Higuchi Wakaba to miss 2022-23 figure skating season with lingering effects from stress fracture
The Beijing 2022 team bronze medallist rules herself out for the entire campaign, saying she has been slow to recover from fractured right shin.
Figure Skating
Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic bronze medallist Higuchi Wakaba will miss the entire 2022-23 figure skating season as she struggles to regain her form from a right-shin stress fracture, the Japan Skating Federation announced on Wednesday (5 October).
"I have been slow to recover from a stress fracture in my right shin that I suffered in late April", Higuchi said in a statement via the JSF.
"I am not in good enough condition and will be passing up all competitions this season including the two Grand Prix events and the Japanese national championships.
"I managed to climb a personal summit this February when I qualified for the Olympics which had been a career goal of mine.
"I will take it slow, one day at a time this season at my own pace and hopefully get back to being in the shape I know I can be in.
"After recharging my batteries, I hope I can skate better than ever for all of you. I appreciate your continued support".
Wakaba appeared in her first Games in Beijing after finishing runner-up to Sakamoto Kaori at the nationals.
The 21-year-old helped Japan to third place in the team event. She was fifth in the singles, becoming the fifth woman to land a triple Axel in Olympic history.
At the world championships in March in Montpellier, France, Higuchi finished a disappointing 11th with 188.5 points, far off her personal best of 214.44.
In April, she revealed the fracture, saying she had been in pain ever since returning home from Beijing. Higuchi had been assigned to skate at Skate Canada and the NHK Trophy in Sapporo.