Japan's reigning world champion Kaori Sakamoto wins her first Skate America title | Eurosport

Japan's reigning world champion Kaori Sakamoto dazzled the competition to claim her first Skate America title at the fifth time of asking at Skate America.
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[@teaanjay]

Her skating feel so FREE and full of power. Purely amazingness!

[@cloudcat17]

This video doesn't do her performance justice. I was in the arena Sunday for this event and the energy was electrifying! For the last 20 seconds of her performance, from that final 3 Loop to the end the crowd was cheering so loud you couldn't hear the music anymore. As soon as she finished, we were all on our feet clapping and cheering for her! The sound editors turned down the audience reactions so the music could be heard on the broadcast. 😸

[@justanotherclaud]

I was there and it was amazing to see how we just! Could not stop clapping for her. She was electrifying

[@SkyeAten]

Wow how'd she skate if she could barely hear the music... Doubly impressed by her now

[@justanotherclaud]

@@SkyeAten Ashley Wagner said she also couldn't hear the music during her silver Worlds skate! I imagine they kinda go into autopilot for their choreo

[@noikulastv8911]

And i think that should be the case for the people that would watch on videos

[@manithangavalu7885]

The music is irritating, just as well it's not too loud.

[@MononokeLynn]

This is what I miss about skating. The beauty and artistry. Not seeing 15-year-olds trying to squeeze 20 jumps into a performance.

[@mikegarcia7986]

EXACTLY!!!

[@thoseriseofkingdomsadswith972]

The people at the podium celebrating their work instead of hating themselves, the sport, their coaches, and the entire world.

[@Ramses060784]

Russians are the best 👌 suck it up

[@fong03]

This is the type of program that would get me back to watching skating regularly! Not a cheated quad in sight (but beautifully executed triples) and a well choreographed program highlighting great skating skills. It reminds me of previous eras and that is a very good thing!!!

[@queenofqwerty]

Yeah, I hate to say it but the Ukraine war has improved ladies free skating b/c now we can see the rest of the skating world free from Russian oppression of doping, politics, and gaming the technical scores *sigh*

[@fong03]

@@queenofqwerty I never thought I'd see a time when the men had more beautiful and choreographically interesting programs than the top ladies. (And it's not like there are a ton of those either. Once again it's mostly the Japanese and Canadian men with the occasional unicorn like Jason Brown.)

[@RoyallyWhat]

love kaori, love her programs, and it was so nice to see such a positive energy amongst the women on the podium for a change!

[@Ardit-kq4bt]

Without the toxicity of Russian figure skaters ofc it will be a positive energy

[@annaszpilarewicz2691]

@@Ardit-kq4bt Toksyczności?Raczej umiejętności,muzykalności...Przecież ciężko pracują na sukces...Nie rozumiem..

[@galaxystars888]

​@@annaszpilarewicz2691They work hard, they are successful. But you can see on their faces that they do not enjoy skating because of being so overworked and having so much stress. There is also a lot of drama revolving around them now. They are amazing skaters, but personally I like watching skaters who smile and look like they enjoy their program.

[@laughtersassassin2355]

An absolute ray of sunshine, so glad to see her thriving! Incredible jumps out of nowhere with superb running edge.

[@SandraNelson063]

Nicely done! No drama, just a straight forward performance delivered by an expert.

[@princessejana466]

I loved how she ran into that 3F+3T and then right into the spin! So powerful❤

[@triola3983]

I am glad Kaori is still skating despite winning the World Championship last season. She probably remains under pressure since the ban of the Russian skaters since she has become the main favourite since then, but it seems she is dealing with that pretty good. Nice to see her experiencing with a new choreographer, although I liked more her collaboration with her previous choreographer (Benoit Richaud). She is still struggling with the jumps a little bit, but there is enough time until the next Worlds, where Kaori has great chances to win the title for the second time in a row. Wishing her good luck!

[@gloriawelch3603]

Omg.

[@SkyeAten]

I am glad Kaori is still skating, she must be under pressure as the favorite. But she deals with it like a queen. I think she can win the Worlds title. There I fixed it for you. :)

[@triola3983]

@@SkyeAten that's exactly what I said in other words :)

[@triola3983]

@@gloriawelch3603 what?

[@dis2art]

Magnificent skating! Wow!!

[@angelicatrino2498]

She made it looked easy. Amazing !

[@dhebiegascon1603]

*WHAT A GRACEFUL LADY!*

[@dannyc6166]

Fantastic performance!!! Technically not perfect but it was close. Great to see the reigning world champion come back with enthusiasm!!!!!

[@CrystalViolent]

i love her so much. she skates like women dance when they're alone. like no one's watching her.

[@judyphilibert6921]

Japanese Women figure skaters are the best in World...they have the skill, grace, power and humility to be champions 😍 Well done, Kaori! 🏅⛸⛸⛸

[@mikegarcia7986]

and class, dignity and no bad attitudes! ♥️♥️♥️♥️

[@ilonafirschl523]

das ist grausam. Wie ein Wagon tanzt.

[@marisolgarcia3123]

This give me chills I really felt this performance of Kaori I love it ❤

[@direksmit9661]

I'm really happy for her! she's getting so much recognition now! She's always been underscored all her life. Kaori is amazing!

[@posuk58]

Bravooooo Kaori😃..very beautiful and amazingly light jumps, she's like a feather, at the same time she's a stout figure skater. I'm excited about Kaori and good luck girl...❤🧡💛👍👍👍🙏

[@angieortizurena3327]

That’s the kind of jumps we deserve, with the flow of the choreo, almost like the skater did them without thinking, spontaneously, like and afterthought and not with long seconds of preparation and a bad crossover technique to do a mediocre jump with an elaborated exit to mask the awful technique and landing…

[@erika6651]

Isn't it awesomely old school?? And her body isn't that of a 12 years old emaciated waif. We need more of this in skating.

[@valmacclinchy]

@@erika6651 absolutely, eating disorders are unfortunately prevalent in figure skating. Power, musicality, artistry are making a comeback! 😊

[@reindeerv19]

100%agree with you Eric and Val, stopped watching the “women’s” skating for a while now. That jerky skating by young girls that was seemingly admired by all was unwatchable.

[@ninzu8265]

@@reindeerv19 angree with you all, her skating fits what quality of figure skating term for me (note: subjective)

[@miggy90200]

@@erika6651 Yes! It reminds me so much of Michelle Kwan's grace and body shape. To me, she's the best of all time. I hope more skaters like Kaori emerge in this era.

[@anitabreakone]

She deserved the win.

[@lucykeane3284]

Such a pleasure to watch ... effortless and beautiful ⛸️⛸️⛸️

[@slurmophidalfellatroskob]

Can we talk about how she managed to hang on to the landing of that 2A+3T without stepping out?! If I were a judge, I'd honestly give that a +1 because not only did she make it look gorgeous somehow, but it's also an impressive show of her skating skills!!

[@user-uh2fs3cy2z]

こんなパワフルな日本人スケーターが出るなんて

[@janetmckenzie146]

Such creative dance moves, really lovely. Beautiful flow.

[@federicopascucciclassicroc7662]

Un talento naturale kaori che corre così libera sul ghiaccio. Una scorrevolezza unica

[@valmacclinchy]

Outstanding performance! Love from the US 💖

[@tomkroh2712]

Her double axels are so good.😍

[@user-gm4pd1mk2r]

Любимая фигуристка. Отличное владение коньяком!

[@vg6335]

真央はアスリートだった。かおりはダンサーだ。枝のようにギスギスに痩せたロシアのスケーターたちは「やらされている」感満載で、ただのポイントゲッターだった。生身の人間がここに芸術と身体能力を表現してくれて、ほっとした。

[@hiro070252]

ものすごい歓声！アメリカの観客の皆さんはテンション高くていいね！

[@Samsunga-ey7pz]

Красавица Каори!!!!! Стала ещё лучше! Так держать!

[@suzannegarrison5944]

Wow, a well deserved victory!!

[@PeaceandMercy444]

This was absolutely stunning!

[@bluecosmo.]

Am I the onoy one that thinks that 2A + 3T was actually extremely aesthetic!? Proves how controlled her skating skills really are, mistake or not!

[@GodBlessRussia623]

Каори прекрасна! Желаю ей и дальше радовать своих поклонников (в том числе и из России) великолепным скольжением и шикарными программами. Из России с любовью! 🤍💙❤

[@triola3983]

Российский фашизм надо уничтожить!

[@triola3983]

@@grenouillevoyageur5829 уничтожьте путлерфашизм!

[@grenouillevoyageur5829]

Слава Богу, что раздел украины уже предрешен, ее скоро не станет на карте мира 😘

[@vsirrmk]

Не знаю.. что то грубоватое., угловатое. То ли дело наши девочки.. лиричные, пластичные, само изящество и элегантность.. Хотя технически Каори молодец..

[@GodBlessRussia623]

@@vsirrmk Каори 22 года, нашим девочкам всего лишь 15-17 лет. Мы просто привыкли видеть на льду почти что детей, которые все легкие, воздушные, изящные, поэтому взрослые спортсменки кажутся "грубыми". Взгляните на Валиеву: не успела пройти Олимпиада, и спортсменка тоже выросла и огрубела/потяжелела, прыжки стали другими. Тело растет, меняется, потому и катание выглядит другим, это нормально.

[@believer13225]

She is born to win the heart of billions of people , an angel on earth❤

[@petronelastelawhite-anca7964]

Wonderful! Basically she flys over the ice! I believe she was skating once she was not less than 1 year old! Very gifted lady! KAORI SHAMOTO

[@jackblack3934]

アメリカのお客さんって反応良くていいよね

[@jusagosi]

this was so beautiful, i had my mouth wide open at every jump

[@sherrilwebb4102]

Hard to believe Levito was scored a half point behind the obviously far superior Sakamoto...I guess being the darling of the US has its advantages. Some things never change.🇨🇦

[@nondescriptnyc]

Judges do weird things, especially if you look at how each judge scores individual skaters. I saw the FS protocol, and Judge 4 put Kaori and Isabeau at a virtual tie on PCS (in fact, scored Isabeau .25 higher than Kaori on Presentation). I guess home town advantages do exist in our sport.

[@anitabreakone]

Sakamoto is a far more advanced skater than Levito. She has much more experience and that comes through in her skating. That also comes through in her component scores. Technically Levito is very good. That’s where she does some catching up. Had she tried to land the quad jump and actually landed it (I believe that’s what it was called) Levito would have won or been very much closer to Sakamoto. Levito is a very graceful skater plus she has the jumps. Only thing lacking at this point is the experience but that will come too. Levito, like Sakamoto is a very beautiful skater but they have different styles. Both are beautiful.

[@PtolemyXVII]

She’s so effortless. Glad to see figure skating returning without quads…Kaori has Dorothy Hamill vibes with this performance❤😊

[@peacetoeverymind]

Wow! Loved it!

[@vinny160]

There is something so effortless in her technique. It Is stunning.

[@zuz788]

Прекрасная Каори, удачи вам!!!

[@lily_dausse587]

Now that was amazing👏👏

[@paulefstathiou1819]

So much dedication , so much talent !!!

[@appyguy]

I love her new hair! A throwback to Dorothy Hamill and Yuka Sato.

[@vencedorasempre9888]

The Best amazing 🇯🇵💕🥇⛸⛸

[@AnnSwanson-xu6wd]

I've always just wondered h😮w they do all this jumps, spins e.t.c. Nothing short of Amazing! ! Thanks so much for sharing this w/us Eurosport.

[@Cat-no8ts]

Perfect! So we'll choreographed and fluently performed!

[@benp3485]

Refreshing to see great skating again without the fake quads. Congratulations!

[@mikegarcia7986]

AMAZING!!!! the next Midori Ito

[@tokkiliin]

Anyone else crying because of how BEAUTIFUL this was? No, okay 🥹

[@L2mangi]

Absolutely stunning to watch🥰

[@ivy-ys8or]

my olympic champion 👏

[@user-vz3pq2rk2v]

👎👎👎

[@icesakuragenesis5639]

Mine too. Truth be told, the actual olympic champion

[@angiecastro2457]

Ivie Usted està soñando.

[@user-cb8de3ou4r]

@@icesakuragenesis5639 😂😂😂

[@icesakuragenesis5639]

​@@user-cb8de3ou4r 💊💊💊💊russians💊💊💊💊😂😂😂

[@funnynickline]

CONGRATULATIONS TO HER VERY MUCH JAPAN,... MY NEIGHBOR😊😀🌟😁🙏💪💪👑👑👑

[@tadhgcronin175]

Sadly I had to sanction this competition but congratulations to Kaori on her victory. She is always a wonderful skater.

[@Carolesoriginalpieces]

Stunning

[@UniqueSouls]

If she doesn’t win gold at the next Olympics I’m throwing hands, the age needs to be increased to 18! Or even 21! To COMPLETELY STOP the BS that this sport has become

[@novakd1530]

It's so nice to see a non white full figured healthy skater who isn't doped up on drugs! Maybe the sport of figure skating can be saved

[@missymoonwillow6545]

Very strong skater. Reminded me of seeing a martial artist take to the ice. Good discipline, strong execution of the jumps. Incredibly strong athlete. Much respect. Will be interesting to see this performance against the Russian female skaters.

[@veevee411]

So lovely seeing a woman’s body on here! There have been too many on-the-cusp-of-puberty skaters in recent years that I felt we were watching girls’ figure skating instead of women’s.

[@Muzicman2112]

Michelle Kwan was my favorite awhile back! Kaori Sakamoto is my current favorite! She’s awesome!!!

[@aquamarine5278]

her weakness is not beautiful but her skating is amazing. Her jumps, speed is top of the world. I like her skating...no tricks,no drug, Love her straight forward powerful skating skill !

[@steffibaker6121]

Haven't seen the Dorothy Hamill wedge in a long time. She skated great too! ;)

[@valmacclinchy]

Brings back memories!! I've been watching figure skating since the late 70s..

[@marinjelcic2691]

Fav part 3F+3T

[@adrian123781]

The cheer is louder than the music.

[@user-tf4vn9nl4e]

素敵❤

[@bitcox4160]

All the advertisment on the inside walls of the rink made super hard to see the skater most of the time. But what I did see was beautiful.

[@missbradicah]

😳 That easily distracted are ya?

[@valeriascarpa3892]

Bravissima

[@user-mc3hz2dv4x]

elastic heart 良い

[@benedictatapar7223]

Great,!!!

[@patrickjohnson7401]

Bravado!

[@lidersemra4286]

Özgürlük bu olsa gerek izledim tek spor inanılmaz👍👍👍👍❤️

[@kaiserchief9319]

Well, someone came to win.

[@bharlesCabbage]

She said that.

[@micheleford4282]

have they changed the rules to allow them to lay or put there knee on the ice? i noticed some of them doing that.

[@forestgirl22]

Why is there no love button....

[@asheeasmith]

she skates exactly like midori ito

[@fannytrujillo1113]

❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@zakariabelkadi9782]

Good program but very very far from the russians'. I am waiting for her return because without her the ladies figure skating level is low.

[@fazekasagnes]

I know Russians always win, but I never see anything unique or speciality in their performance. They always make everything perfectly, but the uniqueness is always missing. They trained well and probably very strict so the achieve, but I saw much more personality and energy in Kaori's performance.

[@mihaillenivov485]

@@fazekasagnes There is some truth in your words, but ''the uniqueness is always missing'' is the obvious axaggeration. What about Yulia Lipnitskay and Alena Kostornaya? Now a new ''stalet'' is rising in Russia - Veronika Yametova, though she isn't ''the very best'' in terms of scores and technique, but she has a talent and personality, energy and fire, Veronika loves skating, she is quick, agile, with some tricks of her own.

[@stevenenglish7539]

Honestly, werk!

[@user-ub8jh8bp3s]

ダイナマイトボディ

[@markusekage4061]

新賽季開始，技術上還要些微調整，但藝術氣場無可挑剔，很精彩的競技演出！ 或許參加ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final最後一回，如願拿金牌就宣布退休（可能順便再多參加一回世錦賽），大家多珍惜吧！

[@katsuki116]

俄羅斯選手缺席+美加無人+梨花不受寵。大好機會，除非嚴重傷病，Kaori大概不急於退吧

[@hank8370]

是要走到2026吧! 怎麼可能退休

[@HamzooPineda]

Japanese don't cheat

[@melmac4996]

Sie ist eine ausdrucksstarke, hübsche, junge Frau mit einem gesunden Körper. Nicht so ein Lolita-Hungerhaken.

[@MadameCorgi]

This sport is so toxic, half the commenters complaining about this woman's figure or comparing her to imaginary performances by their favourites. Why is it so hard to be a very nice to athletes in this sport

[@paul-zx5du]

Great athlete! Where is the choreography? I hope they develop that part of her program next season. She’s awesome.

[@markordorica4935]

😘🌹🇯🇵👏

[@user-ch7yr3ng1k]

Wow

[@pamelahermano9298]

She may not be as big a jumper as the Russian girls, but she’s far more refined with better edges.

[@nicelourieyu3589]

i dnt feel the song choice...

[@mypassword1339]

Her name is like Satoshi Nakamoto :)

[@marlo5487]

Me gusta Kaori, tiene mucha fluidez y fuerza, pero está ganando porque no está participando la otra japonesita y tampoco las rusas.

[@jollyjuln1054]

And also Luna Hendrix wasn't participating. From my point of view she is really outstanding along with russian girls

[@gerardobaltodano]

Sin las rusas, los torneos de la ISU son como de aficionadas.

[@lusmerlin]

las rusas se valen de tener muy bajo peso y tener un cuerpo que no haya sido transformado por la pubertad. Inician los saltos a medio giro y los aterrizajes no son de tan buena calidad. En realidad, los entrenadores de las rusas no enseñan técnica tan buena como la que tiene Kaori, y en dos años las atletas terminan explotadas, lesionadas, y no pueden seguir compitiendo. Me encanta ver a una MUJER con técnica verdadera, y que ha logrado competir por muchos años. Muy lejos de "aficionada"

[@gerardobaltodano]

@@lusmerlin Todo tiene que ver con fisiologia. El cambio fisico y cerebral que se produe al finalizar los 16 no solo le pasa a las rusas. Le pasa a todas las mujeres japonesas incluidas. Despues de eso ya nada es igual. Y no es igual no solo a las rusas, a todas las patinadoras, japonesas incluidas. Las rusas tienen un talento casi genetico en mover su cuerpo, por eso destacan no solo en patinaje artistico, en gimnasia ritmica, en balet, en nado artistico. No reconocer eso es pura mesquindad.

[@lusmerlin]

@@gerardobaltodano pero históricamente este es un deporte femenino donde quienes compiten tienen entre 16 y 22 años. Poner niñas de 14 a competir lo que hace es desvirtuar el deporte, es lo que han hecho los rusos recientemente.Este cambio nos hace creer que las demás no son igual de buenas... no, es que son mujeres que ahora tienen que competir con niñas. Objetivamente es distinto.

[@_V_G]

@@lusmerlin I wonder if you follow gymnastics. You'll be surprised by the athletes' age there.

[@lusmerlin]

@@_V_G I don't follow it as much as this, but I got your point. I much rather there would be fair categories for young teen vs. late teen/young adult women.

[@johnanderson5031]

She is like Michelle Kwan..

[@Ramses060784]

Why so much hate in the comment section against the russians? People should focus in Kaori

[@yekab.1014]

Se extraña ver a las campeonas rusas.

[@almagarces7808]

yo no he tomado enserio ninguna competencia desde la prohibición.

[@rafael00084]

Ni para que, nos evitamos tantos problemad

[@mariafont8826]

Yuzuru Hanyu marcó un antes y un después en esta disciplina. Su influencia es notoria. Esta gimnasta es perfecta.

[@user-pt6mq2mi7p]

Умница! Но до валиевой ой как далеко.

[@svetlanasigalov223]

Она лучше валиевой

[@Account-number-3587]

Bla bla bla, she still shows great skating skills and jumping technique despite all the yapping of the missed competitors