Mao Shimada performs her free skate routine at the 2024 Japan Junior Championships on November 17 in Hiroshima. (©KYODO)
Read the full story on SportsLook - Mao Shimada Wins a Record 4th Straight Title at the Japan Junior Championships
Two-time world junior champion Mao Shimada etched her name into the history books again with a decisive victory in the Japan Junior Championships in Hiroshima on Sunday night, November 17. The result gave the young star her fourth consecutive win in the event, making her the first singles skater to achieve the feat.
Shimada's triumph broke a tie with Shizuka Arakawa (1994-96) and Miki Ando (2001-03), who had both captured the junior crown three times during their careers.
The 16-year-old Shimada prevailed with a total score of 201.32 points, more than 11 points ahead of second-place finisher Kaoruko Wada, who tallied 190.17. Ikura Kushida, Shimada's training partner, took third on 189.52.
Ami Nakai came in fourth at 180.83, while Rena Uezono was fifth with 180.69.
Also Sunday, Rio Nakata claimed the men's title with 220.47 by overtaking short program leader Sena Takahashi, who came in second at 212.99, in the free skate. Taiga Nishino finished third on 208.49.
Shimada Struggles with Jumps, but Still Wins at Japan Junior Championships by a Large Margin
So dominant is Shimada that she easily prevailed despite not having her best night. She skated to "Mado Kara Mieru" and fell on a quadruple toe loop and under-rotated a triple lutz. Shimada was judged a quarter rotation short on two other jumps.
Despite the jump issues, Shimada still hit six clean triples and earned level fours on all of her spins. She is already looking ahead to the Japan Championships (December 19-22) in Osaka, where she will compete against three-time world champion Kaori Sakamoto.
"I was able to get 150 points [in the free skate] only once," Shimada noted.
She added, "I want to reach the 150-point range one more time to prove it is not a coincidence."
Continue reading the full story on SportsLook.
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Author: Jack Gallagher
The author is a veteran sports journalist and one of the world's foremost figure skating experts. Find articles and podcasts by Jack on his author page, and find him on X (formerly Twitter) @sportsjapan.
