Japan has vowed to restore national pride at the Winter Olympics after their meagre, one-medal showing at the last Games in 2006.
Japan has vowed to restore national pride at the Winter Olympics after their meagre, one-medal showing at the last Games in 2006.
"Our athletes have worked hard for four years, aiming for the highest spot," Japan's chef de mission Seiko Hashimoto said here.
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"I cannot tell exactly how many. But it is quite natural for our delegation to try and match our best ever result we achieved at the Nagano Games."
Japan collected a record 10 medals, including five golds, on home ice and snow in Nagano in 1998.
But their medal haul slipped to one silver and one bronze in 2002 and to only one at the Turin Games four years ago through the gold captured by Shizuka Arakawa who became Asia's first Olympic champion in figure skating.
The 2006 heartbreak was made more acute by the performances of their great Asian rivals as South Korea won 11 medals, including six golds, while China also claimed 11 medals, two of which were gold.
In Vancouver, Japan's medal hopes are once again pinned on figure skaters as two former world champions, Mao Asada (2008) and Miki Ando (2007) take on reigning title-holder Kim Yu-Na of South Korea in the women's event.
The Japan Skating Federation said they had sent the "strongest figure skating squad".
"We want to win a number of medals, either men's or women's," said Hidehito Ito, the federation's figure skating director.
Japan have produced five women world champions in figure skating, developing a well-organised junior scouting system after Midori Ito took home the 1992 Olympic women's silver medal.
The men's figure skating team is led by 2007 world silver medallist Daisuke Takahashi, who is joined by Nobunari Oda, the runner-up to world champion Evan Lysacek of the United States at the Grand Prix Final.
In other sports, world women's freestyle mogul skiing champion Aiko Uemura is keen to make the podium for the first time in her four Olympic outings.
Japan are also looking forward to the Nordic combined event after winning the world team title last year for the first time in 14 years.
"Since we got off the plane we have been focusing on gelling as a team, working on the 'family' dynamic," said Nordic coach Shiro Sato.
Keiichiro Nagashima, meanwhile, hopes to lift Japan back from a speed skating medal drought in Turin.
He won a World Cup 500m race in Heerenveen and finished third overall behind South Korea's Lee Kyou-Hyuk and Lee Kang-Seok at the world sprint championships.
Twelve years have passed since Japan soared in Olympic ski jumping, when Kazuyoshi Funaki leapt to glory off the 120-metre hill, but coach Saito Chiharu believes their time may be here again.
"We are ready to show the world once more what we are made of," he insisted.
That's a view shared by two-time World Championship bronze medallist Daiki Ito.
"We are all really excited to be here and confident we can do well," he said.
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