Nao Kodaira won the women's 1,000 meters at a speedskating World Cup meet on Friday, claiming her first win in the event since November 2018.
The 33-year-old Kodaira clocked 1 minute, 12.65 seconds at the Olympic Oval for her fifth career World Cup victory in the distance.
Kodaira finished 0.15 seconds ahead of Russia's Olga Fatkulina. Yekaterina Shikhova of Russia took bronze, while Miho Takagi missed the podium in fourth.
"I was able to stand on top (of the podium) for the first time in a while," Kodaira said. "I need to turn this win into confidence.
"I think this is a race that will be a turning point for me, and I was able to start the second half of the season well."
She is scheduled to compete in the 500 meters on Saturday along with Arisa Go and Maki Tsuji.
Earlier on Friday, Russian skaters swept the podium in the men's 500. Ruslan Murashov crossed the line in 34.04 seconds for the gold, followed by Pavel Kulizhnikov and Viktor Mushtakov. Tatsuya Shinhama placed fourth.