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Hiragana: はにゅう ゆづる; born December 7, 1994 is a Japanese Figure skating and ice show producer. Universally regarded as one of the greatest figure skaters in history for his well-rounded skills, achievements, innovations, longevity, popularity, and impact on the sport, he started skating at four years old and competed in the Single skating discipline from 2004 to 2022. Hanyu is the first male single skater in 66years since Dick Button to win back-to-back Olympic titles (2014, 2018), and also the first and youngest Asian Olympic champion in that discipline. He is a two-time World champion (2014, 2017), six-time Japanese national champion (2012–2015, 2020–2021), and the first single skater to win four consecutive Grand Prix Finals (2014–2017). With his win at the 2020Four Continents Championships, he became the first skater in men's singles to complete the Super Slam, having won all major international junior and senior titles in the course of his career. He is also the first and only single skater to be ranked first in the ISU World Standings for five consecutive seasons (2014–2018). Hanyu broke world records 19times, the most in singles since the introduction of the ISU Judging System in 2003, and was the first skater to land a Quadruple jump loop jump in international competition among other achievements.
According to Nikkei Asia, Hanyu's move to professional level in 2022 marked the "end of an era" in competitive figure skating. His first major work as a professional is the ongoing Yuzuru Hanyu Ice Story series, with its prelude event Prologue (2022) being the first solo ice show and the Repray Tour (2023–24) the first solo tour production in figure skating. His second solo show Gift (2023) was the first ice skating event to be held at Tokyo Dome, breaking the record for the largest ice show audience with 35,000 people. Hanyu's Ice Story series, which has attracted more than 100,000 spectators in total by February2024, opened a new genre of performing art and entertainment, weaving live skating performances into comprehensive, philosophical stories with elaborate on-screen narration.
At 16years old, Hanyu experienced the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami in his hometown of Sendai, which fundamentally shaped his life and career, having participated in different charity events and dedicated various performances to the victims of the disaster. He is also the chairperson of Nippon TV's annual 3.11 commemoration ice show Yuzuru Hanyu Notte Stellata, inaugurated in 2023. Since the earthquake, Hanyu has donated a cumulative total of more than $3million USD for reconstruction, disaster prevention, and other humanitarian efforts. The donations include the full prize money of his Olympic wins and all royalties from his best-selling autobiography series Blue Flames I–IV.
In recognition of his achievements, Hanyu became the youngest recipient of the People's Honor Award (2018), bestowed by the Prime Minister of Japan, received Japan's Medal of Honor with purple ribbon twice (2014, 2018) and was awarded the Kikuchi Kan Prize (2022). He is the first figure skater to be nominated for the Laureus World Sports Award (2019) and was named the Most Valuable Skater at the inaugural ISU Skating Awards (2020). He was also featured in prestigious lists, such as Forbes 30Under30 Asia (2018), ESPN's top25 of greatest Olympians of the 21st century (#10), and the list of most impactful male athletes of the last 100 years (#6) (both 2024). In 2022, he was ranked sixth in the list of most-searched athletes on Google Search worldwide.
At the age of two, Hanyu was diagnosed with asthma, a condition that gradually improved with time yet negatively affected his stamina, especially during his junior career. He began skating at the age of four at (formerly Konami Sports Club) in Izumi, after coach Mami Yamada had suggested he try the sport instead of being a nuisance during his sister's training. Yamada noted Hanyu's impatience when he first got onto the ice, but also praised him for his sincerity. Coaching him until the end of his second grade in elementary school, Yamada had to move to another prefecture and asked , former coach of Japan's first World medalist, Minoru Sano, to train Hanyu and "not put his talent to waste". Hanyu described Tsuzuki's practice sessions as particularly strict and exhausting, tempting him to skip lessons at times, but he appreciated Tsuzuki's approach to build a solid foundation of skills and focus on basic training, noting: "He placed so much emphasis on skating and the Axel jump. Perhaps that made me confident to this day that the Axel is my forte."
In 2008–09, Hanyu moved up to junior level and made his international debut in the ISU Junior Grand Prix at the Merano Cup in Italy, where he placed fifth. The same season, he won gold at the Japan Junior Championships, becoming the youngest male skater with 13 years to win the event. This result earned him an invitation to the Japan Senior Championships for the first time, where he placed eighth. His national junior title also qualified him for the 2009 World Junior Championships in February, where he finished 12th with an ISU personal best score of 161.77 points in the combined total. In that season, Hanyu had included the triple Axel, a jump with three and a half revolutions, in his programs for the first time, though receiving negative grades of execution (GOE) for all three attempts. The following 2009–10 season marked the beginning of an 11-year-long quest for the first Super Slam in the Single skating discipline, with wins at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final and World Junior Championships. Hanyu placed first at both of his Grand Prix assignments, in Poland and Croatia, and entered the Final as the top qualifier, which he won with a new personal best score of 206.77 points. At Junior Nationals, he successfully defended his title from the previous season, qualifying him for the Senior Nationals, where he finished sixth. Based on his results, Hanyu was selected to compete at the 2010 World Junior Championships, winning gold after placing third in the short program and first in the free skate with a new personal best score of 216.10 points. Hanyu became the fourth and youngest Japanese man to win the junior world title. In that season, he had significantly improved the quality of the triple Axel, his most difficult technical element at that time, having landed nine jumps with positive GOE in ten attempts.
On March 11, 2011, he was skating at his home rink in Sendai when the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami struck his hometown and the Tōhoku region. With his house being damaged, he had to spend the following three days with his family at an evacuation center. A month later, on April 7, the water pipes at his rink burst as a result of an aftershock, known as the April 2011 Miyagi earthquake, and Hanyu was forced to move his training base to Yokohama and Hachinohe until his home rink reopened on July 24, 2011. In the meantime, he had participated in 60 across Japan, using them as an opportunity to get additional practice time and raise money for the areas affected by the disaster.
Upon the conclusion of the 2011–12 season, Hanyu changed coaches, training with Brian Orser and Tracy Wilson at the Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club (Toronto CSCC) in Canada, who had coached Korean single skater Yuna Kim to Olympic gold in 2010 among others. Hanyu's main motivation for the change were the consistent quadruple jumps performed by Orser's student Javier Fernández. According to Hidehito Ito, figure skating director of the Japan Skating Federation, the change was also necessary to "challenge" Hanyu and "raise the level of more". The first months, Hanyu was making frequent trips to Toronto, but continued to attend high school in Sendai. After moving to Canada, he increased his on-ice training to 3–4 hours a day, up from 1–2 hours, which had been due to limited ice time in Sendai, schooling, and asthma.
In the 2014–15 season, Hanyu skated his short program to Frédéric Chopin's Ballade No. 1 in G minor and selected a medley from Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical The Phantom of the Opera for the free skate. The programs were choreographed by Jeffrey Buttle and Shae-Lynn Bourne, respectively, who created all short and free skate programs for Hanyu from 2014 onward. For Hanyu, the 2014–15 season was shaped by a series of injuries, starting with an accident in practice, where he hurt his back and was forced to withdraw from the 2014 Finlandia Trophy. In his first Grand Prix event at the Cup of China, he collided with Chinese skater Yan Han during the free skate warm-up, suffering bruises on his head and chin along with injuring his midriff, left thigh, and right leg. Despite his severe condition, he decided to compete in the free skate and managed to finish second overall behind Maxim Kovtun from Russia. At the NHK Trophy, he came in fourth, securing his place at the Grand Prix Final by one of the slimmest margins of 0.15 points. At the Final, he successfully defended his title with 34.26 points ahead of silver medalist Javier Fernández. In December, Hanyu competed at the 2014–15 Japan Championships, placing first in both segments and winning his third consecutive national title. However, he was forced to withdraw from the exhibition gala due to abdominal pain. He was diagnosed with a tubal residual disease and had to undergo surgery on his bladder, being hospitalized for two weeks and resting for another month. His series of injuries continued with a sprain of his right ankle that forced him to stay in Japan until the 2015 World Championships, where he finished second behind Fernández by less than three points. In April, Hanyu competed for the first time at the ISU World Team Trophy, placing first in both competition segments and earning 24 points to help Team Japan win the bronze medal behind Team USA (gold) and Team Russia (silver).
Hanyu opened the season with a win at the 2018 Autumn Classic, but expressed dissatisfaction with his performances, pledging to improve in the next competitions. At the Grand Prix of Helsinki, he set highest scores in all segments under the new +5/-5 GOE judging system, earning 106.69 points in the short program, 190.43 in the free skate, and 297.12 points in the combined total. He also became the first skater to land a quad toe loop-triple Axel jump sequence in competition, winning the event by about 40 points over Michal Březina. At the Rostelecom Cup in Moscow, Hanyu upped the short program record to 110.53 points, but on the following day, he re-injured his right ankle in practice after falling on a quad loop. Yet he opted to compete, aided by painkillers, and managed to place first in all segments, winning gold at both of his Grand Prix assignments for the first time. After the competition, Hanyu admitted: "I thought about withdrawing because of the injury, but it is my choice. I really wanted to skate this program in Russia." Due to the injured ligaments and tendons in his right foot, he was forced to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final and Japan Championships, taking about three weeks of rest and another month of rehabilitation. At the 2019 World Championships in Saitama, Hanyu placed third in the short program after turning his opening quad Salchow into a double, but came back with a strong free skate, becoming the first skater to surpass the 200 and 300 marks in the new judging system with 206.10 points in the free skate and 300.97 in total. However, he finished second behind Nathan Chen who bested both scores later in the event. Similar to his preparations for the Olympics, Hanyu had relied on painkillers before and during the competition to make jumping possible. Due to the injury, he was forced to withdraw from the season's final event, the World Team Trophy.
Competing at his first Japanese championships since the 2016–17 season, Hanyu placed first in the short program, 5.01 points ahead of Shoma Uno. Several jump errors in the free skate saw him place third in that segment, behind Uno and Yuma Kagiyama, and win the silver medal overall. It was Hanyu's first loss to Uno. Heading into the Four Continents Championships in Seoul, Hanyu opted to return to his Ballade No. 1 (Chopin) program and his "Seimei" program from prior seasons. Referencing the 2018 Winter Olympics which were held in Pyeongchang, Hanyu noted that while he wanted to win a gold medal once again in South Korea, he wanted to showcase and focus on his own style of figure skating even more. In the short program, Hanyu broke his previous world record with 111.82 points. Hanyu called it "the most perfect performance I've ever done." Despite errors on two of his quad attempts in the free skate, he won that segment as well, taking the gold medal overall with 299.42 points. Hanyu's victory on February 9, made him the first and only male singles skater to win all of the major ISU championship events at the junior and senior levels, a feat known as the Super Slam, previously only achieved by five other competitors in the other three skating disciplines. He was assigned to compete at the World Championships in Montreal, but these were canceled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. At the ISU Skating Awards in 2020, Hanyu was nominated for Best Costume and Most Valuable Skater for the 2019–2020 season, and proceeded to win the latter.
The 2021 World Championships were to be the first direct competition between Hanyu and Nathan Chen since the 2019–20 Grand Prix Final. Hanyu placed first in the short program with a solid performance, 6.02 points ahead of compatriot Yuma Kagiyama. In the free skate, Hanyu opened his program with two quadruple jumps and a triple Axel but received negative grades of execution for all three of them. Scoring 182.20 points, he placed fourth in the free skate and third overall, behind Chen and Kagiyama. It was the first competition Hanyu had placed below second since 2014, however, he became the first male single skater besides German Jan Hoffmann to win seven World medals in the post-war era since 1946. On the following day, Hanyu confirmed the report of his asthma attack by overseas media. He stated that he felt a little painful after finishing the free skate, and explained: "There were few small troubles that kept stacking up ... However, if asked whether that was what led to the huge mistake (in the free skate), I don't think it was as big of a miss as it was in terms of the miss in the score." Hanyu's placement combined with Kagiyama's qualified three berths for Japanese men at the 2022 Winter Olympics. Hanyu competed as part of Team Japan for the 2021 World Team Trophy. He placed second in both the short program and the free skate, only behind Nathan Chen. He achieved a personal season's best score in both the short program and the free skate with 107.12 and 193.76 points respectively and earned a total of 22 points to help his team take home the bronze medal.
Hanyu made his season debut at the 2021–22 Japan Figure Skating Championships, placing first in both the short program and free skate, winning his sixth Japanese National title, tying Takeshi Honda's record of most national titles in the last 50 years. He also attempted a quadruple Axel jump for the first time during the free skate, although it was downgraded to a triple Axel with a two-footed landing. Hanyu was assigned to represent Japan at the 2022 Winter Olympics and the 2022 World Championships.
At the 2022 Winter Olympics, Hanyu missed his opening quadruple Salchow jump in the short program due to a hole in the ice and placed eighth with 95.15 points, qualifying him for the free skate. The score was his lowest in the segment since the 2019 World Championships. In the free skate, he fell twice in his first two opening jumps, a quadruple Axel and a quad Salchow. His quad Axel attempt is the first that was not downgraded to triple Axel. Other than these two mistakes, he delivered a clean skate, placing third in the free skate and fourth place overall with a total score of 283.21 points, behind fellow Japanese compatriot and bronze medalist Shoma Uno. Following his free skate, Hanyu confirmed in a press conference that he had re-injured his right ankle in practice the day before the free skate, but since it was the Olympics and not a normal competition, he chose to compete on painkillers instead of withdrawing. On March 1, 2022, the Japan Skating Federation announced Hanyu's withdrawal from the 2022 World Championships due to the unhealed injury.
The first main chapter of the series was the solo show Gift, the first ice skating event to be held at Tokyo Dome, one of Japan's largest and most prestigious entertainment venues, with a new audience record for ice shows of 35,000 spectators. The show was presented on February26, 2023, and featured 12skating programs that were weaved into a comprehensive, philosophical story of 120minutes about Hanyu's life and future on ice. In his performances, he was accompanied by the dance group Elevenplay, the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, and a special band led by Satoshi Takebe. The Olympics' official news site called Hanyu's programs "performances for the ages", noting that it was "more a concert for a blockbuster artist than an ice show." On July14, Gift became the first ice show to be distributed on the streaming platform Disney+ worldwide.
The Repray Tour, a sequel to Gift and the second main chapter of Hanyu's Ice Story series, was the first solo ice show tour to be produced in figure skating, scheduled with four stops across Japan in Saitama, Saga, Yokohama, and Rifu from November2023 to April2024. Similar to Gift, each show had a duration of 120minutes with 12programs being merged into a gaming-themed story that picked up the contrasts between the virtual and real world, giving "food for thought about life and the series of choices we make." Hanyu's performances to soundtracks from popular video games like Final Fantasy or Undertale attracted many fans not only from figure skating but also the gaming scene. Due to high ticket demand, an additional performance in Rifu was added to the three initial tour stops. On October 4, 2024, Hanyu announced the third installment of the series with the Echoes of Life Tour, which was held with three stops from December 2024 to February 2025.
With Hanyu's Ice Story series, a new genre of performing art and entertainment has been created, weaving live skating performances into deep stories with elaborate on-screen narration. The series has attracted more than 100,000 spectators in total, with all 14solo performances being sold out by lottery. The shows received universal acclaim in Japan and overseas, including figure skating world champions Patrick Chan and Elizaveta Tuktamysheva who praised Hanyu's remarkable athleticism and stamina, being able to skate up to 12programs in one show. Japanese sportswriter Takaomi Matsubara named Hanyu's solo shows a new milestone in professional skating and, according to USC Annenberg columnist Valerie Fang, "we are witnessing the rise of a figure skating franchise."
On September15, 2024, Hanyu led a charity performance titled "Challenge" in Ishikawa Prefecture, accompanied by Satoko Miyahara, Akiko Suzuki, and Takahito Mura. The event was streamed live and on-demand via video streaming services, selling more than 10,000 tickets. The Japanese yen53,662,728 ($367,758) proceeds from the event were donated to the Ishikawa Prefecture and Noto local government for the reconstruction of the areas affected by the 2024 Noto earthquake, which occurred on January1, 2024.
Hanyu is known for his ability to generate skating speed "out of nowhere" and cover long distances with only a few strokes. At the 2021–22 Japan Championships, he managed to perform a clean short program without using consecutive crossovers and reduce the number of basic skating movements to a minimum. This is a feat that has long been considered near impossible, as stated by former competitive skater John Misha Petkevich in his book Figure Skating: Championship Techniques from 1989: "Without a doubt, crossovers are the staple of every skater. Not only are they used to negotiate corners, but they are also used to pick up speed. Skating without crossovers would be virtually unthinkable."
The ability to accelerate with a few strokes allows Hanyu to execute his jumps from a variety of difficult entries. Notable are the backward counter turn, twizzle, and spread eagle into his signature triple Axel jump. Hanyu is also known for his strong vaulting technique with minimal pre-rotation on the ice at the take-off, achieving Trajectory of impressive size. With a height of 70 centimeters and covering a distance of 3.62 meters, his triple Axel was the largest measured jump in the men's short program at the 2019 World Championships. In 2018, Hanyu's triple Axel from the 2018 Winter Olympics was used as a demonstration example by the ISU for the GOE judging criteria "very good height and very good length" as well as "steps before the jump, unexpected or creative entry". Despite the complex preceding steps and big trajectory, he manages to land his jumps smoothly and increase his skating speed from take-off to landing. With the toe loop, Salchow jump, Loop jump, and Lutz, Hanyu has successfully executed four different types of quadruple jumps in the course of his competitive career. He stated his preference for edge jumps, and notably featured all three types in his short program of the 2016–17 season.
Hanyu is able to execute the Biellmann spin and doughnut camel spin, which are more commonly seen in women's singles and known for their difficulty among male skaters due to the high flexibility required in spine, hips, and shoulders. Other signature moves include the layback Ina Bauer, hydroblading, and the side lunge. Overall, Hanyu's technical elements stand out for their high quality of execution, having received a total of 29 maximum scores in international competition, covering all four types of required elements in the men's singles discipline: jumps, spins, step sequence, and choreographic sequences. Beyond that, his elements are noted for their seamless embedding into the choreography and his movements for their precise timing with the music, the latter being awarded a perfect 10.00 in the interpretation component at the 2021–22 Japan Championships.
Hanyu's programs cover a variety of different music genres, including classical pieces, modern pop rock, musicals, and traditional Japanese music. He notably portrayed the historical Japanese figures Abe no Seimei and Uesugi Kenshin in his free skate programs at the 2018 and 2022 Winter Olympics. He also dedicated various exhibition programs to the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and performed them as live music collaborations at shows like Fantasy on Ice among others. Hanyu is known to be involved in all aspects of his programs, from the music selection and editing process to the costume design and choreography. As his choreographer Shae-Lynn Bourne stated, "He knows what costume he wants. He knows what jump order he wants. He makes a lot of the decisions on his own. You can't say 'no' to that ever. You know, with music especially, because he is going to skate with conviction."
Figure skaters Hanyu looked up to while growing up are Evgeni Plushenko and Johnny Weir. With his competitive programs for the 2018–19 season, he paid homage to the two skaters by skating to "Otoñal" by Raúl Di Blasio as well as "Art on Ice" and "Magic Stradivarius" by Edvin Marton, which had been used by Weir and Plushenko, respectively, in their programs. At the press conference of the 2018 Winter Olympics, Hanyu also mentioned Stephane Lambiel, Javier Fernández, and Dick Button as the skaters who had influenced him as a skater.
Hanyu has also worked with other brands such as Ajinomoto endorsing their sport nutritional products Amino Vital and nutritional meals along with other athletes like Uta Abe, bath salts Bathclin Kikiyu, bedding products Nishikawa Sangyo co., and Phiten for their Aqua-Titanium sports socks and line of Rakuwa nylon-coated necklaces and bracelets including Hanyu's inspired 'Wings Gold' models. In 2019, Hanyu became the ambassador for Citizen Watch in China, Hong Kong, and Macau, as well as the global ambassador of the Sekkisei series by Kosé. He was later appointed as the global "muse" of the Sekkisei Miyabi brand in 2020. In October 2021, Hanyu was chosen as a face of Towa Pharmaceutical co. appearing in a TV commercial with veteran actress Tetsuko Kuroyanagi and endorsed ANA's new teleportation services "avatarin".
In 2013 and 2021, Hanyu was appointed as the model for Miyagi Prefecture Police's traffic safety poster aiming to encourage compliance with traffic rules and spread awareness of safe driving. According to an official in March 2021, Hanyu was chosen because "he embodies sportsmanship". In June 2021, Hanyu was appointed as the ambassador of the world's first official Paralympic Games game The Pegasus Dream Tour, making his video game debut with his avatar appearing in the game. According to the representative of the game's developer company, Hanyu was chosen because "he is an athlete as well as a person who has artistry in his way of life". Since April 2014, Hanyu has been acting as the tourism ambassador of Sendai and featured in the city's tourism posters as well as tourist guidebooks. On March 14, 2024, he was announced as a new brand ambassador for the Italian luxury fashion house Gucci, joining Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner, Chinese actor and singer Xiao Zhan, British soccer player Jack Grealish, and American rapper and hip-hop dancer Jay Park among others. On November 21, 2024, he was announced as the brand ambassador for Chinese multinational home appliances and consumer electronics company Haier in Japan for their brands Haier and Aqua.
Hanyu donated his 2014 Olympic gold medal ¥6million ($55,000) prize money as well as his 2018 Olympic gold medal ¥10million ($92,000) prize money received from the Japan Skating Federation and Japanese Olympic Committee to Sendai and Miyagi Prefecture to help with the reconstruction of the disaster areas. He also has been helping his home rink Ice Rink Sendai, rendered unusable after the disaster, by donating all the royalties and part of the proceeds of his autobiography series. It was revealed, in 2024, that a total of ¥107,971,996 ($728,303) had been donated to the rink.
In September 2014, Hanyu was appointed as the Tsunami Disaster Prevention Ambassador for one year participating in activities to spread tsunami disaster prevention public awareness. In February 2015, Hanyu became the spokesman for reconstruction efforts led by the Japanese Red Cross Society. He also lent his image as the spokesman for the Red Cross' "Hatachi no Kenketsu" donation campaign where he starred in the promotional video with patients. In April 2016, upon his request to his sponsor Phiten, drinking water was donated to the areas affected by the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes. In March 2019, he donated a pair of figure skates to an online charity auction which raised 7.12 million yen ($64,000) for the disaster area reconstruction. He also collaborated with Line Corporation supervising the creation of "Yuzuru Hanyu 3.11 Smile Stamp" which went on sale with all revenues donated to the Nippon Foundation's "Special Fund for Disaster Reconstruction" to support acts for reconstruction and future disaster preparation. On August 21, 2019, a poster of Hanyu with the protagonist of the anime Yowamushi Pedal was released to promote Tour de Tohoku, an annual charity cycling event held to support the cause. He appeared in five of the nine posters being released. In 2021, marking the 10th anniversary of Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, Hanyu organized the "Together, Forward" exhibition that traces his footsteps during that difficult period, revisiting the affected people and places. The exhibition was held in multiple Japanese cities in an effort to remind everyone of the importance of disaster prevention and preparation.
In cooperation with Yomiuri Shimbun, a free entry exhibition of Hanyu's photos, costumes, and medals was held offline in multiple locations in Japan in 2018 and 2022 and online in 2020. A total sum of more than 150 million yen was donated from the sales of the exhibition's official goods. Around 42 million yen was donated in 2018 to support victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and other disasters and around 27 million yen was donated in 2020 to the National Corona Medical Welfare Support Fund. The donation from the 2022 exhibition that exceeded 85 million yen was donated to the Yomiuri Light and Love Foundation which was used to create a disaster relief fund in case of any large-scale disaster that occurs in Japan in the future. In February 2023, it was announced that 10 million yen from the fund would be donated for relief and reconstruction efforts in areas affected by the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake in Turkey. In January 2024, it was announced that 10 million yen from the fund would be donated to the Ishikawa Prefecture which was badly affected by the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake to help support the disaster victims and reconstruction efforts. In July 2024, it was announced that a total of 2 million yen from a portion of the sales from Costume Kewpie® dolls dressed in Hanyu's costumes, plus a donation from Hanyu himself, will be sent to Ishikawa Prefecture to help with the reconstruction of the disaster-stricken areas through the Yomiuri Light and Love Foundation.
From 2014 to 2022, Hanyu regularly participated in Nippon TV's annual charity program 24-Hour Television, holding special ice shows and visiting victims in disaster areas. In 2014, he held a one-night ice show to bring in donations. In 2015, he and Hey! Say! JUMP member Yuri Chinen designed "Chari-T-shirts" for the program under the slogan "To connect: a smile beyond time". The shirts were to be sold with the profits given to charity. He also visited earthquake-affected areas in Fukushima and Ishinomaki, interviewing the victims as part of the program segment.
In December 2022, it was announced that Hanyu was appointed as a special messenger for NTV's program presenting a new segment called "Yuzuru Hanyu, Thoughts I want to convey" every few months promoting awareness about natural disaster areas and disaster prevention. Since the earthquake in 2011, Hanyu has donated a cumulative total of more than $3million for reconstruction, disaster prevention, and other humanitarian efforts.
On February 1st, 2025, the "Ishikawa Prefecture Support Project" was launched featuring Hanyu in life-size panels and posters installed at tourist facilities throughout Ishikawa Prefecture. The project which will run until March 31st, 2026, aims to encourage people to travel around the Prefecture and develop an interest in Noto to help the region's recovery after the 2024 Noto earthquake.
Hanyu released two video albums compiling some of his competitive career performances, the first titled Time of Awakening was released on May 21, 2014, including performances till the 2014 Winter Olympics. The album became the first from an athlete to top Oricon's DVD weekly chart since its establishment in 1999 and peaked at number 3 on the Blu-ray weekly chart after selling 44,000 copies in its first week. The second album titled Time of Evolution was released on September 15, 2019, including performances from the 2015–16 season to the 2018 winter Olympics. The album became the first sports-related work to top Oricon's Blu-ray weekly chart and peaked at number 2 on the DVD weekly chart after selling over 38,000 copies in its first week.
On December 18, 2015, NHK Enterprises released the DVD of The Flowers Bloom on Ice, featuring behind-the-scenes and interviews with Shizuka Arakawa and Yuzuru Hanyu as they skate at the ice show together to support reconstruction after the 2011 Japan earthquake.
In 2018, Hanyu's first self-produced show Continues with Wings was live broadcast on TV Asahi and live-streamed at 66 movie theaters throughout Japan. He is also one of the lead cast members besides Stéphane Lambiel and Johnny Weir at the annual touring ice show Fantasy on Ice, having participated in all editions of the tour since its revival in 2010 with one exception, having missed the shows in 2016 due to rehabilitation from a ligament injury.
Hanyu released various photobooks cooperating with multiple publishers and photographers. His first photo book, Yuzuru, was released on October 4, 2014, selling over 23,000 copies in the first week. It ranked first in Oricon Charts for photos and sport-related categories, as well as second in the chart's general books category.
On September 25, 2015, Yuzuru Hanyu Sayings was released containing pictures and quotes by the skater. The book topped Amazon's reservation sales rankings. On October 2, 2022, a second part of the book was released. On March 1, 2018, the book Live Your Dream including a collection of interviews with Hanyu from 2015 to 2018 was released. The book sold 28,000 copies ranking third in Oricon's weekly general books chart. On October 11, 2018, Yuzuru Hanyu Soul Program was released. The book includes photos and descriptions of programs performed by Hanyu. In November 2022, Yuzuru Hanyu Amateur Era Complete Record was released. The book looks back on Hanyu's competitive skating life including press photos and competition results.
Hanyu has graced the cover of numerous sports magazines, including the 100th edition of World Figure Skating, Japan's oldest figure skating magazine. He also appeared on the covers of famous fashion and lifestyle magazines, such as Elle Japan, GQ Japan, Aera, An An, and Brutus. AERAs special issue about Hanyu, titled The driving force behind the leap, sold over 29,000 copies in the first week, topping Oricon's weekly general books chart in October 2022. In August 2024, he also became the first person to be featured on the cover of two consecutive editions of the AERA magazine.
Hanyu is regarded as part of the vanguard of the quad revolution in men's figure skating. He was one of the few skaters who challenged quadruple Salchow at the 2014 Olympics. He is credited as the first figure skater to successfully land a quadruple Loop jump in competition after performing it in the short program at the Autumn Classic International in Montreal, Canada on September 30, 2016. He is also the only skater who has landed a quadruple toe loop-triple Axel sequence in competition, doing so for the first time at Grand Prix Helsinki 2018. Hanyu is also the first skater to land a quadruple toe loop-Euler-triple flip combination at Skate Canada 2019. At the 2022 Winter Olympics, Hanyu made his first attempt on the quadruple Axel in an international competition. Despite falling on the jump, he received the base value of quad Axel before being reduced for under-rotation. It was the closest quad Axel attempt in a competition until American Ilia Malinin successfully landed one at the 2022 CS U.S. Classic, who cited Hanyu as his inspiration to attempt the jump. However, in regards to the ongoing debate on jumps versus artistry in the sport, Hanyu spoke through an interpreter after his second Olympic win in 2018:
In recognition of his achievements, Hanyu has been awarded numerous accolades, including the People's Honor Award in 2018 becoming the first figure skater and the youngest recipient of the award. He was also awarded the Medal of Honour with Purple Ribbon in 2014 and 2018, and received two monuments depicting his trademark poses performed at the 2014 and 2018 Olympics in his hometown of Sendai. He was also nominated for the Laureus World Sports Award for Comeback of the Year in 2019 becoming the first figure skater to be nominated for the award, and was awarded the Most Valuable Skater of the 2019–20 season at the inaugural ISU Skating Awards in 2020. In 2021, he was awarded the Azusa Ono Memorial Award, the most prestigious award that can be conferred to students and given to those recognized as a model, from Waseda University. On October 11, 2022, he was announced as a recipient of the Kikuchi Kan Prize for his accomplishments as a competitive figure skater as well as his attitude of "continuing to take on challenges".
In 2022, Hanyu placed sixth in the list of most-searched athletes on Google Search worldwide, behind Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams (all tennis), Manti Te'o (American football), and Shaun White (snowboard). He was also featured in prestigious lists, such as Forbes' 30 Under 30 Asia 2018 as well as ESPN's World Fame 100 and The Dominant 20, received multiple awards and ranked high in various lists and popularity polls by media outlets. In 2024, Hanyu was featured in ESPN's top 25 selection of the greatest Olympic athletes of the 21st century, being the highest-ranked figure skater in the list (10th place) ahead of three-time Olympic ice dance champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir (11th place). He was also featured in the 10 10 list of most impactful and representative male athletes of the last century, published by the (AIPS). The rankings were based on an online voting by 913 established international sports journalists from 137 countries, with the results being presented at the AIPS' 100 year anniversary ceremony at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris during the 2024 Summer Olympics. Hanyu ranked 6th behind Muhammad Ali (boxing), Usain Bolt (athletics), Michael Jordan (basketball), Pelé (soccer), and Roger Federer (tennis).
Hanyu studied at Nanakita Elementary and Junior High School. In 2013, Hanyu graduated from then entered an Virtual school program on Human Information Science at Waseda University. He attended the school from his training base in Canada. In August 2020, it was revealed that his graduation thesis summarizes how Motion capture could be used in figure skating, and in particular its potential for use in figure skating judging. One area of research he did is recording and analyzing his movement while doing the triple Axel jump off-ice which he hopes can be used to improve the skills of athletes and A.I. judging. He officially graduated from the university in September 2020, but was unable to attend the ceremony due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. In March 2021, a bulletin paper summarizing his graduation thesis was published in the Waseda Journal of Human Sciences.
On August 4, 2023, Hanyu announced his marriage to an unnamed spouse through his official social network account. Hanyu announced on November 17, 2023 that he and his spouse had divorced, citing harassment by the press as cause for the separation.
Ensemble ice shows
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Yuzuru Hanyu at the Japan Skating Federation (archived March 29, 2022, at the Wayback Machine)
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Yuzuru Hanyu at All Nippon Airways (archived June 7, 2021, at the Wayback Machine)
!colspan=3 style="border-top: 5px solid #78FF78;"|World Record Holders
!colspan=3 style="border-top:5px solid #78FF78;"|Historical World Record Holders (before season 2018–19)
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