There are 124 athletes in Japan’s Winter Olympics team this year, making this the largest squad the nation has sent overseas for the Winter Games. With so many star athletes joining the ranks, it’s not surprising that Japan is expected to break its current record of 13 Winter Olympics medals. The performance of a few athletes in particular will be crucial in order to achieve this goal. Here are six of the most promising Japanese Olympians to watch for and the medals they’ll be chasing.
Yuzuru Hanyu
Also known as ‘Japan’s Ice Prince’, Yuzuru Hanyu is vying for his third Olympic gold medal this year. If Hanyu wins first place, this will be a record-equalling third consecutive gold for men’s figure skating, but experts say his chance of winning against the USA’s Nathan Chen hangs on landing the near impossible quad axel jump.
Miho Takagi
Another athlete to watch in the ice rink is Japan’s Olympic team captain Miho Takagi – and no, she’s not a figure skater. Takagi, who has been competing in the Winter Olympic Games since 2010, is one of the fastest speed skaters on the planet. Together with her sister Nana and skater Ayano Sato, Takagi set a Guinness World Record for the fastest speed-skating six lap pursuit (women’s) with a time of 2 minutes and 50.76 seconds. While the skater already holds bronze, silver and gold medals from previous Olympic Games, she’s out to win even more this year by competing in five separate medal events.
Ayumu Hirano
On the slopes, look out for Ayumu Hirano as he returns to the Olympics just months after competing in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Hirano, who competed as a skateboarder over the summer, became Japan’s youngest Winter Olympic champion after winning silver in snowboarding at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics – at the time, he was just 15 years old.
Yuto Totsuka
This is a triumphant Olympic comeback for 20-year-old snowboarder Yuto Totsuka. Totsuka, who also competed in Pyeongchang in 2018, had a good chance of winning a medal in the men’s halfpipe final when he sustained a devastating injury that put him in the emergency room. Now, Totsuka is back to finish what he started after claiming gold medals at both the Winter X Games and FIS Snowboard World Cup in 2021.
Kokomo Murase
In the women’s team is 17-year-old snowboarder Kokomo Murase, who could become Japan’s youngest female athlete to win a medal at the Winter Olympic Games. In fact, the chances of this happening are pretty high – Murase holds the record for being the youngest ever athlete to win gold at the Winter X Games after landing a 1260 double cork in 2018 in Norway.
Akito Watabe
On skis, 33-year-old Akito Watabe will be competing in his third Winter Olympic Games in Nordic combined – a hybrid sport that combines cross country skiing with ski jumping. Watabe is considered to be one of the most accomplished Nordic combined skiers in history and has previously won silver medals at both the Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics.
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics will open on February 4, with the first medal competitions taking place on February 5. Here’s how to stream the events for free in Japan.
Want to know more about the athletes competing in the Winter Olympics? You can see the full list of Olympians and check out their profiles on the Beijing 2022 official website.
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