At the Youth Olympic Games being held in South Korea, the short program of the first half of the women's figure skating singles was held on the 28th, and 15-year-old Japanese gold medal candidate Mao Shimada came out on top with a solid performance. In addition, 16-year-old Yusa Takagi came in second place, and all Japanese athletes got off to a good start.

The Youth Olympic Games being held in South Korea was held on the 28th, when the short program for the first half of the women's figure skating singles was held, and from Japan, Shimada, who has won two consecutive Junior Grand Prix Finals and is a gold medal candidate at this tournament, and Takagi. Two people participated.



Shimada smoothly executed the double axel at the beginning of the jump, and although he made an error in the take-off of the triple flip and toe loop that followed, he landed on both and was given points for performance.



After this, he also landed the third jump, a triple flip, which increased his base points, and all of his spins were at the highest rated level four.



Shimada, who showed a stable performance, was the only player to score in the 70s with a score of 71.05 and came out on top.



In addition to landing all jumps, Takagi received the highest marks for all spins and steps, and finished in second place with a score of 67.23, beating his personal best by nearly four points.



The second half of the free program, where both athletes aim to win medals, will be held on the 30th.

Mao Shimada: “I was able to approach the game with confidence”

Shimada, who took first place in the short program, said, ``I was a little worried because I had been making mistakes in the short program recently, but I made sure to do my best to make sure that those worries and worries didn't come to me before I skated. I was able to go into the performance with confidence.I'm not entirely satisfied with the score, but for me it was a very good performance,'' he said.



Looking ahead to the gold medal on the 30th free skate, he said, ``Just being able to participate in this event makes me feel glad that I've worked so hard, so in the free skate I don't think too much about winning a medal and just keep working hard. I want to be able to produce the best results possible."

Usa Takagi: “I’m really happy that I was able to achieve my personal best.”

Takagi, who came in second place in the short program, said, ``In the practice just before, my jump timing wasn't very good, but I was able to do my best with the energy from the many people in the audience.I was really happy that I was able to set my personal best. I'm very happy," he said with a satisfied expression.



Looking ahead to the free skate, he expressed his enthusiasm, saying, ``I want to do my best to do everything I can without worrying too much about rankings or scores.''