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Yu Shuran
Yu at the 2015 World Junior Championships
Native name	于书然
Other names	Jessica Shuran Yu
Born	(2000-08-04) August 4, 2000 (age 24) Beijing, China
Height	1.53 m (5 ft 0 in)
Figure skating career
Country	Singapore
Coach	Gao Song
Skating club	Champion Ice SC, Singapore
Began skating	2006
Retired	June 2018
Medal record Representing  Singapore Southeast Asian Games 2017 Kuala Lumpur Ladies's singles

Yu Shuran, also known as Jessica Shuran Yu, (于书然, born August 4, 2000) is a Chinese-born former competitive figure skater who represented Singapore internationally. Competing in ladies' singles, she became the 2017 Southeast Asian Games champion and a two-time national champion. She skated in the final segment at two ISU Championships.

Personal life

Yu was born on August 4, 2000, in Beijing, China. Her mother and father were born in China, with her father obtaining Singaporean citizenship subsequently. As of 2020, Yu is enrolled at Fordham University in New York City.

Skating career

2014–2015 season

Gao Song coached Yu in Beijing, China, since at least the 2014–2015 season. Making her junior international debut, Yu placed 8th at the Asian Open Trophy in August 2014. In October of the same year, she appeared at her first ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) event, placing 9th in Zagreb, Croatia. In March 2015, she qualified for the free skate at her first ISU Championship – the 2015 World Junior Championships in Tallinn, Estonia and finished 24th overall.

2015–2016 season

Yu remained on the junior level during the 2015–2016 season. She placed 28th and was eliminated after the short program at the 2016 World Junior Championships, held in March in Debrecen, Hungary.

2016–2017 season

Yu's senior international debut came in August 2016 at the Asian Open Trophy in Manila, Philippines. After placing 5th at the event, Yu competed at a JGP event in Germany and then returned to the senior level. In February 2017, she placed 21st at the Four Continents Championships in Gangneung, South Korea, and 6th at the Asian Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan. In Japan, she obtained the minimum technical scores to compete at the 2017 World Championships in Helsinki, Finland, making her the first figure skater to represent Singapore at the World Championships.

2017–2018 season

Yu began her season by becoming the first female figure skater to win a gold medal at the Southeast Asian Games. She placed first in the short program and second in the free skate.

In September 2017, Yu competed in Oberstdorf, Germany, at the 2017 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, the final qualifying opportunity for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Her placement, 9th out of 35 skaters, was not high enough to qualify but Singapore became the second alternate for an Olympic spot.

Around January 2018, Yu was hospitalized and diagnosed with a neurological disorder. As a result, she missed the rest of the season, including the 2018 Singapore National Championships and the 2018 Four Continents Championships. Although her health improved with treatment, she learned that she would not be able to return to competition. In June 2018, she officially announced her retirement from competitive skating.

Training abuse in China

In July 2020, Yu stated that she was abused from the age of 11 while training in China. She said that her coach would often hit her with a plastic skate guard, sometimes more than ten times in a row, and when she was 14, he kicked her in the shin with a toe pick (jagged teeth on the front of a skate blade). She also described what she witnessed while working as a coach in Beijing: "I saw one junior skater get hit and dragged off the ice, while another was pressured into competing on two torn ligaments, which left them needing surgery afterwards."

Programs

Competitive highlights

GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

References

1. ^ Ingle, Sean (July 21, 2020). "'It was dehumanising': Jessica Shuran Yu condemns training abuse in China". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 25, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
2. ^ "Shuran YU: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 19, 2018.
3. Chew, Nicola (August 12, 2016). "Overcoming slippery start". Straits Times. Archived from the original on March 25, 2020.
4. Chia, Nicole (July 24, 2020). "SportSG, Singapore Ice Skating Association, 'dismayed' by Yu Shuran's allegations of abuse". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on August 22, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
5. ^ "Shuran YU: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 22, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
6. Chia, Nicole; Chen, May (February 25, 2017). "Singapore will be represented in figure skating at World Championships for the first time, thanks to Yu Shuran". Straits Times. Archived from the original on February 25, 2017.
7. Wong, Jonathan (August 27, 2017). "SEA Games: Figure skater Yu Shuran clinches Singapore's 1st winter sports gold at SEA Games". Straits Times. Archived from the original on February 6, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
8. ^ Chia, Nicole (June 14, 2018). "S'pore's first SEA Games figure skating champion Yu Shuran retires at 17 due to neurological disorder". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2018. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
9. Yu, Jessica Shuran (July 21, 2020). "Sending my love and support to all the athletes around the world who have come forward. Here is my story" (Tweet). Archived from the original on July 22, 2020 – via Twitter.
10. "Shuran YU: 2016/2017". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 31, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
11. "Shuran YU: 2015/2016". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 28, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
12. ^ "Competition Results: Shuran YU". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 28, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2017.

External links

• Shuran YU at the International Skating Union

• 2000 births
• Singaporean female single skaters
• Figure skaters at the 2017 Asian Winter Games
• Asian Games competitors for Singapore
• Figure skaters from Beijing
• Chinese emigrants to Singapore
• Singaporean sportspeople of Chinese descent
• Living people
• SEA Games gold medalists for Singapore
• SEA Games medalists in figure skating
• Competitors at the 2017 SEA Games