The popular figure skating manga "Medalist," which has also been made into a TV anime, will be featured on the program "We Got Stronger Through Manga," which will be broadcast on NHK BS from 10:00 PM on January 12th. The story follows a young girl, Yuzuki Inori, who teams up with a young man, Akiura Michiji, who has almost given up on his dream of becoming a coach, as they aim to become Olympic gold medalists. Former Olympic figure skater and figure skating choreographer for the TV anime, Akiko Suzuki, will appear on the program to talk about the appeal of the work.
A questionnaire with the author, Tsurumai Ikada, reveals the thoughts and dedication he put into his creation. We also get a close look at the "real Inori" skaters at a skating club who aim to compete on the world stage. The various words of the characters in the manga "Medalist" support these skaters as they compete with each other in the beautiful yet harsh world of figure skating.
As a special project, Suzuki will recreate Inori's performance on the ice, attempting to perfectly recreate the graceful footwork in the step sequence and the double axel from the original work.
"Medalist" is a manga that has been serialized in the manga magazine "Monthly Afternoon" (Kodansha) since 2020. It also attracted attention when it was selected as the top manga in the "Next Manga Awards 2022" comics category. The first season of the TV anime aired from January to March 2025 on TV Asahi's late-night anime slot "NUMAnimation." The second season will air in the same slot from January 24th.
