Junior Konon Kurashige figure skated internationally from Dec. 4 to 8, representing Japan at the Epinal Solo Ice Dance International competition in Épinal, France.
The journey to represent Japan at this level was extensive for Kurashige. She competed in the ice dance category, also called discipline, and was the first junior woman to represent Japan in this event. Her head coach Anne Goldberg Baldwin admires her dedication and discipline, especially in preparing for this competition.
“If I could clone Konon I would,” Baldwin said. “She is just such a responsible, sweet and hardworking role model for my younger students. I couldn’t ask for a better role model.”
Baldwin’s experience working with Kurashige has allowed her to see how she enjoys and appreciates the process over the results.
“She is just so focused and down to earth in her work,” Baldwin said. “She is humble. That humility takes her so many places, which as a person and an athlete is such a valuable trait to have.”
Before being able to compete in France or even begin the process of training for high-level international competition, Kurashige had to overcome a major setback.
“During my sophomore year, I fractured my spine and I was off of the ice for 6 months,” Kurashige said. “I wasn’t able to jump during this time, so I started looking into different disciplines of figure skating and I began training for solo Ice Dance starting last spring.”
Her injury forced her to overcome a lot of adversity, and some things didn’t go as planned.
“The [initial] idea was to return to singles,” Baldwin said. “ [We wanted] to do a test and ice dance here or there, but it wasn’t really necessary [for her] to compete. The pain persisted and didn’t go away, so it kind of kept her from being able to do all the things that she was expected to be able to do when she came back.”
Kurashige decided to leave behind the singles performances and began to take on the more technical discipline of ice dance.
“She decided to switch disciplines from singles, which is the jumps and the spins, to ice dance, which is a lot of character, turn quality and execution,” Baldwin said.
Before completely switching her focus to ice dance, Kurashige finished her singles tests, a set of testing through U.S. figure skating that evaluates jumps, spins and step sequences. She is a double gold medalist in skating seals and singles. After this achievement, she began her process of learning ice dance.
“She had to start from the bottom and work her way up,” Baldwin said. “From learning her first pattern dances and working her way through a lot of tests to become eligible to compete. We were working our way through tests really quickly, much, much quicker than other athletes do at this level.”
Her dedication and efficiency on the ice allowed her to complete this process much faster than other athletes.
“After taking that test, we switched over to the dance skates and didn’t look back,” Baldwin said. “Most people who reach her level have been working at this for four to five years at least, if not more. She did the same thing in six months.”
Kurshige’s process to compete in Japan began with her eligibility as a Japanese dual citizen. Additionally, it included obtaining recognition by the Japanese skating federation and getting released by U.S. figure skating. Most people’s first competition would be small, but hers ended up being international.
“Because there is not a whole lot of solo ice dance in Japan, they were really excited to have her,” Baldwin said. “[Starting with an international competition] was kind of diving in the deep end and then some, but she did it with grace and poise and learned so much there.”
Competing internationally for Japan came with a lot of firsts for Kurashige, but Baldwin admires how well she handled them, including meeting new people.
“I think that it was an eye-opening but also really wonderful experience and growth for her,” Baldwin said. “I think she really enjoyed being with the other girls and meeting the other girls. I think that it was a really nice experience how they set that up for them, so that the competitors started to bond and create those connections across countries which is really special.”
Kurashige appreciates and respects Baldwin as a coach, especially the guidance she has received as an ice skater.
“Anne has been very supportive throughout my whole skating career,” Kurashige said. “With a lot of setbacks, with injuries and all, she is someone I look up to as she is able to push me to my best while supporting and guiding me through my training.”
Looking to the future, Kurashige does not plan to stop here, hoping to continue ice dance and attend another international competition this spring.
“Currently, I am doing indoor track and skating at the same time, and I’m super excited for the rest of the season, ” Kurashige said. “I am planning on competing in the national competition system in Georgia, and in early April, I am competing in Finland.”
Kurashige’s experience competing in France was exciting and unforgettable.
“It was my first time in Europe and, as someone who takes French, it was fun to experience the culture of France,” Kurashige said. “I loved meeting new people and my competitors from all over the world. I had an amazing experience, and I can’t wait for my next competition.”
Although her time spent in France was invaluable, most importantly, she had fun.
“She got off the ice and said I had fun,” Baldwin said. “And that’s the best thing that you can hear as a coach is that they actually enjoyed the process and enjoyed the performance. That was beautiful to hear.”
