Japan Ice Skater Mao Asada Thankful For South Korean Rival Kim Yona

Japan's Mao Asada, who stands at the top of the figure skating world as the world champion in 2008 and 2010, and the only woman to have landed three of the complicated triple Axel jumps in competition, says she has her long-standing South Korean rival to thank for her being where she is right now. "We've been rivals ever since our Junior years. There was always a lot of attention on us and strong expectations of us in both Japan and South Korea, from the media and everyone," Asada told Reuters in an exclusive interview last week. "There were times it was tough. But I think that without Kim Yuna, I would not have developed, and in fact, I think this friendly rivalry gave me my motivation," the 23-year old skater and also a prime contender for the top prize at the Sochi Olympics, added. Three years ago in Vancouver, Kim was crowned champion with a record combined total of 228.56, obliterating the silver medalist Asada with a huge margin of 23.06 points. "Those days were good, and tough too.. In fact, a lot happened back then. But I believe, for this to happen in the life of a skater, it was all good because so many people took note of us and cheered us on," Asada said after an afternoon practice at Chukyo University, just outside the central Japanese city of Nagoya, where she is a student. The Winter Olympic Games in Russia's resort town will stage the women's single competition, with the possibility of a rematch of the arch-rivals Kim and Asada, on February 19 and 20.