The 2018 Winter Olympics kicked off in South Korea on Feb. 9 with an especially exciting routine from Japanese pair skaters Suzaki Miu and Kihara Ryuichi. For their performance, the duo skated to a song from hit anime Yuri!!! on Ice!
The song used is titled Yuri on Ice and was featured numerous times in the anime as protagonist Katsuki Yuri’s theme song.
Fans took to Twitter when the event was broadcast on television, creating a worldwide trending phenomenon that even attracted the attention of the franchise’s original creator, Kubo Mitsurou. As well as cheering on Suzaki and Kihara, she also thanked former figure skating champion Sato Yuka, who choreographed the routine, for bringing Yuri!!! On Ice to the Olympics for real.
First aired in late 2016, Yuri!!! On Ice still commands a huge following among anime fans and even professional figure skaters like Evgenia Medvedeva and Johnny Weir, who have often expressed their love for the work.
(C) Hasetsu Townspeople / Yuri!!! on Ice production Committee
Adapted with permission from Anime!Anime!