Alysa Liu: American superstar wins 2026 Winter Olympics women’s figure skating gold

Sakamoto, for her part, must be content with silver as her brilliant career ends without an Olympic crown.

She retires at 25 after winning three world titles and bronze at Beijing 2022.

Her last performance here was Edith Piaf’s No, I Regret Nothing, and Sakamoto must have no regrets for a performance in which all 12 elements received positive performance ratings.

But he scored five points fewer than Liu in the technical elements, with the American’s routine rated more difficult.

Sakamoto cried as she left the ice, but during the medal ceremony she seemed rightly delighted with another major honor.

“I couldn’t give absolutely everything,” she said after the event. “I was aiming for the gold medal. The frustration of not being able to win it is really hitting me right now.

“I thought maybe I could end with a smile, but instead I end with this feeling of frustration. Still, I think feeling this way will be important for the rest of my life.”

This initial disappointment contrasted sharply with the joy of his compatriot Nakai, who finished a phenomenal debut campaign with an Olympic medal.

Nakai, the youngest skater in the competition, rose to the top of the leaderboard after the short program and opened her free skate with a triple axel – a brutally resistant element that she has now made her trademark.

But Nakai fell on her triple lutz, which played a major role in dropping her below Liu and Sakamoto.