A real life Japanese figure skater will be appearing in "Yuri!!! on Ice." The official anime website announced on Tuesday, Dec. 6 that four-time Grand Prix Final medalist Nobunari Oda was cast as himself in "Yuri!!! on Ice" episode 11.
According to Anime News Network, Oda will be the commentator for the short program in the Grand Prix Final alongside real-life TV Asahi commentator, Taihei Katō, who plays Hisashi Morooka, a figure skating enthusiast and announcer who is a fan of Yuri.
The 29-year-old professional skater won silver in the Grand Prix Final in 2009 and 2010, and bronze in 2006 and 2013. He is also the 2005 World Junior champion, 2006 Four Continents champion and 2008 Japanese national champion. Oda announced his retirement from competitive figure skating in December 2013 and became a became a professional skater and a TV personality.
In "Yuri!!! on Ice" episode 9, Yuri barely managed to qualify for the Grand Prix Final after finishing fourth in the Rostelecom Cup. "Yuri!!! on Ice" episode 11 will feature the start of the Grand Prix Final where Yuri will compete alongside five world class skaters, Christophe Giacometti from Switzerland, Jean-Jacques Leroy (JJ) from Canada, Otabek Altin from Kazakhstan, Phichit Chulanont from Thailand and Yuri Plisetsky from Russia.
All eyes are on the two Yuri's but the other athletes are expected to make the Grand Prix more competitive. JJ is one of the competition favorites winning two golds in the preliminaries while Otabek who has not shown his routines in the anime yet debuted third in the latest World Championships where Viktor won his fifth gold medal. Meanwhile, "Yuri!!! on Ice" episode 10 titled "Gotta Supercharge it! Pre-Grand Prix Final Special!" will feature the preparation of the athletes for the Grand Prix Final and how they will spend their break.
"Yuri!!! on Ice" episode 11 will air on Wednesday, Dec. 14 while episode 10 will air on Dec. 7. Watch the preview below
