Medalist vol 2 by tsurumaikada

Inori partakes in her first skating competition, and her warmup is disastrous. Her mom comes back to the locker room to ask Coach Tsukasa if they can take the jumps out of her routine since she can’t complete them, and she doesn’t want Inori to fall out of love with skating. This furthers Inori’s resolve to do well during the competition. Inori and others watch Hikaru compete, one of the best child skaters, and Tsukasa realizes something strange is going on with her coaching staff. After the competition ends, Inori and Tsukasa travel to Kyoto to take the Level 1 exam, and Tsukasa gets some advice from another coach that boosts his confidence.

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The competitions are portrayed very intensely, but the figure skating is drawn so beautifully and with such care. Tsurumaikada breaks down some of the moves like you’re watching a sports broadcast, so even readers who don’t have a firm grasp on all the skating terms can enjoy what's going on. There are also some wonderful character moments with Inori's mom realizing what she has been doing to her daughter and how she's been treating her all these years, as well as some great moments of growth with Inori and Tsukasa around skating and perseverance.

Kodansha rates this for teen, probably because of the intensity of the title and some of the emotional moments the characters experience, but this can definitely be read by middle school students who have most likely experienced some form of childhood sports or competition at some point and had to overcome or have had similar experiences to Inori or her fellows. 

Sara's Rating: 9/10
Suitability Level: Grades 7-12

Reviews of previous volumes in this series: vol 1*

Publisher: Kodansha
Publication Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9798888771952 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 9/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Sports, Family, Friendship, Kodansha