Shin Uno Shoma talks about “where he is now”: “I haven’t found a program that I like yet…

At the World Championships held at the Saitama Super Arena this past March, Masama Uno (25, Toyota) became the first Japanese male athlete in history to win two consecutive titles.

The focus of attention has already turned to “what kind of programs will Uno show us next season? The trigger for this was what he said after the World Championships: “I have accomplished one thing that I want to do.

Now that I have accomplished one thing I wanted to do, I want to be a skater who can say with confidence, ‘What is my charm as an expressive person?

The “Turandot” by Shizuka Arakawa, the 2006 Olympic Queen in Torino; Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2” in which Mao Asada performed “Miracle of Four Minutes” at the 2014 Sochi Olympics; and “SEIMEI” by Yuzuru Hanyu, who won his second consecutive title at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics.

The famous skaters who have colored the history of Japanese skating have representative performances that have been recognized by men and women of all ages. Now that Uno has established a solid “track record,” he is also seeking to create a program that will become synonymous with his own.

On May 19, “Team Champérie,” led by former world champion coach Stéphane Lambiel, held a joint training camp with “Kinoshita Academy,” a group of promising young skaters including World Junior Championships queen Mao Shimada (14), in Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture.

Uno was also participating in this camp, but due to overwork from track and field training, she had to cancel her practice on the open day and use it as a rest day. The media lost a valuable opportunity to interview Uno, but Coach Lambiel said, “He has started to prepare for the next season. We have been trying new moves, and my body has been ‘surprised’. That’s why she is taking a break,” he explained.

As for Uno’s new program, Coach Lambiel said, “I will be able to present new music to you in the summer. The new program is filled with different charm of Shoma. I hope you will wait a little longer,” he said confidently.

With Hanyu turning pro and Beijing Olympics champion Nathan Chen (24, USA) taking a break, last season Uno went from being in a position of chasing to being chased for the first time.

I want to get results and compete at the top. As a competitive athlete, it is necessary to prioritize getting more points.

Last season, Uno performed a high-difficulty but point-getting composition in the free skate, incorporating four types of quadruple jumps, five times in total. With her quad axel (quadruple jump) as her weapon, she won all her races in the season, including her first Grand Prix Final victory, while being challenged by 18-year-old Ilia Malinin (USA), a newcomer to the senior ranks. She showed her pride as the World Champion.

I think it was a difficult year, but I think I was able to do what I needed to do, and I was able to do it well. It was a season in which I was able to do everything I needed to do.

Although he had “done what he had to do,” he had some doubts about his own performance in the season. He expressed his feelings in an interview immediately after winning the World Championships.

What I am looking for in my skating, more than the result, is to be able to look back on my performance and feel good about it. My jumps have gotten really good over the past two years, but as a skater, I don’t think I’m very good.

For the media, who were ready to hear about her joy of victory, it was hard to deny the sense of abruptness, but when they heard what she said in the overnight interview the next day, they finally came to an agreement. The reason behind this statement was a “certain video” that she had reviewed before the World Championships.

When I saw the footage of the GP Final, I thought, ‘It’s just jumps. I think it’s great that you are doing the minimum as a program, and that you are skating more efficiently so as not to exhaust your energy, but I thought, ‘I wanted to do this.

But I also honestly felt that “is this what I wanted to do? （It was not a performance I would want to see again.

It may sound like a harsh self-evaluation, but it is probably Uno’s honest and untruthful feeling. Turandot, Moonlight, Winter, Bolero, and this season’s Aria on the G string. Uno, who has performed the royal road of figure skating so well, asserts, “I have not yet come up with a program that I like.

I have yet to find a program that I like. It’s not that the program itself is bad, but whether I like it or not depends on whether I have completed a program that I myself want to see. In the past, that has never happened.”

Uno’s ideal image is Daisuke Takahashi (37), whom she has admired since childhood, and who became the first Japanese male Olympic bronze medalist in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics with his free skate “Michi,” in which he played the role of a clown.

Uno is determined to create a performance that will move not only his fans but also his own heart.

I have always put ‘expression’ second to jumps. As a bridge between jumps. I will continue to do my best in jumps, but I would like to add a little bit of expression to it.

She has already performed a new exhibition piece, “Come Together,” at the ice show. The number is accompanied by a strong male vocalist,

I haven’t done so many dance programs, but it’s a very danceable program, and I think it’s one of my favorite programs I’ve made in the past. I think it is one of my favorite programs that I have made in the past. I’m excited to see what will happen when I add more (difficult) jumps.

I’m excited to see how it will turn out,” she said.

At an event held in Nagoya in May, she wrote “new” as the kanji for her aspirations for the coming season.

I think it will be a year of new challenges in many aspects, and many things will change. I hope everyone will enjoy the changes.

It was also announced that she will play the role of Luffy in “One Piece on Ice,” an ice show based on the popular manga that will open in August. What kind of performance will he show us outside of the competition program? We are waiting for the opening of “Shin Uno Shoma.