“The starlight that shines more in the deepest night”
At Skate Canada International 2024 in Halifax, I had the privilege of speaking with Rino Matsuike just before her flight back to Japan. Rino, who earned a silver medal at this event, previously captured bronze in 2023.
Her Grand Prix season kicked off with a challenging short program, where she scored 52.31 after a fall and some under-rotations, placing her in 10th. Despite facing setbacks, she illuminated the rink with her freeskate, even in her darkest moments, she can shine brightly. She finished the freeskate with a score of 139.58, even surpassing world champion Kaori Sakamoto. This remarkable performance not only secured Rino her first Grand Prix silver medal but also contributed to a Japanese podium sweep, alongside gold medalist Kaori Sakamoto and bronze medalist Hana Yoshida.
Rino’s journey is a testament to perseverance and excellence in figure skating, making her success all the more inspiring. During our brief 10-minute chat, I was captivated by her humility following such a thrilling night. I hope you enjoy the interview as much as I do!
Hi Rino, thank you for your time despite the busy schedule! Let’s start with some easier questions first, you have Skate Canada and you will be heading to Finland for the Grand Prix soon. Do you have your own competition schedules? Any foods you must eat before comp, any music you must listen to?
Because I like BTS haha (I did plan a BTS-related question for you, later) before comps, I must listen to their songs. When I go overseas, since there are only English-speaking programs on TV which I don’t really understand, I never turn on my TV. I am just listening to music in my room. I must listen to BTS’s songs, that lifts my mood up.
What is your favourite song from them?
I like Mikrokosmos the most. I watch a lot of concert videos, I remember all the lyrics to the extent that I can sing the whole song. I keep listening to this song to keep my mood uplifted.
You are always training in Japan, do you have any ways to deal with time differences?
Eh… It’s true that there is a time difference but I am the type of person who can sleep wherever and whenever. Even if I sleep on the plane and land at night, I can still sleep the night out. I don’t have much jet lag. But for this competition, I really got sleepy during the day. I usually don’t take a nap before competitions but I just had to take one this time. I don’t think that impacted my performance and I’m not suffering from jet lag anymore right now so I hope I can keep it up tomorrow.
You have been in seniors for almost 5 years now, which was your most unforgettable competition?
First of all I can’t believe it’s been 5 years. Through the past two years I had both tough and enjoyable experiences in all competitions, but I think the happiest one would be this year, this comp. Of course, I still have a lot of things I wasn’t satisfied about, but I am very happy that I was able to overcome these and won second place. I think it is a competition that reflects my growth which is why this one means a lot to me.
I rewatched your previous comps. You competed in the NHK Trophy 5 years ago and you said it was a “confidence boost”, can you share a bit on that?
Medaling in NHK is something I never thought about, I was very happy. It was a very huge honour to take. Once I transitioned to senior and realized that I will be skating alongside these amazing other skaters, I didn’t just admire other skaters but also started to think a lot about what I should do to catch up with them. I think that led me to where I am now, and I am grateful that I had a chance to compete in the senior division as a junior.
But we saw you crying out of stress in the 2022 Four Continents Championships, can you still recall that?
That time, I was put in a very hard spot. I didn’t perform well in the competitions prior to 4CC which got me depressed already, and I had mistakes in the short program on top of that. I was very frustrated and I didn’t know what I should do. But the words from my coach and my family were such a big mental support. I also practiced very very hard to the extent that I was able to get back up with the mindset of “I trained this much, so it should be fine”.
Within these five years, were you able to find another confidence boost apart from medals?
It’s not only about results. Once you are in the competition, you’re the only one you can trust and it’s the amount of practice that allows you to believe in yourself. You have to practice enough to be able to think “I trained this much, so it should be fine.” I think that is the most important.
Back then I read an interview, you said you struggled two years to acquire your double axel, and it became your favourite jump now! It must be hard to struggle for two years not knowing when you will really get the jump. What keeps you going?
During the two years I struggled with the jump, I tried countless times and still couldn’t get it. I kept asking myself when would I ever be able to jump. All the skaters around me gradually learned to jump well, but I was the only one struggling to do it so I kept thinking, “why only me?” It was very tough… but my experience with Axels taught me to keep on trying no matter how challenging it is, so this was a very important experience for me as well.
I did make some mistakes in my short program, but now I make way less mistakes in Axels. Since Axel is a very important jump to me that I made a lot of effort to acquire, I want to keep on making this even better.
Japan does have a lot of great women skaters, do you feel stressed under such an environment?
It’s true, skaters around me do get on podiums, and there are many high level skaters. For this competition, Japan was able to sweep and claim the podium. But for the short program, I was the only one who couldn’t do a great job. I do feel “oh, everyone’s such a good skater!” and of course I would sometimes feel stressed. But I acknowledge their hard work and I believe I can achieve that if I work hard too, so they motivate me a lot.
Last question, earlier, you said in an article for Chukyo University Skating Club that your favourite artist is BTS (BTS is a South Korean boy band renowned for their chart-topping hits, Grammy nominations, and cultural impact), who is your favourite member? Did you buy any photocards?
Within BTS, I like V, Kim Taehyung the most. I collected and watched his videos a lot, and I have his merchandise too. At this competition there were people who threw a plushie of Taehyung’s character (TATA) on the rink for me, I got so hyped at the hotel and put it in my suitcase right away so I can bring it back to Japan.
Photo by Gabb (@gabietab on Instagram)
That brings us to the end of our chat with Rino Matsuike. Just as Mikrokosmos suggests, we all have our unique journeys—some land their first triple jump in a snap, while others wander along the serpentine before achieving their first; some lead the game from start to end, and some surprise us like shooting stars. Yet, each path is valid and important, both as a skater and as a person. All shooting stars we see were once lost little dull rocks who wandered in search of their stage to shine.
Rino’s next Grand Prix assignment will be the 2024 Grand Prix of Finlandia Trophy, and we wish her all the best!
““We shine in our own way””