Japanese speed skater Nao Kodaira, the women's 500-meter champion at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, will contest the final race of her career Saturday at the national single-distance championships in her native Nagano Prefecture.
More than 4,000 tickets have been sold, and additional tickets were put on sale for the second day of the three-day event at the M-Wave ice arena, where Kodaira is scheduled to compete one last time in the 500.
The 36-year-old Kodaira, who forged a famous rivalry and friendship with South Korea's two-time Olympic champion Lee Sang Hwa, attended a practice session Thursday and talked about her feelings ahead of her career finale.
"I'm thankful as a person who grew up in Shinshu," Kodaira said, using an old name for the central Japan prefecture and referring to the strong ticket sales. "I look forward to seeing the faces of spectators."
During her illustrious career, Kodaira won 37 consecutive 500-meter events in Japan and overseas between 2016 and 2019. She collected a total of 34 World Cup wins in the 500 and 1,000.
Kodaira announced her intention to retire from competitive speed skating roughly six months ago.
"I've prepared my body well and come here with a hungry mentality," Kodaira said. "I want to interact with the ice well until the end."
Miho Takagi, who snapped up four medals at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, including gold in the 1,000, said it would be an honor to compete against Kodaira once more.
Related coverage:
Speed skating: Japan sprinter Nao Kodaira to close book on storied career
Olympics: Takagi wins silver in 500 as Kodaira's defense falls short
Speed skating: Kodaira wins 1,000 at World Cup, 2nd in 500
