Mone Chiba: “It was incredibly intense, but I reminded myself that I might never have the chance to skate last at the Olympics again. Once I thought of it that way, I was able to enjoy the experience.”
Mone Chiba, making her Olympic debut at the Milan-Cortina Games, delivered an elegant short program as the final skater, scoring 74.00 points and finishing 4th. With focused determination, she aims to claim a place on the podium through the free skate.
original source: Hochi News dd. 17th February 2026
Mone Chiba, competing in her first Olympics, shone brightly during the women’s short program despite the pressure of performing as the final skater. With 74.00 points and a poised performance, she secured 4th place. Here’s a translation of their comments.
Reflecting on her debut, Chiba shared, “It was incredibly intense, but I reminded myself that I might never have the chance to skate last at the Olympics again. Once I thought of it that way, I was able to enjoy the experience.”
“I stumbled slightly on the first combination jump, but I stayed composed and finished the rest of the program calmly. During the final step sequence, I felt so grateful and happy to be skating in this moment, at the Olympics, as the last skater. Dancing with those feelings made it such a joyful and meaningful experience,” Chiba said, smiling brightly after her performance.
Moments before her performance, Chiba followed her unique pre-skate routine with her coach Mie Hamada. Typically, Hamada touches foreheads with Chiba and sends her off with “Go for it!” However, due to the softer cushioning in the Olympic rink setup, Hamada incorporated an exaggerated jump into her motion, landing slightly onto the cushion and extending her signature send-off ritual. “It’s a routine I absolutely have to get right,” Chiba laughed. “I went to meet her halfway, and it all went smoothly.”
Chiba’s free skate program is titled Romeo and Juliet, a story set in the northern Italian city of Verona. “I chose this program because I was looking forward to performing it at the Olympics. I aim to perform my own unique version of Romeo and Juliet, striving for a clean, flawless skate,” Chiba said.
Related topics: Mone Chiba, Olympic Games
I’m really happy for her ! Her SP performance was great ! I was afraid the pressure of the olympics would get to her, but it wasn’t the case ! She did amazing.
And her relationship with coach seems to be doing good to ! Happy about that, Mie Hamada is a really experienced and talentend coach, they know what they’re doing !
Good luck for the FS to her !!