The Legendary Figure Skater Mao Asada who retired. Because of…

 

Mao Asada (浅田 真央), the 2008 world champion from Nagoya, Japan, has been one of the world’s top figure skaters for several years. She is known for her ability to land a clean triple axel, the most daunting jump for a female skater.

 

If you’re the chair of the Olympic Organizing Committee for Tokyo 2020 summer hosting duties, here’s a guess that maaaaaaaybe— in the name of the Olympic spirit, the joy of simple competition, an appreciation of the effort and sacrifice made by the athletes just to make the Games, all that jazz —

you ought to refrain from blasting  2010 women’s figure skating silver medalist and 3 times World Champion.

 

But 76-year-old former Japanese Prime Minister and Tokyo 2020 organizing chairman Yoshiro Mori apparently has different ideas. Referring to Mao Asada — the greatest female figure skater in Japanese history, but 16th in Sochi after falling on her short program triple axel —

Mori said she is “always falling at the most critical time” of a competitition. Mori blamed Asada’s short program stuggles on her struggles with the same program in Japan’s team event performance.

 

a damned idiot, Mori (he always blames athletes)

 

 

” She always fails when it’s important.”

“We shouldn’t have taken part in the team competition,” Mori said. “The psychological damage [Asada] incurred must have remained” for the individual event.

 

However, Asada is professional. She didn’t argue against the silly talk of the old man😀
 

 

 

 

Mao Asada 〜 Profile 

Mao Asada, born September 25, 1990 is a former Japanese competitive figure skater. She is the 2010 Olympic silver medalist, a three-time World champion (2008, 2010, 2014), a three-time Four Continents champion (2008, 2010, 2013), and a four-time Grand Prix Final champion (2005–06, 2008–09, 2012–13, 2013–14).

Asada is also the 2005 World Junior champion, the 2004 – 05 Junior Grand Prix Final champion, and a six-time Japanese national  champion (2006–2010, 2012–2013).

 


◉ Height : 163cm

◉ Weight : 50kg


 

She held the world record  for the ladies’ short program score, until the record was broken by Eugenia Medvedeva in the 2016-17 Grand Prix final. Asada won her first Grand Prix Final at the age of 15. Considered by many to be the best figure skater in the world at that time, Asada was 87 days too young to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics.

She is the first figure skater in a singles discipline  from Asia to win multiple world championships. At the 2013 Skate America, she became the first singles skater, male or female, to win all seven of the current events on the Grand Prix series.   She currently holds 15 Grand Prix series titles – third all-time behind Evgeni Plushenko and  Irina Slutskaya.  She is one of the most highly recognized athletes in Japan.

 

 

She was named after the Japanese actress Mao Daichi. While growing up, she idolized Midori Ito. She learned to ice skate after school almost every day.

Her sister Mai Asada (two years older) was also a figure skater and finished 6th at the 2006 Four Continents Championships.  She is now skating in shows.

 

 

 

 

Figure skater Mao Asada is retiring

Three-time world champion Mao Asada announces retirement from figure skating (APR, 2017). Japanese figure skating star Mao Asada is retiring from competition. What a pity!

 

” I’ve made the decision to end my career as a figure skater.”

“I’ve been able to skate this long and overcome so many obstacles thanks to the support and cheer I received from many people.”

 

Asada has led Japan’s figure skating scene since her teens, with her trademark triple axel jump. She won the silver medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Excelling particularly at the triple axel, Mao won her first Grand Prix Finals at the age of 15 in 2005. She missed out on the 2006 Torino Games due to her age, but was fast becoming a national heroine in Japan.

 

 

However, an injury to her left knee had caused the 26-year-old to struggle in competitions this season. Asada finished 12th at Japan’s national championships (Dec, 2016) the lowest-placing ever in her career.

She wrote in her blog that she has been distressed by her recent lackluster performance. Asada said that after the national championships, she lost her drive to continue as a competitive figure skater.

 

Olympic gold was the one title that continued to elude her, as Mao finished sixth at the 2014 Sochi Games, just one month before winning the 2014 world title.

“I had the best performance and result during the world championship in the same season as the Sochi Olympics. Had I called it a day then, I might still have been hoping to return as a skater now.”

 

Finlandia Trophy 2016 SP

 

 

Coach Machiko Yamada — who mentored Mao since her elementary-school days and who also coached 1992 Albertville Games silver medalist Midori Ito, the first female to successfully perform the triple axel in competition — had only words of praise for Mao.

 

“I really want to say well done to her.”

“She is filled with charm not just as a skater but as a person.”

 

Mao won the national championship six times, but finished a career-low 12th at the event last December…

 

 

Japanese Nationals FS  (2016)

 

 

 

“After the national championships last year, the goal that had been driving me disappeared, and with it went the motivation to continue as a skater too,” she wrote.

“I reached the decision but I have no regret over my figure skating career. It was a big decision for me, but I also believe it is another passing point in my life. I want to find new dreams and goals and progress further with a smile on my face.”

 
 

” I want to move on with a smile.”

“I’m really thankful to everyone for giving me so much support.”😄

 

 


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