YoYo Related News From Around The World
It’s here! YoYoExpert’s Cyber Monday sale happens all day Monday AND Tuesday! Save up to 50% (or even more) on products from YoYoFactory, YoYoRecreation, Duncan Toys, Something, C3yoyodesign, Turning Point, and more!
Plus, buy ANY Side Effect yoyo from OneDrop and get a pair of Side Effects for just $3.99!
Head over to YoYoExpert.com and take advantage of these deals while supplies last!
Chase Baxter and Michael Stecz got together on Halloween for a spooky new video. It’s no Spookio Sessions, but I like it.
Yoyos used are the Duncan Haymaker and the Basecamp Expedition.
Duncan Crew Japan’s Yoshihiro Abe cranks out a beautiful 5A video for 5A May, the official month where everyone collectively goes “Hey, what happened to 5A?” and a dozen players yell “STILL HERE” and drop excellent videos.
Yoyo used is the Duncan Barracuda.
2013 World YoYo Champion Janos Karancz is one of those rare players who can straight up show everyone all his new tricks before a contest and not have to worry about anyone ripping them off. Because let’s be real here…we can’t do them. Sure, we might figure out a piece here or there, but Janos is a rare and truly unique talent in the modern yoyo scene and his tricks are pretty much untouchable. And hella fun to watch!
Yoyo used is the Duncan Grasshopper.
We got the good stuff from Hungary! Check out a bunch of great play from 4x EYYC champ David Molnar and Duncan pro Viktor Kollar as they run through some of their favorite 5A tricks.
Yoyos used are the C3yoyodesign Imagine Breaker and the Duncan Barracuda.
The off-string royalty is visiting Vietnam!
Taka Hasegawa and the ever-smiling Sean Perez will be in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh on September 19th and 20th for a Duncan launch event!
The scene in Vietnam is growing year after year, and this will be a great opportunity for local players to meet two of the biggest legends in 4A, and of course see them in action!
More details should be available soon on the Duncan Vietnam page on Facebook!
In a brief post on his Facebook page, Shingo “Terry” Terada announced his resignation from Duncan Crew after 12 years on the team.
Dec.23 2014, I leave Duncan Crew.
I don’t compete contests for a long time. it was not good for me and Duncan.
…
Still love Duncan yo-yo and Duncan Crew family. So I leave the Crew.
Thank you for all support from Duncan Toys. Thank you…
In addition to the 2001 World Title in the X Division, Terry also won UTYJ (Japan Nationals) in 2001 and 2002, always with unmatched elegance in both 4A and 5A.
In a time when 4A yo-yos were thinner than today’s 1A average, his technique was flawless.
5A play also owes immensely to Terry’s innovations, such as e-fans and beestings, which allowed counterweight play to move from its experimental roots to an established yo-yo division.
See you around, Terry!
Duncan’s Chris Makita has teamed up with One Drop’s Tsukasa Takatsu for a new video, and both players really bring the goods. These guys are known for really intricate technical play with unique but subtle elements and transitions, and now we get 3+ minutes of new material from both of them!
Yoyos used are the Duncan Barracuda and the One Drop x CLYW Summit.
The Hundred% Duncan International Yo-yo Open was held in Kuala Lumpur on October 25th-26th, and we have full results and freestyles videos!
The 1A division had the best players from Southeast Asia fighting for the title, and the winner was AP champion Ahmad Kharisma from Indonesia, edging out Marcus Koh and Christopher Chia from Singapore.
The Y division was also quite strong despite having 2A to 5A all gathered in the same division. The winner was Japan’s Ryuya Kaneko, followed by a strong Thai duo: “Han” Sanprasert and Wasakorn Laitilertwit!
Check the results and freestyle videos below, courtesy of Kedaiyoyo! Be sure to visit their YouTube channel to see all the freestyles!
Congratulations to Duncan Toys on their first successful International YoYo Championship…they’ve set the bar pretty high with this amazing invitational contest! Check out full results and video of the winners below!
Gentry Stein and Zac Rubino spent the summer in Japan, working at YoYo Store Rewind and touring around the country to promote modern yoyoing. They each made their own clip videos to remember the trip…check ’em out!
I had an amazing time in Japan. So many amazing places were seen including Inuyama Castle which is where we filmed this video. This was one project I worked on during my time in Japan, and I hope you enjoy getting a taste of what my experience was like here. Thank you REWIND!
– Gentry Stein
Here is a video I made while on my trip in Japan. The location is at the Inuyama castle. I had an amazing time in Japan with memories to last a life time. Thank you Rewind!
– Zac Rubino
Hot on the heels of his recent 5A May Torque video, Filipino wonderboy Bryan Jardin has agreed to answer a few questions about his 5A philosophy and yo-yo experience. With multiple championships under his belt at both Philippine Nationals & the Asian Pacific Yo-yo contest, he has already proven himself to be a formidable force on the Asian competitive scene, and a podium finish at the Bay Area Classic suggests that he has not slowed down upon moving to the US. In addition to being a great player, Bryan is well-known for his energetic off-stage antics and his huge smile. Pull up a chair and learn a little about the man behind the tricks.
How did you get started in yo-yoing?
I started yo-yoing when I was 9 years old, around the time that the Super Yo-yo scene crashed in the Philippines. Everyone had a yoyo. To make the long story short, Edmund San Antonio ( Duncan Crew Philippines ) introduced me to the advanced tricks, and I thought it was the coolest thing that I’d seen in my whole life. So he made me buy a ball bearing yoyo. I learned the tricks really quick because I’m into it. I tried competing for Basic, Intermediate and Advance- freestyle but I ended up losing. But I don’t care, I had fun! . Yoyoing helps me to build my confidence in the outside world, I’ve met a lot of friends and learned a lot of things in life.
Who are some of your favorite players & biggest influences?
Many of my favorite yo-yo players are old school players. Steve Brown, Rafael Matsunaga, Kohta, Yuuki Spencer, Sebby, Paul Escolar, Gary Longoria and Spencer Berry. I still look up to them.
For new rising star yoyo players, I like Michael Kurti, Isaac Sams, Andrew Maider, and Janos Karancz,
3. How do you generally create your tricks & combos?
I usually use 1A mounts for my 5A combos. I’ll create a lot of mini-tricks and put them together, I always make sure that the flow is right and I don’t usually care about technical. If I can’t come up with new tricks, I look back to the old 5A tricks, but I’ll add more style and put it in a competitive way.
4. You’re known in the community for your high energy both on and off the stage. What was the most fun you’ve ever had at a yo-yo contest?
Hahaha! This always happens, so I’m kind of used to it… After Sean Perez’s Freestyle, people will congratulate me because they think that I’m Sean. One time, a kid ran up wanting to hug me, take a picture and get my signature. I find it so funny because I always hang out with him and we both have the same Duncan Shirts. Brothers!!
5. You’re doing a great job showing off yo-yoing for Duncan at Downtown Disney. Is it more fun to perform for non-players who are impressed by everything or yoyoers who appreciate the technical difficulty of what you do?
For Non-players, I rarely do competition/technical/difficult tricks for them because even though it looks good, they don’t really understand it. Haha! One thing I like for the non-player crowd is to teach them tricks, I find it more fun and exciting.
I really like showing my tricks to yoyoers because at least they can understand the difficulty, style, flow and smoothness of my tricks. And if they like it, it gives me more hope to create new tricks!
6. What’s your favorite 5A trick of all time, and why?
My favorite 5A tricks are body tricks and aerials, because my definition of 5A is the counterweight/string/yoyo is away from me. I like it when I can add aerial moves and move the yoyo around my body.
7. You recently placed at BAC and have a history of strong performances at AP. How are American contests different from contests in Asia?
I’ve been competing in Asia for years and years, so I do tricks that fit to Asian Contests, which is more speed+technical. Here in the US, they focus more on style+flow+technical, which I find way easier to compete in, and I feel that this is were I belong when it comes to contest. I mostly like American 5A players because I can see the tricks whenever they freestyle, it’s much clearer. I really do appreciate a routine with good flow and not so fast. In my opinion, fast tricks are too robotic, especially for 5A.
8. What’s your favorite nickname for Brandon Jackson?
Haha! Before I answer this question, I would like to describe him. Brandon is Impossible. I think he is a walking Google, he knows everything! Brandon is a really good higher up and a friend… I always call him boss, because he is actually my boss! But I really want to call him BJ, Because we have the same acronym, I’m BJ too!
9. How do you plan your freestyles?
I plan my freestyle first before picking a song. I divide my freestyle into three pieces. It’ll help me to compress my freestyle so I can put more tricks in. It’s a little bit risky because I ended up putting a lot of tricks, and I don’t have spare time if I make a mistake. But that’s how I roll, I’ll go big or go home.
10. What do you think is going to be the biggest yo-yo trend of 2015?
I 2015 will be the battle of young yoyo players, they’re so crazy and innovative. I think kids will dominate the big stages in 2015. Old yoyo players will be history.
Any closing bits of advice?
For the kids out there dreaming of becoming a sponsored player:
Once you’ve learn how to do these things, companies will find you!
Large contests are the perfect occasion for teams to add new players, and this years Japan National Yo-yo Contest was no exception!
Duncan Crew got a new member at the contest, and oddly enough, not from Japan! Jason Kao, two-time 3A Taiwan National champion, and loyal Duncan fan for several years, is now part of Duncan’s massive sponsored team!
Next up, one of the newer generation’s most talented players, Daiki Tanaka, got a well-deserved spot on the YoYoFactory Contest Team, and joins this impressive group of World Champions!
Finally, C3yoyodesign added Ryuichi Nakamura to their Rising Force team, meaning we can expect great things from him in the very near future!
Remember that Kendama with a string groove that Takeshi modded? You know, the one that let players mount the Dama on the string and even do partial windups for performing yoyo-inspired tricks. Pretty cool, yeah? Well, I’ve had it for a month now, and I got together two minutes of tricks right here:
Hope that you enjoy it! I’ve been stoked on the cross-pollination of ideas between yo-yoers and kendama players, and I’m grateful to Takeshi for making this mod to help me get some of my ideas out. If you like the music, download it for free right here.