2015.08.11 - TCSCC Media Day followup - 引退意向否定

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「平昌後は未定」言葉足りなかった…羽生が真意
読売新聞 8月11日(火)9時52分配信
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/winter/20150811-OYT1T50018.html

ソチ五輪フィギュアスケート男子金メダリストの羽生結弦（ANA）は読売新聞との国際電話によるインタビューに応じ、6日にトロントで行われた公開練習後に語った、2018年平昌五輪後にプロ転向するという発言について、「小さい頃に描いた将来設計を語っただけで、言葉が足りなかった。平昌後にどうするかは、まだ分からない」と真意を語った。（聞き手・永井順子）

羽生は6日の取材で、報道陣に対し「（ソチと平昌で）優勝、優勝で終わり、プロに行く」などと発言した。この発言が「引退表明みたいに受け取られて、とてもびっくりした」と戸惑ったという。「実際は、その時にならないと分からない。平昌後に納得できなかったら、納得するまでやるだろう。具体的に決断した話ではない」と説明した。

改めて「目標は五輪連覇」と断言。フィギュアで日本人の五輪連覇はまだ誰も達成していないだけに、「前人未到というのが好き。伝説というか、記録に残る人になりたかった。大きな夢として五輪連覇を目指そうと思った」と理由を語る。「連覇がどれだけ大変かは、ソチで金を取ったからこそ分かる。平昌でも金と言うのは重圧かもしれないが、それ以外は目標に出来ない」と決意を新たにした。

五輪金メダリストとして注目は高まるが、周囲の反応に「戸惑いがある」と明かす。「有名になるたくて頑張ってきたのではなく、スケートが好きで、勝ちたいからやってきた。自分はアイドルでも芸能人でもない。アスリートの魂は、ぶらさずに気持ちの芯に入れておきたい」と、競技者としての覚悟を強調した。

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Hanyu issues clarification on statements, mulling life after 2018 Games
Japan News 7:41 pm, August 11, 2015
By Junko Nagai / Yomiuri Shimbun Sportswriter
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002349150

Figure skating star Yuzuru Hanyu said his future after the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics is undecided and that remarks he made Thursday on whether to turn pro after the 2018 Games had been misunderstood.

After a public training session in Toronto on Thursday, the 2014 Sochi Olympics gold medalist said: “I will end with a title and a title [at Sochi and Pyeongchang], then turn pro.”

However, during a telephone interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun, Hanyu said: “I just mentioned a future plan I envisioned when I was a child. I guess I failed to give a proper explanation. I haven’t decided what I will do after the Pyeongchang Games.

“I was very surprised to learn that [my remarks] were regarded as a kind of retirement statement,” Hanyu added.

“In reality, I’m not sure what I will think until the moment actually arrives. If I’m dissatisfied after the Pyeongchang Games, I’ll continue skating until I become satisfied. It’s not something concrete.”

Hanyu stressed his goal is to win back-to-back Olympic titles, a feat no Japanese figure skater has achieved. “I like exploring uncharted territory. My dream has been to become a legend, or being written down in history. I have thought of winning back-to-back Olympic titles as my major goal.”

Hanyu said the public’s growing expectations of him winning another gold medal confuse him.

“I have worked hard not to become famous — I’ve continued skating because I love the sport, and because I want to win,” he said. “I’m not a pop star or a celebrity. I want to keep the unwavering soul of an athlete in the core of my heart.”

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Yuzuru Hanyu: I haven’t decided post-2018 plans
NBC sports By Nick Zaccardi Aug 11, 2015, 9:10 AM EDT
http://olympictalk.nbcsports.com/2015/08/11/yuzuru-hanyu-figure-skating-winter-olympics-2018-pyeongchang/

Olympic champion figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu said he hasn’t decided if he will continue competing or turn professional after the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Games, clarifying comments he made last week, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun.

Last week, the Japanese star was quoted as saying, “It’s been my plan since I was very young to win a gold medal in Sochi and end competitive skating with another [gold medal] at the next Olympics and join the professional ranks.”

Hanyu, who dropped to silver behind Spain’s Javier Fernandez at this year’s World Championships, said in a more recent interview that those comments didn’t mean he would stop competing after the 2018 Olympics.

“I was very surprised to learn that [my remarks] were regarded as a kind of retirement statement,” Hanyu said, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun. “I just mentioned a future plan I envisioned when I was a child. I guess I failed to give a proper explanation. I haven’t decided what I will do after the Pyeongchang Games.

In 2018, Hanyu, 20, could become the first man to repeat as Olympic figure skating champion since American Dick Button in 1948 and 1952.

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