Rika Kihira: “Right after I started ice dance, I injured my right knee ligament in a spin fall, and later, during another spin practice, I fractured a rib. Both injuries have mostly healed! This year, I won’t get injured!”
Rika Kihira revealed she suffered a right knee ligament injury and a rib fracture last year but has mostly recovered and is determined to stay injury-free as she continues her ice dance career.
original source: Nikkansports 2d January 2025
On January 1, figure skater Rika Kihira (23) updated her X (formerly Twitter) account, revealing that last year she sustained a right knee ligament injury and a rib fracture. Here’s a translation of her comments.
“In my 2025 post, some people were worried about seeing me with crutches, but actually, right after I started ice dance, I injured my right knee ligament in a spin fall, and later, during another spin practice, I fractured a rib. Both injuries have mostly healed! This year, I won’t get injured!!!!!!!”
She also updated her Instagram post from New Year’s Eve, adding details on this day. Among the 18 photos and videos she uploaded was one showing her on crutches. She wrote, “As always, there were ups and downs and constant crises,” and added hashtags: “#rightknee ligament injury from a spin fall,” “#rib fracture in layback spin position,” and “#no more injuries.”
Kihira, who has won the Grand Prix (GP) Final, Four Continents Championships, and two consecutive Nationals, missed both the 2022 Beijing Olympics and the 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympics due to injury. Afterward, she switched to ice dance, forming a surprise partnership with Shingo Nishiyama (23), and finished fourth at the Japanese Nationals at the end of the year.
Related topics: Rika Kihira
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