MILAN, Feb 17 (News On Japan) - The pairs free skating event saw the duo known as “Rikuryu,” Riku Miura, 24, and Ryuichi Kihara, 33, of the Kinoshita Group, capture a dramatic gold medal in a stunning comeback, delivering a performance that brought the entire arena to its feet and earning 158.13 points, the highest free skating score in history.
After struggling in the short program the previous day, when a balance issue on one of their signature lifts left them in fifth place and trailing the leaders by 6.9 points, Miura and Kihara took to the ice last in the third group for the free skate, opening with a high triple twist lift before cleanly executing a three-jump sequence and delivering a stable lift that had faltered the day before, then landing a throw triple Lutz and a throw triple loop with precision, maintaining strong synchronization through the latter half of the routine as the crowd responded with mounting excitement, and upon finishing their commanding performance, the two embraced on the ice in tears of joy.
Their free skate score surpassed their previous personal best of 155.55 recorded in the team event, with 158.13 becoming the highest free skate score ever recorded, while their combined total reached 231.24 points, the fifth-highest in history, surpassing the previous free skate record of 157.46 set by Russia’s Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov at the 2022 European Championships.
The pair’s achievement marked their first update of a world-best mark on a major stage in four years, and Kaori Sakamoto, 25, who was watching from the stands, was seen in tears after witnessing the emotional performance, as Miura and Kihara waited for the remaining four pairs to finish before their gold medal was confirmed, prompting a thunderous reaction from the arena, with Miura momentarily stunned before embracing a tearful Kihara.
The duo had already won their second world title in 2025, their first in two years, and followed it with victory at the Grand Prix Final in December of the same year, contributing to Japan’s second consecutive team event silver medal at this competition with personal-best performances in both the short and free programs, before finally achieving their long-sought individual gold medal, with their podium finish bringing Japan’s medal tally at these Winter Olympics level with its record total of 18 set at the Beijing Games.
Pairs results: Gold: Riku Miura/Ryuichi Kihara 231.24 points Silver: A. Metelkina/L. Berulava (Georgia) 221.75 Bronze: M. Hase/N. Volodin (Germany) 219.09
Source: TBS
