Coach Utako Nagamitsu read a letter to Daisuke during the broadcast of a variety TV show, Uchi Kuru!? (Come to Home Sweet Home).
I translated the letter for all non-Japanese speaking fans. I am not a professional translator, but if you find it adequate for the time being, please go ahead and share it. Just let me know where you post it so I can track it later (you can leave a comment by clicking the "コメントする" box below).
Thanks.
noroton
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Dear Daisuke,
I feel embarrassed as I write a formal letter to you for the first time.
You were an 8th grader when I first met you that summer at a rink in Izumi, Sendai. As I was skating there, you walked into the rink accompanied by Hideko, and you just stood there.
It is always true that when you have a bad result, although it is bitter and painful at the time, later it brings you growth which is amazingly bigger than when you have good results. That experience has taught me that there is absolutely no such thing as a wasteful experience. When you feel you are wasting time meaninglessly, you are actually spending a very precious time of your life.
Although we left Japan for the training camp in Novogorsk, Moscow before going into Sochi with a desperate determination, you knee did not heal as we had expected. Many days have passed as you struggled to do the kind of practice you hoped you would have.
During the night practice a few days before leaving for Sochi, your strong will finally broke down. When you let out a cry of your bleeding heart, all I could do for you was to keep rubbing your back.
Still, I never doubted that Daisuke will accomplish a miracle in Sochi.
It has been already 3 months since then. Daisuke’s skate should not have ended there. After that result slowly sinks in within you, and when you nurture new strength to face the challenge again, that may be the moment we will see a new miracle… though I do not know yet what sort of a situation that will be.
I wish I could say I will quietly wait for the day I witness a scene where you are receiving a whole house standing ovation…but actually, I will be someone who keeps nagging you as usual, like a distant relative who irritates you all the time.
I will be waiting for you, together with many fans who love you from all over the world.
Utako Nagamitsu
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Video clips of Utako sensei reading the letter