Sports · Other Sports · 12 hrs ago
Figure skater Cha Jun-hwan to sit out this season and leave Seoul City team
South Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan will not compete this season or take part in national-team activities.
He also ended his contract with Seoul City, the team he represented.
The decision follows his fourth-place finish at the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics, the best result by a South Korean man in Olympic figure skating.
Cha has also won the 2025 Asian Winter Games and taken silver at the 2023 World Championships.
He has not retired, and a skating official said he will take a break while considering what to do next.
Cha has signed with an entertainment agency and appeared in an ice show, but his future activities remain undecided.
Cha Jun-hwan will not compete or represent South Korea during the current figure-skating season.
He also ended his contract with Seoul City Hall after discussions with the city.
The 25-year-old said he made the decision after lengthy consideration of his future activities.
A South Korean skating official said the move was not a retirement and that Jun-hwan would consider his next steps while resting.
Jun-hwan placed fourth in the men’s event at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics.
- Who
- South Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan.
- What
- He will pause national-team and competition activity this season and has ended his contract with Seoul City Hall.
- When
- He announced the decision on October 12, 2026.
- Where
- The announcement concerns his skating activities in South Korea and competitions; a specific location for the decision was not stated.
- Why
- He said he had spent a long time considering his future activities.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Jun-hwan placed 15th at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
He won the Four Continents Championships and placed fifth at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
He won silver at the World Championships.
He won gold at the Harbin Asian Winter Games.
He placed fourth in the men’s event at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
He announced he would skip national-team activity and competitions this season and end his Seoul City Hall contract.
- Current season
- No national-team activity or competition appearances
- Team contract
- Seoul City Hall contract ended
- Milan-Cortina Olympics
- Fourth place, men’s figure skating
- Harbin Asian Winter Games
- Gold medal, 2025
- Age
- 25, according to 中央日報
What people are saying
I decided not to continue national-team activities and compete this season.
I will do my best with the work given to me now and carefully consider what path to take in the future.
It is not an active-career retirement.
Sources
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