OLYMPICS: Japanese speed skater Takagi sticks to winning formula ahead of title defense at Milano Cortina

MILAN – Defending Olympic 1,000-meter speed skating champion Miho Takagi says her formula for success remains the same as she prepares for the Milano Cortina Winter Games, prioritizing refinement over major changes.

The 31-year-old Japanese star, who won gold in Beijing 2022 with a record-breaking 1:13.19 in the 1,000m and added three silver medals to become Japan’s most decorated female Olympian, insists she is sticking to her proven approach despite high expectations.

“What I need to do does not really change,” Takagi told the Olympic website. “The most important thing is to keep my physical condition as good as possible. I work on both the core areas I have been focusing on for a long time and some new elements that come up day by day. Rather than trying to do too many things, I think improving the quality of each part is the most direct path forward. In the end, it comes down to balancing my health and my skating. The approach to racing itself stays the same, but I want to keep improving the quality.”

Now a seven-time Olympic medalist, Takagi found an unexpected sense of ease at the Milano Speed Skating Stadium, which will host the speed skating events from February 7.

“The atmosphere felt different from many of the rinks I have skated on in recent years. But for me, it actually felt familiar,” she said. “When I was a child, I trained a lot on temporary rinks, and the sound of the ice here reminded me of those days. Rather than feeling uncomfortable, it gave me a sense of familiarity.”

Takagi, who made her Olympic debut at just 15 years old in Vancouver 2010, heads into her fourth Games with momentum after winning the women’s 1,500m at the 2025-26 ISU Speed Skating World Cup.

But she remains measured about her early impressions in Milan.

“It was a short session today, so I want to judge my condition carefully over the next few days,” Takagi said.

-Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Milan/Reuters