by The TV anime Medalist will begin airing on the “NUMAnimation” slot on 24 TV Asahi-affiliated stations nationwide at 1:30 a.m. today (Saturday). Here, we provide an overview of the series and some highlights.
Medalist is a figure skating-themed manga currently being serialized in Kodansha’s Afternoon magazine. The story begins when Akiura Michiji, a 26-year-old man who failed as a skater, meets Yuzuki Inori, a girl who dreams of becoming a figure skater. She is driven by her tenacity to take on the coach role. The two grow together as they struggle to become glorious “medalists.”
The original work won numerous awards, including first place in the comics category at the Next Manga Awards 2022, the general audience category at the 68th Shogakukan Manga Awards, and the Best Actress award at the Magademy Awards 2022, a manga award that honors manga characters, even though it was the author’s debut work. Cast information includes Natsumi Haruse as the protagonist, Inori Yuzoku, Tsuyoshi Otsuka as Michishi Akiura, Kana Ichinose as Okamizaki Hikaru, who is Inori Yuzoku’s rival, and Yuuma Uchida as Jun Yotaka, a legendary genius skater. The animation will be produced by ENGI, which has worked on “Kantai Collection: Someday at That Sea” and “Unnamed Memory,” and the script will be written by Jukki Hanada.
The theme song artists are also awe-inspiring. The opening theme song is Kenshi Yonezu’s new song, “BOW AND ARROW.” He revealed that he is a fan of the original manga and that when asked to write the theme song, he saw that it would be made into an anime and asked if he could write a song. He continued, “It’s an excellent manga, so I want everyone to read it.
I’m looking forward to the anime as a viewer as well.”
At the advance screening event held last year, Otsuka, who played Tsukasa, told the audience who watched the movie live from the venue and theaters around the country that “the energy is incredible, so I wanted to express that through my voice in the anime,” and commented that he wanted the audience to feel Tsukasa’s love for skating and his feelings for Inori. “Medalist” really focuses on the skating scene, and it’s an anime that can be enjoyed by skating fans and those who are watching skating for the first time. I hope everyone will look forward to the broadcast.”
