"Only After Kim Yuna Left Could I Take First Place"... Asada Mao's Confession After 13 Years

"First Difficult Time in Vancouver Olympic Season"
Silver Medal at Olympics Behind Kim Yuna at That Time

Former Japanese national figure skating representative Mao Asada recalled her rival Yuna Kim.

Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun published an interview with Mao Asada on the 17th (local time). The interview was held as an event to encourage the Japanese national team ahead of the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics.

Asada reminisced, "When I was 18, during the Vancouver Olympic season, I went through a difficult time for the first time," adding, "I was always troubled by the thought that I had to be number one, and I myself wanted to be number one." Asada won the silver medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Shizuka Arakawa (left), gold medalist at the 2006 Torino Olympics, and Mao Asada, silver medalist at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
[Image source=Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan]

At that time, Asada became the first female skater to successfully land three triple Axels, achieving a personal best score of 205.50. However, Yuna Kim, who performed after her, set a world record with a score of 228.56 and won the gold, leaving Asada to settle for second place. Reflecting on that period, Asada tearfully said, "I did everything I could, but it was disappointing."

In the short program at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, Asada was unable to overcome the pressure and made mistakes, including falling on her first jump. She finished the competition with a low score of 55.51. Asada said she was only able to claim first place at the 2014 World Championships, after Yuna Kim had retired from the field.

Asada confessed, "My mind and skills couldn't keep up, and only after retiring did I realize how good my skating was."

Asada and Yuna Kim were rivals who dominated the world women's figure skating scene for over a decade starting in the mid-2000s. During their junior years, Asada was considered a level above Yuna Kim, but after becoming adults, Yuna Kim grew remarkably and surpassed her. After Yuna Kim's retirement, Asada continued to challenge for Olympic gold, but after falling to 12th place at the 2016 Japan Championships, she eventually announced her retirement.

Although she never surpassed Yuna Kim during her career, Asada praised her at her retirement ceremony in 2017, saying, "She was an excellent skater and a great stimulus for us to compete against each other."