Will You Young be next Kim Yu-na?

After “Queen of figure skating” Kim Yu-na retired, many young figure skaters have received a great deal of attention as the next Kim Yu-na. Failing to prove their skills at international competitions, however, they soon fell out of public favor, except for You Young who enters Suri High School next month, the high school Kim Yu-na went to.

You Young made a debut at the ISU Senior Grand Prix last October by winning a bronze medal at Skate Canada. The last time a Korean female figure skater became a medalist in her senior Grand Prix debut was 13 years ago when Kim Yu-na won bronze in 2006.

This was only the beginning for You Young. The 16-year-old was awarded a personal best score of 149.68 points for ladies’ single figure skating on Saturday at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships to collect 223.23 points overall, which was also the highest score she has ever achieved. This is the first time a Korean female figure skater received over 220 points at an official ISU competition since Kim Yu-na was awarded 228.56 points at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

“I was pleasantly surprised when I realized Kim Yu-na presented the medal. I tried to keep calm but was very excited,” said You Young. “When she congratulated me, I could tell she meant it. She is the reason why I started figure skating. I want to be a brilliant figure skater just like her.” She also shared her ambition to produce “You Young kids” just like “Yu-na kids”.


Kyu-In Hwang kini@donga.com