Japanese figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu retires from competition

TOKYO: Japan's two-time Olympic figure skating champion Yuzuru Hanyu announced his retirement from competition at the age of 27 on Tuesday (Jul 19), after struggling with injuries at this year's Beijing Games.

"I'll no longer be compared with other skaters as a competitor," the "Ice Prince" told a packed press conference in Tokyo, saying he will concentrate on skating in exhibition shows for his adoring fanbase.

At Pyeongchang in 2018, he became the first man in more than half-a-century to win back-to-back Olympic golds, while skating on an injured ankle he was taking painkillers to endure.

Hanyu had built up anticipation for the Beijing competition by promising to attempt the quadruple Axel - a 4-and-a-half-rotation jump never before landed by anyone in competition - but fell short of that goal.

He later told a news conference that an ankle injury gained in practice had been worse than originally thought and was non-committal about his future, hinting that while he still wanted to try the quadruple Axel, he also felt that his Axel was "complete".

The slender, photogenic Hanyu has been popular throughout his career with fans around the world, many of whom would follow him from competition to competition, shouting "Yuzu!" and throwing Winnie the Pooh stuffed animals onto the ice after a performance. In Japan, the cartoon character has become closely associated with Hanyu, who is often seen carrying a Winnie the Pooh tissue case to competitions.

A native of Sendai in northern Japan, Hanyu was practising when the Mar 11, 2011, earthquake struck and fled the rink in his skates as the ice cracked around him. He and his family subsequently spent time in an evacuation centre because of damage to their home.