HERE IS A MACHINE TRANSLATION OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE AFTER THE AWARDING OF THE MEDAL.
This summer, the medal ceremony was held in Paris during the Olympics, but Uno was unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts.After receiving his medal, Uno spoke as follows:
"First of all, thank you for giving me this opportunity. Even though I was given the opportunity to receive my medal at the Paris Olympics, I was unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts. Despite that, I am very happy that I was given this opportunity again. Although some time has passed, as a member of the Japanese figure skating team, I am very happy that everyone has valued the results of this precious stage, the Olympics, and that this opportunity has been given to me. I think that this silver medal was truly achieved by everyone working together. I watched the medal presentation ceremony (in Paris in August), and each and every skater was very happy. I was very happy that they continued their will and took to the stage despite my absence. Thank you very much for today."◇
The main exchanges with the press after the medal presentation are as follows.
--How do you feel about receiving the medal?"Yes, I'm very happy that they gave me this opportunity. Of course, it would have been better to receive it in person before the excitement had died down, but I'm really happy that they gave me this opportunity surrounded by so many people, and not just once, but twice...I was forced to miss the first one, so I'm very happy about that.
This is your first medal as a team. Do you feel it's different from an individual medal?"I just can't help but think that team skating is...we've always been individual sports, but when I watched the Paris Olympics recently and the various team competitions, I thought it was really cool. We won this silver medal as a team. I hope that team skating will become a sport that's not just about singles, but that both the athletes and the spectators can get really excited about.
"You've now surpassed Mao Asada and Yuzuru Hanyu to become the Japanese figure skater with the most medals ever. How do you feel about that?"I'm very grateful for this record, but I'm sure that my juniors, especially Kagiyama Yuma, will be expected to win medals at the next Olympics. I'm really happy to have a lot of medals, but I think that my silver medal has a story that only I can tell, and it carries weight. I think that all athletes, both those who won medals and those who didn't, have many stories and paths on the stage that only comes once every four years, the Olympics. I'm honestly happy for myself."
Did you talk to or meet with everyone after the award ceremony in Paris?"I'm very happy about this, but I was very busy, so I didn't get to see you all that often. At the time, I was in Switzerland, and after coming back to Japan, I was flying around to various shows, so I'm finally going to have a little break, so I hope I can feel that way."
You retired from active competition in May of this year and turned professional. Please tell us again about your future goals."I've seen so many different things in the last few months, and I've done so many different things that I've gained new ways of thinking and ideas about what I want to do in the future. I haven't decided on anything yet, but I want to learn so many different things and find my own path. Of course, when I was competing, the most important thing for me was competition, and I thought that was the place where I could find my value. But now I'm keenly aware that if you change your perspective, the world is so vast. I really want to choose the path I want to take with my own hands.
After you retire, did you ever have any recollections of your time as an athlete when you held your medal in your hand?"After watching the Paris Olympics, I feel like I was on that stage when I received this medal. It's been a short time since I retired, but I'm very proud that I was able to become a part of the past when I saw all the cool people who were active. When I take a step back and look back at my achievements and the skating career I've built up, I feel really proud."
Did you change your perspective on the Olympics when you took a step back and looked at Paris?--I think I would be nervous. I think the path that the athletes took to get there was probably much harder, so of course there are some people who are more nervous about the Olympics. When I was an athlete, the Olympics were at the end of my daily life. I wasn't particularly nervous, but now that I'm watching from a distance, I feel like the Olympics are more special for the athletes than for the athletes."
Are there any scenes or events at the Paris Olympics or Paralympics that left an impression on you?"I think men's gymnastics is amazing. I'm an individual sport. (Figure skating) is a 'team', but the dates are split up, so it's not timely. But in gymnastics, everything is decided in just a few hours. When I saw that they really can't afford to make a single mistake, I thought about the amazingness that only this sport can offer."
At the medal ceremony in Paris, the athletes wrote Shoma Uno's name on their fingers. What did you think when you saw the video? I don't know, I haven't really done anything like a senior to you guys. I've always been an athlete with the feeling of 'following my own path'. I wasn't particularly close to you guys, like going out to eat or anything, but I'm very happy that you took over my will and thought of me on that stage."-
Where will you display your medal?Yes. I think I'll display it in the place where I need it most."--Where is that?"It depends on you guys."
Again, what kind of members were on the Japanese team? Of course, this is really just my personal opinion, but I can say this because I participated in the figure skating team event as an athlete, but compared to the individual events... I think many people were worried about the "individual" events. However, this time, everyone gave a really great performance and won the silver medal. They really performed well despite the very difficult schedule, such as having an individual short program the next day. I think the feelings towards the team were the strongest they've ever been. I hope that there will be a little more focus on figure skating teams in the future.
You mentioned Kagiyama earlier. How would you like your juniors to spend the season leading up to the Olympics?"Yes, it's a competitive world, so I don't think everyone will be happy. I think the men's figure skating will be a very fierce battle to qualify for the Olympics. It will be interesting to watch, though. Everyone will be satisfied, and of course the Olympic stage is a very big stage... it's an important stage, but everyone will find their own goal and achieve it. As a senior, I hope that they don't think too much about big things all of a sudden, but just do their best with what's in front of them.
"If you had won a medal at the Beijing Olympics, do you think it would have had an impact on your career today, Uno?"I don't think it has had an impact. I don't really feel that my past results have changed my career. It's something I made myself when I faced figure skating every day and felt like, 'this is a bit tough,' so it was a decision I made myself. Rather than thinking, 'I've achieved this result in a competition, so I'm going to quit,' I've been competing in figure skating whilst being inspired by those around me. There were two people who were very important to me - Yuzuru Hanyu and Nathan Chen. I think their presence was huge for me." (Written by Uchida Kai)
Don't get me wrong, I'm still incredibly glad he finally received his medal for that amazing team event performance!!! 
love all his quotes from the press conference, and happy that his Mother was able to attend the ceremony too (and them having their own little ceremony was very sweet). I'm also very moved by how he is speaking about his teammates and his juniors, especially Yuma, who are incredible and will likely to surpass his feat for the most Olympic medals. 
and obviously Marin is Shoma's loved one. Blessings for all!
what a whirlwind 2 weeks it has been.
Congratulations to the whole family.
