The 2025 4 Continents Figure Skating Championships will open in Seoul on the 20th. For members of the Japanese team competing at the World Figure Skating Championships in Boston, USA, in March, the results of this event will be a litmus test for a place at the Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo 2026 Winter Olympics.

Hyakin Chiba (left) and Rilai Miura/Ryuichi Kihara

◇Men's singles: Tatsuya Tsukui, who finished 3rd at the All Japan Championships last December, Yoshio Miura, who won the youngest title at the 4 Continents Championships two years ago, and Kazuki Tomono, who finished 2nd at the 22 Championships, were selected.

Tatsuya Tsukui, who qualified for the World Championships in third place in Japan, is participating in the International Skating Union (ISU) Senior Championship for the first time. Although the All Japan Championships performed well in the men's singles free skate, Tatsuya Tsukui fell behind in the short program (SP). He wants to do his best starting in the short program and carry on his good form into the next fight.

This season, Yoshio Miura, who was suffering from pain in his left thigh due to a muscle strain, suffered a muscle strain in the same part again after the All Japan Championships. Although it took 8 weeks to be diagnosed as healing, it was decided to appear after previous research. Recovery seems to be key. Kazuki Tomono is aiming to dominate for the first time in his career at the ISU Four Continents Championships for the first time in two years.

Among the non-Japanese athletes, South Korea's Cha Jun-hwan, who won gold at last week's 2025 Asian Winter Games, and Mikhail Shadyrov (Kazakhstan), who has multiple quadrenchal jumps, will compete. A fierce title battle is expected. World champion Ilya Marienin (USA) did not sign up for the race.

◇Women's singles skating

In the women's competition, Shinba Higuchi, who finished third in the All Japan Championships, and Hyayin Chiba, who won the last year's tournament, and Matsu Shino will appear. Shinha Higuchi, who returned to the second season from recuperation and finished on the podium in all Japan for the first time in three years, is competing in the Four Continents Championships for the first time in five years since 2020. In 2020, Higuchi finished in fourth place, and this time she was aiming for her first podium finish.

Like Higuchi Shinba, Hyakin Chiba, who is a representative of the World Championships, passed the World University Winter Games (2nd place), the National Athletic Meeting (2nd place) in January, and it is the third race this year. Chiba achieved a total of 214.52 points at the National Sports Tournament, and his sense of stability is still alive. If Chiba wins, she will be the first Japanese athlete to defend her title in the women's singles at the Four Continents Championships since Rika Kihei (who won consecutive championships in '19 and '20). Loose Physio, who had been doing well since the first half of the season, was aiming to surpass his own high of 5th place.

Looking at the Japanese players, South Korea's Kim Chae-yeon, who won the 2025 Asian Winter Games, and Alyssa Liu (USA), who has just returned to active duty in her season and finished second at this year's US National Championships, will compete for the title.

◇Pair skating, ice dancing

The pairs pair Rilai Miura/Ryuichi Kihara won the championship again after two seasons. In the Grand Prix of Figure Skating (GP) finals last December, Rilai Miura and Ryuichi Kihara finished second due to a series of mistakes. The duo returned to their home base of Canada after the All Japan Championships and trained hard, with their results and level expected to improve. Last season's 4 Continents Championship and World Championship double winners Deanna Stratdijk/Maxime Deschamps (Canada) will be the biggest rivals.

Another Japanese pairs pair, Yuna Nagaoka and Tsukishi Moriguchi, are a growing pair who will be competing in the Four Continents Championships for the first time and are looking forward to a great performance at the World Championships.

In the ice dance competition, Japan's Utana Yoshida/Masa Morita, who finished 10th in the last year's competition, and Azusa Tanaka/Mashima Nishiyama, who finished 11th in the previous competition, will compete together for the first time since the 2025 Asian Winter Games.

The Japanese figure skaters participating in the 2025 4 Continent Championships are as follows (☆ are representatives of the World Championships)

▽ Men's singles = ☆ Tatsuya Tsukui, Yoshio Miura, Kazuki Tomono ▽ Women's singles = ☆ Shinba Higuchi, ☆ Hyakuma Hyakuma, Matsuno ▽ Pairs = ☆ Riri Miura, Ryu Kihara 1, ☆ Yuzuna Nagaoka and Tsumishi Moriguchi ▽ Ice Dance = ☆ Yoshida Hakana, Morita Masaya Kumi, Tanaka Azusa and Nishiyama Majima Pair