Japanese figure skating superstar Yuzuru Hanyu made his long-awaited on-ice debut at the Winter Olympics on Monday, and said upon leaving the ice he wants to "skate with love" in Beijing.
Having skipped any involvement in Japan's bronze-winning team campaign, the two-time reigning Olympic champion is preparing to skate in the men's short program on Tuesday and free skate on Thursday.
Hanyu made eight attempts on Monday at landing the elusive quad axel, the jump the world is waiting to see in competition for the first time, but did not land any cleanly.
"I hope I can get closer to succeeding here (with the jump)," he said after struggling to get the required rotations and clean landings.
"It's a goal I really want to achieve, and it's absolutely necessary to go up (onto the podium) at these Olympics. I'll do my best."
Hanyu did land quad salchows and quad toeloops during his time on the ice and said he had no trouble focusing on the task at hand.
"I had some nerves at the start and I needed to adjust a bit to how it feels on the ice but I was able to concentrate on my practice in the end," said Hanyu.
"I feel I'm getting up well and it's been easy to get into my spins since coming over here. Achieving full spins will be a start."
Hanyu also talked positively about the Capital Indoor Stadium rink where Japan won the bronze medal in the team event earlier Monday, and the fact he was without his coaches having trained alone in Japan amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The rink looked really good and I was feeling relieved a bit," he said. "My coaches, Brian (Orser), Ghislain (Briand) and Tracy (Wilson) have all been looking after me very well. They are respecting my wish to keep my routine (of preparing alone recently)."
The 27-year-old is looking to be the first man in 94 years to complete an Olympic gold three-peat, while American Nathan Chen, his 22-year-old main rival, is looking to win his first Olympic title.
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Chen skated in the team event, scoring 111.71 points to lead the men's short program segment ahead of Japan's 2018 Olympic silver medalist Shoma Uno's 105.46-point second-place score.
Earlier in the day, U.S. Figure Skating announced Chen's teammate Vincent Zhou tested positive for the coronavirus on Sunday.
Zhou was part of the American team that took silver behind the Russian Olympic Committee, with the 21-year-old finishing third in the men's free skate won by Japan's Yuma Kagiyama.
Chen will be monitored by U.S national Olympic committee medical staff and is undergoing additional testing to confirm his status.
"If his results are negative, Zhou will be able to compete in the men's short program," a U.S. Figure Skating statement read.
Zhou was part of the American team that took silver behind the Russian Olympic Committee, with the 21-year-old finishing third in the men's free skate won by Japan's Yuma Kagiyama.
Chen will be monitored by U.S national Olympic committee medical staff and is undergoing additional testing to confirm his status.
"If his results are negative, Zhou will be able to compete in the men's short program," a U.S. Figure Skating statement read.
