Winter Olympics: Why do Chinese fans love Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu? ‘Ice Prince’ teases Beijing arrival with online video message

The 27-year-old, wearing the Team Japan kit, addressed fans in a 38-second video posted on the Japan Skating Federation’s Twitter feed

‘It feels the entire world is looking for Hanyu,’ was a trending post on Weibo, with 30 million views over 24 hours

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Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan performs during the men’s free figure skating final at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Gangneung. Photo: AP

Published: 1:15pm, 4 Feb 2022Updated: 2:37pm, 4 Feb 2022

Double Olympic figure skating champion Yuzuru Hanyu has still not been seen in public in Beijing, but the Japanese star posted a video message asking fans for support and promising to attempt a quadruple Axel at the Winter Games.

Missing from practice sessions all week, Hanyu had fans and media on edge as they awaited word on his arrival in the host city.

“It feels the entire world is looking for Hanyu,” was a trending post on Weibo, China’s equivalent of Twitter, with 30 million views over 24 hours.

“Where is Hanyu? I check it in the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening but still haven’t seen any news of him coming,” said one online user nicknamed YingXiu_SDL.

Hanyu Yuzuru poses on the podium after the men’s free skating competition of the All-Japan Figure Skating Championships in Saitama. Photo: Xinhua

Fans got somewhat of a reprieve late Thursday after the 27-year-old defending Olympic champion, wearing the Team Japan kit against a plain white backdrop, addressed fans in a 38-second video posted on the Japan Skating Federation’s Twitter feed.