Yuzuru Hanyu JPN
2018 Olympics short program
November 2017 - potentially season-ending injury. February 2018 - second Olympic gold medal. Thus was the unorthodox Olympic season for Yuzuru Hanyu.
And thus is why Yuzuru Hanyu has become the greatest of all time.
Hanyu’s resilience and determination last season was out of this world. Only cleared to fully practice again just weeks before the Olympics began, he was still trying to find his way when he was first practicing in PyeongChang. In what was now the most watched and followed practice with intentional single jumps of all time, Hanyu feasted (trolled?) the set of photographers and journalists in his first PyeongChang practice with a bunch of stroking, a few single jumps, a triple axel, and a nonchalant bow.
Practice notes:
— Jackie Wong (@rockerskating) February 12, 2018
Yuzuru Hanyu: 1T, 1Lo, 1F, 1Lz, waltz jump, 3A, bow.https://t.co/YYC25u9Uqa #PyeongChang2018
As the week progressed, though, he was more and more himself. And by the time the short program came around, the GOAT was doing what GOATs do best - dominating.
He’s done more difficult short programs in his life. He’s scored higher in his life. But he’s never been more inspiring than he was in this flawless program that carried him to his second Olympic title. What a superhuman.