The Athlete's Pledge (Japanese: 選手宣誓 Senshu Sensei) is the sixteenth chapter of the Medalist manga.
Characters[]
(cameo)
(cameo)
Story[]
One month after earning her Level 6, Inori attends the Chubu Block Tournament, where 15 skaters will compete for just five spots to qualify for the All-Japan Novice A. Entering the venue for the opening ceremony, she overcomes her nervousness and, channeling her "inner Tsukasa," confidently introduces herself to the group of Novice A skaters. She quickly gets along with the girls, who start introducing themselves and their friends. However, they are all surprised to learn that Hikaru is not participating this year.
It is then revealed that Hikaru has traveled to Russia to study ballet and was selected as a seed at the Nagano camp, guaranteeing a spot in the All-Japans even without competing in the block event. It occurs to Inori that Hikaru had said to meet at the All-Japans, not at the block tournament — meaning she already believed in Inori to qualify.
The crowd's attention then shifts to three high school students entering the venue, who Inori recognizes as the Designated Skaters of the Chubu Region — skating prospects officially selected and supported by the Japan Skating Federation. The skaters are identified as Iruka Okazaki, Marika Kurione, and Top Skater Riina Kojoh, who competed in the last Olympics.
To everyone's surprise, Inori approaches Riina and, out of the blue, asks her how to get into the Olympics, drawing attention from the TV crews. Iruka Okazaki seems unimpressed and condescendingly tries to put Inori in her place. Marika attempts to comfort the distressed Inori, while Riina gives a straightforward answer: wait until an Olympic year, and win the gold medal at the All-Japans. She explains that she qualified for the Olympics in her first senior year by doing just that, despite having no prior records and skepticism from others. Riina then declares her intention to win again this year and make it to the Olympics a second time.
In turn, Inori declares she'll also be a gold medalist at the All-Japans someday, but Riina tells her that she'll have to prove it today, not "someday." She points out that the element requirements for Novice A are actually tougher than junior or senior, a special rule designed to develop skaters capable of competing internationally. To this, Inori answers with a resolute affirmation.
The opening ceremony proceeds with the Designated Skaters swearing an oath, vowing to deliver only their best performances. The draw for the skating order follows, and in the mean time, Koichi Kago and Yoh Kago arrive in the audience.