Kaori Sakamoto: “Today, I lost to myself. In other competitions, I always manage to deliver when it counts, but for some reason, things just don’t go well at the Final.”
Kaori Sakamoto finished fifth in the women’s short program at the Grand Prix Final after an unexpected mistake.
original source: news.yahoo.co.jp dd. 5th December by Fujitsuka Daisuke / news.yahoo.co.jp dd. 5th December / news.yahoo.co.jp dd. 5th December
Kaori Sakamoto (25), aiming for her first title in two years, was brought to tears after finishing fifth in the SP. Here’s a translation of her comments.
She made a mistake on her opening triple lutz, which became a double, resulting in a score of zero for that jump. Sakamoto reflected, “I made a mistake in a place where I rarely do, even in practice. I didn’t even realize what had happened until I heard the crowd’s reaction. I almost let it get to me, but I managed to switch gears and hold it together, which was just barely good enough.”
“Today, I lost to myself,” she added.
With the Milano Olympics just two months away, Sakamoto was eager to gain momentum at this Final, but was unable to achieve her revenge in the short program. “I’ve never really had a standout Final,” Kaori said. “In other competitions, I always manage to deliver when it counts, but for some reason, things just don’t go well at the Final. I wonder why,” she lamented.
Her coach, Sonoko Nakano, encouraged her, saying, “Let’s work hard so you can cry tears of joy tomorrow,” which helped Sakamoto regain her composure.
As for the upcoming free skate, former world champion said, “I’ll leave all these negative feelings behind today, and once midnight comes, I’ll reset and focus on the free skate.”
“I have nothing to lose. I want to leave these negative feelings behind today and reset,” she said, determined to look forward.
Related topics: grand prix final, Kaori Sakamoto
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