Hanyu Yuzuru won the gold medal twice at the Winter Olympics (Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018) and there were hopes that he would go on to win another gold at Beijing 2022. But alas, his skate got caught in a hole in the ice during his short program, costing him dearly, and his free program also fell short. In the end, he walked away from the Winter Olympics without a medal for the first time.
But to me, I still think he is a legend. Yes, compared to world champion and Olympic gold medalist Nathan Chen, Hanyu may not be as technically competent. But to me, they are actually competing in the same event but at a different level.
If anything, Nathan Chen is like a master artisan. He is a master in his craft/sport, and is able to execute every single move to the highest level of perfection. His performances are always amazing, breathtaking, and leaves one in awe. But that is all. It is totally in line with the Olympic spirit of faster, higher, stronger, and is what every sportsperson aims for.
On the other hand, Hanyu is an artist. He is technically good, of course; otherwise, he cannot execute the moves required to express his art. But there is something in his performances beyond the execution of moves strung together into a routine. There is a beauty in the way he performs each move, in how he blends his movements with the music, with the atmosphere. He is the only figure skater whose performance brought tears to my eyes. Somehow, his performances have a beauty in them that touch the human soul. He has taken figure skating beyond the realm of a sport into the realm of art.
(Hanyu Yuzuru's short program at the Japan championship in 2021; source: YouTube FujiTV Sports)
And one must not forget his achievement. And his spirit. He attempted the quad axel at the Olympics. Something never done before. And it was recognised. The record shows his attempt, even though he fell.
(Source: Olympics.com)
The thing is, he himself knows how difficult the qual axel is, and he has never succeeded once in executing it. Yet he was willing to accept the high chance of failure, and losing his chance at getting a third gold, to give it a shot. For someone at the top of his game, with an entire nation hoping he would get a third gold, he was able to face that fear of losing, not just a gold medal, but also letting down the hopes of an entire nation (and fans all over the world), just to have a shot at accomplishing his dream of performing at quad axel in a competition.
That fear is real. I mean, you can easily find all kinds of criticism online now. Those who say he is past his time. Those who say he should have aimed for gold instead of being selfish to attempt the quad axel.
But those who criticise him... would Nathan Chen have dared to attempt the quad axel at Beijing 2022? The fact remains. Hanyu was the one willing to take on this challenge. Nathan Chen went with the safe route, to keep performing his usual way and secure his high points as usual. But he did not attempt something new. His gold medal will forever have an asterisk in his heart: he will never know if he would have gotten that gold if Hanyu had instead opted not to try for a quad axel. Hanyu Yuzuru is the one who goes down in history as the first person to attempt a quad axel in a competition, not Nathan Chen.
Do we dare to sail into uncharted waters? Or are we content with plying the known routes?
Update 14 February 2022: Hanyu just held a press conference in Beijing today after receiving many requests for interviews. He is truly a legend. Even before he talked about himself, he started off by saying that he thinks we should all recognise the great achievement of Nathan Chen for winning the gold medal. And then he thanked everyone who supported him and the event. There was nothing about himself until the questions came in. That was when he talked about his injury, how serious it actually is, but how much he loves skating. When asked if he will be at the next Winter Olympics, he said that it is still unknown, and he still needs time to think about what his next goal will be. I am just glad to know that he did not outright say he is retiring from figure skating.
Update July 19, 2022: Hanyu just held a press conference in Japan, announcing he is leaving competitive figure skating and move into professional figure skating.
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