Japanese icon Yuzuru Hanyu retires from competition

Japanese figure skating icon Yuzuru Hanyu announced he is retiring from competition Tuesday but will continue his bid to land the elusive quadruple axel as a professional exhibition skater.

Two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu holds a press conference in Tokyo on July 19, 2022. (Kyodo) 

After missing out on a third straight Olympic gold at the Beijing Games in February, the 27-year-old two-time world champion left it unclear whether he would ever again compete on the ice.

“I’ll no longer be able to be compared with other competitors,” he said during a press conference in Tokyo. “But I’ll keep fighting my weaknesses and my past self.”

“In terms of results, I’ve achieved the things I could achieve. I stopped wanting to be evaluated.”

IN PHOTOS: Memories of Yuzuru Hanyu, undisputed king of the ice

He narrowly missed becoming the first athlete to land the quad axel in competition during his free skate in Beijing, falling on his attempt at the four-and-a-half rotation jump.

Composite photo taken Feb. 10, 2022, shows Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan attempting a quadruple axel during the men’s figure skating free skate at the Beijing Winter Olympics at the Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Hanyu, also a four-time Grand Prix Final winner and six-time national champion, withdrew from the world championships in March as he had not recovered from the ankle sprain he sustained in Beijing.

“I carried on until Beijing in pursuit of the quad axel but I feel I can do it, not necessarily in competitions…I actually feel it gives a chance for more people to witness it (in person).”

“I made the decision (to stop competing) after Beijing…I’ve thought through many things and felt I no longer need to be on the same stage, while also feeling more determined to get better and stronger.”

Japanese figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu performs his free skate at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in Gangneung, South Korea, on Feb. 17, 2018. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

A native of Sendai in northeastern Japan’s Tohoku region, Hanyu inspired victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated the area with his victory at the 2014 Sochi Games.

Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan smiles at the awards ceremony after winning the gold medal in the men’s figure skating event at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, on Feb. 15, 2014. Hanyu became the first Japanese man to win an Olympic figure skating gold. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

He made a historic defense of his Olympic gold at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, becoming the first to achieve the feat in the sport in 66 years, since American Dick Button.

Injuries have been a constant in Hanyu’s illustrious career.

Hanyu made a comeback from injury at the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang after sustaining right ankle ligament damage when practicing for the NHK Trophy in November 2017. Three months before Beijing 2022, another ligament injury to the same ankle forced him to pull out of the NHK Trophy again.

Defending world and Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu falls during training in Osaka on Nov. 9, 2017, for the NHK Trophy, with the spill bad enough for him to require treatment. Seeking his third straight NHK title on the…