉结构，从小接受的指导，和启蒙时期的教练，以及多年的积累。这是最困难的部分。跳跃练习能在短时间内见到成效，可能一年可以学会一种新的四周跳。但是滑行，经历年复一年的训练和学习，我才取得现有的滑行能力和水平。

Patrick: Skating is something I grew up with. It’s something that takes time, not something you can learn in a year. For me, good skating skills depend on many factors like my body-build, muscle structure, early learning, childhood coach, and many years of training. This is the most difficult part. You can see quick results in jump practices, learning a new quad in a year. But skating takes years and years of training and practice for me to have the skating skills and level that I have now.

 

 

记者：不过现在有很多年轻选手将更多的精力花费在跳跃上，跳跃难度发展非常迅速。

Reporter: But these days, many young skaters are investing more energy into jumps, and jump difficulty is increasing very fast.

 

陈伟群：起初意识到这种趋势时，大约是2014年冬奥会之后，我有点沮丧和失望。不过现在我没有精力去关注其他人在做什么。我只专注于我需要做什么和我应该在哪些方面提高，以保持竞争力。我希望我能将四周跳和我一直具有优势的滑行技术有机结合，展现我的竞争力。我认为这是完美的集合体，以此展示我一直希望向大家展示的男子花样滑冰的样子。

Patrick: When I first noticed this trend around the time after the Sochi Olympics, I was frustrated and disappointed. But now I don’t have energy to pay attention to what others are doing. I only focus on what I need to do and what areas I should improve in order to remain competitive. I hope I can combine the quads and the advantage of my skating skills into an organic combination to demonstrate my competitiveness. I think this is the ideal combination, so I can show everybody what I had always hoped to show, which is what Mens’ figure skating is all about.

 

记者： 如果具备高难度的跳跃，选手可能在比赛中获得更多的优势，你有什么看法呢？

Reporter: With the most difficult jumps, competitors may have a greater advantage. What do you think?

 

陈伟群：我始终认为全面的选手将会出现。这些年羽生选手逐渐成长为更好的选手和表演者。在过去几年中，这项运动的变化非常疯狂，竞技的激烈程度和难度令人惊讶，而一些年轻选手却能如此轻松的完成。我来自的时代是，一套节目中完成一个四周跳就已经非常棒，现在一个四周跳远远不够。我能做的是提醒自己，我是参与这种变革的选手之一，自2011年世锦赛在自由滑中完成两个四周跳开始，我推动了更多男选手去完成四周跳。

Patrick: I’ve always thought that a complete skater would appear. Over the years, Hanyu has grown into a great competitor and performer. In the last few years, the changes in this sport have been crazy. The level of competitiveness and difficulty is astonishing. Yet some young skaters find it so easy to complete [jumps]. Coming from my era, including a quad in a program was considered great. Now one quad is far from adequate. What I can do is remind myself that I’m one of the participants in this change. Beginning with doing two quads in the long program at the 2011 Worlds, I’ve pushed more men into doing quads.

 

 

记者：下赛季将是你第三次备战奥运会，对比前两次的经历，这次你会怎样面对这种压力？

Reporter: It will be your third Olympics next season. Compared to the previous experiences, how will you deal with the pressure this time?

 

陈伟群：我现在比那时更有明智、更有经验。我希望我的第三次奥运会不要重复过去的错误。那时我心理上并没有做好准备，而这次我希望我可以做得更好。这是一个学习如何掌控情绪和想法的过程。佛教徒用其一生去修行，学习如何控制自己的杂念。花样滑冰与之类似，无论面对何种情况，何种压力，控制自己的想法是非常重要的。想法可能是你全身最有力的“肌肉”，它可以改变任何事，也会让你的表演变得不同。所以我需要学会掌控自己的思想，（如果可以）这将是巨大的优势。

Patrick: I’m wiser and more experienced now than before. I hope that at my third Olympics, I will not repeat my past mistakes. At that time, I wasn’t prepared mentally. I hope to do better this time. This has been a learning process on how to manage emotions and thinking. Buddhists spend their entire lives learning how to control their distracting thoughts. It’s similar in figure skating. No matter the situation, no matter the pressure, it’s very important to control my own thoughts. Your mind may be your most powerful “muscle” in your body. It can change any situation, and it can make a difference in your performance. So I need to learn how to control my mind. If I can do it, this would be a great advantage to me.

记者：在日常比赛中，你一般如何调整自己的心态？

Reporter: During regular competitions, how do you normally adjust your attitude?

 

陈伟群：无论短节目表现好坏，我都需要忘掉它，专注接下来的事情。第二天，自由滑，是全新的一天，一个崭新的开始，我唯一能做的是自由滑全力以赴。我无法改变已经发生的事情，无论好坏。我们需要活在当下，做好当前的事情。

Patrick: Whether my short program performance is good or not, I have to forget it to focus on what comes next. The second day, the free skate, will be a brand new day, a new beginning. All I can do is to do my best in the free skate. I can’t change what has already happened, good or bad. We need to live in the present, and do what is ahead well.

 

 

记者：你现在是很多年轻选手的榜样，在你成长的道路上，哪些选手对你有非常重大的影响呢？

Reporter: You are now an example to many young skaters. On your journey to growth, which skaters have had a great influence on you?

 

陈伟群：有两位选手，一位是 Alexei Yagudin，我和他的身体条件有些相似，拥有强壮的肌肉，他在冰上的表现力是我非常欣赏的。另一位是 Stephane Lambiel，尤其是在滑行、风格等方面，他的每一套节目都能把我带入他的世界，无论是怎样的故事。

Patrick: There were two skaters – one is Alexei Yagudin – he and I have somewhat similar physical conditioning, with strong muscles, and I very much appreciated his expression on the ice. The other is Stéphane Lambiel, especially in his skating, style, etc. Every one of his programs brought me into his world, no matter what the story was.

 

记者：能说你享受滑冰吗？

Reporter: Can you say that you enjoy skating?

 

陈伟群：也是，也不是。这是一个相对的状态。我已经从事花样滑冰运动很多年了，喜爱无法完全表达我跟滑冰之间的关系。我与花样滑冰之间的关系很特殊，事实上每个选手（与花样滑冰的关系）都不同。我很庆幸外界没有给我过多的期待和压力，因为在那种情况下，选手将面对非常大的挑战和困难，无限的期许、巨大的压力。由于我不必经历这些，我可以花时间专注于自我提升，学识及思想方面。当你非常紧张担心结果时，你会对你想学什么和你为什么要这么做失去判断能力，而这些才是你希望获得和提高的部分。事实上，我们很难分辨什么是我们想达到的，什么是别人希望我们达到的。

Patrick: Yes and no. This is a relative state. I have been in the sport of figure skating for many years, and I cannot fully express my relationship with skating with “like” or “love”. I have a very special relationship with figure skating, and in fact every skater (and their relationship with figure skating) is different. I am glad that I do not have too much expectation and pressure place on me from the outside world, because in that case, a skater would face great challenges and difficulties, infinite expectations, and huge pressure. Since I do not have to go through this, I can take the time to focus on self-improvement, knowledge and thought. When you are very nervous about results, you lose the ability to evaluate why you wanted to learn and why you wanted to do this. In fact, it is difficult for us to differentiate what we want to achieve, versus what others want us to accomplish.

 

记者：谢谢你接受采访，祝你奥运赛季好运。

Reporter: Thank you for the interview. Good luck at the Olympics.

 

陈伟群：谢谢。

Patrick: Thank you.

 

 

August 10: Training with Kana

 

August 6: Hanging with the Ladies

And was he getting ready to go on the ice or off the ice here?

 

August 3: Belly floppin’ Fun

The ending of this video was totally unexpected, but we should get used to seeing Patrick’s “outtakes” this season…

Related Posts

Patrick Chan Summer News Update, July 27, 2017