Miho Takagi honored with Japan's People's Honor Award after retirement

In a Tokyo ceremony, speed skater Miho Takagi was bestowed the People's Honor Award by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. The 32-year-old athlete retired in April after a career that spanned four Winter Olympics and yielded ten medals - the most ever earned by a Japanese female athlete in any Olympic discipline. Her gold medals came from the team pursuit with sister Nana at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games and the 1,000-metre race in Beijing 2022, while she added three bronzes at the Milan-Cortina 2022 Games.

Takagi also claimed 38 individual World Cup victories and holds the women's 1,500-metre world record. This honor makes her the 29th recipient of the award, which has previously recognized figures from sport, entertainment and culture, most recently wheelchair-tennis star Shingo Kunieda in 2023.