Former world silver-medalist Eriko Sanmiya, who carried the flag for Japan at the opening ceremony of the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, revealed Thursday that she plans to call it a career in speedskating.
Sanmiya, 27, was considered one of Japan's best hopes for a medal at the Salt Lake City Games in February after she became Japan's first female skater to win a silver medal overall at the 2001 World Sprint Championships.
The Fujikyu club skater also won the national sprint championship crown three years in a row from 1998, but struggled last season and only managed to finish 11th in the women's 500 meters in Salt Lake City.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.