Kaori Sakamoto's final Olympic figure skating performance concluded with a silver medal, a result tinged with disappointment for the three-time world champion. A missed jump combination in her free skate cost her the gold, leaving her with 224.90 points, just behind American Alysa Liu's 226.79. Sakamoto expressed frustration, stating, "The points I lost on those mistakes were exactly the margin that cost me the gold medal."
Despite the outcome, the 25-year-old acknowledged her significant growth since her previous Olympic bronze. "The fact that I now feel frustrated with a silver medal shows how much I've grown," she remarked. Sakamoto also celebrated her younger teammates: 17-year-old Ami Nakai, who earned bronze with 219.16 points, and Mone Chiba, who finished fourth.
Nakai, one of Japan's youngest women's singles medallists, expressed disbelief at her bronze, stating, "At first, I didn't even think I'd be able to compete in the Olympics, and now I've won a bronze medal, it still doesn't feel real." She looks to Sakamoto as an inspiration, aiming to carry the weight of Japan's skating future. Chiba, on her Olympic debut, vowed to use her fourth-place finish as motivation for future competitions.
Looking ahead, Sakamoto expressed confidence in the future of Japanese figure skating and her own continued involvement, stating she hopes to return to the Olympic stage one day "as a coach to future gold medallists."