Confessions of a Covert Daisuke Takahashi Fan

• By Sarah Berlow

In recent years, Japan has followed the axels, lifts, and lunges of its professional figure skaters with a zeal not unlike Americans’ fascination with football touchdowns and field goals. But for some admirers of the sport, the fascination with its athletes has become something of a guilty pleasure — so guilty, in fact, that they feel they cannot reveal it to their husbands, friends or the intrepid reporters at JRT.

No figure skater has been the object of more secret adulation than Daisuke Takahashi, a 26-year old whose dashing looks and sumptuous moves have won him legions of fans among older Japanese women. Call them Daisuke’s aunties.

Mr. Takahashi, who most recently competed at the April 19-22 ISU World Team Trophy 2012 competition in Tokyo, came back from injury to win bronze at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and then gold at the World Championships.

JRT caught up with three of Mr. Takahashi’s fans at Tokyo Station, where one of the women was taking a train to watch her heartthrob at a competition in western Japan. They agreed to discuss the Daisuke-fan subculture on the condition that their names not be used.

“We’re like Dai-chan’s friendly neighborhood aunties,” says fifty-something Ms. Y.S., using an affectionate nickname for Mr. Takahashi.

The three say they’re part of a community of at least 200 fans who converse regularly via the Internet or in person to talk about Mr. Takahashi. They say they’re among a loyal entourage of older Japanese women, who follow his every move and attend his performances, including the recent 2012 World Figure Skating Championships in Nice, France, where he placed second.

The three fans refer to Mr. Takahashi as if he truly did grow up just around the corner, noting that his more dramatic presence on the ice differs completely from his usual self, when he is just “a cute, regular young guy.” All three said they liked both sides of Mr. Takahashi, but the clear implication is that they know there’s more to him than just his on-ice persona.

The skater’s enormous draw for older women is crystallized in rental housing company Kinoshita Management Co.’s recent commercial with Mr. Takahashi. In the commercial, an older, female “scoop reporter” named Wakako is hiding and surreptitiously photographing the skater practicing at an ice rink. Wakako is so drawn by his moves that — before she realizes it — she walks out of her hiding place and follows him onto the ice, saying, “Isn’t he so cool?”

In return for support ranging from giant birthday presents to motherly advice about what music he should skate to, Mr. Takahashi is happy to take photos with his fans (all three women have photographs with him), upload videos of his practice sessions online, and occasionally update admirers on the latest developments through his blog.

But it’s an expensive pastime for his fans. Transportation costs add up, and in recent years, tickets have become harder to get and more expensive due to Dai-chan’s popularity.

“It used to be pretty easy to get tickets to skating meets,” says Ms. A.K., who is in her forties. “Now the chances of getting tickets are much slimmer.” A regular ticket can cost Y20,000 ($210) depending on the event, she adds.

Many of the women are older housewives, and some engage in part-time work. Ms. Y.S. has a full-time job, and uses her days off to attend Mr. Takahashi’s events.

The trio went to Nice this March, where they said it felt like a third of the stadium was Japanese, indicating the popularity of the sport in Japan. Mr. Takahashi performed flawlessly, they said, but he still lost out on the gold medal, which Canadian Patrick Chan won, despite falling once during a routine. Ms. A.K. said that although she likes Chan, the outcome was “vexing.”

“You definitely have to wonder why. It’s true that Mr. Chan has speed and overwhelming power, but what comes across [in the two skaters’ performances] is different,” she said, alluding to some stronger emotional element in Mr. Takahashi’s routines.

After his performance, the three women all threw bouquets onto the rink for Mr. Takahashi, in a sign of support and affection.

So how do their husbands feel about all this adulation for a younger man?

According to the women, many in the community don’t tell their partners about their hobby, or even their friends.

Ms. A.K. says her husband is unaware that her outings to skating events, which he pays for, is due to her particular fascination with Mr. Takahashi.

Ms. K.T., in her thirties, responds with a similar comment: “I don’t think my husband realizes that I like Mr. Takahashi that much. I think he thinks I’m more a fan of figure skating in general.”

Of course, Mr. Takahashi won’t be able to meet the demands of being an athlete indefinitely. While all three women were adamant that he will participate in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, they acknowledge the fact that at 26, Takahashi is nearing the end of his time as a skater.

Could hanging up his skates leave a bigger hole in the life of his fans than his own?

Unsure what they will do with their spare time when the inevitable days comes, the three women choose instead to focus on the present.

“We want to go to as many events as we can,” said Ms. A.K., “while we can.”

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