Kaori Sakamoto: “I now have three World Championships gold medals, but each has its own story.”
Translation of Kaori Sakamoto comments after about her third victory at the World Championships.
original source: sports.ru / sports.ru by Maya Bagriantseva
“I’m happy, but I’m honestly exhausted. I was really nervous today, I couldn’t compose myself or calm down.
At the start of the program, I stumbled, and that threw me off even more. I was scared because this never happens to me during training.
But when I landed the axel, I was able to calm down. I trusted myself and did everything I could,” Sakamoto told Sports Correspondent Maya Bagriantseva.
“Do I believe that I can continue to win if Russian figure skaters return?
Of course, I would like to continue winning, that’s natural, but I understand that I can’t be on top forever. So, I’ll have to do everything that depends on me, and yes – I’ll need to perform significantly better.
I now have three World Championship gold medals, but each has its own story. I won the first one just a month after the Olympic Games in Beijing, I wasn’t in the best mental state – I suppose you could call it a burnout. Many events occurred during that month between the games and the World Championships, so I told myself that I must win and not miss this opportunity. Yes, I felt a lot of pressure, but I did everything that was up to me.
The next season was completely different. I didn’t perform too well in the first half, but the closer the World Championships was, the more I wanted to defend my title. Those emotions really got in my way, honestly. I made a silly mistake then that troubled me for a long time. So that victory did not come easily to me.
Today’s victory had a completely new scenario – I had to come back from fourth place. I’m glad I went through this and I appreciate this experience even more. I am very, very happy,” Sakamoto said in a conversation with Sports Correspondent Maya Bagriantseva.
Related topics: Kaori Sakamoto
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