He is the former junior world record holder for the men's free skating and combined total score and is known for his jumping prowess.
Personal life
Sato was born on February 6, 2004, in Sendai, Japan.[1] He and his family would move to Saitama in 2018 following Sato's father's job transfer.[2]
His favorite animals are pandas.[3] Sato's figure skating idol is fellow Sendai native Yuzuru Hanyu, who gave him an amulet when Sato was five years old.[3]
Sato began skating in 2009 at the age of three. In 2011, Sato temporarily moved his training to Saitama after he and his family were forced to evacuate Sendai following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. He would later return to Saitama in 2018, where Tadao Kusaka began coaching him.[6][1][2]
Competing domestically, Sato won the silver medal at the Kanto Regional championship and then the gold medal at the Eastern Sectional championship, thus qualifying for a berth at the national championship.[12] Making his Grand Prix debut at the 2020 NHK Trophy, Sato placed fifth.[13] He was fifth as well at the 2020–21 Japan Championships.[14]
2021–2022 season: First Grand Prix medal
Sato started the season competing at 2021 Japan Open, where he placed second in the men's free program after landing four quadruple jumps for the first time and won the gold medal with his teammates. He was then assigned to participate in the 2021 Asian Open Trophy, which served as a test event for the 2022 Winter Olympics, where he won a silver medal with unofficial personal bests in the short program and total score.[15]
At his first Grand Prix event, 2021 Skate America, Sato dislocated his left acromioclavicular joint on a fall during practice. He thought about withdrawing, but despite severe pain, he decided to compete with the help of painkillers and without changing his planned programs' layout. He placed fifth in the short program and fourth in the free skate and overall.[16][17][18] At this second event, the 2021 Internationaux de France, Sato was fourth in the short program and third in the free skate, taking the silver medal overall, his first on the Grand Prix.[19] Reflecting on his performance, he said that he was "really happy to be on the podium for the first time, but I need to catch up to Yuma, so I will work hard."[20]
2022–2023 season: Grand Prix Final and Four Continents bronze
Given two Grand Prix assignments, Sato began the season at the 2022 MK John Wilson Trophy. He was narrowly fourth in the short program, finished third in the free skate, and took the bronze medal. Despite a fall on his quad Lutz attempt in the free skate, he said, "the mistakes I made didn't affect my performance, and I went through until the end. So I'm quite happy about it."[23] At his second event, the 2022 Grand Prix of Espoo, Sato fell on his quad Lutz attempt, finishing third in that segment.[24] Needing at least a second place to qualify for the Grand Prix Final, Sato rallied in the free skate, placing second in that segment and rising to second overall. Celebrating his successful qualification, he said it "always has been a dream of mine, but I couldn't go with the cancellations. I put a lot of effort into trying to make the Grand Prix Final."[25][26]
Sato was third in the short program at the University Games, but dropped to fifth after the free skate.[32] He was sixth in the short program at the Four Continents Championships after jump errors.[33] A clean free skate, but for an edge call on a triple flip jump, saw him place third in that segment and rise to third overall, taking the bronze medal. Sato noted his change of fortunes, commenting that "last year at this time I was undergoing surgery and right now a year later I won third place at Four Continents." He said that the short program errors that had been plaguing him all season were an area of focus going forward.[34][35] He then won gold at the International Challenge Cup.[36]
With national champion Shoma Uno suffering from an ankle injury and withdrawing from the 2023 World Team Trophy as a result, Sato was named to replace him on Team Japan.[37] In the short program he fell on his quad Lutz attempt and managed only a quad-double jump combination, placing eleventh in the segment.[38] He improved in the free skate, coming eighth, and sharing in Team Japan's bronze medal.[39]
2023–2024 season
Sato won the silver medal at the 2023 CS Finlandia Trophy, his first competition of the season.[15] He began the Grand Prix at the 2023 Skate America. Despite stepping out of his quad flip attempt in the short program, he broke the 90-point barrier in the segment for the first time (91.61) and finished third in the segment.[40] In the free skate he landed only one of three quads cleanly, coming fourth in the segment, but he remained in third place overall and won the bronze medal.[41] Sato was second in the short program at the 2023 Grand Prix of Espoo, but won the free skate with a new personal best score of 182.93; however, he remained second overall, 1.22 points behind Kao Miura. Sato said he was "happy to give a good performance for my fans and I hope to keep the momentum."[42]
At the 2023–24 Japan Championships, Sato finished fifth, saying he was both "happy and frustrated" with his results at the event.[43] Despite this placement, he was assigned to compete at the 2024 Four Continents Championships in Shanghai, where he came second in the short program with a new personal best score. He performed a quad Lutz as his second jump in the program, a decision he had been uncertain about earlier, and said he was glad to have kept.[44] Sato was third in the free skate, but remained in second place overall, claiming the silver medal.[45]
2024–2025 season
Sato began the season by competing at the 2024 CS Lombardia Trophy, where he won the bronze medal behind reigning World gold and silver medalists, Ilia Malinin and Yuma Kagiyama.[46] Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix circuit, Sato won the silver medal at the 2024 Skate Canada International.[15] Four weeks later, at the 2024 Cup of China, Sato would win the short program following a clean skate. During the free program, Sato would pop a planned quad flip into a double, but managed to land his three other quad attempts and two triple axels. Although he was second in the free skate segment, Sato managed to hold onto the gold medal position overall.[47]
Sato's results on the Grand Prix series allowed him to qualify for the 2024–25 Grand Prix Final in Grenoble, France.[48] At the Final, he placed fourth in the short program after falling on a quadruple lutz attempt. In the free skate, Sato would land three clean quad jumps and earn the highest technical score out of all the men in the event. He would place third in that segment and win the bronze medal overall behind Ilia Malinin and Yuma Kagiyama.[49][50]
^"佐藤駿にアクシデント 転倒で左肩強打し練習続けられず 現地報道" [Shun Sato accidentally fell and smashed his left shoulder and couldn't continue practicing.]. nikkansports.com (in Japanese). Nikkan Sports. October 22, 2021. Archived from the original on October 22, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
^"佐藤駿「まだ終わりじゃない」左肩負傷も4位フィニッシュ スケートアメリカ" [Shun Sato "It's not over yet" Left shoulder injury also finished 4th Skate America]. sponichi.co.jp (in Japanese). Sports Nippon (Sponichi Annex). October 24, 2021. Archived from the original on October 24, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.