YoYo Related News From Around The World
Singer-songwriter Axel Mansoor released a video for his single “Father Time” and the video features none other than 2013 US National YoYo Champion Ian Johnson! Always neat to see yoyo players popping up in music videos.
You can pick up “Somerset”, the EP with this song, on iTunes, Amazon, or Google Play.
Ian Johnson and Shane Lubecker came home for Christmas break and put together a sweet video for us. ‘Tis the season, right? Solid tricks and concepts from both of them, as always.
From Ian:
Shane is back from the University of Kansas, and I am back from UCLA. We live about 40 minutes away from each other and were kicking it again when we looked at how long it’d been since we made a video. It was over 5 years, so we threw this together one night last week!
Yoyos used are the Recess Weekend and First Base.
Well, we didn’t see this one coming.
World and National Champion Tyler Severance has announced that he has left YoYoFactory and is starting up his own new company, Recess, with aluminum and bi-metal yoyos that will be available first at Worlds, and a plastic yoyo that will debut soon after! And he’s announced his first three team members….Patrick Borgerding, Ian Johnson, and Ky Zizan! Whoa, right?
Check out his first video with prototypes of his new yoyos. I’ve already bugged Tyler for samples, so we’ll get pics and specs to you as soon as possible. Congratulations Tyler…this is a HUGE step forward, and we wish you the best of luck!
Results are in for the Duncan Toys 2014 West Coast YoYo Championship at Downtown Disney, and Anthony Rojas wins the 1A Division! Yoshi Mikamoto beat out National Champion Patrick Mitchell for the 2A division win, and reigning National Champion Alex Hattori took home top honors in 3A, sending him back to Nationals to defend his title. National Champion Ian Johnson took the 4A (Offstring) Division by a HUGE margin, and 4x Philippines National Champion Bryan Jardin just narrowly beat out former World Champion Tyler Severance to take home top honors in the 5A (Counterweight) Division! The level of talent at this event was absolutely tremendous!
The Duncan Toys 2014 West Coast YoYo Championship at Downtown Disney serves as the National YoYo League seeding even for the South West Region, so the first place winners in all divisions will be seeded directly to finals at the 2014 US National YoYo Contest, to be held next month in Chico, California. Congrats to all the winners!
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Anthony ROJAS | Riverside, CA | 65.00 | 8.00 | 7.00 | 8.33 | 4.00 | 1.00 | 91.33 |
| 2 | Michael NAKAMURA | Los Angeles, CA | 55.28 | 6.00 | 6.67 | 6.00 | 3.17 | 0.00 | 77.12 |
| 3 | Paolo BUENO | Carlsbad, CA | 52.02 | 7.33 | 7.00 | 6.67 | 3.17 | 0.00 | 76.19 |
| 4 | Paul KERBEL | Naucalpan, MEX | 49.00 | 7.50 | 6.33 | 8.00 | 3.83 | 0.00 | 74.67 |
| 5 | Evan NAGAO | Honolulu, HI | 49.53 | 6.67 | 5.33 | 8.00 | 2.83 | 1.00 | 71.36 |
| 6 | Clint ARMSTRONG | Sedona, AZ | 48.45 | 6.33 | 6.00 | 6.00 | 3.00 | 0.00 | 69.79 |
| 7 | Ty GOLDMAN | Long Beach, CA | 48.21 | 5.67 | 6.33 | 5.67 | 2.83 | 0.00 | 68.71 |
| 8 | Keiran COOPER | Oxnard, CA | 41.38 | 4.83 | 5.67 | 6.33 | 2.83 | 1.00 | 60.05 |
| 9 | Wilson VAN GUNDY | Piedmont, CA | 41.93 | 4.67 | 6.00 | 4.67 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 59.76 |
| 10 | Tyler SEVERANCE | Chandler, AZ | 41.90 | 5.83 | 4.67 | 6.67 | 2.67 | 3.00 | 58.73 |
| 11 | Matthew LOEUN | Riverside, CA | 42.16 | 5.00 | 4.33 | 5.33 | 2.33 | 1.00 | 58.16 |
| 12 | Sebastian BROCK | Alachua, FL | 35.47 | 6.67 | 6.17 | 6.33 | 2.83 | 0.00 | 57.47 |
| 13 | James REED | Long Beach, CA | 39.50 | 5.00 | 4.33 | 5.33 | 2.33 | 2.00 | 54.50 |
| 14 | Isaac SAMS | Buckhannon, WV | 34.81 | 5.00 | 5.67 | 6.33 | 2.83 | 1.00 | 53.65 |
| 15 | Sergio LICONA | Ticoman La Purisima, MEX | 30.45 | 3.67 | 3.67 | 4.67 | 2.17 | 1.00 | 43.62 |
| 16 | Ryan GEE | La Palma, CA | 28.02 | 3.33 | 5.67 | 4.33 | 1.83 | 0.00 | 43.18 |
| 17 | Paul DANG | Springfield, OR | 31.58 | 4.33 | 4.00 | 5.00 | 2.17 | 5.00 | 42.08 |
| 18 | Samad PATEL | Moreno Valley, CA | 21.09 | 3.33 | 2.67 | 3.67 | 1.83 | 0.00 | 32.59 |
| 19 | Jake RIMMER | Whittier, CA | 18.70 | 3.33 | 2.67 | 3.67 | 1.50 | 1.00 | 28.87 |
| 20 | Matthew WEYMER | Camarillo, CA | 15.71 | 2.33 | 3.33 | 2.67 | 1.50 | 1.00 | 24.54 |
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Yoshi MIKAMOTO | Lomita, CA | 62.49 | 6.67 | 8.33 | 7.33 | 4.00 | 0.00 | 88.82 |
| 2 | Patrick MITCHELL | Chandler, AZ | 58.44 | 6.67 | 6.00 | 7.33 | 3.83 | 2.00 | 80.27 |
| 3 | Tyler HSIEH | Rancho Cucamonga, CA | 48.69 | 6.33 | 7.33 | 6.67 | 3.50 | 0.00 | 72.52 |
| 4 | Ben MCPHEE | Chandler, AZ | 26.55 | 5.33 | 5.33 | 5.00 | 2.83 | 5.00 | 40.05 |
| 5 | Cedric EUSANTOS | Los Angeles, CA | 22.17 | 3.00 | 2.33 | 3.33 | 1.67 | 5.00 | 27.51 |
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Alex HATTORI | Torrance, CA | 65.00 | 6.00 | 8.00 | 7.00 | 3.67 | 0.00 | 89.67 |
| 2 | Elliot OGAWA | San Marcos, CA | 47.80 | 4.33 | 4.33 | 5.33 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 64.30 |
| 3 | Patrick BORGERDING | Redondo Beach, CA | 40.88 | 5.67 | 4.67 | 7.33 | 3.00 | 0.00 | 61.54 |
| 4 | Zachary LYTLE | Pittsburg, CA | 18.31 | 4.00 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 1.67 | 1.00 | 30.31 |
| 5 | Newman BECKER | Hamlin, TX | 12.77 | 2.67 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 1.33 | 3.00 | 18.43 |
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Ian JOHNSON | Los Angeles, CA | 65.00 | 6.33 | 7.67 | 7.33 | 3.83 | 0.00 | 90.17 |
| 2 | Michael NAKAMURA | Los Angeles, CA | 52.40 | 5.33 | 6.00 | 6.33 | 3.17 | 4.00 | 69.23 |
| 3 | Zac RUBINO | Chico, CA | 47.45 | 5.33 | 5.67 | 6.00 | 3.17 | 3.00 | 64.61 |
| 4 | Joey JESSEN | Gilbert, AZ | 16.62 | 1.67 | 2.33 | 2.33 | 0.67 | 4.00 | 19.62 |
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Bryan JARDIN | Orlando, FL | 65.00 | 7.33 | 7.00 | 7.00 | 3.67 | 1.00 | 89.00 |
| 2 | Tyler SEVERANCE | Chandler, AZ | 62.39 | 6.67 | 6.00 | 7.33 | 3.67 | 0.00 | 86.06 |
| 3 | Ryan GEE | La Palma, CA | 34.07 | 5.67 | 5.33 | 4.67 | 2.33 | 0.00 | 52.07 |
| 4 | Alex HATTORI | Torrance, CA | 32.75 | 5.00 | 5.00 | 5.33 | 2.50 | 3.00 | 47.59 |
| 5 | Blaine SHELTON | Ramona, CA | 28.12 | 4.67 | 4.67 | 5.33 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 45.29 |
| 6 | Will HAHN | Citrus Heights, CA | 27.17 | 3.67 | 4.33 | 4.67 | 2.17 | 1.00 | 41.00 |
| 7 | Michael NAKAMURA | Los Angeles, CA | 23.79 | 5.00 | 4.33 | 4.00 | 2.17 | 0.00 | 39.29 |
| 8 | Joey JESSEN | Gilbert, AZ | 5.65 | 1.33 | 1.00 | 1.33 | 0.67 | 5.00 | 4.98 |
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Daniel KIM | Vallejo, CA | 61.75 | 4.00 | 5.67 | 4.33 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 78.25 |
| 2 | Ross HARRISON | Redondo Beach, CA | 48.19 | 4.00 | 5.33 | 4.67 | 2.33 | 0.00 | 64.53 |
| 3 | Hayden BRICKMAN | Burlingame, CA | 50.67 | 4.00 | 4.00 | 3.67 | 2.17 | 0.00 | 64.51 |
| 4 | Jonathan EDWARDS | La Mirada, CA | 46.61 | 4.33 | 5.00 | 4.67 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 63.11 |
| 5 | Anacleto HERNANDEZ | Zacatecas, MEX | 38.75 | 2.67 | 3.67 | 3.67 | 1.83 | 0.00 | 50.58 |
| 6 | Nicholas ARREDONDO | Los Angeles, CA | 34.56 | 2.67 | 3.67 | 3.33 | 1.83 | 1.00 | 45.06 |
| 7 | Lance LYNN | El Cajon, CA | 19.55 | 1.33 | 2.00 | 2.00 | 1.33 | 0.00 | 26.22 |
| 8 | Bryan RAMIREZ | Lynwood, CA | 15.74 | 2.00 | 2.33 | 2.33 | 1.17 | 0.00 | 23.57 |
| 9 | Angel Ernesto FERNANDEZ | Mexico City, MEX | 16.27 | 2.33 | 2.67 | 2.67 | 1.33 | 3.00 | 22.27 |
| 10 | Elijah ORTENCIO | Whittier, CA | 16.01 | 1.33 | 1.67 | 2.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 21.01 |
| 11 | Kristelle CHATAGNEAU | Cypress, CA | 10.41 | 2.67 | 2.00 | 1.33 | 1.17 | 0.00 | 17.58 |
| 12 | Matthew BRECHEEN | Laguna Niguel, CA | 11.26 | 1.67 | 1.33 | 1.33 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 15.59 |
| Place | Name (First Last) | Locale | Tech | Eval 1 | Eval 2 | Eval 3 | Eval 4 | Deducts | Final Score |
| 1 | Paul KERBEL | Naucalpan, MEX | 61.92 | 5.33 | 6.33 | 6.67 | 3.33 | 0.00 | 83.59 |
| 2 | Sebastian BROCK | Alachua, FL | 54.38 | 5.00 | 7.00 | 6.00 | 3.00 | 0.00 | 75.38 |
| 3 | Paolo BUENO | Carlsbad, CA | 52.33 | 4.33 | 5.67 | 5.33 | 2.67 | 0.00 | 70.33 |
| 4 | Tyler SEVERANCE | Chandler, AZ | 47.61 | 5.00 | 5.33 | 6.33 | 2.67 | 0.00 | 66.94 |
| 5 | Keiran COOPER | Oxnard, CA | 46.06 | 4.67 | 6.67 | 4.67 | 2.67 | 0.00 | 64.72 |
| 6 | Clint ARMSTRONG | Sedona, AZ | 45.34 | 4.67 | 6.33 | 5.33 | 2.67 | 0.00 | 64.34 |
| 7 | Ty GOLDMAN | Long Beach, CA | 44.22 | 4.33 | 5.67 | 4.00 | 2.33 | 0.00 | 60.55 |
| 8 | Evan NAGAO | Honolulu, HI | 41.10 | 4.67 | 4.33 | 6.00 | 2.67 | 0.00 | 58.77 |
| 9 | Matthew LOEUN | Riverside, CA | 43.92 | 4.00 | 4.67 | 3.67 | 1.83 | 0.00 | 58.09 |
| 10 | Michael NAKAMURA | Los Angeles, CA | 39.89 | 5.33 | 4.67 | 4.00 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 55.89 |
| 11 | Paul DANG | Springfield, OR | 35.02 | 3.33 | 5.67 | 5.00 | 2.17 | 0.00 | 51.18 |
| 12 | Wilson VAN GUNDY | Piedmont, CA | 36.88 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 4.33 | 2.17 | 1.00 | 49.72 |
| 13 | Sergio LICONA | Ticoman La Purisima, MEX | 33.79 | 4.33 | 4.00 | 4.33 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 48.45 |
| 14 | James REED | Long Beach, CA | 33.87 | 4.00 | 4.00 | 4.00 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 47.87 |
| 15 | Isaac SAMS | Buckhannon, WV | 29.79 | 3.67 | 3.67 | 6.33 | 1.83 | 1.00 | 44.29 |
| 16 | Samad PATEL | Moreno Valley, CA | 34.13 | 3.67 | 3.33 | 3.67 | 1.67 | 4.00 | 42.46 |
| 17 | Jake RIMMER | Whittier, CA | 31.14 | 3.33 | 3.67 | 3.00 | 1.33 | 1.00 | 41.47 |
| 18 | Matthew WEYMER | Camarillo, CA | 27.99 | 3.00 | 5.00 | 3.67 | 1.67 | 0.00 | 41.32 |
| 19 | Ryan GEE | La Palma, CA | 26.29 | 3.67 | 3.67 | 5.33 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 40.96 |
| 20 | Ryan LAGROU | La Mirada, CA | 29.97 | 3.33 | 3.00 | 2.67 | 1.33 | 0.00 | 40.30 |
| 21 | Chase EDWARDS | La Mirada, CA | 30.05 | 1.67 | 3.67 | 3.33 | 1.33 | 0.00 | 40.05 |
| 22 | Dale TUBAT | Temecula, CA | 26.57 | 3.00 | 3.33 | 4.67 | 1.83 | 0.00 | 39.40 |
| 23 | Cody RISLUND | Payson, AZ | 26.72 | 2.67 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 1.67 | 0.00 | 38.39 |
| 24 | Aaron BENDICH | Berkeley, CA | 27.81 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 3.00 | 1.50 | 3.00 | 33.98 |
| 25 | Orlando ABRAJAN | Mexico City, MEX | 24.56 | 3.00 | 2.67 | 4.00 | 1.67 | 3.00 | 32.89 |
| 26 | Will HAHN | Citrus Heights, CA | 21.65 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 1.33 | 0.00 | 31.98 |
| 27 | Newman BECKER | Hamlin, TX | 21.55 | 2.67 | 2.67 | 2.67 | 1.50 | 0.00 | 31.05 |
| 28 | Daniel LACANIENTA | Laguna Hills, CA | 23.09 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 3.00 | 1.17 | 3.00 | 28.92 |
| 29 | McCando KAO | West Covina, CA | 20.77 | 1.67 | 2.33 | 2.33 | 1.17 | 0.00 | 28.27 |
| 30 | Jonathan ROA | Los Angeles, CA | 18.32 | 2.33 | 3.33 | 3.00 | 1.17 | 0.00 | 28.15 |
| 31 | Joey JESSEN | Gilbert, AZ | 20.38 | 1.67 | 2.00 | 2.33 | 1.00 | 0.00 | 27.38 |
| 32 | Cory HENDON | Tempe, AZ | 19.26 | 2.33 | 3.33 | 3.67 | 1.50 | 3.00 | 27.09 |
| 33 | Blaine SHELTON | Ramona, CA | 18.72 | 2.33 | 2.33 | 3.00 | 1.33 | 1.00 | 26.72 |
| 34 | James PRATT | Somis, CA | 17.56 | 2.33 | 2.67 | 2.67 | 1.17 | 1.00 | 25.39 |
| 35 | Jonathan WILLIAMS | El Segundo, CA | 19.89 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 2.33 | 1.33 | 3.00 | 25.22 |
| 36 | Alec CECENA | San Marcos, CA | 16.23 | 2.00 | 2.00 | 2.33 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 22.57 |
| 37 | Christian NOLASCO | Rancho Cordova, CA | 12.37 | 3.00 | 2.67 | 3.00 | 1.33 | 0.00 | 22.37 |
| 38 | Steven MARTINEZ | Payson, AZ | 11.45 | 3.00 | 2.00 | 3.33 | 1.17 | 4.00 | 16.95 |
| 39 | Jeremy GERMITA | Lancaster, CA | 8.11 | 0.33 | 1.00 | 1.33 | 0.67 | 1.00 | 10.44 |
| 40 | Christian CANCINO | Los Angeles, CA | 5.85 | 1.67 | 0.67 | 1.67 | 0.50 | 6.00 | 4.35 |
| 41 | Lucas MADISON | Irvine, CA | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
YoYoJam’s Ian Johnson scored a great interview piece in the student paper for UCLA, where he’s attending school. Check out an excerpt below, and then click through for the full article.
The neon green yo-yo swings in front of Ian Johnson, looping left, right and in nearly every direction as his fingers play puppeteer.
With a flick of his wrist and a few fingers, the yo-yo flies off the string and high into the air. He whips the string backwards behind his back and then forward to effortlessly catch the yo-yo.
“It’s like, yo-yoing is a hobby,” says the first-year business economics student. “It’s an art form. It’s a sport, and it’s just, like, a simple toy.”
With the nontraditional sport, Johnson, the current off-string yo-yo national champion, has captivated thousands.
“Yo-yoing honestly has changed my life,” he said. “It’s taken me so many places, both literally and figuratively.”
***
Many basketball backboards are scattered around Johnson’s hometown of Hebron, Illinois. Each is a landmark bearing an inscription, something the near 1,200-person town is known for. Fittingly, one of them reads, “Ian Johnson: The Yo-yo Kid.”
The nickname has become his reputation; it’s been that way for so long his mom, Lois Johnson, aptly calls it “standard.”
At just 11 years old, Ian Johnson captured his first yo-yo contest win. In these competitions, participants of all ages choreograph three-minute yo-yo freestyle routines to music for judge’s evaluations.
After his first win, he began competing in any contest he could find within 400 miles, sometimes even farther.
Just three years later, a major yo-yo company, YoYoJam, sponsored him. By 16, Johnson appeared on America’s Got Talent, advancing all the way to the quarterfinals.
In between, he performed at local high school football games, town events and won smaller talent contests, impressing many along the way.
“He just kind of wows people wherever he goes,” said Matt Buetsch, one of Johnson’s best friends.
At first, Johnson was just a 10-year-old boy with a toy. But yo-yoing soon became more for him as he focused on hitting the next new trick and knocking down the next new challenge.
[button color=”light” link=”http://dailybruin.com/2014/06/05/uclas-yo-yo-kid-has-world-on-a-string/” target=”blank”]Read more about Ian Johnson at DailyBruin.com[/button]
The 2013 US National YoYo Contest wrapped up this past weekend, and YoYoNews is looking back at each division and bringing you post-contest analysis.
—–
The 4A division at the US National Yo-Yo Competition saw a complete turn around from the World competition; routine after routine left you thinking, ‘hmm… that could take the cup’, which is just what the division needed. The youngsters like Alex Lee, Julian Guaurner and Stephanie Haight had some trouble on stage losing quite a few yo-yos but each still showed lots of promise and they gained much needed experience on the center stage. The present top players in this division are strong and the future looks bright.
Flawless. That is what it took to win the 2013 National Yo-Yo Contest in offstring. There is a winner every year but there aren’t flawless routines every year. Ian Johnson entered the history books on Saturday with a routine that had zero minor deductions and zero major deductions–three minutes of flawless yoyoing in front of a huge crowd in Chico on the United States’ biggest stage. His routine had technically difficult tricks, flashy bangers and perfectly timed music cues. Ian’s routine was constructed so well and really speaks to his experience on the big stage. After Ian’s first two minutes looked dead locked with Bryan and Zac, his final minute continued to rise when Zac and Bryan’s final minutes had some difficulties albeit extremely, emphasis on extremely, minor ones but that was all it took to lose pace with the eventual champion. Ian was smiling and it was obvious from the crowd he was having fun on stage while hitting a routine he won’t ever forget–something that, at it’s core, is what the sport of yo-yo is all about–having fun.
Zac Rubino had the best routine of his life and showed everyone what he is capable of; he proved he is world class, right there with Ian, Bryan and Michael. Add in Ben Conde and the United States has a scary top 5 when on their game. Zac came out hot hitting banger after banger, technical combo after technical combo and looked like he was going to take the title home for Chico and he finished very strong. His routine was topped only by a flawless routine which speaks to the quality of his. Additionally, Zac has worked quite a bit on his choreography and overall structure of his routine and definitely proved me wrong when saying he has difficulty outside. On almost any other day, Zac walks home with a cup with that routine and should be very proud of the show he put on.
Finally rounding out the top three, Michael Nakamura came out with another beautiful routine to follow up his World Champion routine. He topped even Ian in his technical score which speaks to how dangerous he can be when he goes even cleaner but with a few drops and miscues, third was a pretty solid finish and probably the best he was going to finish after all the routines were completed. Michael may leave disappointed but absolutely backed up his World title and will continue to be a top contender in international competitions.
Ben Conde was also right there hitting one his cleanest routines through the first two minutes but had a few drops in the end. Ben always brings a great show and will always remain at the top of the division when it comes to innovation. It will be Ben’s time one of these days but this Saturday was not quite it.
Bryan came out with a strong routine that looked much more polished than his World routine and when Zac and Michael were announced in second and third, it looked like maybe Bryan managed to return to the top. Ian took down the six time defending champion Bryan Figueroa, who earned the admiration of the entire yo-yo community for accomplishing six years of dominance and creating the essence of excellence that the American offstring scene is now defined by. Bryan IS what it means to be a champion and while he did not finish at the top this weekend, he will always have the respect of every offstring player in the United States; but this weekend was Ian Johnson’s–perhaps a passing of the torch.
Offstring will be one of the most interesting divisions to watch this year simply due to the strange nature of the World contest. There will be several players looking to prove something, and others still looking to make their name on the big stage. There is a great lineup of seeded players and semi-finalists and YoYoNews is providing some insight on who we believe to be in top contention for the title.
UPDATE: Ben Conde is now on the registered list of competitors and thus has been added to this list.
Bryan Figueroa is the six time defending champion. For that reason alone he has to still be considered a favorite despite his performance at the World contest two months ago. Chances are he will be out to prove he is still the best American offstring player. Little has to be said about his trick complexity and typical accuracy–he has dominated this contest every single year since 2007. The only thing stopping Bryan from capturing his 7th straight title would most likely be Bryan himself; however, this contest could be the turning point of the American offstring scene if Bryan loses.
Michael Nakamura is one of the few players to have Bryan’s number as of recent and became only the second American player to take home the 4A World title. This obviously makes Michael the prime candidate to take down Bryan but the World contest and the National contest are different–outside versus inside, which plays the biggest role in offstring more so than any other division. Michael has a fast, accurate style with an ever improving choreography and will, similiar to Bryan, be out to prove why he is the World champion which will surely mean he is bringing his A game.
Ian Johnson is undefeated through two minutes in 2013 winning all five contests he entered leading up to the World competition; if the World contest was a two minute routine, he may have been crowned the 2013 World Champion, but his final minute saw an unraveling that dropped him to fifth place. He did manage to take down Bryan Figueroa and Ben Conde despite the flawed final minute. Ian’s focus on choreography is readily apparent with themed shirts and gloves, and his trick complexity and creativity have each seen dramatic increases from last year. If he can put together a solid three minutes, he will be tough to beat.
Ben just appeared on the registered player list for the 2013 National Yo-Yo Contest and he is a huge threat to take the title. If he hits his routine straight through he is probably near unbeatable but his tricks are just so hard that even he has difficulty hitting them consistently–add in the variable of outdoors and his tricks become even harder. Ben is the ultimate performer and always has a fun routine to watch. Whether Ben wins or not is in the air but what we do know is the audience sure wins.
Zac is the darkhorse of the 2013 National Yo-Yo Contest in offstring. His tricks are there and his choreography has been in contests before but his consistency can be questionable at times due to the Conde-esque difficult nature of his tricks. Zac, a Chico native, has home court advantage but doesn’t seem to do well outside but he has the potential to step up and take the title if the door is left open and he put together a routine that has no switch outs.
Alex is one of the most exciting up and coming youngsters. With the seed he will be able to focus on his three minute routine which will give him the time to improve his choreography and trick density. Every contest he has competed in this year he has improved dramatically and he was the first cut at Worlds in an extremely tough 4A prelim that saw four flawless routines. If any of the names listed above leave the door open for Alex, he may find his way into the top 3 but is probably a year or two off being a top contender–but look out.
Julian Grunauer is on a similar level with Alex Lee in that he is improving dramatically but should set his sights on around top 5. Right now, all of the names listed above are currently more poised to the fill the top 5 but Julian showed a few weeks ago at the Bill Lebowitz Classic that he has the skill to put on a top 5 performance but needs to get experience on the big stage and find a level of confidence that the above listed names have demonstrated many times before.
As the 2013 US National YoYo Contest quickly approaches, YoYoNews has lots of top-notch coverage planned, including in-depth analysis of the top contenders for the title this year in all divisions with commentary from past champions, interviews, resources and below, promo videos to get you guys excited and inspired for the United States’ top competition.
Zach Gormley | 1A Defending Champion
Gentry Stein | 1A Contender
Harold Owens III | 1A Contender
Patrick Mitchell | 2A Defending Champion
Ian Johnson | 4A Contender
Get registered over at contest.nationalyoyo.org and start practicing! Keep an eye out for the coverage!
The XLR8 is a hybrid model containing a metal body with celcon rims. These celcon rims have an extremely smooth feel on the outer edges, making grind tricks easy. The metal body balances the yo-yo perfectly, which will allow your style to look smoother than ever.
Not only does this yo-yo have the smooth feel inside and out, but also its shape is designed for modern day yo-yoing — low cut walls and rounded rims. It feels just right in the hand. The yo-yo comes stocked with YoYoJam’s Solid Spin Axle system, 10 Ball Speed Bearing, and silicone response to generate a smoother style.
We don’t have a lot of details (other than the marketing copy above) on the new YoYoJam XLR8 yoyo being released at Worlds this year, but from this promo video we’ve figured out a few key details about YoYoJam and the XLR8.
Here are the final results for the 2013 Midwest Regional yoyo contest! Thanks for Patrick Borgerding for letting us know these were posted. Contest organizers; if you want your contest results posted quickly, please send them to info@yoyonews.com. Thanks!
|
Place |
Name |
Prelims |
Finals |
|
1 |
Eric Koloski |
118.41
|
124.17
|
|
2 |
Grant Johnson |
133.00
|
114.03
|
|
3 |
Tessa Piccillo |
100.79
|
109.36
|
|
4 |
Alec Campbell (Seed to Finals at Nationals) |
KS Seed
|
108.07
|
|
5 |
Adam Brewster |
IA Seed
|
105.12
|
|
6 |
Shane Lubecker |
107.07
|
103.76
|
|
7 |
John Narum |
107.56
|
98.88
|
|
8 |
Eric TranTon |
IL Seed
|
96.96
|
|
9 |
Daniel Dietz |
87.08
|
96.28
|
|
10 |
Alex Berenguel |
96.96
|
92.10
|
|
Place |
Name |
2 Minute |
|
1
|
John Narum (Seed to finals at Nationals) |
87.00
|
|
2
|
Josh Kanoff |
-0.62
|
|
3
|
Seth Gerstner |
-17.29
|
|
Place |
Name |
Finals |
|
1
|
Patrick Borgerding |
133.21
|
|
2
|
Eric TranTon (SEED TO FINALS IN CHICO) |
125.75
|
|
3
|
Ian Johnson |
44.33
|
|
4
|
Martin Christofferson |
41.59
|
| 5 | Josh Kanoff |
2.29
|
|
Place |
Name |
2 Minute |
|
1
|
Ian Johnson (SEED TO FINALS IN CHICO) |
113.00
|
|
2
|
Ben Conde |
109.70
|
|
3
|
Eric Tran-Ton |
85.56
|
|
4
|
Alex Lee |
60.14
|
|
5
|
Noah Bachofen |
54.32
|
|
6
|
Josh Kanoff |
28.75
|
|
7
|
Patrick Borgerding |
24.73
|
|
8
|
Stephanie Haight |
13.04
|
|
9
|
Zachary Ostler |
3.01
|
|
Place |
Name |
Finals |
|
1
|
Shane Lubecker (SEED TO FINALS IN CHICO) |
112.40
|
|
2
|
Ian Johnson |
112.20
|
|
3
|
Adam Brewster |
106.03
|
|
4
|
Eric TranTon |
84.81
|
|
5
|
Chase Baxter |
76.02
|
|
6
|
Justin Perez |
64.65
|
|
7
|
Stephanie Haight |
63.36
|
|
8
|
Brandon Cole |
57.83
|
|
9
|
Antonio Serna |
52.72
|
|
10
|
Michael Cummings |
32.78
|
|
Place |
Name |
Prelims |
|
1 |
William Bryan |
111.29
|
|
2 |
Cade Herrera |
110.86
|
|
3 |
Adrian Velez |
109.07
|
|
4 TIE |
Lucas Gremler |
104.64
|
|
4 TIE |
Seth Kooiker |
104.64
|
|
6 |
Martin Christofferson |
101.29
|
|
7 |
Noah Daniels |
94.71
|
|
8 |
Erik Goes |
93.29
|
|
9 |
Jacob Gustafson |
90.14
|
|
10 |
Josiah Tuohimaa |
83.64
|
YoYoJam released a clip video from their recent Minnesota Tour. It’s really great to see them getting into retail-based promotions…here’s hoping we see more from them!
Hey guys, it’s Ben Conde. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who came out to see the team on tour — this past week was an incredible experience for us. You can expect more tours in the future! Please enjoy this montage I made of the Minnesota Tour. Thanks!
YoYoJam has announced their very first tour! YoYoJam team members John Narum, Ben Conde, Tessa Piccillo, and Ian Johnson will be touring through Minnesota starting today, June 17th and ending at Midwest Regionals on June 23rd. Just a quick week, but it’s great to see YoYoJam getting their feet wet with promotional tours.
Air Traffic Kites & Games
Eden Prairie Mall
1240 Eden Prairie Center
Eden Prairie, MN 55344
(952) 941-3335
4 PM – 8 PM
Air Traffic Kites & Games
Rosedale Mall
337 Rosedale Center
Roseville, MN 55113
(651) 631-3150
4 PM – 8 PM
Air Traffic Kites & Games
Burnsville Mall
1050 Burnsville Center
Burnsville, MN 55306
(952) 435-2868
4 PM – 8 PM
Air Traffic Kites & Games
Ridgedale Mall
2340 Ridgedale Center
Minnetonka, MN 55305
(952) 544-2266
4 PM – 8 PM
The Great Race
Minnesota State Fairgrounds (Saint Paul)
8 AM – 11 AM
Midwest Regional YoYo Contest
Mall of America
384 North Garden
Bloomington, MN 55425
10 AM – 4:30 PM
The 2013 Indiana State YoYo Contest was held in Indianapolis yesterday, and we have the results!
The 1A and 5A divisions at Indy States are held in an incredibly exciting single-elimination battle format. In 1A, veteran genius Ky Zizan beat Brian Long in the final match, while in 5A, the always smooth Jonathan Robinson beat Connor Ebbinghouse.
Videos coming soon to the YoYo News YouTube Channel!
Check the other results below:
Full results are in for the 2013 Minnesota State YoYo Contest…congratulations to Harold Owens III for taking the 1A division! We’ve listed the Top Three places for the two freestyle divisions (with video) below…visit MNYoYo.com for full results of all divisions.
Also notable from the event was the announcement that World YoYo Champion John Narum has officially resigned from offstring yoyo competition…and that he will be taking over running the Minnesota State YoYo Contest. Big news…congratulations, John!
1st Place – Harold Owens III
2nd Place – Shane Lubecker
3rd Place – Nehemiah Peterson
1st Place – Ian Johnson
2nd Place – Robbie Graham
3rd Place – Shane Lubecker
