This is the part shared for free. The rest is behind a paywall:
My name is Kazuki Tomono, a figure skater. I hope to share my life and my view on skating through my series of articles. This time, I would like to talk about my thoughts behind the title of my column, "Honest, Smiling, Happy," and my early days of skating.
The three words in the title have always been important to me. I express myself "honestly" in skating, and try to make people who watch me "smile" and "be happy."
My goal is to skate in a way that makes those around me happy.
Athletes are the ones who inspire people through sports. I think figure skating is especially powerful in this regard. My ultimate goal is to show skating that makes people happy, no matter what kind of performance I do.
I was always so curious from a young age that people used to say I was a "handful child." On the other hand, I had the ability to make people smile and give them a happy feeling from that time.
My mother told me that when I was in a baby stroller, for example, I would smile and say "ahaha" when my eyes met people on the street. Then, young girls and women would come up to me and happily exclaim, "Oooooh!" and I heard that I was a popular baby. Those days were definitely the period of my life when I was the most "popular with girls." (laughs)
The name Kazuki is based on my parents' wish for me to be a boy who is able to move toward a single destination of hope.
Apparently he will go back to Japan before travelling to Nebelhorn.
So if he has rough skates, please don't worry, that's normal!
