Nao Kodaira captured her second-ever World Cup win as she triumphed in the women's 500-meter speed skating race Friday, while compatriot Maki Tsuji placed second in the opening tournament of the season.
Kodaira logged 38.00 seconds to top the podium at a World Cup event for the first time since November 2014, while Tsuji snatched second at 38.17, a hundredth of a second ahead of China's Yu Jing.
South Korea's Lee Sang-hwa, the gold medalist at the last two Olympic Games, was sixth at 38.47.
"The other skaters didn't skate as fast as I expected. It's rather surprising to have won," said Kodaira, who stepped up a gear after a decent first 100 meters on the rough rink.
The 30-year-old moved back to Japan after two seasons in the Netherlands and doubled the amount of weight training, something she felt she had not done enough earlier.
"I've acquired the minimum physical strength required to make the most of my technique," she said, while adding, "I have to look closely at areas where I need to improve, especially after winning, in order to grow."