Japan Figure Skating Championships 2024: No room for weakness as Kagiyama Yuma chases maiden national crown
'I can't show a millimetre of weakness,' says the Beijing 2022 silver medallist on the eve of the Japanese nationals. Kagiyama aims to become the first male champion in 12 years not named Hanyu Yuzuru and Uno Shoma.
Figure Skating
Kagiyama Yuma has identified his chief rival as he tries to win the Japanese nationals for the first time in his career this weekend - himself.
“Of course I want to win but I want to win content with my own performance,” the Beijing 2022 Olympic silver medallist said on Thursday (19 December) following official practice at the Ractab Dome in Osaka, on the eve of the Japan Figure Skating Championships 2024.
“So first things first, I want to skate the way I know I’m capable of skating and get a hold of my emotions. At the end of the day, figure skating is about the fight within. I have to win that battle first.
“I can’t show a millimetre of weakness. I’ve been convincing myself in practice that I can do it.”
Kagiyama Yuma, left, with coach Carolina Kostner and father Masakazu.
Kagiyama Yuma: 'I was dead, mentally'
Kagiyama recently finished a distant second to Ilia Malinin at the Grand Prix Final in Grenoble, France, two weeks ago.
The 21-year-old has had a solid Grand Prix season, though not enough to challenge the U.S. star. Kagiyama claimed NHK Trophy title by clearing 300 points and then won the Finlandia Trophy, but lowered his score by almost 40 points in a mistake-filled skate.
Kagiyama admitted he was not in a good place after Finlandia. It is only recently that he has managed to get his groove back with the help of his coach Carolina Kostner.
“Being completely honest I was dead, mentally, after Finlandia,” Kagiyama said. “It was pretty difficult to put it back together but right after Finlandia was the Final and now this.
“When you have one competition after another, you really don’t have time to sulk. Watching everyone else work so hard for the nationals really fired me up.
“At the Final, yeah there were the jumps but I had level twos, threes on my spins and step sequences so coach Carolina and I think that’s where we have to adjust.”
The likes of Grand Prix Final bronze medallist Sato Shun and last year’s GP Finalists Miura Kao and Yamamoto Sota will attempt to stop Kagiyama from turning the competition into a one-horse race.
No men’s singles skater apart from Hanyu Yuzuru and Uno Shoma has won the nationals since 2011-12. Should Kagiyama perform up to potential, he and his father Masakazu will become just the second father and son in history to win the event.
As heart-warming as that headline would be, Yuma isn’t about to get ahead of himself, let alone discuss any other competition down the road.
“Whoever wins it’ll be a first. Everyone is dying to win the nationals and I can’t afford to take a step back,” Kagiyama said.
“I’m not really thinking about the Olympics right now. The important thing is to focus on the current season and raise the level of my performance, like a PB at the nationals.”