Southern CA’s Figure Skater Mirai Nagasu, 16, Captures Silver . . . and Lots of Hearts

Mirai Nagasu floored me at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships: beauty, grace, strength, agility, artistry.

She won first in the short program.

Loved her dress. So original. The music came from Pirates of the Caribbean, which she lists on her website as one of her favorite movies, and the dress looks like a sparkly treasure.

Mirai came in second place to Rachel Flatt in the long program. Kudos to Rachel for skating well and earning more points from the judges, but to my mind Nagasu has that special something on the ice. See her skating on the link below. Wow. In any case, they both go to Olympics 2010.

I have a special spot in my heart for Mirai Nagasu because she is from Southern California. Her parents own a restaurant in Arcadia. Nagasu started skating when she was just 5.

She is as pretty as her name, “Mirai,” which means “Future” in Japanese. Boy, oh boy, she is the future of skating! I bet that the name Mirai will start appearing in “most popular names for girls” lists soon.

A recent article in the New York Times talks about the Mirai’s struggle with self-esteem. In fact, her coach instigated a “no cry” rule after she broke down from the stress of it all a couple times. The article said a couple of times she felt like taking off her skates for good. Figure skating is a stressful sport . . . stressful for the skater and indeed, the whole family. Skating is demanding physically, emotionally, and financially.

Mirai: You are beautiful, your skating inspires; and you deserve your spot on our Olympic team. Enjoy yourself!

More than 10 years of practice went into these skating performances. A sport like this requires a huge commitment from the family. Congratulations to Mirai and to her parents and other supporters as well as to Rachel Flatt and her family and supporters. Good Luck at the Olympics!

Let me know what you think in comments below.

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