Yuzuru Hanyu evolved rapidly and turned his eyes to the top of the world in 2012. (6ページ目)

Hanyu, who was then in the process of further improvement, turned his eyes to the next stage without being overwhelmed by his first victory in Japan.

"I would like to go back to Canada and practice while discussing with (coach Brian) Orser. Because he said to me, 'Of course we're aiming for the All Japan title, but it's at the World Championships that we have to be at our best this season.'"

In addition, Hanyu revealed a key factor behind his growth for the season. "Coach Orser is very good at coordinating the pace until competitions. He also controls the number of times I practice each element, saying things like, 'It will be worse if you do it more, so let's practice the next one'. Thanks to that, I think my efficiency has improved and I am gaining strength," he said with confidence.

"Although I received a high score for the artistic elements this time, I think I still have a lot to do, and I haven't achieved the skating and expressiveness that is comparable to that evaluation. I want to be able to record a high score by doing that."

Takahashi said, "In the future, I want to be able to put in two types of quadruple jumps, not just toe loops," leading Hanyu, still aiming for further improvement, to say with a smile, "I want to be able to jump three types of quadruple jumps".

Hanyu's rapid evolution had become a powerful driving force to help Japanese men's figure skating reach the top of the world.

(To be continued)

■Yuzuru Hanyu's photo book: Hikari - Be the Light-

The largest photo collection of the Japanese figure skater, Yuzuru Hanyu, will make its debut on March 11th.

Size:A3, 192 pages.