Daisuke Murakami (figure skater)

Daisuke Murakami
Daisuke Murakami at 2010 Skate America photo by David Carmichael
Personal information
Country represented	Japan
Former country(ies) represented	United States (until end of 2006–07 season)
Born	January 15, 1991 Kanagawa, Japan
Residence	Los Angeles, California
Height	165 cm (5 ft 5 in)
Coach	Frank Carroll Kumiko Sato
Former coach	Tammy Gambill Nikolai Morozov
Choreographer	Lori Nichol
Former choreographer	Jeffrey Buttle, Nikolai Morozov
Skating club	Aomori FSC
Training locations	Los Angeles, California
Began skating	2000
ISU personal best scores
Combined total	256.47 2015 Four Continents
Short program	83.47 2015 Grand Prix Final
Free skate	173.61 2015 Four Continents

Japanese name
Kanji	村上 大介
Kana	むらかみ だいすけ
Transcriptions Romanization Murakami Daisuke

Daisuke "Dice" Murakami (村上 大介 Murakami Daisuke, born January 15, 1991, in Kanagawa) is a Japanese figure skater. He is the 2014 NHK Trophy champion, 2011 Ondrej Nepela Memorial champion, and 2009 Japan Junior bronze medalist.

Earlier in his career, he represented the United States, winning a bronze medal on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series and the 2006 U.S. junior national pewter medal. In 2011, Murakami became the first to land the quad salchow jump in the men's category at the Japan Championships.

Personal life

Daisuke "Dice"^[1] Murakami was born on January 15, 1991 in Kanagawa, Japan.^[2] His family moved to the United States in 2000 after winning a green-card lottery to become US residents.^[3]

Murakami is a two-time recipient of the Michael Weiss Foundation scholarship, which is a scholarship program created to help young American figure skaters.

Career

For the United States

Murakami began skating at age ten, soon after moving to the U.S.^[4][5] He began competing on the juvenile level in 2001.

Representing the U.S., Murakami made his international debut in April 2004 at the Triglav Trophy, where he won the novice men's title. He received his first ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) assignments in autumn 2004. In the 2006–07 season, he won the bronze medal at his JGP event in Mexico.

For Japan

Murakami made no international appearances during the 2007–08 season due to his switch to Japan. He was released at the start of the following season but could not compete at his first JGP assignment, in Mexico, due to a paperwork problem.^[6] He placed fourth at his next JGP event, in South Africa.

Making his senior international debut, Murakami placed 7th at the 2009 Finlandia Trophy and 9th at his first Grand Prix event, the 2009 NHK Trophy. In 2010, he parted ways with his coach, Nikolai Morozov, and relocated to Los Angeles, California to work with Frank Carroll.^[7] He won the bronze medal at the 2011 Winter Universiade in Turkey.

The following season, Murakami won gold at the 2011 Ondrej Nepela Memorial and 2011 Merano Cup. He finished sixth at the 2011 Skate America and 2011–12 Japanese Nationals.

Murakami began the 2012–13 season by winning the silver medal at 2012 Ondrej Nepela Memorial. He dislocated his right shoulder during competition at the 2012 NHK Trophy, forcing him to withdraw from the event.^[8] He also withdrew from the 2012–13 Japanese Nationals due to his recovery,^[9] but came back to finish the season with a bronze medal at the 2012 Triglav Trophy.

In the 2013–14 season, Murakami won both the Tokyo Regionals and the Eastern Sectionals.^[10][11] He then won the silver medal at 2013 Merano Cup. He came in tenth at the 2013–14 Japanese Nationals and finished the season with a gold medal at the Coupe du Printemps in Luxembourg.

On August 12, 2014, it was announced that Murakami had been selected as a host pick at the 2014 NHK Trophy.^[12] In September, he placed third in the 2014 U.S. International Classic at Salt Lake City, Utah.^[13] In November, he won the men's single event at the NHK Trophy, beating three skaters who qualified for the Grand Prix Final.^[8] At the 2015 Four Continents Championships in Seoul, Korea, he set personal best scores in all segments; he placed third in the free skate and fourth overall.^[14][15]

Murakami was awarded the bronze medal at the 2015 Trophee Eric Bompard after placing third in the short program. The second day of competition was cancelled due to the November 2015 Paris attacks.

Programs

Season	Short program	Free skating	Exhibition
2016–17 [16]	Bring Him Home (from Les Misérables) by Claude-Michel Schönberg performed by Josh Groban choreo. by Lori Nichol	Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo performed by Andrea Bocelli choreo. by Lori Nichol
2015–16 [2][17][18][19]	Bring Him Home (from Les Misérables) by Claude-Michel Schönberg performed by Josh Groban choreo. by Lori Nichol	Anniversary by Yoshiki choreo. by Lori Nichol	The Prayer [20] by David Foster, Carole Bayer Sager, Alberto Testa, Tony Renis performed by David Archuleta, Nathan Pacheco El Tango de Roxanne [20] (from Moulin Rouge soundtrack)
2014–15 [21][22][23]	El Tango de Roxanne (from Moulin Rouge soundtrack) The Wind and the Lion by Jerry Goldsmith	Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninoff	Say Something by A Great Big World
2013–14 [24]	Once Upon A Time In Mexico by Robert Rodriguez	Gladiator by Hans Zimmer
2012–13 [25][26]	Bolero for Violin and Orchestra by Walter Taieb	The Mission by Ennio Morricone	Die in Your Arms
2011–12 [27]	The Feeling Begins by Peter Gabriel	Gladiator by Hans Zimmer
2010–11 [28]	Toccata and Fugue by Johann Sebastian Bach performed by Vanessa-Mae	Lawrence of Arabia by Maurice Jarre	Sexy Back by Justin Timberlake Move, Shake, and Drop by DJ Laz
2009–10 [29]	West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein	The Rock by Nick Glennie-Smith, Hans Zimmer, and Harry Gregson-Williams	Señorita by Justin Timberlake Low by Flo Rida
2008–09 [30]	Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky choreo. by Nikolai Morozov	Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini by Sergei Rachmaninov choreo. by Nikolai Morozov	Apologize by OneRepublic
2007–08			Pump It by Black Eyed Peas
2006–07 [31]	Breakfast at Tiffany's by Henry Mancini	The Vision of Escaflowne by Yoko Kanno
2005–06 [4]	Korobushka by Bond	West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein	Pump It by Black Eyed Peas
2004–05	Hava Nagila by various artists	Pirates of the Caribbean by Hans Zimmer, Klaus Badelt
2003–04	Sing Sing Sing by Louis Prima	Fiddler on the Roof by Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick, John Williams
2002–03		Iron Monkey by Richard Yuen, James L. Venable

Competitive highlights

GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

Results for Japan

International[32]
Event	07–08	08–09	09–10	10–11	11–12	12–13	13–14	14–15	15–16	16–17
Four Continents								4th
GP Final									6th
GP NHK Trophy			9th			WD		1st
GP Skate America				5th	6th					WD
GP Skate Canada									3rd
GP Trophée de France									3rd	WD
CS Ondrej Nepela										4th
CS U.S. Classic								3rd
Finlandia Trophy			7th	5th
Merano Cup					1st		2nd
Printemps							1st	1st
Nepela Memorial					1st	2nd
Triglav Trophy				2nd		3rd
Universiade				3rd
International: Junior[32]
JGP South Africa		4th
Challenge Cup		1st J
National[33]
Japan Champ.		5th	19th	7th	6th	WD	10th	7th	7th
Japan Junior	5th	3rd
Team events
Japan Open									1st T 5th P
J: Junior level; WD: Withdrew

Results for the United States

International: Junior or novice[32]
Event	03–04	04–05	05–06	06–07
World Junior Champ.			11th
JGP China		11th
JGP Chinese Taipei				4th
JGP Mexico				3rd
Triglav Trophy	1st N
National[32][34]
U.S. Championships	2nd N		4th J	15th
Pacific Coast Sectionals	2nd N	6th J.	1st J	2nd
Southwestern Regionals	1st N	2nd J	1st J
Levels – N: Novice; J: Junior

References

1. "Novice Men's Free". U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved January 23, 2015. (Photo caption)
2. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2015/2016". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 27, 2016.
3. Stevenson, Alexandra (September 15, 2006). "Mroz Leaps from 11th to Second; Murakami Finishes Third at JGP Mexico". U.S. Figure Skating.
4. Mittan, Barry (April 25, 2006). "Japan's Loss is America's Gain". Skate Today.
5. "Daisuke Murakami: "To pop up on the top of the podium was like a cherry on top"". Figureskating-Online. Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
6. Rutherford, Lynn (September 16, 2008). "Hughes back in Boston to start fall semester". IceNetwork.com.
7. Walker, Elvin (May 2, 2011). "Daisuke Murakami Flying High". International Figure Skating. Archived from the original on May 5, 2011.
8. Tamura, Akiko (November 29, 2014). "Murakami turns in dream free to take NHK gold". Ice Network.
9. "男子の村上、全日本選手権欠場／フィギュア" [Murakami, male, withdraws from Japan Championships / Figure skating]. SanSpo.com (in Japanese). December 12, 2012. Archived from the original on February 2, 2013.
10. "男子 - 最終結果" (in Japanese). Japan Skating Federation Official Results & Data Site. 2013.
11. "男子 - 最終結果" (in Japanese). Japan Skating Federation Official Results & Data Site. 2013.
12. "ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2014/15 - Men" (PDF). International Skating Union. August 12, 2014.
13. "Protocol of the 2014 U.S International Figure Skating Classic" (PDF). International Skating Union. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
14. "Competition Results: Daisuke MURAKAMI". International Skating Union. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
15. "Protocol of the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships® 2015" (PDF). International Skating Union. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
16. "今シーズン、... プログラム" [This season, ... program] (Instagram) (in Japanese). July 15, 2016.
17. Kirk, Jenny; Lease, Dave [The Skating Lesson] (May 7, 2015). "Les Miserables" (Facebook).
18. Xiong, Wei (June 12, 2015). "Japanese stars debut programs at 'Dreams on Ice'". IceNetwork.
19. "今シーズンプログラム(FS)" [This season program (FS)]. Official website of Daisuke Murakami (in Japanese). July 19, 2015.
20. "Stars on Ice Japan Tour 2016 - 滑走順＆曲目" [Program list]. Tokyo Broadcasting System Television (in Japanese). Retrieved July 15, 2016.
21. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on October 24, 2014.
22. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on January 6, 2015.
23. Kuryu, Atsuko (December 10, 2014). "NHK Trophy 2014". Absolute Skating. Archived from the original on January 22, 2015.
24. "13-14シーズン 村上 大介｜フィギュアスケート｜スポーツナビ" [13-14 season Daisuke Murakami ｜ Figure skating ｜ Sports Navi]. sportsnavi.yahoo.co.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 11, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
25. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on November 23, 2012.
26. Kuryu, Atsuko; Misasagi, Sei (October 9, 2012). "Friends On Ice 2012". Absolute Skating. Archived from the original on May 26, 2013.
27. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on December 25, 2011.
28. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2010/2011". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on March 7, 2012.
29. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on October 29, 2009.
30. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2008/2009". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 3, 2009.
31. "Daisuke MURAKAMI: 2006/2007". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 20, 2007.
32. "Competition Results: Daisuke MURAKAMI". International Skating Union.
33. "Daisuke Murakami" (in Japanese). Japan Skating Federation.
34. "Daisuke Murakami". U.S. Figure Skating. Archived from the original on June 26, 2006.

External links

• Official website
• Daisuke Murakami at the International Skating Union