Deadly misjudgment blew the bronze medal. Cha Jun-hwan, the reason why I'm so disappointed in the final 4th place... "How much better do you want me to do?" Foreign media also said, "Explosion of anger." [Milan Olympics]

*This content was translated by AI.

Cha Jun-hwan (25, Seoul City Hall), the leading figure skater of South Korea, has renewed the history of South Korean men's figure skating by reaching the final fourth place, the highest record ever, on the third Olympic stage. Although he couldn't stand on the podium due to a slight difference, it is regrettable that if there was no controversy over the decision that occurred in the short program, it was possible to reach the podium.

Cha Jun-hwan scored 181.20 points in the men's single free skate at the 2026 Milan-Cortina D'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, adding 95.16 points in technical score (TES) and 87.04 points in artistic score (PCS) at the free skate. Cha Jun-hwan, who scored 273.92 points overall, combined with his short program score (92.72 points), ranked fourth out of 24 players.

It is only 0.98 points behind Japan's Satoshun (274.90 points), who won the bronze medal. Initially, it seemed that it would not be easy to reach the medal table, but while Ilya Malin (USA) and Adam Xiao Himpa (France), who were at the top of the short program, were falling in the free skate, Cha Jun-hwan maintained his concentration until the end and raised his ranking. Although there was one mistake of falling on the quadruple toe loop, he completely performed the rest of the task, breaking his highest ranking yet again, following 15th place in Pyeongchang 2018 and 5th place in Beijing 2022.

Since he received a high score for his outstanding performance in the free skate, the stingy score given to Cha Jun-hwan during the short program is all the more regrettable. This is because Cha Jun-hwan received a curious score of 92.72 points even though he performed close to clean in the short program on the 10th.

In fact, foreign media also expressed doubts about Cha's short program score. Former Japanese figure skater Nobunari Oda said, "It doesn't make sense to get Level 3 in the step sequence. I want to become a director of the Korean Federation and protest. "What should I do if I don't get Level 4 when I'm so good?" he said.

Even the U.S. newsletter "Newsweek" said, "It was an amazing short performance enough to enter the medal competition, but the score was much lower than expected." "Inside skating" also had to receive 9 points in composition, expression, and skating skills. "I can't ride better, but 42.64 points (PCS) is too small," he pointed out. Even the broadcasting staff of Germany's "ZDF" claimed, "I don't know why it falls to 8.5 points when artistic perfection is the best."

In the end, the slight difference in scores cut in the short program determined whether or not to win a medal. If, in the opinion of experts, level 4 was recognized in the step sequence and fair evaluation in the art score, the 0.98-point gap with Satoshun was sufficiently reversible.

Cha Jun-hwan said in the mixed zone, "When I look at the rankings, I can't help but feel sorry," but added, "I have no regrets because I poured everything into it as if I had been determined." I learned more in my life as a person than in my life as a player," he said.

Cha Jun-hwan, who has made great achievements, including the gold medal at the 2025 Harbin Winter Asian Games, missed the Olympic medal due to the disappointment of the decision, but he broke the limit again and wrote a new history of Korean men's figure skating.

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*This content was translated by AI.