Beijing, China, February 6, 2022: Japan’s strength in depth in figure skating was on show at the Capital Indoor Stadium on Sunday morning when two Olympic debutants pushed them into medal contention in the team event.
First to go was Wakaba Higuchi, 21, in the women’s singles short programme. Her score of 74.73 was beaten only by 15-year-old Kamila Valieva of the Russian Olympic Committee (90.18) and earned Japan nine points towards the team total.
Next up was Japan’s Winter Youth Olympic Games champion from Lausanne 2020, Yuma Kagiyama, in the men’s free skate. Performing to the theme from “Gladiator”, the 18-year-old Kagiyama produced a season’s best score of 208.94 to win this section of the team event and earn Japan a maximum 10 points.
At close of play on the second of three days of action, Japan occupied third place on 39 points from five of the eight elements, with three more to come on Monday.
The Russian Olympic Committee lead the way with 45 points, followed by the United States with 42, Japan 39, Canada 30 and China in fifth place on 29.
While the women's short belonged to Valieva, there was also a shining performance from Higuchi, who is making her Olympic debut four years after winning the world silver medal in 2018.
"I was so, so nervous. But today, I was able to lock in like I never have since I got here. I think I can definitely build on this for the singles," Higuchi said.
"I finally got a taste of the Olympics, the atmosphere and everything. I’m nervous but I’m having fun, too. I hope to keep my cool rest of the way."
The team event will conclude on Monday with the pairs free skate, the ice dance free dance and the women’s free skate.
The women’s singles short programme was the first element of the second day, and the fourth in total following the men’s short programme, the ice dance rhythm dance and the pairs short programme on Friday’s opening day.
The men’s free skate came next, and Kagiyama, who is coached by his father Masakazu, obliterated the opposition to finish well clear on 208.94. Mark Kondratiuk (ROC) was second with 181.65 for nine team points and Vincent Zhou of the United States was third with 171.44 and eight team points.
China’s Jin Boyang, who also performed in the men’s short programme on Friday, came in fourth in the free skate with a season’s best 155.04 for seven points.
Japan's superstar skater Yuzuru Hanyu is not taking part in the team event; he is saving himself for his golden hat trick bid in the men's singles on February 8 and 10. His understudy, PyeongChang 2018 silver medallist and Asian Winter Games Sapporo 2017 champion Shoma Uno, competed in the men's short programme for Japan, with Kagiyama taking over for the free skate.
