Thoughts on watching the NHK Trophy (Shoma Uno won❗)

Hello, this is Pandagorogoro.

Saturday, November 19th, was a happy day.
At the NHK Trophy, the Japanese leg of the Figure Skating Grand Prix Series,
held in Sapporo, Hokkaido,
in the men's singles division,
the skater I support, Shoma Uno, won the championship.

Since he also won the competition in Canada, his spot in the Grand Prix Final is now secured.

Sota Yamamoto, who also placed first in the short program, finished second overall,
marking his second time placing second following the French competition, and he has also secured his spot in the Grand Prix Final.

Since he was a junior, Sota Yamamoto was a skater with great promise, competing in international events alongside Shoma Uno.
However, due to injuries such as fractures and repeated surgeries, he was unable to achieve the results he wanted after moving up to the senior level.

By placing first in the short program ahead of Uno this time, and finishing second overall, I hope he will now demonstrate his true potential and be very successful from here on out.

Back in his junior days, I secretly hoped that Sota Yamamoto would become a classic, princely skater like Takahiko Kozuka.

However, judging by what I saw at yesterday's NHK Trophy, I ended up thinking that a more confident, 'king-like' style might actually suit him better.

In terms of his physique, he is tall for a figure skater (173 cm) and slender, making him a type similar to Yuzuru Hanyu.
However, while Hanyu had an androgynous atmosphere, Yamamoto feels distinctly masculine, and he is still only 22.
I hope he continues to grow even stronger from here on.

At this competition, the Japanese pair 'RikuRyu' (Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara) also won.
Having also won the competition in Canada, they have also earned their spot in the Grand Prix Final.
As far as I can remember, it is rare for a Japanese pair to win an international competition (I apologize if I am mistaken), so I think it is fair to call it a remarkable achievement.

Returning to the topic of Shoma Uno, he was not in top form at this competition.
It was reported that he was frustrated because his body was not moving as he wanted and he could not correct his jumps.
These are the words Coach Lambiel said to him.

It is said that these words helped Uno regain his composure.

We tend to aim for perfection.
However, we often cannot reach it, and we end up feeling frustrated or disappointed with ourselves.

Aren't these words from Coach Lambiel something that we, who often exhaust ourselves aiming for perfection, can also gain a great deal from?

Perfection is not something you aim for from the start; it is something that awaits you at the end of your hard work.

Thinking about it this way, I feel that even when you are struggling because you cannot see your future, if you do what you can and pour your energy into it without reservation, the door to the future will eventually open.

Effort is never in vain.

No matter how bad things are, if we continue to work hard like Shoma Uno, who says, "The fact that I have practiced without fail is the truth," perhaps we too can eventually reach a stage where perfection awaits.

I thought that the words of coach Stéphane Lambiel, backed by his experience, resonate especially with us ordinary people.

Thank you for reading until the end today.
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