Amid high expectations, "ice prince" Hanyu sets off for 3rd Olympic gold

BEIJING, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The curious case of where "ice prince" Yuzuru Hanyu is may be put to rest, when the Japanese figure skating star finally showed up on Monday for a training session at the Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing for his third Olympic Games.

The two-time Olympic champion apparently opted to focus on the individual event by missing the team event starting on February 4 and the opening ceremony that same day.

His appearance, just one day before the men's individual short program on Tuesday, immediately caught the eyes of the media.

In his all-black training suit, Hanyu warmed up before rehearsing of his programs to music while his team members filmed the whole process.

Finishing his first training session with a couple of failed jumps, he bowed to an appreciative crowd of mostly media workers and stadium staff, before leaving the practise rink.

The 27-year-old Japanese will meet his arch rival Nathan Chen, the 22-year-old three-time world champion from the United States, on Tuesday -- a long-awaited duel between the two, which Eurosport said "may become one of the highlights of the competition."

Hanyu did not compete internationally this season after suffering an ankle ligament injury, but came back to claim his sixth national title in December.

Until he appeared at a Beijing airport on Sunday, the whereabouts of Hanyu had become a source of great concern for fans, due to his long absence from the public before Beijing 2022, while a campaign of "looking for Hanyu" trended widely on Chinese social media.

"He must be waiting for the sea to freeze so he can skate on the ice with ultra-high 4A to the Games site," one follower said on China's Twitter-like platform Weibo, which has seen nearly 4 billion views with his hashtag so far, with an online fan club of more than 750,000 followers.

Many of them posted photos or videos of his previous competitions, discussing his possible Olympic schedule and worrying if he will withdraw from the Games due to injury.

As the Beijing Games will have no overseas audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hanyu's Japanese fans even sent online messages to the Chinese Embassy in Japan, asking people in China to offer live support to their beloved skater, which was surprisingly answered by China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying on Twitter, who assured them they could "leave the live support to the Chinese audience."

A 38-second video posted by the Japan Skating Federation on February 3 proved to be a great relief for fans both at home and abroad. In the video, Hanyu is seen wearing the Olympic uniform of Team Japan and the Olympic rings and expressing his gratitude for the public's support, saying he is looking forward to performing at the Beijing Winter Games.

He holds up three fingers at the end of the video, representing his desire for his third Olympic gold, with hopes to realize his childhood dream of successfully performing the quadruple Axel, or "4A."

No figure skater to date has landed the quadruple Axel in competition.

"For that, I know I'll definitely need everyone's power, so please cheer me on," he said.

Born in Sendai, Japan, Hanyu began skating at four years old. His parents gave his name Yuzuru, which literally means a stretched bowstring, in the hope their son would be resilient and composed against the ups and downs of life.

He became the Olympic champion in men's figure skating first in Sochi in 2014 and then at PyeongChang in 2018.

For many, Hanyu, with a perfect combination of skill, strength and elegance, is a hot favorite to win the men's individual figure skating event in Beijing.

In addition, his modesty, strong determination and diligence have made him one of the most popular Olympians at Beijing 2022.

"I do hope he will stand on the top of the podium in Beijing with a successful '4A'. It's his dream. It will be a reward for his devotion," said a Chinese follower on Weibo.