Milan: Five days after narrowly missing the podium in the men's singles event at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, South Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan revealed Wednesday he had performed on a bad ankle. After a training session for his gala show at Milano Ice Skating Arena, Cha told reporters that he still had not decided if he would compete at the world championships next month in Prague.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Cha mentioned that his body was not at full capacity, citing issues finding the right pair of skate boots as a contributing factor to his ankle strain. He disclosed that his ankle had to be repeatedly drained in the days leading up to the Olympics, and he had been concealing this injury from the media.

Cha shared that he also encountered flu symptoms before arriving in Milan, which subsided with vitamin C intake. However, his health deteriorated again after his free skate performance. Despite these challenges, Cha achieved a fourth-place finish with 273.92 points, marking the highest placement by a South Korean male figure skater at an Olympics, just 0.98 points shy of the bronze medalist.

Cha expressed disappointment over his near-miss, attributing it to the gap between his performance quality and the score received. Nonetheless, he has come to terms with the outcome, acknowledging his efforts in his third Olympic appearance.

At 24, Cha remains uncertain about his participation in the 2030 Winter Olympics, emphasizing the need for time to reflect and regroup.