Dec 26 (Japan Times) - Japan's two-time Olympic figure skating champion Yuzuru Hanyu made a stylish return to competition Friday after skipping the Grand Prix season over fears of coronavirus infection.
Resplendent in a gold-studded black outfit, Hanyu unveiled a new short program routine set to “Let Me Entertain You” by Robbie Williams at the Japanese national championships in Nagano, and claimed the lead with a score of 103.53.
The 26-year-old star had been out of action since February after deciding his asthma made competing in this season’s Grand Prix series too risky during the pandemic, but he picked up where he left off with a confident performance.
“First of all, it was important just to get back to competition,” said Hanyu, who admitted to feeling “conflicted” about competing this week as infections surge around Japan.