S. Korean figure skater trains amid circus surrounding Hanyu’s 1st appearance

South Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan had his fourth training session in Beijing ahead of the Winter Olympics here Monday, and it was unlike any of the previous three in the Chinese capital.

At the practice rink adjacent to Capital Indoor Stadium, Cha shared the ice with the two-time defending men’s singles gold medalist, Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan.

Hanyu is one of the biggest names at Beijing 2022 in any sport, the transcendent superstar with millions of fans around the world. Dubbed “Ice Prince,” Hanyu is trying to become the first man since Gillis Grafstrom of Sweden from 1920 to 1928 to capture three straight Olympic gold medals.

South Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan trains at the practice rink next to Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 7, 2022, in preparation for the Beijing Winter Olympics. (Yonhap)

Hanyu had been listed for a session Sunday evening but did not show. He was then slotted into the early afternoon window alongside Cha and four other skaters. The same six will skate in the second-to-last group in Tuesday’s short program.

The tiny practice rink drew dozens of reporters, far more than usual, and some of them started cramming into the basement press tribune some four hours before Hanyu’s scheduled session. Beijing organizers scrambled to limit the size of the media, though it did little to dampen the circus-like atmosphere at the otherwise nondescript rink.

Cha likely skated before more eyeballs on Monday than he had in his three previous sessions combined. He looked a bit shakier than in earlier practices, falling on a quadruple salchow attempt and botching the takeoff of the quad jump on some other occasions.

“I had a few mistakes here and there, but I attempted all of my jumps and tried to get a good feel for them,” Cha said. “I am in a good place. I’ve been performing well all season and my body feels great.”

Cha and Hanyu share Canadian legend Brian Orser as their coach, and they used to train together in Toronto before the COVID-19 pandemic placed restrictions on international travel.

Asked if skating in such a frenzied atmosphere had any effect on his practice, Cha said, “Not really. I was just concentrating on myself.”

Also included in the group was the 2018 Olympic silver medalist from Japan, Shoma Uno.

“It was great to be training with such wonderful skaters,” Cha said. “I think we all fed off each other’s energy.”

Cha added he didn’t say anything in particular to Hanyu.

“We were just concentrating on our own routines,” he said. “Everyone in our group, we’ve seen each other for a few years now.”