Kaori Sakamoto (20 = Sysmex), leader of the short program (SP), won the GP series for the first time. Registers 153.91 points, for a total of 229.51 points. Although he was not officially recognized by the International Skating Federation (ISU), he performed well above his personal best of 223.65 points, and when he saw the score, he said “Wow!”

“I was very nervous, but I was skating while I was practicing. I was so nervous that I could only appeal to the choreography (sequence) part, but I thought it better to be able to do it as it is practiced.”

From double throttle (two and a half rotations) at the start and three consecutive rotations of the flip-toe loop, he got going and hit the “matrix” for two consecutive seasons.

“I want to do my best to be able to perform perfectly in the All Japan (Championship) (in December).”

A smile broke out in my hometown of Kansai.