Kaori Sakamoto: “I really loved skating – just loved it – and that’s what kept me going.”
Kaori Sakamoto, silver medalist at the Milano-Cortina Olympics, held her retirement press conference in her hometown of Kobe, expressing gratitude to her mother and reflecting on her skating journey.
original source: sponichi.co.jp dd. 18th May 2026
Here’s a translation of Sakamoto’s comments from her retirement press-conference.
At the beginning of the event, a video was shown reflecting on her skating career, which began at age four. Watching her younger self, she smiled and said, “I looked so happy skating with a smile. I was the kind of person who would say, ‘I want to skate,’ and even if I fell, I’d laugh. I really loved skating – just loved it – and that’s what kept me going.”
She continued, “I’m truly grateful to my mother for letting me skate.” With tears in her eyes, she added, “Until I was in elementary school, there were no year-round rinks in the prefecture, so in the summer, we commuted to Osaka every day. My mother would drive me early in the morning and late at night, sometimes until after midnight, so I could practice. Even when she was sleepy, she would drive me. She also managed my diet carefully so I wouldn’t gain too much weight during my growth period. I’m very thankful for all of that.”
Kaori Sakamoto also discussed her thoughts on retirement and how winning a medal changed her plans during a TV Asahi’s “GET SPORTS” appearance.
The program aired footage from a talk event held in Tokyo on the May 6th. At her second Olympics, the 2022 Beijing Games, Sakamoto won a silver medal in the team event and a bronze in the individual event at age 21.
When asked if she had considered retiring at that time, she replied, “I did.” She recalled, “That was my junior year of university, so I thought it would be just right to do one more year and then retire.”
She continued, “So at first, I thought it would be fine to retire when I graduated from university. It just felt like a good stopping point.”
“But as I spent time with that plan in mind, things changed – winning a medal changed my plans for the better,” Sakamoto said, explaining that it sparked her desire to aim for a gold medal next.
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