On August 15, 2024, the Acinque Ice Arena in Varese, Northern Italy, became a stage for magic as the Japanese Ice Dream Gala ice show unfolded. Olympic bronze medalist Carolina Kostner, alongside the world’s best Japanese skaters of the moment, graced the ice with a breathtaking performance that captivated the audience. The show lasted almost three hours and drew a full house, with all 1,100 seats in the rink sold out for the evening.
The Japanese athletes invited to this gala were single skaters Kaori Sakamoto, Mone Chiba, Hana Yoshida, Mai Mihara, Yuma Kagiyama, Kao Miura, Shun Sato, Sota Yamamoto, as well as pair skaters Riku Miura and Ryuchi Kihara, and ice dancers Utana Yoshida and Masaya Morita. The event also showcased the stunning talents of Ghiaccio Spettacolo and featured Italy’s most popular skaters, such as double European champions Charlène Guingnard and Marco Fabbri, European medalists Rebecca Ghilardi and Filippo Ambrosini, and Italian champion Matteo Rizzo.
Mihara enchanted the audience as she opened the show with her poignant short program to “GRIEF” by Tony Ann. Choreographed by Misha Ge, her performance was a delicate exploration of emotion and musicality, where Mihara showcased her stunning spins and expressions in a gorgeous purple dress. Hitting every accent of the music with her body movements, she captured every nuance of the music. The two-time Four Continents champion (2017, 2022) will come back to Europe on the Grand Prix circuit as she is set to participate at the 2024 Grand Prix de France and 2024 GP Finlandia Trophy.
Mai Mihara skated her new short program “Grief” in a lovely purple and blue costume at the Japanese Dream Ice Gala. The program was choreographed by Misha Ge. Bonus photo with Charlène Guignard and Marco Fabbri!#三原舞依 #CharleneGuignard #MarcoFabbri #FigureSkating pic.twitter.com/C6aPW4exJU
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Yoshida and Morita delivered a fun and charming rhythm dance to “Be Bob A-Lula” and “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On” with Yoshida wearing a black polka dot dress and Morita a light blue suit. The audience clapped throughout their entire performance. While their rhythm dance was choreographed by Cathy Reed, their free dance to the famous Romeo and Juliet was a collaboration of choreographers Scott Moir, Adrian Diaz, Madison Hubbell, and Cathy Reed. The national bronze medalists will make their debut appearance on the Grand Prix circuit in November at 2024 NHK Trophy.
Utana Yoshida and Masaya Morita will skate to Romeo and Juliet for their FD this season, choreographed by Adrian Diaz, Scott Moir and Cathy Reed.
“It is a difficult program, but we will do our best and practice a lot to nail it!” This season they want you to level up as it is… pic.twitter.com/iVRgu6XL0I
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Yamamoto performed to “Split, Postcards from Far Away” by Ezio Bossi. He opened his program with a quadruple toeloop and kept the energy going, adding an airy and solid triple flip to his performance. The short program was choreographed by French choreographer Benoît Richaud. The highlight of the program was nonetheless the step sequence, where he really shined and was able to show off a lot more of his expressive skills by playing with the changes in the music. The 2022–23 Grand Prix Final silver medalist will compete in two Grand Prix events: 2024 Skate Canada International and 2024 GP Finlandia Trophy.
Sota Yamamoto skated his new short program to “Split” and “Postcards From Far Away” choreographed by Benoît Richaud. He wore a purple-ish shirt with black pants. His free skate to “Melting” was choreographed by Lori Nichol#山本草太 #FigureSkating pic.twitter.com/bjarfynFlJ
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Sato continued the evening’s momentum and skated to “Rise” by Safri Duo featuring Clark Anderson, in an all-black attire. The two-time Four Continents medalist (2024, 2023) previously debuted this program at the Japanese ice show Prince Ice World (PIW) in May. For his short program this season, Sato will skate to the famous piece “Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra” from Ladies in Lavender, aiming to further improve his artistry to boost his program component scores. His free skate is set to “Nostos.” Both programs were choreographed by Olympic champion Guillaume Cizeron. Sato has already started his season with a win at the 2024 Kinoshita Trophy, a local Japanese competition, just two weeks ago. He was assigned to two Grand Prix events: 2024 Skate Canada International and 2024 Cup of China.
Shun Sato skated an upbeat and thrilling program in an all-black costume at the Japanese Dream Ice Gala.
His SP this season is “Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra” from “Ladies in Lavender” and his free skate is to “Nostos”. Both programs were choreographed by Guillaume… pic.twitter.com/6I3iUxiEM7
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Kostner captivated the public with her sublime skating in a sparkly grey dress to “Make It Your Dream”, a moving composition by Armand Amar and Isabel Sörling. The song’s choice may not have been without significance. Kostner, who has already achieved her own Olympic dream, wanted to share this dream of hers with the new and younger generation of skaters. She wanted to inspire them and share her passion with them through the ice show. Her movements were soft and her glide delicate. Kostner’s performance was so mesmerizing that the audience utterly silent throughout.
Carolina Kostner at the Japanese Dream Ice Gala
“There are so many people who came from far away! I want to live the passion of figure skating with everyone that came to the show.”#CarolinaKostner #FigureSkating pic.twitter.com/x9TdrcuYBc
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Kagiyama brought the first half of the show to a remarkable close with his captivating performance set to Sound of Silence. He stepped out of his opening jump, but quickly added a triple flip-double toe-double loop combination and a triple loop. He showed off his brilliant edge work and musical sensibility, demonstrating his significant growth and refinement over the past two seasons. The fruit of his work with coach Carolina Kostner was evident. The 2022 Olympic silver medalist is set to kick off the new season at the 2024 CS Lombardia Trophy, where he will join his teammate and friend Kao Miura. He will also compete in two back-to-back Grand Prix events at 2024 NHK Trophy and 2024 GP Finlandia Trophy.
Yuma Kagiyama
“Everyone at the training camp pushes motivates each other to do their best and is nice, even if they are all rivals.” He has a nice feeling about the upcoming season and wants to deliver good performances. #鍵山優真 #FigureSkating pic.twitter.com/bK7xKqc74W— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 15, 2024
Miura once again dazzled with his explosive skating, delivering a vibrant performance set to “Natural” by Imagine Dragon. The energetic routine included two triple loops and a spread eagle followed by a powerful foot kick well-timed on the music. The very dynamic choreography tied the performance together. For the 2024-25 season, Miura’s short program will be set to “Conquest of Space” by Woodkid, choreographed by Benoît Richaud, while his free skate will be to The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, by Shae-Lynn Bourne. However, Miura mentioned he might change up his free skate. The 2024 Four Continents and 2024 Junior World champion will participate at 2024 Skate America and 2024 NHK Trophy for his two Grand Prix assignments.
Kao Miura has now entered Meiji University, the same as his teammate and friend Shun Sato. For next season he wants to work on his PCS and 4Lo.
SP: “Conquest of Spaces” by Woodkid; choreo. by Benoît Richaud
FS: “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg” choreo. by Shae-Lynn Bourne… pic.twitter.com/hoNmAamUWB— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Chiba performed her 2024-25 free skate, set to “Ariana Concerto No. 1: III. Allegro Scherzando” by Yves Leveque, a beautiful piano piece choreographed by Lori Nichol. The choreographic sequence included a gorgeous spiral, but the standout moment was the final spin where Chiba perfectly matched all the spin positions to the shifting notes of the music. For her short program, she has chosen the lively “Last Dance” by Donna Summer, with choreography by Kaitlyn Weaver. The Four Continent champion recently kicked off her season in by winning the 2024 Kinoshita Trophy in Japan earlier this August and will participate at 2024 NHK Trophy and 2024 Cup of China.
Mone Chiba skated her new free skate to “Ariana Concerto No. 1: II. Adagio Sostenuto” choreographed by Lori Nichol at the Japanese Dream Ice Gala.
Her childhood dream is to go to the Olympics. This season she wants to level up towards Milano 2026 and make the #GPFigure… pic.twitter.com/P4MD1H4FNN
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Yoshida presented her new short program “Temen Oblak (Dark Clouds)” by Christopher Tin and “Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares,” based off of traditional Bulgarian songs, but adapted in a more modern style rendition. Despite the piece accelerating towards the end of the program, which can be challenging, Yoshida hit the numerous rapid beats during her step sequence, adding an extra layer of complexity to her short program. The creative and original choreography crafted by Benoît Richaud further enhanced the performance. This season, her free program is set to the famous song “S.O.S. d’un terrien en détresse” and was choreographed by Lori Nichol. The 2023–24 ISU Grand Prix Final bronze medalist will compete at 2024 Skate Canada International and 2024 GP Finlandia Trophy.
Hana Yoshida
SP: “Temen Oblak (Dark Clouds)” and “Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares” choreo. by Benoît Richaud
FS: “S.O.S. d’un terrien en détresse” choreo. by Lori NicholShe has now entered university and will be balancing her studies and skating career.#吉田陽菜… pic.twitter.com/v3ZJkzy1h0
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
2022-23 Grand-Slam winners Miura and Kihara skated a powerful rendition of “Paint it Black” in their new short program. The team opened their skate with a triple twist and landed a throw triple Lutz (despite a step out). The choreography included a wonderful side-by-side Besti squat at the end of the program. For their free skate, they opted for “Adios,” a piece by Benjamin Clementine. Back at their training base in Canada, it is less than a month before they return to Italy to participate at the 2024 CS Lombardia Trophy which will be the first event of their 2024-25 season. They will also compete at 2024 Skate America and 2024 NHK Trophy.
Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara with coach Bruno Marcotte at the Japanese Dream Ice Gala#三浦璃来 #木原龍一 #BrunoMarcotte #FigureSkating
SP: “Paint in Black”
FS: “Adios” pic.twitter.com/avq3VSVTU7— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
Sakamoto brought the evening to a thrilling close with a dynamic skate set to “Resurreccion del Angel” and “La Muerte del Angel,” embracing the tango genre for her short program this season. Although 2022 Olympic bronze medalist had some issues with her jumps during the performance, she nevertheless captivated the audience with her speed and strong skating skills. The audience was on their feet at the end of her skate to Astor Piazzolla’s pieces. She will compete at 2024 Skate Canada International and 2024 NHK Trophy.
Kaori Sakamoto at practice for the Japanese Dream Ice Gala in Italy#坂本花織 #FigureSkating pic.twitter.com/zbzWvUtrXa
— Golden Skate (@goldenskate) August 16, 2024
The Japanese athletes did not just come to perform at the show; they also stayed in Italy for a National training camp, overseen by officials from the Japanese Skating Federation, who also traveled for the occasion. This initiative is part of a unique collaboration between the Japanese Skating Federation and the city of Varese, which has been selected as the training base for the Japanese national team in preparation for the next Olympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina d’Ampezzo in 2026. With a smile on their faces, all the skaters bowed multiple times to the thunderous applause from the audience.
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