Despite earthquakes, tsunamis and radiation threats in their home nation, three young Japanese men continued to train diligently for the world figure skating championships.
That hard work may be about to pay off this week in Moscow, as all three loom as serious threats to Canadian champion Patrick Chan's bid for his first world men's title.
Daisuke Takahashi will be back to defend his crown when the men take the ice Wednesday for their short program (the long program is Thursday). During time at his training base in Barrie, Ont., Nobunari Oda has added some effective quad jumps to his repertoire. But in his quiet way, Takahiko Kozuka could be the greatest hazard to Chan.
This has been Kozuka's year. At 22, with his bashful mien and boyish genius on blades, the young skater is stepping out. He won his first national title, took both of his Grand Prix events and his top score of 248.07 this season is second only to Chan's 259.75.
But Kozuka isn't just thinking about skating, he's thinking of his disaster-ravaged homeland. He wears a navy blue sticker affixed to the left side of his track jacket that reads: "Rebirth Japan. We are always with you."
The world championships, originally scheduled to be contested in March in Tokyo, were moved to the Russian capital due to the continuing crisis in Japan.
The entire contingent of Japanese skaters and journalists in Moscow are displaying the stickers, provided by the Japanese Skating Federation. The skaters are also wearing black ribbons pinned to the left shoulder of their warm-up jackets.
Backing Kozuka are icons of Japanese skating history. His coach, Nobuo Sato, was a trailblazer, winning 10 national championships and finishing fourth at the 1965 worlds.
Sato coached Kozuka's father, Tsuguhiko, who won three Japanese titles, and competed at the 1968 Olympics in Grenoble. He is now an international figure skating judge and, for a time, coached his son.
Early on, Kozuka showed an easy glide on the ice, using the edges of his blades with a natural ease.
"He's a skater's skater," said four-time world and Canadian champion Kurt Browning, who has worked with Kozuka a couple of times on exhibition routines. "I can't see how he prepares [for his speed] I never see how he gets his speed from a step. He can be into the ice, but at the same time, he doesn't leave a mark on it.
"He has gorgeous edges and his jumps are unique. It's in the way he holds his speed and then there's a bit of delay [in the jump] I love that boy."
When Kozuka turned 14, Sato brought him to Detroit to have programs choreographed by respected Russian-born designer Marina Zoueva. All along the way, Sato's daughter, Yuka, has been his mentor from her position as a coach at the Detroit Skating Club.
Yuka Sato, who trained in Canada with Peter Dunfield, won the 1994 women's world title in Japan and then sparkled in the pro skating world in North America, with a charisma that was a bit new to Japanese skaters.
It was she who brought Kozuka to other choreographers, too, such as Sandra Bezic, and Browning - Kozuka's idol. "I like to expose him to different people to give him experience, education," Sato said.
"When he was much younger, he was too embarrassed to dance in front of people," she said. "He wanted to go outside and play soccer, anything outdoors. He didn't want to put his arms up [in figure skating]"
Bezic told Kozuka he was an artist on the ice with his feet and blades, not just a dancer. Her advice triggered something in Kozuka.
Browning showed Kozuka some fun. He took him to a karaoke bar, got him to relax, got him to exude. It's all part of the game in figure skating.
Kozuka's progress has warmed Sato's heart.
"It's very cool to see somebody grow up," she said.
With a report from The Canadian Press