Home > Sports > Olympic Sports

Figure skater sticking to safer, low-risk programs at Winter Olympics

Published: 27 Jan. 2026, 09:21 Updated: 27 Jan. 2026, 18:17

Cha Jun-hwan performs during the men’s singles free skating event at the 80th Korean Figure Skating Championships at Mokdong Ice Rink in western Seoul on Jan. 4. [YONHAP]

Buoyed by a strong finish at his final Olympic tuneup competition, figure skater Cha Jun-hwan said Monday he will stick to his low-risk, conservative programs at the Milan-Cortina Winter Games next month.

Cha returned home Monday from the International Skating Union (ISU) Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Beijing, where he rallied for a silver medal with a season-best 273.62 points the previous day.

Cha was sixth after the short program with 88.89 points but posted the best free skate score in the field with a season-high 184.73 points to end up just 0.11 points behind the winner, Kao Miura of Japan.

At the start of the season, Cha attempted two quadruple jumps in the short program and three quadruple jumps in the free skate. However, he struggled with their execution as he battled through ankle problems, brought on by his difficulty finding boots that fit. He reduced the number of his quadruple jumps to one in the short program and two in the free skate, and won the national team trials that way before reaching the podium at the Four Continents.

"I feel like I've improved the quality of my technical elements since the national team trials," Cha told reporters at Incheon International Airport. "I think I can still earn points [without many quadruple jumps] and I will try to be as sharp as possible technically."

Cha said he had contemplated going back to his earlier, more challenging programs, but he didn't have enough time to make the switch.

"I decided that it would be reckless to do so unless I was fully prepared," the 24-year-old said.

Cha Jun-hwan practices at the ice skating rink at the Taereung Training Center in Nowon District, northern Seoul, on Jan. 8. [YONHAP]

What Cha lacks in technical prowess, he can more than compensate for with his overall artistry. The former child actor has consistently received high marks for his performance. In the free skate at the Four Continents, Cha led everyone in the program component score (PCS), which evaluates the artistic quality of a program, with 87.27. Even in his less-than-stellar short program, Cha earned 42.95 points in the PCS to top the competition.

Cha may still lose out in the numbers game that is modern figure skating, with more difficult jumps giving skaters higher base values to begin with. Ilia Malinin of the United States, dubbed the "Quad God" for his proficiency with quadruple jumps, attempted and landed seven quads in his free skate alone for a world record score of 238.24 points to win the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Japan in December.

Cha has made another change before the Olympics, replacing the soundtrack from the film "Moulin Rouge!" (2001) for his free skate with "Balada para un Loco," his song from a season ago.

"I went back to my old program at the Four Continents, and I was glad I performed as well as I did last season," Cha said. "I was worried, but I felt like I gave it everything I had. I felt it was the program that allowed me to tell my story honestly."

Cha said his issues with boots are now behind him, adding, "I was able to focus on training and competing with my current pair of skates."

Yonhap