[PyeongChang 2018] Why the Pooh bears for Yuzuru Hanyu?

By Lim Jeong-yeo

Published : Feb. 16, 2018 - 15:50

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Olympian Yuzuru Hanyu leads the men’s short program figure skating after receiving a score of 111.68 on Friday.

Shoma Uno, Hanyu’s fellow Japanese Olympian, came in third with 104.17.

Hanyu and Uno are respectively first and second in the world men’s figure skating rankings.

Pooh bears for Yuzuru Hanyu (EPA-Yonhap)

A storm of Pooh bears for Yuzuru Hanyu (EPA-Yonhap)

A flower girl carries the gifts given to Yuzuru Hanyu (EPA-Yonhap)

On Thursday, spectator seats were crowded with Japanese fans craning their necks to see Hanyu, the star figure skater from Sendai, which was devastated by the March 2011 Tohoku earthquake.

Hanyu’s flawless performance was followed by a Winnie-the-Pooh spectacle in which Japanese fans threw the bear dolls onto the rink for him.

Japanese fans crowd the Gangneung Ice Arena for Yuzuru Hanyu (Reuters)

Flower girls collect gifts thrown on to the ice rink (AFP-Yonhap)

Winnie-the-Pooh bear is a symbol of Hanyu, as he places a tissue box cover of the bear on the rink’s boards as a good-luck charm when he competes on the ice.

According to Time, Hanyu has had the box since he was younger, and has always kept it by his side. He has even brought the tissue box to interviews. Hanyu’s Winnie-the-Pooh has its own Twitter account.

At games where Hanyu competes, it’s guaranteed one will see a shower of Poohs. US figure skater Nathan Chen once told the Chicago Tribune that when one competes against Hanyu, he must be prepared for the storm of bear dolls that will follow.

Yuzuru Hanyu (Yonhap)

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)

[PyeongChang 2018] Why the Pooh bears for Yuzuru Hanyu?

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