Surprise! Sakamoto Kaori first Japanese women's medallist since Asada Mao
On a wild evening at the Capital Indoor Stadium, two-time Olympian Sakamoto prevents a ROC sweep in the women's singles and sets sights on Milano-Cortina 2026.
Figure Skating
Does hard work pay off? Sakamoto Kaori will answer with a resounding "Yes!".
"Wow! I was stunned," Sakamoto said on Thursday (17 February), when she produced a career-best total of 233.13 points to take bronze at Beijing 2022 for her first global singles medal behind ROC duo Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova.
Sakamoto also helped Japan to third place in the team event.
The 21-year-old added "At first I couldn’t process the fact that I had finished third. I thought to myself, ‘What’s going on?' And when I saw the final result, the tears started to flow. I was too surprised to understand what had happened."
In her second Olympic Winter Games, Sakamoto became the first Japanese singles medallist since Asada Mao took silver at Vancouver 2010.
Sakamoto's Road to Beijing 2022
Sakamoto was seen as an outside shot for a medal against the formidable ROC trio of Shcherbakova, Trusova and short program leader Kamila Valieva.
But after a personal best short program (79.84), Sakamoto brought the house down with another PB of 153.29 in the free skate.
Without a triple Axel or quad jumps, Sakamoto starts with a disadvantage against most of the protagonists. But she takes great pride in the jumps she does have and her artistry on the ice.
"I did everything I possibly could and it led to this. You just never know what can happen at the Olympics and I’m so happy all the work I put in ended with this result."
At PyeongChang 2018 four years ago, Sakamoto finished sixth as a self-admittedly naive teenager.
In Beijing four years later, she put it all together.
"Four years ago, all I had going for me was momentum. I was going for broke without thinking at all," the Kobe native said.
"It was my first year in the seniors and I went to the Olympics without having experienced a World Championships. I was content to hope I might get through it all in one piece.
"But this time, I was absolutely determined to start strong and finish strong. So there’s no comparing me now to four years ago."
Sakamoto said she had thought about quitting skating before the Games. After Thursday's events, she now wants to keep going as long as she can.
"I’m in my third year of university and I’ll be a senior next year. I kind of thought my time was starting to end.
"But deep down inside, I know I want to keep jumping. And as long as I can jump, I want to keep competing. I’ll keep working with my sights set on the next four years."