Figure skating-Japan's Sakamoto to retire after 2026 Winter Olympics

FILE PHOTO: Mar 28, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Kaori Sakamoto (JPN) wins silver in Womens Free Skating during the ISU World Figure Skating Championships at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images/File Photo

(Reuters) -Three-times world figure skating champion Kaori Sakamoto is to retire after the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics next year, the Japanese 25-year-old told reporters in Kobe on Friday.

Sakamoto became the first woman in 56 years to win the figure skating world singles title three times in a row last year, matching the feat of American Peggy Fleming, who won three world titles between 1966-68.