Major honours
Japan has become figure skating's commercial and competitive center in the 21st century. Midori Ito opened the door by landing the first triple Axel by a woman in competition in 1988 and becoming the first Asian skater to win a World Championship in 1989, and Shizuka Arakawa took Olympic gold at Turin in 2006. Yuzuru Hanyu won at Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018, becoming the first man since Dick Button in 1952 to defend an Olympic men's singles title, and set 19 world records under the ISU Judging System. Mao Asada, with three World Championship titles and the first triple Axel completed by a woman, was the face of Japanese figure skating before Hanyu. Japanese broadcasters and sponsors are now the single largest source of funding for the entire Grand Prix circuit, the NHK Trophy and World Team Trophy sell out every year, and Japan's national championships draw higher television ratings than other countries' World Championships.
Record comparison
Bars are scaled to the strongest team in this list.
Club legends
Rivalry
The late-2000s rivalry between Mao Asada and South Korea's Yuna Kim remains the most passionately remembered contest for fans of both countries.