Daisuke Takahashi has stressed to his coach that he didn’t envision switching to ice dance would be so difficult.
Takahashi, an Olympic bronze medalist and world champion in singles, and partner Kana Muramoto learned over the last two days just how much work is ahead in competition to unseat Japan’s top couple and qualify for a world championships or Olympics.
Muramaoto, a 2018 Olympian, and Takahashi placed third out of three couples at NHK Trophy, their debut event and the first-ever dance competition for the 34-year-old Takahashi. He switched to dance less than a year ago.