Yuzuru Hanyu said Thursday he wants to return to his skating roots as the two-time Olympic champion previewed "Origin," his free skate for the upcoming season.
"The beginning of my skating life, the origin — I want to skate while feeling like I did when I first began," Hanyu said in a practice at his training base in Toronto.
Hanyu showed off three types of quadruple jumps for the media — a toe loop, a salchow and a loop — as the 23-year-old ramps up his efforts to become the first skater to successfully land a quadruple axel in competition.
Although he hasn't landed the 4½-turn jump yet, the superstar appeared fully recovered from the right ankle injury he suffered in training last November.
"I'm skating now while thinking about how to strengthen my skating and get better," Hanyu said.
"Origin" features songs used in routines by Russian legend Evgeni Plushenko and American Johnny Weir, skaters Hanyu admires. He said he chose the music in order to "get back to enjoying skating, to slide while feeling like I'm doing it for myself."
Hanyu won his second consecutive gold medal at the Pyeongchang Olympics earlier this year after becoming the first Japanese male skater to win gold at the 2014 Sochi Games.
