"I'm the one who should be expressing my gratitude."
An interview with Yuma Kagiyama and his father and coach Masakazu Kagiyama at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Please do not use/repost my translations without my permission.
Interviewer: And now, we have Yuma Kagiyama, who won a silver medal in men's figure skating, and his father Coach Masakazu. Congratulations!
Interviewer: Now that some time has passed, has reality set in that you won a silver medal yet?
Yuma: Letβs seeβ¦ Wellβ¦ It hasnβt really set in that Iβm a medalist. When I look at the medal, Iβll think βI won a medal,β but Iβm already looking towards the next thing. We already held our reflection meeting.
Interviewer: We want to ask the two of you many things today, but thereβs a video weβd like you to watch. Start!
6 year old Yuma in the video: My dream is⦠I want to go to the Olympics.
Interviewer: So adorable! This is a video from when he was 6 years old. Masakazu, isnβt he cute?
Masakazu: Now that youβve shown me a video like this, I wonβt be able to yell at him anymore. Itβs too much.
Interviewer: Coach Masakazu, did you think he would really go to the Olympics at that time?
Masakazu: No, I thought he was just saying the word Olympics, and he didnβt know what the Olympics are. He probably knew that I went to the Olympics and was influenced into saying that. He was so young, so I donβt think he really understood.
Interviewer: Yuma, did you have a period of time where you wanted to distance yourself from skating or a rebellious phase?
Interviewer: Masakazu is laughing a lot butβ¦
Yuma: I think I didβ¦ There were times that I couldnβt concentrate by myself. I didnβt know what I was supposed to do. I was told what to do, so I did it, and I was done for the day. During that period of time, I didnβt seriously confront skating.
Interviewer: Masakazu, we heard from you before that you planted a seed in Yuma during this time he wasnβt seriously confronting skating. Could you tell us what seed you planted at that time?
Masakazu: I only planted a seed when he was very, very little. He said he didnβt like getting yelled at, but he still went to skate, so I think the seed he planted himself played a big role. Normally, if you donβt want to skate you stop going to the rink. I think thatβs the case for a lot of people, but he at least kept coming to the rink. The content of his practice may have been lower, but because his friends were there - it doesnβt matter if it was for that reason. He kept going to the rink and skating, and that was one of the things that saved him. I guess you could call that a seed.
Interviewer: Masakazu, there was a period of time when you were ill and couldnβt accompany him.
Masakazu: As a parent, it was difficult that I had to make him become independent at such a sensitive time in his third year of middle school. Normally, it would be appropriate for him to be selfish or go through a rebellious phaseβ¦ Thatβs the age where Iβd have to wake him up and drag him to practice, but he woke up by himself in the morning and went to practice alone. I had to make him do that, and itβs painfulβ¦ It was painful.
Yuma: But I think that because I had to become independent then, thatβs why I have my current personalityβ¦ Iβm able to do those things naturally now, and thatβs the biggest sign that Iβve grown. My personality changed, like becoming methodical, like if I canβt sit still if I donβt do what Iβm supposed to. After waking up at a certain time, doing what Iβm supposed to, and going to practice every day, I was able to do it all naturally, and that shows Iβve grown up.
Interviewer: Since we have both of you here today, could you express your feelings of gratitude to your father sitting next to you?
Masakazu: So embarrassingβ¦
Yuma: Eh⦠Thank you very much.
Masakazu: I should be thanking him, since Iβm the one whoβs been taken all the way here because of him. Iβm the one who should be expressing my gratitude soβ¦ Thank you very much.
Yuma: Iβm also grateful to people like staff, sponsors, and my middle school and high school teachers who keep my skating career in mind. I have to keep working harder to repay them. From now on, I want to continue following my own path without giving up.
Interviewer: Weβre looking forward to it. Thank you for your time today. Congratulations!
Masakazu and Yuma: Thank you.
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