For two-times Olympic gold medalist Yuzuru Hanyu, it’d be a complete and total understatement that this has been a big week. Not only did the legendary figure skater manage to secure his second gold medal during the PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Saturday, but he also received notable recognition from a creator he’s expressed great appreciation for in the past. Uploaded to the Twitter account of Tokyo Ghoul manga creator Sui Ishida, Yuzuru Hanyu’s likeness was captured in gorgeous style as he fearlessly dominated the ice.
— 石田スイ (@sotonami) February 18, 2018
It’s undeniably been an incredible week for the 23-year-old figure skating icon, with just about every newspaper and magazine in Japan covered with his likeness. That being said, if I was in his position, I’d have to say this is a little cooler. It originally became apparent to the world that Yuzuru Hanyu was a fan of the series when he was spotted holding a Tokyo Ghoul tumbler in a joint photo with the Sailor Moon of the ice, Evgenia Medvedeva. It was also noted that in the photograph he was doing a pose similar to series protagonist Kaneki, making it all the more incredible.
Perhaps more than ever this year, both in Japan and internationally, it felt as though more individuals had a keen eye for the ice skating performances. I’m not going to state it as a fact, but I’d dare suggest that the late-2016 animated series Yuri!!! on ICE might have just had a little to do with that. But hey, if that’s the case, I’m sure it would make series creator Sayo Yamamoto happy, which is something she explicitly stated in our interview with her last year.
We wish the best of luck to the rest of the Olympians taking place in the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, and congratulate Yuzuru Hanyu on his much-deserved success.