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Post by Admin on May 15, 2016 1:46:19 GMT
 Three-time world figure skating champion and Japanese national sweetheart Mao Asada has declared for the first time that she will aim to compete at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics. Asada, 25, took a year off after winning the World Figure Skating Championships in 2014. She made a full comeback in May last year, but had never said clearly if she has the desire to compete for the next Winter Olympics in neighbouring South Korea. It would be the Japanese athlete's third Winter Games, and she will be 27.  "As a figure skater, as an athlete, I will be able to compete only for a few more years, not for decades," Asada told reporters Tuesday at a product promotion event for a bed-maker, one of her sponsors, in Tokyo. "As far as I perform competitively, I have a strong desire to do so at an Olympic Games, the greatest stage for athletes. I believe it will be my ultimate goal," she added. |
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Post by Admin on Jan 10, 2017 21:38:28 GMT
 Three-time World figure skating champion Mao Asada said Monday that she plans to compete through the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics.  “If I make the Olympic team,” Asada added with a laugh, through a translator.  The 2010 Olympic silver medalist took the 2014-15 season off from competition and announced her return in May, when she reportedly said it was “much too early to think about the [2018] Olympics.”  Asada, 25, opened her season in earnest by winning the Cup of China in November over a field that included Russian Yelena Radionova, arguably the silver-medal favorite at the World Championships at TD Garden this week. |
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Post by Admin on Apr 10, 2017 20:48:31 GMT
 Mao Asada announced today that she is retiring. “I’ve been able to skate this long and overcome so many obstacles.” She will be missed!  Three-time world champion and 2010 Olympic silver medalist Mao Asada announced on her official blog Monday that she is retiring from competition. "It is a sudden announcement, but I, Mao Asada, have made a decision to end my competitive career as a figure skater," Asada wrote. "Thanks to the support and encouragement from many, I have been able to enjoy a long skating life and to overcome many difficulties." |
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Post by Admin on Apr 11, 2017 20:43:49 GMT
 Following a sixth-place finish at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia -- where she came in third in the free skate with an inspired performance -- Asada opted to sit out the 2014-15 season. She came back the following year and did admirably, winning one of her Grand Prix events, qualifying for the Grand Prix Final, finishing third at her country's national championships and placing seventh at worlds.  But she struggled mightily this past season, failing to medal at either of her Grand Prix events and finishing a lowly 12th at Japanese nationals. With the placements of Mai Mihara (fifth) and Wakaba Higuchi (11th) at this year's world championships, Japan has just two ladies spots at next year's Olympics. "After I came back to competition, I wasn't able to pull off the performance and achieve the result that I expected, and I started to worry more," she wrote. "When I finished the last Japanese nationals, the goal that had been motivating me disappeared, and I lost the energy to continue my competitive career." Asada, 26, changed her mind in recent months. Immediately after Japanese nationals, where she had her worst result in 14 appearances, she said she planned to compete next season, according to Japanese media.  It would have been very difficult for Asada to make Japan’s Olympic team. The Japanese qualified two women’s spots for PyeongChang, their fewest since 2002. |
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Post by Admin on Apr 13, 2017 20:56:06 GMT
Following a sixth-place finish at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia -- where she came in third in the free skate with an inspired performance -- Asada opted to sit out the 2014-15 season. She came back the following year and did admirably, winning one of her Grand Prix events, qualifying for the Grand Prix Final, finishing third at her country's national championships and placing seventh at worlds. But she struggled mightily this past season, failing to medal at either of her Grand Prix events and finishing a lowly 12th at Japanese nationals. With the placements of Mai Mihara (fifth) and Wakaba Higuchi (11th) at this year's world championships, Japan has just two ladies spots at next year's Olympics. "After I came back to competition, I wasn't able to pull off the performance and achieve the result that I expected, and I started to worry more," she wrote. "When I finished the last Japanese nationals, the goal that had been motivating me disappeared, and I lost the energy to continue my competitive career." Asada, 26, changed her mind in recent months. Immediately after Japanese nationals, where she had her worst result in 14 appearances, she said she planned to compete next season, according to Japanese media. It would have been very difficult for Asada to make Japan’s Olympic team. The Japanese qualified two women’s spots for PyeongChang, their fewest since 2002. |
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