G.O.A.T of the Rink?
At just twenty three years of age, Yuzuru Hanyu will have a chance to be the most accomplished solo male Olympic figure skater ever. Winning his second consecutive Olympic gold medal in the Men’s individual skate. He is the first male to do so in his sport for 70 years. The last able to accomplish this was American, Dick Button in 1948–52. It seems fitting as in 2014 Hanyu also tied Button as the youngest male skater to win an Olympic gold medal in figure skating history. Barring any more injuries like the one he suffered in 2014/2015 and just prior to the Pyeongchang Olympics. It seems highly likely Yuzuru Hanyu will be competing at Beijing 2022 for his third consecutive title. Lets take a look back at how Hanyu was able to position himself to become possibly the greatest of all time on the rink. First a look at his performance this year at Pyeongchang and below that a summary of his career up until the 2018 games.
Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games
A year prior to the Olympic games there was little dispute that Hanyu was one of the favorites heading into the games. However three months prior to the start of the games, Hanyu injured a lateral ligament in his right ankle during practice on November 9th. Due to this pretty significant injury, Hanyu withdrew from the 2017 NHK Trophy which prevented him competing for his fifth consecutive win in Grand Prix Final title. The 2017 Japanese National Championships were also a no go. This event is generally used as the qualifier for the Olympic games of who will represent Team Japan. Despite not competing, Hanyu was assured he would have a position on the team. This was because of his position as current reigning champion, last Olympic champion and his number one ranking in the overall standings. On December 24th, Japan announced his official spot on the team. Just mere days before the Olympics started, Team Japan announced Hanyu would not be a participant in the team event at the Olympics. This was so he could continue to recover and train in his facilities in Toronto.
Hanyu was not there during the opening ceremonies of the games. He arrived in South Korea on February 11th. It turns out that leading up to the Olympics due to the injured ligament, he was unable to execute triples or quads until just two weeks prior to his arrival. This left many questions up in the air about the legitimacy of Hanyu actually being able to win a medal, let alone the gold.
On Friday February 16, Hanyu took to the ice in competition for the first time in months. He would have to perform his short program, done to Chopin Ballade NO.1, which has been in his routine since 2014. He would score 111.68, putting on a flawless performance. His personal best is 112.72, so just 1.04 points less than when fully healthy.
The following day he would have to perform his free skate. His injury would really come into question heading into this performance, filled with triples and quads he had barely been practicing. This was done to the lovely Japanese song Semei, and he would land clean on three of the four quads and garner a score of 206.17 points. His total of 317.85 would be enough to secure him the gold medal, allowing for the first back to back champion since 1948 and 1952. Dick Button, who also had his previous record of youngest gold medalist tied by Hanyu in 2014, would contact him the next day. The press conference on Sunday also revealed the extent of the injury which had been plaguing Hanyu leading up to the games. Hanyu was on heavy doses of pain killers that allowed him to compete. When asked if he ever considered retiring because of the injuries, Hanyu seemed to shrug the questions off. He stated he had no intention on quitting and had a goal of landing a quadruple Axel, which has never even been attempted in actual competition.
So now after Nao Kodaira winning in Women’s 500m speed skating finals, Japan has two golds. Hanyu will probably get the majority of the attention, which is a shame but also to be expected for the Japanese Icon. What exactly is in store next for this young Olympian is unsure. An appearance at Beijing 2022 for a record third consecutive gold in Figure skating is definitely on the table.
History of Hanyus Career
Early Career/Juniors(2004–2013):
So how did the teenager who arrived at Sochi four years back come to be one of the prolific skaters, holding three current world records? He started his career quite young like many Olympians being only about four years of age. Hanyu’s family was already well versed with the culture around skating, having his older sister already enrolled in figure skating. He would also attend a prestigious high school, which other previous renowned Japanese figure skaters attended. It has been stated before a big influence on him growing up was the skating style of Russian athletes, specifically Evgeni Plushenko.
Hanyu would win his first serious competition in 2006 at the Japanese Novice Championships, claiming a bronze medal. This in essence would spring his career as it allowed him to attend the 2006–2007 Japan’s Junior Championships for the first time. He would place seventh but the following year would win the bronze medal. His experience here would garner him an invitation to the International Skating Unions Junior Grand Prix (2008–2009). Placing 5th overall and first among the Japanese, Hanyu’s confidence gained from this experience was exponential. He was able to win the 2008–2009 Japan’s Junior Championships at just 13 years of age, being the youngest male competitor ever to place first. This medal not only crowned him Junior champion but allowed him to attend both Japan’s National Championship where he would place 8th and the 2009 World Junior Championships where he place 11th. It would only take Hanyu another year to adjust to the competition of the World Junior’s and win the 2010 World Junior Championships.
Senior Competition(2011–2013):
Starting the following year, Hanyu would make his international debut at the senior level at just 15 years of age. It would once again take Hanyu just a year to adjust to his new competition, placing second at the 2011 Four Continents Championships. This would essentially start Hanyu’s professional career. In 2012 Hanyu would switch coaches to Brian Orser in Toronto, Canada. With this switch, a more rigorous skating schedule of 3–4 hours daily would begin. After this switch of training programs Hanyu began to see real results at the highest level. He won gold at 2012 Finlandia Trophy, First at the 2012 Skate America Grand Prix, The 2012 NHK Trophy and his first national title at the 2012–2013 Japan Championships.
2014 Olympic Season
At the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, Hanyu at just 19, would be a part of Japan’s Figure Skating Team Event. Hanyu would win his event of men’s short program with a score of 97.98. Despite this great showing, unfortunately Team Japan would finish in 5th.
Hanyu’s personal performance in the men’s short program individual event would soon be a historical one. Holding the current record at the time, Hanyu broke it once again with a score of 101.45 in the short program. This is the first time ever a skater would break the 100 point mark. More importantly the effect it would have on Japanese ice skating. It was the first male gold medalist in the sport and only the second in Japanese history. The other being Shizuka Arakawa’s in 2006 Turin. Hanyu was the youngest winner of the Men’s Olympic title since the great Dick Button. Returning to Sendai, his home town, an estimated 90 000 people would cheer him upon his arrival. This did not make Hanyu complacent however, as he would also win the World Championships and Grand Prix Final in 2014 as well.
World Records & Injuries (2014–2017):
Coming off his Olympic victory and being the first skater since 2002 to also win the World Championships and Grand Prix Final in the same year. It seemed Hanyu was posed to start a run of dominance in the figure skating world. These next three years however would be filled with ups and downs for the young phenom.
Hanyu had to withdraw from 2014 Finlandia Trophy due to back injury. In the same year at the 2014 Cup of China he ran into fellow skater during warmup which would result in stitches in his head and chin. He also reportedly sprained his right ankle, but was still able to come in second despite some falls. The following competition of NHK trophy, the injuries were quite visible. Other injuries during the 2014–2015 season would include abdominal pains and a problem related to the urachus which required surgery.
Hanyu would bounce back the following 2015–2016 season. He started off this impressive season winning gold at the 2015 Skate Canada Autumn Classic. In the 2015 Skate Canada International, he would fall second, only to the great Patrick Chan. It was the 2015 NHK Trophy however that was the record breaking moment. He recorded the world record score of 106.33 during his short program. This record was short lived however as he would break that score later that year with 110.95 points at the 2015–2016 Grand Prix Final. He would become the first man ever to win this tournament three consecutive years in a row. He would win the 2015–2016 Japan Championship and come second behind Javier Fernandez in the 2016 World Championships. Unfortunately his season would be cut short with injury, obtaining ligament damage in his left foot. His following season 2016–2017, Hanyu would reclaim the World Championships in figure skating. It seemed like everything was transitioning to a smooth 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
Links to Songs
Short Program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIwBFYKQ5zs
Free Skate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NWDXsUlE1M
