No one had a stronger finish to the 2022-23 figure skating season than Lee Hae-in.
The Republic of Korean skater capped off her year at the season-ending World Team Trophy earlier this month by winning both the women’s short and long programs in a field that featured reigning and two-time world champion Sakamoto Kaori.
And that free skate triumph came on the eve of Lee’s 18th birthday, no less.
“I think it will be the happiest birthday in my life because I did so well,” a smiling Lee told Olympics.com in an exclusive interview in Tokyo. “And I got good scores, too. So, I'm really grateful.”
Lee has herself to be most thankful to: The teen had a sterling second half of the year after struggling with her form at the outset.
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She captured bronze at Korean nationals before winning the biggest title of her career at Four Continents in February and going on to claim silver at the World Championships last month, a feat that made her the first Korean woman to do so since the great Yuna Kim won the second of two world titles in 2013.
Lee calls the Vancouver 2010 Olympic champion her “forever idol.”
“I am Hae-in now, but I always try to skate just like Yuna every day,” Lee said. “Sometimes it doesn’t work so much... but I learned so many things from her. I want to become a good skater like Yuna Kim.”
Lee Hae-in: On turning her season around
While Lee impressed at the close of the 2021-22 season with a seventh-place finish at the World Championships last year in Montpellier, France, she was unable to carry that momentum into the new Olympic quad.
As she focused on developing stronger choreography, she lost her triple Axel, having been one of just a handful of female skaters to complete the rare jump at Worlds in 2022. She finished off the podium at both her Grand Prix events, Skate Canada and Grand Prix de France.
“[At the start of this season], I was so nervous and I was thinking, ‘I have to be good. No mistakes. I have to do my clean program and I have to get a good scores,’” Lee admitted. “But after the Grand Prix Series, I just tried to not think about any of that and focus on my program music and try to enjoy the competition.”
A pivotal moment came at Skate America when Lee was on practice ice with Sakamoto, whom she considers a close friend. Lee viewed the double Axel to be an “easy jump,” but as she watched the reigning world champ and Olympic bronze medallist hit her double over and over again, she saw things in a new light.
“Her double Axel is incredible; [it has such] good distance and so much speed,” Lee explained of Sakamoto. “So at that point I just wanted to do the double Axel just like her. And then I practised a lot and I watched her double Axel every day and then practised mine.”
There is still the want, Lee admitted, to get her triple Axel back, while also going after bigger jumps – and bigger goals.
“Deep in my heart, I really want to do difficult jumps... quadruple toe or something else,” Lee said. “But I'm not ready for it yet I think. So, I just only work on my triple Axel for next season.”
A focus on improvement - and friendships
As Lee looks to re-solidify her jump repertoire, she wants more consistency out of herself, tapping back into that clear-headed mindset and aiming to have a smoother start to the 2023-24 season, which will mark halfway to Milano Cortina 2026.
“I want to get a medal [on the] Grand Prix Series and I want to compete at the Grand Prix Final,” Lee said plainly, calling out two accomplishments she’s yet to achieve in her career.
Her change in mentality could be key, with her artistry - and in turn, her Program Component scores - a focus this year, having worked with well-known choreographers Shae-Lynn Bourne and Tom Dickson.
While an Olympic debut in 2026 sits in the distance, Lee isn’t concerning herself with those Games – just yet. The Korean women’s team continues to be a strong one, with a host of junior skaters coming up. Korea placed three skaters in the top five at World Juniors this year.
“I always dream about the Olympics... the Olympics are the most important competition,” she said. “But there are so many important competitions in skating: World Championships, Four Continents, Grand Prix Final. So for now, I just don't want to think about the Olympics. I want to focus on my off-season training and then next season.”
And while Lee has aspirations as high as any other skater, she is continuously driven and motivated by her peers, Sakamoto among others.
“Sakamoto and Mai Mihara,” she said, naming the two Japanese skaters as her good friends. “My Korean team, they are my best friends, but also Ilia Malinin and Amber Glenn [from the U.S.].
“I think they are such good friends to me and they are really helpful; they really care about me a lot,” Lee said. “So I feel really thankful to them and I want to treat them good. I give them good energy... and they give me more good energy.”
