Post by Admin on Mar 4, 2023 16:08:17 GMT
Mao Shimada (JPN) scores runaway victory
ISU Junior Grand Prix Final Champion Mao Shimada of Japan struck gold with a spectacular performance, and more than 20 points to spare, in her debut at the ISU World Junior Championships. Korea’s Jia Shin repeated as silver medalist in the event, while Ami Nakai of Japan claimed the bronze.
Shimada made it clear that she was only here for the gold from the first second of her program to “Passepied” and “Wild Swans Suite”.
She opened with a triple Axel and the only quadruple toeloop (slightly underrotated), and went on to reel off seven clean triple jumps, including two triple-triple combinations as well as level four spins and footwork.
Shimada set a new personal best of 152.76 points and racked up 224.54 points to win the title – 18 years after her idol Mao Asada (JPN), whom she was named after, won the World Junior title in Canada as well.
“Mao Asada is my namesake and my inspiration,” said Shimada. “It is great to find myself in the same spot. This medal is full of emotions: I felt a lot of happiness after landing the triple Axel and quad toe, but I told myself there was a lot of difficulties still to come in the program and I had to concentrate.
“There were many competitions where I couldn’t land these jumps in the past and that scared me,” the 14-year-old said. “But it was never an option for me not to do it.”
Korea’s 2022 ISU World Junior silver medalist Jia Shin shone in her program “Tree of Life”, nailing a triple Lutz-triple toe as well as five more triple jumps.