Wakaba Higuchi

Wakaba Higuchi (born January 2, 2001) is a Japanese figure skater. She is the 2018 World silver medalist, a two-time World Junior bronze medalist (2015 & 2016), the 2014-15 JGP Final bronze medalist, a two-time Japanese national silver medalist (2017 & 2017), the 2015 Japanese national bronze medalist, and the 2016 Trophée de France and 2017 Rostelecom Cup bronze medalist.

Personal Life Edit

Wakaba's hobbies include watching movies and listening to music.

Career Edit

2015-16 Season Edit

Wakaba's first event of this season was at 2015 JGP Austria in Linz. She ranked eighth in the short program after missing a combo jump, doubling a triple, and losing the axis to a spin. During the freeskate, she popped two jumps, but managed to rank fourth. This put her in fifth place overall.

At Wakaba's second Junior Grand Prix event, 2015 JGP Croatia, she led the short program by 0.25 points. She placed second in the freeskate after popping a triple flip, and this put her in second place overall, behind Marin Honda. Unlike the previous season, she did not qualify for the JGP Final.

Wakaba won 2016 Japan Junior Championships, and placed second at 2016 Japan Championships, behind Satoko Miyahara. These placements qualified her for Junior Worlds.

At 2016 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, she placed fifth in the short program after falling on a jump. In the freeskate, she placed second after a clean performance and received the highest technical score. This put her in third place overall, and she won her second consecutive Junior Worlds bronze medal.

2014-15 Season Edit

Wakaba's first Junior Grand Prix event was at 2014 JGP Czech Republic in Ostrava. She placed fifth in the short program after doubling two jumps. The freeskate, however, was free of mistakes, and she led it by 1.73 points. This put her in second place overall, behind Evgenia Medvedeva.

Wakaba's next Junior Grand Prix event was at 2014 JGP Germany. She led the short program by 3.68 points, and the freeskate by 7.67. This put her in first place overall, with an 11.35 point lead. She subsequently qualified for the JGP Final.

During the short program at the 2014-15 JGP Final, she ranked in fifth, only ahead of Miyu Nakashio. In the freeskate, she popped a triple toe loop, but was able to manage third place in the freeskate and overall.

Later that season, Wakaba won 2015 Japan Junior Championships, and received the bronze medal at 2015 Japan Championships. These results qualified her for Junior Worlds.

At 2015 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, Wakaba placed third in the short program. In the freeskate, Wakaba received the highest technical score and placed second, behind Evgenia Medvedeva. This put her in third place overall.

Programs Edit

Exhibitions Edit

ISU Results Edit

(Season bests highlighted in bold) Edit

2017-2018 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 19 - 25	2018 World Championships	8 65.89	2 145.01	2 210.90
February 22 - 25	2018 International Challenge Cup	1 69.25	1 134.69	1 203.94
December 7 - 10	2017-18 Grand Prix Final	5 73.26	6 128.85	6 202.11
November 3 - 5	2017 Cup of China	2 70.53	2 141.99	2 212.52
October 20 - 22	2017 Rostelecom Cup	3 69.60	3 137.57	3 207.17
September 13 - 16	2017 Lombardia Trophy	1 74.26	2 143.37	2 217.63
2016-2017 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
April 20 - 23	2017 World Team Trophy	5 71.41	3 145.30	3 216.71
March 27 - April 2	2017 World Championships	9 65.87	12 122.18	11 188.05
February 14 - 19	2017 Four Continents Championships	10 58.83	9 113.22	9 172.05
November 25 - 27	2016 NHK Trophy	5 62.58	4 122.81	4 185.39
November 11 - 13	2016 Trophée de France	5 65.02	3 129.46	3 194.48
September 8 - 11	2016 Lombardia Trophy	1 66.66	3 112.20	1 178.86

2015-2016 Season
Date	Competition	Level	SP	FS	Total
March 14 - 20	2016 World Junior Championships	Junior	5 58.08	2 125.65	3 183.73
October 7 - 11	2015 JGP Croatia	Junior	1 60.77	2 114.29	2 175.06
September 10 - 13	2015 JGP Austria	Junior	8 46.55	4 110.24	5 156.79
2014-2015 Season
Date	Competition	Level	SP	FS	Total
March 2 - 8	2015 World Junior Championships	Junior	3 61.27	2 124.30	3 185.27
December 11 - 14	2014-15 JGP Final	Junior	5 60.37	3 117.72	3 178.09
October 1 - 4	2014 JGP Germany	Junior	1 58.99	1 117.15	1 176.14
September 3 - 6	2014 JGP Czech Republic	Junior	5 52.75	1 116.93	2 169.68
August 7 - 10	2014 Asian Open Trophy	Junior	2 57.05	1 109.85	1 166.90
2013-2014 Season
Date	Competition	Level	SP	FS	Total
March 6 - 9	2014 International Challenge Cup	Novice	1 40.35	1 90.74	1 131.09
August 8 - 11	2013 Asian Open Trophy	Novice	3 31.73	1 72.57	1 104.30
2012-2013 Season
Date	Competition	Level	SP	FS	Total
March 6 - 9	2013 International Challenge Cup	Novice	1 41.30	1 75.13	1 116.43
August 7 - 12	2012 Asian Trophy	Novice	1 43.06	2 64.49	2 107.55
2011-2012 season
Date	Competition	Level	SP	FS	Total
April 13 - 15	2012 Gardena Spring Trophy	Novice	1 45.56	1 63.51	1 109.07

Medal Record (In Chronological Order) Edit

Small Medal Record (Awarded at ISU Championships Only) Edit

Social Media Edit

Instagram: w_akababy_hi

Snapchat: wakabahiguchi

Twitter: @wakawakaskate

Sources Edit

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wakaba_Higuchi

https://www.statsonice.com/skater/Wakaba/Higuchi/

https://www.statsonice.com/skater/Kaichinihonbashigakuen/Wakaba.Higuchi/

http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00014149.htm

http://www.isuresults.com/ws/ws/wsladies.htm