Uchimura Kohei readies for 'Notte Stellata': "I've always wanted to do something with Hanyu"

The two-time Olympic all-around champion is relishing retirement and an opportunity to join another superstar this week

4 minBy Scott Bregman
2022-12-30T000000Z_1169001382_MT1YOMIUR000FW02DM_RTRMADP_3_KOHEI-UCHIMURA-S-GYMNASTICS-EVENT
(Yomiuri)

Winning Olympic gold once is difficult. But winning a second-straight title, well, that takes, according to Olympic gymnastics great Uchimura Kohei of Japan, something nearly superhuman.

“In the end, it’s not enough to go all out. It’s about whether or not you can work hard until you’re one step away from dying, to exaggerate,” said Uchimura in an interview with Hochi News ahead of his guest starring turn in figure skating great Hanyu Yuzuru’s ‘Notte Stellata’. “Winning a gold medal at one Olympics and experiencing it, you learn that, ‘Oh, you can’t win if you don’t go this far.’ Once you win a gold medal, you know how to win it.”

The two men, Uchimura and Hanyu, who reached the top spot of the Olympic podium in back-to-back Games will join forces Saturday (11 March) as gymnastics great joins figure skating legend as part of his skating show.

“I feel like this is a rare opportunity. I’ve always wanted to do something together with Hanyu,” Uchimura said.

The show, which will mark the 12th anniversary of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami will have special meaning for Uchimura, who won his third in a historic string of six world all-around titles in Tokyo just seven months later.

“If you're Japanese, you should never forget. I was in Saitama when I started working, and the seismic intensity was lower than 6,” he recalled. “The doors were wavy, and I had never experienced an earthquake of that magnitude before. People in the Tohoku region were even more devastated."

Why did Uchimura Kohei retire?

Uchimura announced his retirement from competitive gymnastics some 14 months ago. It came after a years long period, starting in 2017, where injury hampered the superstar. Uchimura climbed his way back to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, held in the summer of 2021, as a horizontal bar specialist but came off the bar early in his routine during the qualifying round.

He competed two months later at the 2021 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Kitakyushu where he finished sixth in the apparatus final.

Uchimura Kohei: Enjoying the next chapter

Uchimura has enjoyed retirement and expects big things when he joins forces with a fellow superstar athlete.

“Because we are both obsessed with artistic quality, beauty, and attractiveness in scoring competitions, no one has ever seen figure skating techniques and gymnastics techniques at the same time,” he said. “We also don't know what it will be like, so we want to enjoy it."

Though Uchimura isn’t skating ahead of the show (“I went for the first time the other day. I thought it was cold,” he jokes), he has been serious in his preparation.

“Even now, I make sure to practise at least two hours a day,” Uchimura explained. “I have three days, so I want to change the elements I’m doing. I have a repertoire of various elements.”

And when, it’s showtime? Well, nothing less than his best will do.

“I just want to enjoy it. After that, I want to see what kind of reaction I get,” he said. “I’m going to do my best because it’s Hanyu-san’s show.”

How many Olympic and world championship medals does Uchimura Kohei have?

Uchimura, a three-time Olympian, owns seven Olympic medals. Of the seven, three are gold (2012, 2016, all-around; 2016 team) and four are silver (2008, all-around; 2008, 2012, team; 2012, high bar).

At the World Championships, Uchimura collected some 21 medals during his illustrious career. He is the winner of 10 world titles, including his historic all-around streak that saw him claim the gold medal in the event six consecutive times.

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