Nana Araki looks for leap in crucial season
Now is the time for accomplished junior Nana Araki to shine. The 17-year-old from Higashiura, Aichi Prefecture, will begin her third season on the Junior Grand Prix circuit on Thursday at the season-opening event in Courchevel, France. Araki, a senior in high school, has finished in ...
Top junior Tomoe Kawabata poised for a breakout season
With Japan junior champion Yuhana Yokoi having moved on to the senior ranks, 17-year-old Tomoe Kawabata may represent the Hinomaru's best chance for a medal at the world junior championships this coming season. Kawabata was the bronze medalist at the Japan Junior Championships in Fukuoka ...
Mai Mihara mesmerizing in victory at Winter Universiade
It was a mixed bag of results for Japanese skating over the weekend. The good news arrived from Krasnoyarsk, Russia, where Mai Mihara won the Winter Universiade in decisive fashion. The bad news emanated from Zagreb, where Japanese skaters struggled at the world junior championships and ...
Rising choreographer Benoit Richaud says Kaori Sakamoto in good form ahead of worlds
Following a disappointing fourth-place finish at last month's Four Continents Championships in California, Japan champion Kaori Sakamoto didn't dwell on her result, but rather went right back to work to prepare for this month's world championships in Saitama. Benoit Richaud, Sakamoto's choreographer, whose stock is ...
Yuhana Yokoi, Tatsuya Tsuboi take golds at Japan Junior Championships
Yuhana Yokoi retained her lead after the short program to win the Japan Junior Championships on Sunday night with an impressive free skate. The 18-year-old from Nagoya took to the ice as the final skater and put on a smooth performance to "The Phantom of ...
Yuhana Yokoi, Nana Araki favorites entering Japan Junior Championships
With Rika Kihira and Mako Yamashita having moved up to the senior ranks, there will be a new titlist crowned at the Japan Junior Championships this weekend at Accion Fukuoka. The favorites coming into the competition this year are Yuhana Yokoi and Nana Araki. Yokoi, ...
Daisuke Takahashi shows heart of champion in return to competitive skating
The jumps need to be a little higher and the spins a bit faster, but the return to competition after a four-year absence of 2010 world champion Daisuke Takahashi over the holiday weekend has to be labeled a success. Takahashi finished third with a total ...
Mai Mihara impresses as runner-up while unveiling new short program at Nebelhorn Trophy
Mai Mihara earned the silver medal in her season debut at the Nebelhorn Trophy on Saturday with two solid performances. The 19-year-old was runner-up to Olympic champion Alina Zagitova at the Challenger Series event in Oberstdorf, Germany. Zagitova won with a total of 238.43 points, ...
Mitsuki Sumoto looks strong with silver medal at Slovakia JGP
Junior Grand Prix Final bronze medalist Mitsuki Sumoto started the JGP season in fine fashion by taking home the silver medal at the season opener in Bratislava, Slovakia, on Saturday. Canadian phenom Stephen Gogolev, a 13-year-old from Toronto who is coached by Brian Orser, won ...
Satoko Miyahara's win thickens Olympic team plot
What a difference a couple of weeks makes. After the NHK Trophy in Osaka earlier this month, three-time national champion Satoko Miyahara's hopes of making Japan's team for the Pyeongchang Olympics looked in dire straits. Back in competition for the first time in nearly 11 months ...
Mitsuki Sumoto, Mako Yamashita are atop leaderboard after first day at Japan Junior Championships
Mitsuki Sumoto grabbed the lead after the men's short program at the Japan Junior Championships on Saturday with a score of 67.34 points. Last year’s junior bronze medalist stepped out on his opening triple axel to “Singin’ in the Rain,” but landed his triple lutz/triple ...
