Ami Nakai
| Ami Nakai | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native name | 中井 亜美 | |||||
| Born | April 27, 2008 Niigata, Niigata Prefecture, Japan | |||||
| Hometown | Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, Japan | |||||
| Height | 1.50 m (4 ft 11 in) | |||||
| Figure skating career | ||||||
| Country |  Japan | |||||
| Coach | Kensuke Nakaniwa Makoto Nakata Momoe Nagumo Aya Tanoue Akane Seo | |||||
| Skating club | MF Figure Skating Academy | |||||
| Began skating | 2013 | |||||
| ||||||
Ami Nakai (中井 亜美, Nakai Ami, born April 27, 2008) is a Japanese figure skater. She is the 2023 World Junior bronze medalist, a three-time gold medalist on the ISU Junior Grand Prix (at the 2022 JGP Poland II, the 2023 JGP Thailand, and the 2023 JGP Turkey), and the 2022–23 Japanese junior bronze medalist.
Personal life
[edit]Nakai was born on April 27, 2008 in Niigata, Niigata Prefecture, Japan.[1] She is currently a student at Ichikawa Municipal Junior High School in Ichikawa, Chiba.[2]
Career
[edit]Nakai began figure skating in 2013. She originally practiced rhythmic gymnastics but ultimately switched to figure skating after being inspired by watching Mao Asada perform on TV when she was five years old.[1][3] Nakai originally trained at the Ibis SC in Niigata under coaches, Kousuke Watabe and Izumi Watabe.[2] While there, Nakai got to meet Asada when she used Nakai's training rink to practice for an ice show in Niigata. Asada also gave Nakai a private skating lesson.[4]
Nakai would start practicing and landing triple axels in her fifth year of elementary school.[4]
On the basic novice level, Nakai finished fourteenth at the 2017–18 Japan Novice Championships and would go on to win gold at the 2018–19 Japan Novice Championships.[5] Due to the latter result, Nakai was invited to skate in the gala at the 2019 World Team Trophy.[6]
As an advanced novice skater, Nakai finished fifth at the 2019–20 Japan Novice Championships. The following year, she won bronze at the 2020–21 Japan Novice Championships and with this result, was invited to compete at the 2020–21 Japan Junior Championships where she placed sixth.[5]
In spring 2021, Nakai moved with her mother from her hometown of Niigata, Niigata Prefecture to Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture so that Nakai could train at the MF Figure Skating Academy, while her father remained in Niigata due to his work. Kensuke Nakaniwa, Makoto Nakata, Momoe Nagumo, Aya Tanoue, and Akane Seo became Nakai's new coaching team.[3][2]
2021–22 season
[edit]Nakai placed seventh at the 2021–22 Japan Junior National Championships but was invited to compete at the 2021–22 Japan Senior National Championships because the junior champion Mao Shimada was still a novice skater.[7] She popped her planned triple Axel in the short program and struggled on the landing of the triple Lutz, finishing in twenty-seventh and not advancing to the final.[5]
Nakai was sent to 2022 Coupe du Printemps to compete at the junior category. She won and became the twentieth woman to land a triple Axel in international competition.[5]
2022–23 season
[edit]In September 2022, Nakai debuted on the Junior Grand Prix circuit at the 2022 JGP Latvia in Riga. She landed all her jumps cleanly in her short program and placed third with 63.87 points.[8] Nakai attempted a triple Axel but was marked as under-rotated during the free skate. She popped two jumps and finished third overall.[9][10] At the second of two Polish Junior Grand Prixes held in Gdańsk, she won the gold medal and qualified to the 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final. Nakai landed a clean triple Axel in the free skate and said afterward that she hoped to do two in the free skate at the Final.[11]
Fourth in the short program at the 2022–23 Japan Junior Championships, Nakai landed a triple Axel in the free skate and made only one jumping error, a fall on her triple loop. She placed third in that segment, moving up to take the bronze medal.[12]Two weeks later, at the Junior Grand Prix Final, Nakai finished in fourth place, 1.16 points behind bronze medalist Kim Chae-yeon of South Korea.[13] Despite narrowly missing the podium, she described the Final as "a dream stage."[14]
Nakai appeared at her second senior Japan Championships, finishing eighth in the short program.[15] She finished fourth in the free skate, successfully landing two triple Axel jumps, and rising to fourth place overall. She said she was "happy to have challenged two Axels on this big stage, and landed them both! It's the first time I have been able to land both in the same program." Nakai was assigned to Japan's second berth at the 2023 World Junior Championships, alongside Shimada.[16]
Competing at the World Junior Championships in Calgary, Nakai was third in the short program with a clean skate. With a score of 67.28, she finished 3.96 points back of second-place Shin Ji-a of South Korea, and 3.31 points ahead of Kim Yu-jae in fourth.[17] Nakai fell on her triple Axel attempt at the beginning of the free skate, but delivered the rest of the program cleanly, finishing third in that segment as well and winning the bronze medal.[18][19]
2023–24 season
[edit]Nakai began the season by competing on the Junior Grand Prix at the 2023 JGP Thailand, skating a clean short program to lead the segment. In the free skate she doubled her planned triple Axel and as a result performed too many double Axels in the segment, in violation of the Zayak rule, but still finished first in that segment as well and won the gold medal.[20] She secured another gold medal at the 2023 JGP Turkey in Istanbul, despite struggling with jump combinations in the free skate, which she said left her "a little bit disappointed," but adding she was "happy to be in first place." Her results qualified her for her second Junior Grand Prix Final.[21]
Dealing with a back injury with painkiller and injections, Nakai withdrew from the domestic sectionals competition in early November.[22] Despite this, she was considered a podium contender heading into the 2023–24 Japan Junior Championships.[23] After falling and failing to executive a jump combination in the short program, she finished fourteenth in that segment.[24] She was tenth in the free skate, and rose to tenth overall, as a result missing qualification for both the senior national championships and the Japanese team for the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics.[25]
Nakai next appeared at the Junior Grand Prix Final in Beijing, placing fourth in the short program. In the free skate she fell on her triple Axel, but landed six other triple jumps. She was fifth in that segment, and came fifth overall. Nakai explained that she "thought it would be the last competition of the season, so a part of me was nervous."[26][27]
2024–25 season
[edit]Over the course of the off-season, Nakai grew over five centimeters in height. She traveled to Toronto, Canada for a training camp at the Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club during the summer. While there, Nakai worked with coaches, Brian Orser, Karen Preston, and Jeff Dionisio. She also began practicing and landing quadruple toe loops for the first time.[4]
Nakai opened the season by competing on the 2024–25 ISU Junior Grand Prix, winning silver at 2024 JGP Turkey.[28] At the 2024 JGP China, she won the gold medal, notably landing two triple Axels in her free skate although they were deemed as slightly underrotated. With these results, Nakai qualified for the Junior Grand Prix Final for a third consecutive time.[29]
In late November, Nakai competed at the 2024–25 Japan Junior Championships, where she finished fourth.[5] This result ensured her qualification to compete at the senior championships.[30]
Programs
[edit]| Season | Short program | Free skating | Exhibition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-2025 [31] |
|
|
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| 2023–2024 [32] |
|
|
|
| 2022–2023 [33][34] |
|
|
|
| 2021–2022 [35][36] |
|
|
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| 2020–2021 [37] |
|
|
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| 2018–2019 [38] |
|
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Competitive highlights
[edit]JGP: Junior Grand Prix
| International: Junior[1] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event | 20–21 | 21–22 | 22–23 | 23–24 | 24–25 |
| Junior Worlds | 3rd | ||||
| JGP Final | 4th | 5th | TBD | ||
| JGP China | 1st | ||||
| JGP Latvia | 3rd | ||||
| JGP Poland | 1st | ||||
| JGP Thailand | 1st | ||||
| JGP Turkey | 1st | 2nd | |||
| Coupe Printemps | 1st | 1st | |||
| National[5] | |||||
| Japan | 27th | 4th | TBD | ||
| Japan Junior | 6th | 7th | 3rd | 10th | 4th |
| TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew | |||||
Detailed results
[edit]| Segment | Type | Score | Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | TSS | 205.90 | 2022 JGP Poland II |
| Short program | TSS | 69.00 | 2022 JGP Poland II |
| TES | 39.26 | 2022 JGP Poland II | |
| PCS | 30.13 | 2024 JGP China | |
| Free skating | TSS | 136.90 | 2022 JGP Poland II |
| TES | 76.85 | 2022 JGP Poland II | |
| PCS | 62.94 | 2024 JGP China |
Current personal best scores are highlighted in bold. Small medals for short and free programs awarded only at ISU Championships.
Senior level
[edit]| 2022–23 season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total |
| December 21–25, 2022 | 2022–23 Japan Championships | 8 64.07 |
4 137.42 |
4 201.49 |
| 2021–22 season | ||||
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total |
| December 22–26, 2021 | 2021–22 Japan Championships | 27 52.65 |
– | 27 52.65 |
Junior level
[edit]| 2024–25 season | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total | |
| November 15–17, 2024 | 2024–25 Japan Junior Championships | 5 62.52 |
8 118.31 |
4 180.83 | |
| October 9–12, 2024 | 2024 JGP China | 1 68.66 |
1 136.22 |
1 204.88 | |
| September 18–21, 2024 | 2024 JGP Turkey | 1 66.22 |
2 125.39 |
2 191.61 | |
| 2023–24 season | |||||
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total | |
| December 7–10, 2023 | 2023–24 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final | 4 65.04 |
5 122.00 |
5 187.04 | |
| November 17–19, 2023 | 2023–24 Japan Junior Championships | 14 55.06 |
10 105.83 |
10 160.89 | |
| September 6–9, 2023 | 2023 JGP Turkey | 1 67.07 |
1 127.58 |
1 194.65 | |
| August 23–26, 2023 | 2023 JGP Thailand | 1 67.49 |
2 123.16 |
1 190.65 | |
| 2022–23 season | |||||
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total | |
| March 17–19, 2023 | 2023 Coupe du Printemps | 1 64.42 |
1 133.81 |
1 198.23 | |
| February 27–March 5, 2023 | 2023 World Junior Championships | 3 67.28 |
3 130.12 |
3 197.40 | |
| December 8–11, 2022 | 2022–23 JGP Final | 4 65.97 |
4 123.26 |
4 189.23 | |
| November 25–27, 2022 | 2022–23 Japan Junior Championships | 4 65.12 |
3 125.58 |
3 190.70 | |
| October 5–8, 2022 | 2022 JGP Poland II | 1 69.00 |
1 136.90 |
1 205.90 | |
| September 7–10, 2022 | 2022 JGP Riga | 3 63.87 |
3 121.75 |
3 185.62 | |
| 2021–22 season | |||||
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total | |
| March 18–20, 2022 | 2022 Coupe du Printemps | 2 55.73 |
1 126.68 |
1 182.41 | |
| November 19–21, 2021 | 2021–22 Japan Junior Championships | 7 56.78 |
6 108.98 |
7 165.76 | |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Competition Results: Ami NAKAI". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on March 4, 2023.
- ^ a b c "中井亜美の小学校や中学校はどこ？身長などプロフィールが知りたい！父親と母親はどんな人？". Nagaikishitaize. Nagaikishitaize. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
- ^ a b "フィギュアスケーターのオアシス♪ KENJIの部屋 中井亜美選手「スケートをはじめたきっかけは浅田真央さん」". JSports. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
- ^ a b c "中井亜美、トリプルアクセル２本で復活のシーズンへ、トロントで得た4回転への自信". Yahoo! Japan. Yahoo! Japan. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g "JPN-Ami NAKAI". SkatingScores.
- ^ "大会概要". Aashi TV. Aashi TV. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
- ^ [Official] Fuji TV Skating [@online_on_ice] (November 21, 2021). "全日本ジュニア男女6名が全日本への推薦出場を決めました" [All Japan Junior six men and women selected for All Japan announced] (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "JGP Riga 2022 Judges Details Per Skater, Women's Short Program" (PDF). International Skating Union.
- ^ "JGP Riga 2022 Judges Details Per Skater, Women's Free Skate" (PDF). International Skating Union.
- ^ "Memola (ITA), Smith/Deng (USA) sealing spots in Junior Final with win at ISU JGP Riga". International Skating Union. September 12, 2022.
- ^ "More Skaters secure spots for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final". International Skating Union. October 10, 2022.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (November 28, 2022). "Mao Shimada Lands Quad Toe Loop, Retains Japan Junior Championships Crown". Japan Forward.
- ^ McCarvel, Nick (December 9, 2022). "Junior Grand Prix Final - Shimada Mao captures title, becoming first Japanese woman to do so in 13 years". Olympic Channel.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (December 9, 2022). "Mao Shimada Captures Junior Grand Prix Final Title With Strong Showing". Japan Forward.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (December 22, 2022). "Kaori Sakamoto Seizes Lead after Short Program at Japan Championships". Japan Forward.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (December 24, 2022). "Kaori Sakamoto Captures Third National Title at Japan Championships". Japan Forward.
- ^ "Lioness Mao Shimada (JPN) begins her gold medal hunt in the Junior World Women's Short Program". International Skating Union. March 2, 2023.
- ^ "Spectacular Mao Shimada (JPN) soars to World Junior title". International Skating Union. March 4, 2023.
- ^ Slater, Paula (March 4, 2023). "Mao Shimada impresses in Calgary; takes Junior World title". Golden Skate. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
- ^ "Exciting start into the ISU Junior Grand Prix season in Bangkok (THA)". International Skating Union. August 28, 2023. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
- ^ "Ami Nakai (JPN) and Rio Nakata (JPN) secure Junior Grand Prix Final spot in Istanbul (TUR)". International Skating Union. September 11, 2023. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
- ^ "【フィギュア】中井亜美号泣 ジャンプ転倒響きSP55・06「不安が演技に…」全日本ジュニア". Nikkan Sports. November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (November 17, 2023). "Mao Shimada Aims for a Three-peat at the Japan Junior Championships". Japan Forward. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (November 19, 2023). "Ikura Kushida Leads at the Japan Junior Championships After the Short Program". Japan Forward. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (November 20, 2023). "Mao Shimada Catches Up to Arakawa and Ando with 3rd Japan Junior Crown". Japan Forward. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ Slater, Paula (December 8, 2023). "Shimada defends Junior Grand Prix Final title". Golden Skate. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ Gallagher, Jack (December 9, 2023). "Mao Shimada Achieves Historic First with Second Straight Victory at the JGP Final". Japan Forward. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ "Exciting moments at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Ankara". International Skating Union. September 23, 2024. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
- ^ "Skaters grab six last tickets for the Junior Final at ISU Junior Grand Prix Wuxi (CHN)". International Skating Union. October 15, 2024. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
- ^ "The follow junior skaters have qualified for Senior Nationals:". X. Skate Japan News. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
- ^ "2024木下トロフィー争奪フィギュアスケート大会 (8/3～4)" (PDF). Fuji TV. Fuji TV. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
- ^ "Ami NAKAI: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. International Skating Union. Archived from the original on September 11, 2023.
- ^ "Ami Nakai "Star of Milan" Lands Stable Quadruple Toe Loop and Lutz in practice". Nikkan Sports.
- ^ "Ami NAKAI: 2022/2023". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on March 3, 2023.
- ^ "Ami NAKAI: 2021/2022". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 19, 2022.
- ^ "Ami Nakai Profile". Fuji TV.
- ^ "Since Mao Asada, Ami Nakai is the second skater to attempt but the first to rotate a triple axel in the final of the Japanese novice National Championships". @max_ambesi on Twitter.
- ^ "Ami NAKAI. Ex". md1tv on YouTube. April 14, 2019.
External links
[edit]- Ami NAKAI at the International Skating Union
- NAKAI Ami at Japan Skating Federation
- Ami Nakai at SkatingScores.com