The young phenom from the Republic of South Korea took the world by storm in 2006. After claiming bronze at her first senior International Skating Union (ISU) international competition, Skate Canada, Kim spun gold at her second event, Trophée Eric Bompard.

But the feisty teen had barely begun. She pulled off the upset of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series when she claimed the coveted Grand Prix Final title by defeating the odds-on favorite, Mao Asada from Japan.

And just a few months later at the 2007 World Championships in Japan, Kim’s short program — “Tango de Roxanne” — blew the competition away, earning the highest score ever awarded under the current ISU judging system.
 
SKATING INTO HISTORY

Kim first began skating at age 5 when a new facility opened near her home in the small city of Gunpo in the Republic of South Korea. Her mother, Mi-hee Park, took her daughter to the rink for recreational skating but that changed when Kim was about 7 years old. “A coach told my mom I had talent and I would make a very good skater in the world,” Kim recalled. From that moment, Kim started taking the sport seriously.

“It was a surprise to hear that. We never thought that our daughter could be a champion,” Park said.

The world first sat up and paid attention to Kim during the 2004-05 season when she claimed silver at both the Junior Grand Prix Final and the 2005 World Junior Figure Skating Championships. The then-15-year-old made history, claiming Korea’s first international medals at both ISU competitions.

Opting to compete as a junior during the 2005-06 season, Kim was unbeatable. She claimed gold at every competition she contested. Her 2006 World Junior Championship victory over Asada was her triumphant finale in the junior ranks.

But despite her historic achievements, Kim almost quit the sport after her golden run that year. Plagued by boot problems in the summer of 2005 and a recurring knee injury, Kim lost her confidence.

Reveling in her new Canadian environment, a playful Yu-Na Kim showed “No Doubt” that she really is “Just A Girl” at heart.


DOING A TRIPLE FLIP

Kim’s homeland coach Se-Yol Kim decided a change of training venue might revive the competitive spark in her young protégé and sent Kim to Canada to work with choreographer David Wilson during the summer of 2006.

After three months at the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club (TCSCC), Kim knew she had found the perfect training environment and decided to make it her full-time training base. The young prodigy approached skating director Brian Orser and asked him to take on the duties as her full-time coach.

“At first, I was not sure I could devote the time it would take to develop this rare talent,” Orser told IFS in the fall of 2006. But Orser saw in Kim the same unyielding competitive spirit that propelled him to the top of his game and it was a challenge he could not turn down.

Kim’s family was also reluctant but the headstrong young woman was adamant about making the change. “When I was in Korea I had one coach who taught everything,” Kim said. “But here I have a spin coach, a jump coach, a skating coach and a choreographer. I can learn more.”

The news that the Korean star was permanently relocating to Canada to train full time with Orser was not without controversy. Kim’s Korean coach did not take the news well, publicly expressing her displeasure at the loss of her star student.

Orser and Wilson inherited a shy but intense teenager who had all the makings of a world champion but her skating lacked one necessary ingredient: personality. Wilson said he was instructed by Korean skating officials to make Kim a happier skater. “I thought that was unusual, but I made it my goal to make her laugh,” he said. A week passed before Kim even smiled.

But by the end of the summer, Kim had blossomed into a fun-loving, outgoing teenager. “I know I made the right choice by deciding to move to Canada,” she said. “Brian is a really good coach for me.”
Kim also enlisted the services of a personal trainer, Nam Jin Jang, who also made the move to Canada to monitor her young charge.

When Kim made her debut in the senior ranks at 2006 Skate Canada, Orser also made his coaching debut at the boards.

In January of 2007 Kim was diagnosed with early-stage disc herniation that caused constant back pain. Orser jumped into action and set a daily regimen in place for his young student with physical therapy at the forefront.
But there was little time to heal and when Kim took to the ice for the long program at the 2007 World Championships in Japan, expectations were not high. That night Kim showed what she is truly made of. Rising above the pain the 16-year-old delivered a solid performance and skated away with the bronze medal.

A TRAINING HAVEN

Orser got to work in the off-season and assembled a team of specialists to work with Kim, including three-time Dutch national champion Astrid Shrubb and 1988 Olympic ice dance bronze medalist Tracy Wilson.
Shrubb became Kim’s spin coach and Tracy Wilson took on the duties of developing Kim’s stroking skills, expression and all-round skating quality.

At Kim’s request, David Wilson became her full-time choreographer. “Everyone on the coaching team has great personalities and really good demeanors,” Orser said.

Choosing Shrubb to work with Kim was an easy decision, Orser noted. “Astrid is really tough,” he said, “and that is great.”

Shrubb, who trained at the TCSCC as a teenager, is honored to be part of Kim’s coaching team. “It is wonderful, it is so much fun,” she said. “I guess the best word to describe working with Yu-Na is amazing because she can do almost anything. Whatever I ask of her she will always try and not only try, but she can usually do it really well.

“It is amazing to work with someone who can do almost anything. And the height of her jumps and the quality of her skating are so superior, it is really hard to find anything to criticize about her.”

When asked what she considered Kim’s weaknesses, Shrubb hesitated. “It is really difficult to find one,” Shrubb said. “I guess I would have said early on that it would be her expression or giving of her own personality but that has certainly changed.

“I have noticed a huge improvement in that she is willing to give more of herself and [show] her personality. [She is] not so closed in and skating for herself.”

Tracy Wilson, who has earned a reputation as a respected television analyst, has had the opportunity to observe Kim’s progress the past year. “I would have to say Yu-Na is as good as they come,” Tracy Wilson said. “You know, the odd skater comes along and they have no weaknesses. Yu-Na has the artistry and can handle the difficult choreography that David creates for her and make it flow. She can incorporate all the elements with beautiful edges and then land these unbelievable jumps. But she is not just a jumper. All the levels of all of her elements are so high. Yu-Na is as good as I have ever seen.

“What impresses me about Yu-Na is the way she trains. She pays attention to detail and wants to learn. Even being third in the world she is still a sponge and she is still a student of the sport. And to me, that is when a skater can reach new heights. Often, as a skater starts to achieve success they shut down and you can see it, in terms of growth and wanting to learn. I can see that Yu-Na is still very much a student and still wanting to improve. That tells me that there are greater things to come from this young lady.”

Orser said everyone who works with Kim is of the same opinion. “This is a great venue for Yu-Na to develop and do the things that she does, make the mistakes that she needs to make and not feel like she is always being judged,” he said.

Kim has been provided with a peaceful training environment that has encouraged the young skater to run with her passion for skating, Orser said. “She has actually developed in a really mature way as far as her skating goes. She grew up doing the triple-zipples one after the other and more, more, more. But now she knows how to train properly and she has a better understanding of what skating really is,” he said.

PERSONAL REFLECTIONS

Kim, who has become a poster girl in her East Asian homeland, said life today is a far cry from the media circus she faced daily in Korea. “Here there is no Korean media, and there is lots of time to skate,” she said. “People recognize me everywhere I go in Korea and are always asking me for autographs. I cannot even walk down a street without being recognized.”

One thing that has not changed Kim said, is her relationships with her friends. “When I go to Korea my friends always want to see me but usually I do not have any time,” she said.

Off the ice the young star said she likes to go shopping and talk with friends on the Internet. Kim said she owns an iPod but rarely uses it, preferring her MP3 player.

Kim said her 20-year-old sister Aera, who is currently in nursing college, is very proud of her. “All her friends want to meet me,” Kim said with a giggle.

Asked if there was a skater she admired as she was growing up Kim answered without hesitation: Michelle Kwan.

However, it was a different story when asked which of her peers she admires the most. Kim laughed as she shyly admitted, “I love…many male skaters.” Brian Joubert, Stéphane Lambiel and Tomáš Verner rank high on her list of favorites.

A FIERY NO-SHOW

In September Kim returned to South Korea to perform in a show but a fire in the roof of the arena forced the event to be cancelled. “I was on my way to the rink for rehearsal in the morning and somebody called my mom on her cell phone … and she says, ‘What!’ And I looked up and there was smoke coming from the roof of the arena. I could not believe it,” Kim said laughing at the recollection. “Later, all the skaters said when they heard [about the fire] they thought it was a joke.”

Orser was inside the arena working on choreography with Evgeni Plushenko and Alexei Yagudin when the fire broke out. “Everyone was running around and yelling and we finally realized something was wrong,” Orser said.

Kim was disappointed the show was cancelled. “I decided to do a little show instead of the big show so the fans could see some skating,” she said. “I just did one number.”

SETTING A STANDARD

A modest Orser takes little credit for the progress and success of his student. “I think Yu-Na has made her own quantum leap as far as maturity goes,” he said. “She has gone through this period of really training hard to achieve a high level of stamina and all she needs now is some fine-tuning.”

Shrubb noted the influence Kim is having on the other skaters at the club has been very positive. “Just having her on the ice and everyone seeing how hard she works and also seeing that she is not infallible, that she does fall down sometimes,” she said. “The kids see Yu-Na can make a mistake and watch how she handles making the mistake and how she rebounds. That shows them what a champion she is. It has been absolutely wonderful for all of the kids here.”

Everyone in the skating program at the club tuned in to watch Kim’s performances at 2007 Worlds, Shrubb said. “We were all nervous watching,” she added. “It was too bad she did not win because we were pulling for her. But her determination has given everyone here someone to follow at such a high level.”

Kim has had a major influence on her own nation as well, acknowledging that her success has fueled a fire in her homeland and more people are now taking up the sport.

A NEW SEASON DAWNS

Kim has three new David Wilson programs this season. The short program to music from “Die Fledermaus” by Johann Strauss is a romantic piece while her long program is a dynamic mix of music from “Miss Saigon.” Her exhibition program, “Just A Girl” by No Doubt, is a playful piece that really suits the teenager. “When I was a junior I was really shy to express my feelings in my performances, but I am not now,” she said.
She has chosen royal blue for her short program costume and fuchsia for the long. She said she prefers her costumes to be simple. Her favorite colors are black, pink and blue but added she “likes lots of colors.”

Kim is scheduled to compete at her first Grand Prix event, Cup of Russia, in mid-November where she will face Carolina Kostner and Fumie Suguri. “I think the competition will be very strong,” Kim surmised.

Asked if she was ready for the new season, the teenager laughed and simply said, “I hope.”

Too young to compete at the 2006 Olympic Games, Kim has her sights set squarely on the 2010 Games in Vancouver. “I would love to win the Olympic title,” she said. “This is a long-term goal but I am just taking each competition as it comes. I am not focused on results, but on skating my very best every time I compete.”

Yu-Na Kim said moving to Canada to train full-time with coach Brian Orser was the right thing for her.

Yu-Na Kim has flourished under the watchful eyes of her coaching team, Brian Orser (back left), Astrid Shrubb (sitting) and David Wilson (right).






A relaxed and happy Yu-Na Kim found the perfect training environment at the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club.











The 17-year-old Korean superstar has developed into a mature competitor and performer.












Showing her style off ice, Yu-Na Kim is ready to take on the big guns at her Grand Prix events this season.