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Adam Hagara (SVK) during his routine in the Men's Singles at the Gangneung Ice Arena on Monday. @OIS/Simon Bruty

Youth Olympic silver sparks Milano-Cortina dreams for rising star Hagara (SVK), as he puts Figure Skating on the map back home

Adam Hagara (SVK) goes down on his knees and slides on the ice with a smile on his face after having performed an epic Free Skate in the Men’s Figure Skating event at the Winter Youth Olympic Games Gangwon 2024.

It is Monday afternoon and by winning the country’s first-ever medal in this sport at the Youth Olympic Games (YOG), Hagara has taken Slovakia Figure Skating to heights it has never been before.

The 17-year-old rising star delivered a score of 141.17 points for a total of 216.23 to clinch silver, missing out on gold by only half a point, as Kim Hyungyeom (KOR) soared to victory on home ice at the Gangneung Ice Arena.

But that did not ruin Hagara’s spirits - and for good reason. He had just carved his name in Slovakian skating history.

“I feel really good,” Hagara said after the final on Monday. “The Olympic (silver) medal is on my neck. I’m really happy.”

 

“I skated how I wanted to, maybe it could’ve been a little better, but overall I’m pretty happy.”

Adam Hagara (SVK) celebrates at the end of his routine during the Men's Singles at Gangwon 2024. @OIS/Simon Bruty 

Image of the sport

Before this historic display, Hagara had already been the first skater from his country to qualify for the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final in China last year - even winning bronze.

He now hopes that this achievement on the Olympic stage will further boost the image of the sport back home.

“I'm trying to do my best. Firstly, I'm trying to enjoy myself and try to do the best for myself. But also there's the thing like putting Slovakia on the map, trying to make figure skating in Slovakia a bigger sport than it already is,” Hagara said.

 

“We have a long history of figure skating but it kind of went forgotten. So I'm trying to put it into place again. And it's a great feeling to have the medal and show figure skating to all the fans in Slovakia.”

Hagara revealed he has also received a scholarship to support his skating development over the next two years. Training at an elite level is not easy in Slovakia, a developing nation when it comes to Figure Skating.

“It can get really expensive. I train in two different cities. In my home city Trnava in the morning and then I have to travel some 80 kilometers to Bratislava in the afternoon. My father sometimes takes me there," Hagara said.

 

“This funding helps because I have more opportunities for training and other things. My goal is to qualify for the Milano-Cortina Olympics (in 2026).”

Hagara already knows how he wants to achieve that goal, drawing inspiration from Hyungyeom and his quad toe loop - an element that is not part of Hagara's routine, yet. 

“It's a disadvantage to not have the quads, especially when (gold medalist) Hyungyeom performs it every single time,” Hagara said. “So I have to put more into the Axels and landings to get higher grades of execution."

 

"The World Championships take place in the United States next year, so that's where I'll try to qualify for the Winter Olympics (in 2026)."

Figure Skating at Gangwon 2024 concludes tomorrow (Thursday) with the first-ever Team Event at the Youth Olympic Games. Full schedule can be found here.

You can watch the live stream of the competitions at Gangwon 2024 here.