Yuna Kim (Korean: 김연아; born September 5, 1990), also credited in eastern name order as Kim Yuna or Kim Yeon-a, is a South Korean retired competitive figure skater. She is the 2010 Olympic champion, the 2014 Olympic silver medalist, a two-time World champion (2009, 2013) the 2009 Four Continents champion, a three-time Grand Prix Final champion, the 2006 World Junior champion, the 2005 Junior Grand Prix Final champion, and a six-time (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2013, 2014) South Korean national champion.
 Kim is the first South Korean figure skater to win a medal at an ISU Junior Grand Prix or ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating event, the World Figure Skating Championships, and the Olympic Games. She is the first female skater ever to win every major international competition, namely, the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the Four Continents Championships, and the Grand Prix Final. She is also the first figure skater ever to complete a Super Slam, having won every major senior and junior competition. She is one of the most highly recognized athletes and media figures in South Korea. As a result of her numerous accomplishments and popularity, she is frequently referred to as "Queen Yuna".
 She is the former record holder for ladies in the short program, free skate and combined total under the ISU Judging System. She has broken world record scores 11 times under the ISU Judging System since 2007, eight of which being records she herself set. She is also the first female skater to surpass the 150-point free skating mark and the 200-point and 220-point total mark, as well as the first and only female figure skater to have never finished off the podium in her entire career. Due to her strong artistry, musicality, skating skills, mental strength, and solid and consistent competitive record, she is regarded as one of the greatest figure skaters of all time. She is also noted for her rivalry with three-time World champion Mao Asada from Japan. 
 After she retired from figure skating in 2014, Kim was instrumental in the successful bid to bring the 2018 Winter Olympics to Pyeongchang. She also had a successful professional skating career, producing and appearing in several skating shows. Due to her sponsorships, Kim was one of highest-paid athletes in South Korea, well into her retirement. She was included in Time magazine's annual Time 100 of World's Most Influential People in 2010 and in several Forbes lists.
 Kim was born on September 5, 1990, in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, in the northern part of the country, to Kim Hyeon-seok, a business owner, and Park Mi-hee. She has one older sister. Her mother, whom The Korea Times called "indisputably the No. 1 contributor to Kim's phenomenal success", took an active role in her daughter's skating career from the beginning, driving her to the ice rink each day, attending all of her practices,  and acting as her coach, manager, spokesperson, and mentor. She played English cassette tapes in the car to help Kim improve her English-language skills. Kim's family often struggled to fund her skating expenses; when her father's business was not doing well enough to pay for her lessons, they put up their house as collateral for a bank loan. In 2010, Philip Hersh reported that when Kim was 7 years old, her family struggled to pay for her skating lessons. Kim's father chose to remain out of media attention, choosing to watch her skate on television along with her sister instead of accompanying Kim to international competitions. Both her parents, however, attended the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Kim credited both parents with her success as a figure skater. She cited U.S. figure skater Michelle Kwan as one of her early influences. In 2007, she named Brian Joubert, Stéphane Lambiel, and Tomáš Verner as a few of her favorite contemporary male skaters. In 2009, she said that Sasha Cohen was one of her favorite skaters.
 Kim went to Dojang Middle School, though she stopped attending classes after joining the national team, and later Suri High School in Gunpo. She graduated from Korea University (KU) in 2013 with a degree in Physical Education. She was initially attracted to KU because she wanted to attend a college that would understand and accommodate her needs as an athlete, which included taking a year off to compete in the Olympics, and because of their sports facilities, which included an ice rink.
 The correct transliteration of her name, 김연아, is "Kim Yeon-a". However, when Kim applied for her passport, the official miswrote her name as "Yu-na", which is written as "유나" rather than "연아". She has requested that the media refer to her as "Yuna Kim" instead of "Kim Yu-na".
 Kim began skating at the age of five, at a neighborhood rink with her sister. Ryu Jong-hyun, a former ice dancer, coached Kim between the ages of 7 and 10 and Shin Hea-sook, who competed for South Korea at the 1980 Olympics, coached Kim between the ages of 10 and 12 years old. Kim later said that Ryu and Shin both helped her, from the start of her skating career, to become who she was both technically and spiritually. Ryu suggested to Kim's mother, who noticed early on that there was something special about her daughter's skating, that Kim receive formal training in figure skating. In a 2011 interview, she gave credit to her coaches for noticing and developing her aptitude for skating, stating that they told her that her body was perfect for skating. She added, "I was born with a good instrument, maybe more so than the talent". Ryu cited Kim's work ethic, especially her hard work, dedication, and commitment to practice, for Kim's success. She landed her first triple toe loop at the age of 10 and except for the triple Axel, was able to land every triple jump cleanly two years later. During her middle school years, her boots often did not fit her as she matured, and she had many injuries, including a period when she had to rest for a month after a pelvic-muscle injury.
 In 2002, Kim competed internationally for the first time at the Triglav Trophy in Slovenia, where she completed five triple jumps and won the gold medal in the novice competition, the first international victory for a Korean woman. A year later, at age 12, she won the senior title at the South Korean Championships, becoming the youngest skater ever to do so, a record not broken until 2016 by 11-year-old You Young. She also won the 2003 Golden Bear of Zagreb, a novice competition. Kim won three consecutive South Korean championships between 2003 and 2006.
 In the 2004–2005 season, Kim competed as a junior during the ISU Junior Grand Prix. She won a gold medal at 2004 JGP Budapest, her first international competition, in Hungary, and became the first Korean skater to win a Junior Grand Prix event. She earned an overall score of 148.55 over silver medalist Sawada Aki from Japan, who earned 136.16 points. She won first place in both the short program and free skate. At her second competition, 2004 JGP Harbin in China, Kim was in fourth place after making four errors in her short program, with 38.87 points, but rebounded in the free skate, with first place and 92.35 points, to take second place overall, with 131.22 points. She qualified for the 2004–2005 Junior Grand Prix Final, where she won the silver medal with an overall score of 137.75 points, behind Mao Asada, who earned 172.83 points, and ahead of Kimmie Meissner from the U.S., who earned 133.14 points. It was the first time a Korean skater won a medal at the event.
 At the 2005 South Korean Championships, she won her third consecutive gold medal. In her free skate, she successfully executed a triple-triple combination for the first time but fell on her triple Lutz. She was ineligible to compete at the Senior World Championships because she was under the age of 15. She won the silver medal at the 2005 World Junior Championships with 158.93 points overall, behind Japanese skater Mao Asada, who earned 179.24 points overall. Coming from behind after her short program, when she came in sixth place, she scored 110.26 points in her free skate, with her "secret weapon" of a triple combination jump. It was the first time a Korean skater had medaled at the Junior World Championships and the Junior Grand Prix Final.
 For the 2005–2006 season, Kim was first in the junior-level rankings. Lee Young-ho of Yonhap News reported that because she lacked the corporate sponsorship to pay for her training and participation costs, Kim experienced financial difficulties; the Korea Skating Union promised to underwrite her expenses so she could train out of the country. She was not old enough to compete at the 2006 Olympics; instead, she participated in the Olympic torch relay and competed in the 2005–2006 Junior Grand Prix, winning both of her competitions in Slovakia and Bulgaria. At the 2005 JGP Skate Slovakia, she came in first place with 168.83 points overall, beating silver medalist Aki Sawada from Japan, who had an overall score of 143.20 points. At the 2005 JGP Bulgaria Cup and despite a great deal of pain caused by new skates she had purchased shortly before the competition, she came in first after the short program, with 53.45 points. She also came in first place in the free skate, with 99.98 points, beating Katy Taylor from the U.S., who earned 83.71, and won the gold medal, with 153.43 points overall, to Taylor's score of 131.30 points overall. At the 2005–2006 Junior Grand Prix Final, where she was the youngest skater to compete, she earned 57.51 points in the short program, despite a minor landing error during her final spin movement. She earned 116.61 points in the free skate and won the gold medal, earning an overall score of 174.12 points. She skated to "Roxanne's Tango" from the soundtrack of the 2001 film Moulin Rouge during her short program. She earned more than 28 points than the silver medalist, Aki Sawada from Japan, who earned 145.78 points overall, and earned over 40 points more than her previous overall score.
 At the 2006 Korean Figure Skating Championships, Kim came in first place, earning an overall score of 165.52 points, over Choi Ji-eun, who earned 117.80 points overall and came in second place, and Shin Ye-ji, who came in third place with 110.22 points overall. Kim earned 61.44 points in her short program and 104.08 points in her free skate. At the 2006 World Junior Championships, she was the first Korean skater to win the gold medal, scoring 177.54 points overall, earning 24.19 points over silver medalist Mao Asada. Overcoming a ligament injury in her right ankle, Kim came in first place after the short program, with 60.86 points. In what Lee Seok-mu of the South Korean news outlet My Daily called a "most brilliant performance", Kim captivated the audience and won the free skate, with 116.68 points and an overall score of 177.54 points overall. She was the only skater in the competition who surpassed 100 points in her free skate; she also earned over 24 points more than Asada, who came in second place. This marked the first time a Korean skater had won the Junior Grand Prix final and the Junior World Championships. It was also the eighth consecutive competition Kim finished in either first or second place since 2004 and raised expectations for Korea's chances of winning a gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
 To prepare for her senior debut in the 2006–2007 season, Kim began training with Brian Orser at the Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club during the summer of 2006, after working there with choreographer David Wilson. According to International Figure Skating, she lost her confidence and was ready to quit the sport due to her recurring knee injuries and boot problems, so her coach suggested that she train in Toronto. After three months, she decided to make Toronto her permanent base of training, living with her mother in a Korean neighborhood. At first, Orser was reluctant to agree to train her, but he agreed because he identified with her competitive spirit and felt he could not turn down the challenge.  According to International Figure Skating, Kim's move was controversial and her former coach publicly criticized it. Orser reported that one of his goals as her coach was to make her laugh and that he was instructed by Korean skating officials to "make Kim a happier skater". She was Orser's first real student.
 Kim made her senior international debut and Orser made his coaching debut at the 2006 Skate Canada, where she became the first Korean skater to place at a senior grand prix event by winning a bronze medal, placing first in the short program and fourth in the free skate, with a total overall score of 168.48 points. At the 2006 Trophée Eric Bompard, Kim became the first Korean skater to win a senior Grand Prix competition, placing first in both the short program and free skate, with a total of 184.54 points, her personal best up to that point.
 
Her Grand Prix performances qualified Kim for her first Grand Prix Final, in Saint Petersburg, Russia. She became the first Korean skater to both medal at and win a Grand Prix final. She placed third in the short program and first in the free skate, earning a total of184.20 points and defeating silver medalist Mao Asada. Skating to El Tango de Roxanne, Kim opened her short program with an "effortless" triple loop-triple toe loop combination, followed by a Level 4 spiral sequence and a Level 4 sit spin, although she sightly touched down during her triple Lutz. Her final combination spin had some shaky positions, but she performed a Level 3 layback spin and a "solid" double Axel coming out of an Ina Bauer. Kim later admitted that she was worried about her performance due to some back pain, but that she was satisfied with her results. In her free skate, Kim used music from Vaughn Williams' The Lark Ascending. She successfully performed her opening triple flip-double toe loop-double loop combination, which was followed up by a double Axel, a layback spin, and a triple Lutz. She stepped out of her second double Axel, but successfully accomplished a triple Lutz-double toe loop-double loop combination, a double toe loop-double loop combination, a double Axel, as well as a successful Level 4 spiral sequence and spins. She later told reporters that she was surprised by the outcome and was pleased to compete with the Japanese skaters present, calling them "strong competitors". Kim withdrew from the 2007 Korean Nationals because she was diagnosed in January 2007 with the early stages of lumbar disc herniation, involving the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae in her waist. According to her doctor, the vertebrae involved pushed back and touched her nerve and the disc between her first coccyx and fifth lumbar vertebrae, which was swollen and ready to develop into a hernia. He also said that two-to-four weeks of physical therapy would successfully treat it. She began treatment, which focused on reinforcing her waist muscles and maintaining her body balance, in Seoul immediately after her diagnosis. She was unable to train during and afterwards her treatment. Kim was scheduled to compete at the 2007 Asian Winter Games, but withdrew. She was replaced by Choi Ji-eun.
 Kim was selected to compete at the 2007 World Championships in Tokyo. Despite being on pain killers for chronic back pain and with little treatment, she won the short program with 71.95 points, setting the highest short program score ever under the ISU Judging System. Rosaleen Kaye of Golden Skate stated that Kim performed her short program "with an intensity and maturity far above her years". Kim told reporters that it was not one incident that exacerbated her back pain, although her short program put burden on her lower back. She also was nursing a tailbone injury. Kim opened her short program with a triple flip-triple toe loop with enough speed to carry her out of both jumps. She had to do a small balance check while entering her Level 4 spiral sequence, but was able to follow it up with "a huge death drop sit spin which displayed excellent speed and position variation". She earned positive Grade of Execution (GOE) scores for her triple Lutz. Her Level 4 layback spin demonstrated her back flexibility and was followed by her double Axel, which was awarded a rare +3 GOE score from one judge. The audience gave her a standing ovation for her fast Level 4 combination spin.
 According to Kaye, "Elegance and superior skating skills were brilliantly displayed" during Kim's free skate at Worlds. She accomplished her triple flip-triple toe loop combination "with wonderful flow as well as with a big smile", her Level 4 camel spin displayed multiple positions, and her straight line footwork sequence was "light and lyrical". She produced a Level 4 sit spin with a "huge" death drop, a Level-3 spiral sequence with extension and speed, and a Level 3 combination spin. Kim also fell on both her triple Lutz jumps and she performed a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination which received no credit because the judges called as a fourth combination. She finished fourth in the segment, with 114.19 points, and third overall, with a total of 186.14 points, behind Miki Ando and Mao Asada. Despite her mistakes, Kim later said that she had learned a great deal from her fellow skaters and during her first season as a senior skater. She said, after winning the gold medal at Worlds in 2009, that even though she did her personal best in the short program in 2007, she did not do as well in the free skate.
 Due to Kim's first-place win at Worlds, South Korea was eligible to send two women to compete at the 2008 World Figure Skating Championships. This season marked the first time a Korean skater had medalled and won at a senior Grand Prix, the first time a Korean skater had medalled and won the senior Grand Prix Final, and the first time a Korean skater had medalled at the World Championships.
 During the off-season during the 2007–08 season, Orser created a team of specialists to work with Kim, including three-time Dutch national champion Astrid Jansen, who became her spin coach, and former Canadian ice dancer Tracy Wilson, who helped Kim develop her all-around skating quality, her stroking skills, and her expression. David Wilson also became Kim's full-time choreographer. Her team focused on her triple loop jump, which Orser called her "nemesis jump"; Orser was impressed with Kim's skating abilities, her ability to learn choreography quickly and well, her artistry, and her openness to learning new skills. International Figure Skating reported that Kim had a positive influence and was a good role model for the younger skaters who trained with her in Toronto. Kim reported that training in Toronto was an escape from the great fame and "media circus" she faced daily in Korea.
 David Wilson choreographed all three of her programs. Her short program was set to music from Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus and her free skating program was set to music from the soundtrack of the musical Miss Saigon. Her exhibition program was set to "Just a Girl" by the American rock band No Doubt, which International Figure Skating called "a playful piece that really suits" Kim. She wore royal blue for her short program and fuchsia for her free skating program. Kim's short program included a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, a triple Lutz, and a double Axel; her free skate included a triple Salchow, triple Lutz, two double Axels, and three combination jumps.
 Kim started the season by becoming the first Korean skater to win the 2007 Cup of China, with a total score of 180.68 points, 24 points ahead of silver medalist Caroline Zhang. In the short program, she landed a triple Lutz, a double Axel, and successfully landed three Level 3 spins, but she popped the second jump in her triple flip-single toe loop combination and came in third place overall. Golden Skate reported that her disappointment was clear as she entered the Kiss-and-Cry after leaving the ice and that she later admitted that she was nervous after popping her jump. In the free skate, Kim landed a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, a triple loop, triple Lutz-double toe loop combination, and a double Axel-triple toe loop combination. She also completed a single Lutz, a triple Salchow, a double Axel, and a Level 4 flying combination spin that received positive GOEs from all but one judge.  Her only mistake was popping her Lutz. She scored 122.36 points and was the only skater in the competition who received no deductions for the free skate. Kim later admitted that she was not satisfied with her free skate and vowed to work on it before her next competition.
 
Kim became the first Korean skater to earn a gold medal at the 2007 Cup of Russia. She called the competition at Cup of Russia "very strong". She won the short program, scoring 63.50 points, which was a new season best for her; reporter Anna Kondkova called it "a nearly flawless performance". Kim successfully executed her triple flip-triple toe loop combination, but struggled landing her triple Lutz and blaming her nerves, singled her double Axel coming out of an Ina Bauer. Despite the errors, she "expressed an excellent waltz character" during her Level 3 footwork and earned Level 4s for her layback spin and spiral sequence. She later said that she was pleased with her result. Kim also won the free skate with 133.70 points, finishing first overall with 197.20 points, and set a world record for the free skate score under the ISU Judging System. Skating last, she executed a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, a triple loop, a triple Lutz-double toe loop, a double Axel-triple toe loop, a triple Lutz, a triple Salchow, and a double Axel out of a spiral. She earned Level 4s for three out of her four spins. She later said that her jumps felt shaky and that she felt that she had elements she could improve and vowed to work on them. Kim qualified for the 2007–2008 Grand Prix Final in Turin, Italy; she and Mao Asada both earned the maximum 30 points to advance. She won the short program with 64.62 points, a season's best score. Skating last, she "performed nearly perfect, except the failure of her starting jump". She lost her balance during the first jump of her triple flip-triple toe loop combination, forcing her to touch both her hands on the ice and singling out her subsequent jumps in the combination. Despite the one error, she cleanly skated the rest of her program. The Korea Times called Kim's spiral sequences "superb" and reported that she also completed a double Axel and all her spins "without flaw". Her spins included a flying sit spin combination, a layback/Biellmann spin combination followed by an Ina Bauer, and a strong spin combination. Skating last, Kim placed second in the free skate with 132.21 points; Asada came from behind from sixth place in the short program to first place in the free skate and won her second consecutive silver medal at the finals. Kim fell early in her routine, but was able to successfully land six triple jumps, earning Level 4s for all her spins and a Level 3 straight-line footwork sequence. With a total score of 196.83 points, Kim swept the Grand Prix series and won her second consecutive Grand Prix Final, the youngest skater in the world to do so.
 Kim was not required to compete in the 2008 South Korean Championships because she had already qualified for the 2008 World Championships and the 2008 Four Continents Championships, although a hip injury and chronic hip pain prevented her from competing at Four Continents. Even though she had to take pain killers, Kim competed at the World Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden. She was placed fifth in the short program with 59.85 points, but rebounded in the free skate to win the program with 123.38. Despite seriously considering dropping out of the competition several times, she scored 183.23 points overall, and won her second consecutive bronze medal at Worlds, behind Asada and Carolina Kostner from Italy. She landed several difficult combinations. Again skating to Miss Saigon in her free skate, she landed several combination jumps; her only error was during her second Lutz jump. She later told reporters that she planned on taking the next two months to rest and take care of her injury, and then return to training in Canada. It was the first time a Korean skater repeated as a medalist at the World Championships.
 
Kim was assigned to the 2008 Skate America and the 2008 Cup of China for the 2008–2009 Grand Prix season. The week before competing at Skate America, Kim was accepted into Korea University. Going into Skate America, she said that she felt healthy; according to figure skater reporter Lynn Rutherford, she showed no signs of the injuries that plagued her during the previous season. Both Orser and Kim reported that she was heathy and had a new physical therapist and a new trainer. Kim told reporters that her goal for the season was to remain healthy and that she had learned how to both recover from her injuries and prevent them from happening. After 2008 Worlds, Kim's coaching team decided it was time for her to have more input in her program music, crediting their rapport and good communication as helping with the process. Orser felt she had "come into her own in terms of maturity and development". Kim placed first in the short program with a score of 69.50, leading by 11.70 points over Miki Ando, despite trouble with her double Axel. Rutherford speculated that if she had not faltered on her Axel, she might have scored a personal best. After Wilson and choreographer Shae-Lynn Bourne made several proposals for her short program music, Kim used Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saëns. Rutherford reported that Kim "sparkled" during her practices. She was the only competitor in the short program to skate a clean triple-triple combination jump and scored 10.70 points on her triple flip-triple toe combination jump, her first jump of the program; all eight of her elements, except her double Axel, earned her positive GOEs.
 Kim captured the gold medal, winning the free skate with a score of 123.95, and earning 193.45 points overall, more than 20 points ahead of silver medalist Yukari Nakano from Japan. Wearing a red costume accentuated by gold embellishments, she chose music from Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade after seeing another skater use it four years earlier. According to The Korea Times, Kim "pulled off a series of near-perfect jumps and an eloquent spiral sequence" in her free skating program. She landed six triple jumps, including her opening triple flip-triple toe jump combination, the only triple-triple jump combination in the competition not downgraded by the judges. Her only error was popping a planned triple loop jump into a single. She later expressed appreciation to the large Korean contingent in the audience.
 Kim won the 2008 Cup of China, where she received a score of 63.64 in the short program and 128.11 in the free skate, placing first in both. The combined total of 191.75 was nearly 21 points ahead of Ando, who won the silver medal. Kim made errors in her short program; she two-footed and under-rotated her triple Lutz, which was downgraded to a double jump. Ando, who came in second place in the short program. also made an error; her triple flip was downgraded as well. In Kim's free skate, she demonstrated an "iron will" and successfully executed five clean triples, including her trademark triple flip-triple toe. She stepped out of her first triple Lutz, which she did not think affected her score, so she added a double toe jump to the end of her second triple Lutz. Kim returned to Toronto to rest and to further improve her programs; she later admitted that she was "quite exhausted" after Cup of China.
 Kim qualified for the 2008 Grand Prix Final, which was held in Goyang, the first time the event was held in South Korea, with the highest qualifying score. She arrived in Goyang feeling a great deal of pressure, but told reporters that she was looking forward to skating in her home country. Tickets for the event sold out minutes after they were placed on sale. Kim placed first in the short program with 65.94 points, well below her personal best, and second in the free skate where she earned 120.41 points. After placing first place at the finals the previous two seasons, she won the silver medal with a total score of 186.35 points, 2.20 points behind Mao Asada. She landed a "beautiful" triple flip-triple toe loop combination jump at the start of her short program, popped her planned triple Lutz, and then successfully completed a double Axel. She later admitted that the timing on her Lutz "wasn't so great", but she was satisfied with her other elements and said that since last season, she had learned to recover from her errors. She ended up being a little over half a point ahead of Asada. Kim opened her free skating program with a strong triple flip-triple toe combination jump, which she followed up with a double Axel-triple toe combination jump. She popped her planned triple Lutz and fell on her triple Salchow, but was able to land her double Axel at the end of the program. She later complained of suffering from a cold and although she enjoyed skating in Korea, of feeling the pressure of competing there.
 Kim then competed in the 2009 Four Continents in Vancouver, British Columbia. She set a new world record of 72.24 points in the short program with a clean performance. Asada finished a "shocking" sixth place after the short program. Opening with a "beautiful" triple flip-triple toe loop combination jump, Kim was the only one of the top six women in the competition to get credit for a triple-triple combination. According to Laurie Nealin of IceNetwork, "Kim skated without evident flaw, sailing through jump after jump and igniting the audience". She scored 116.83 in the free skating program, keeping the lead with 189.07 points overall and winning the gold medal. Kang Seung-woo from The Korea Times stated that Kim's success "brightened prospects for a first figure skating medal for the Far East nation in the Winter Games". Kim was happy with her free skating performance, despite falling after her triple loop jump, a jump she had not been able to successfully accomplish all season. She was able to land her triple Lutz-double toe loop-double loop combination jump, which was downgraded, earned a Level 4 for her flying sit spin, and completed both her double Axel-triple toe loop combination jump and her triple Axel. Kang speculated that the judges might have been overly strict in their scoring of Kim's program.
 During the 2009 World Championships, held in Los Angeles, Kim set another new world record of 76.12 points in the short program, surpassing her previous record by four points. She beat Canadian Joannie Rochette, who came in second place, by 8.22 points; Asada, who came in third place, earned 66.06 points. Orser, who later said that Kim was well-trained, stated about Kim's short program, "I think this was one of those moments people will always remember, especially those judges". She began her program with her triple flip-triple toe loop combination jump, which Yoon Chul of The Korea Times called "undoubtedly perfect", and a triple Lutz, which was followed by "a superb" spiral sequence and three more Level 4 elements. Chul reported that Kim skated with energy and confidence and that the audience gave her a standing ovation. She later expressed her appreciation for her Korean fans in the audience during her short program.
 Kim won the free skate, and set a new world record total score of 207.71, winning her first World Championship title, as well as becoming the first female skater to surpass 200 points under the ISU Judging System. Her win also established her as a contender for the 2010 Olympics. Rochette came in second place, with 191.29 points, Miki Ando came in third place, with 190.38 points, and Asada came in fourth place, with 188.09 points. Juliet Macur of The New York Times stated, about Kim's free skate, "For the second night in a row, Kim performed yet another elegant, effortless routine that enthralled the crowd and the judges". She successfully executed five triple jumps, three in combination, which included a triple flip-triple toe loop combination at the start of the program. She chose, before Worlds, to replace her triple loop with an Ina Bauer going into a double Axel because although triple loops were worth more points, errors that resulted in a loss of points were more common. The addition of the Ina Bauer also increased her component scores. Kang Seung-woo of The Korea Times stated, "She performed a remarkably charismatic dance, demonstrating flexibility and powerful energy before an awestruck crowd". The Associated Press (AP) reported that Kim's footwork was "exquisite" and that she "skated with the elegance of a queen". She popped her planned triple Salchow into a single jump, but tried to make up for her loss in points by attempting two triple Axels; she landed the first Axel, but fell on the second. She also failed to earn points for her final spin because it did not meet the criteria for the element. The audience began their standing ovation for Kim 15 seconds before the end of her free skate; the AP called her performance "magical" and added that by the end, the audience had forgotten her errors. She later said that winning Worlds was the fulfillment of a dream and that she wanted to win because it was the last Worlds before the Olympics. According to Orser, Kim gained a new confidence after winning her first Worlds. Macur reported that it was the biggest goal of Kim's career thus far. Her win earned Korea two slots in the Olympics.
 Kim's goal for the 2009–10 season was to develop her programs, as well as her expression, character, and makeup, in order to demonstrate more maturity. The idea for her short program came from Sandra Bezic, who pitched Kim "as a sexy, confident Bond girl" to Wilson in 2009. "I have some ideas that I want to put out there," Kim explained. "We made together a detail of my program day by day. The black nail color is also everyone's idea". Juliet Macur from The New York Times stated that Kim's short program "sizzled" and that Kim performed her free skating program "with the grace of a prima ballerina".
 Kim was assigned to the 2009 Trophée Eric Bompard and the 2009 Skate America in the 2009–2010 ISU Grand Prix season. She laughed as she told a reporter that she usually preferred her short programs because they were shorter and that she felt less pressure, but she liked this season's free skate better because it was "easier to feel and perform it". She also admitted that she did not feel completely prepared, but that she felt better able to deal with the press. At the Trophée Eric Bompard, she placed first in the short program with a score of 76.08 points, nearly 17 points ahead of Yukari Nakano. According to CBC News, Kim opened her program with a difficult triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump and made a "perfect landing" on all her jumps. After her performance, she pumped her fists and waved to the audience. Opening with a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination and in "a flawless performance", Kim won the free skate with 133.95 points. Skating to "Piano Concerto in F" by George Gershwin, she also executed a double Axel-double toe loop-double loop combination jump, a double Axel-triple toe loop combination jump, a triple Salchow, a triple Lutz, and a double Axel. Her only error was missing her triple flip. She won the event with 210.03 points, ahead of silver medalist Mao Asada, who earned 173.99 points, and Nakano, who earned 165.70 points. Kim broke her own world records for both the free skate and the overall score.
 At the 2009 Skate America, Kim placed first again after the short program with a score of 76.28, 17.48 points ahead of her closest competitor Rachael Flatt from the U.S., who later said that she admired Kim, was inspired by her, and enjoyed competing against her. She set a new world record for the short program, marking the fourth straight competition in which she broke world records; as Lynn Rutherford stated in IceNetwork, "None of her world records are safe. She'll break them again and again". Kim later said that every competition was important to her and she considered them practice for the Olympics. Her opening triple Lutz-triple toe combination jump earned her +2 and +3 GOEs, for a total of 12.20 points. She admitted that she was nervous until the music started and that although she liked her combination jump, she thought that her footwork and final camel combination spin were "slow and struggling". After her short program, Kim told reporters that she was not sure about using music from the Bond films, but eventually came around to the idea because she liked the choreography created by Wilson and felt that it was a good choice for an Olympic year. Orser told reporters that even with Kim's multiple wins, he was "taking nothing for granted".
 Kim placed second in the free skate with a score of 111.70 points, while Flatt earned 116.11 points. Kim won the event with 187.98 points, beating Flatt, who won the silver medal. Philip Hersh of the Los Angeles Times noted that Kim was vulnerable to mental pressure, which he speculated could influence her chances at the Olympics. Hersh also pointed out that even though Kim's free skate score was her lowest since her debut on the senior Grand Prix circuit, she won the competition by over 13 points. According to Hersh, Kim's program started badly, with shaky jumps in both parts of her opening combination jump, "and she never completely recovered". She fell on her next jump, a triple flip, and her triple Lutz was ruled a single jump by the judges, who gave her the maximum negative GOEs for it. The judges also gave Kim credit for only three clean jumps. Hersh speculated that Kim's world record score in the short program was both the reason she won Skate America and served as "the albatross she carried into the free skate" due to the pressure to skate perfectly. The South Korean newspaper The Chosun Ilbo called Kim "the clear favorite for the gold" in Vancouver and "in a league of her own".
 Kim's victories in both Grand Prix events qualified her for the 2009–2010 Grand Prix Final in Tokyo, Japan, in December 2009, with a total of 30 points, the highest score of all the qualifiers. She placed second in the short program with 65.64 points, behind Miki Ando, who earned 66.20 points. The next day, she won the free skate with 123.22 points, ahead of Ando's 119.74 points. As a result, Kim won every competition she had entered in 2009 and her third Grand Prix Final title with a total of 188.86 points. In her short program, her triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump was downgraded and called as under-rotated; The Chosun Ilbo reported that "there were questions of possible favoritism by the judges for hometown skaters like Ando", even though they were the same judges that previously gave Kim the highest scores for a woman at a Grand Prix competition. During the dress rehearsal for the free skate the morning the competition took place, Kim's skate blades collided with each other during a jump, which damaged her left skate blade. The skate was repaired, but it was not in the best condition. In her free skate, which the Korea JoongAng Daily called "an impressive performance", Kim again earned lower GOEs for her combination jump, which she changed from a triple-triple to a triple-double because her first triple jump was not secure. In mid-December, she was chosen to carry the Olympic torch for the second time, running about 300 meters in downtown Hamilton, Ontario, an hour's drive from where she trained in Toronto.
 In February 2010, Kim competed in the women's event at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, where she won Olympic gold, thereby completing what has been called her Super Slam. In March 2010, Kim competed at the 2010 World Championships in Turin, Italy. Kim said she had struggled with finding the motivation to compete at the World Championships after winning the gold medal at the Olympic Games. Orser told reporters from the Associated Press that Kim's feelings were understandable, since it was a common experience for the top skaters coming into Worlds after the Olympics. Kim placed seventh in the short program with 60.30 points, the third-worst lowest score of her career and the first time she did not place into the top five. She opened with a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, but under-rotated her triple flip, missed a layback spin, and had her spiral sequence downgraded. She rebounded in the free skate to win the program with 130.49 points, and won the silver medal with a total of 190.79 points. A fall on her triple Salchow prevented her from scoring enough points to defend her title, but she successfully accomplished her opening triple Lutz-double toe-loop combination jump, her triple Lutz, and her double Axel-double toe loop-double loop combination jump. She also under-rotated her double Axel. Kim later admitted that Worlds were mentally difficult for her and that she had seriously considered pulling out of the competition.
 In February 2010, Kim competed in the women's event at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She entered the Games as a strong favourite to win the gold. The New York Times reported on the great amount of pressure Kim felt going into the Olympics; Orser scheduled her last interaction with the press before Vancouver in mid-December, to help relieve her stress and pressure and on his advice, she skipped an international event in Korea, even though the ISU requested that she attend. Kim told reporters that she was worried about her nerves in Vancouver and said that she was determined to remain calm and focused. She also told Juliet Macur of The New York Times that she was "prepared for anything". Kim chose to stay at an inexpensive hotel instead of at the Olympic Village; her mother, Orser, and David Wilson also stayed in the same hotel.
 In the short program, Kim executed a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump (which reporter Philip Hersh called "stratospheric"), a triple flip, and a double Axel. Kim scored 78.50 points, taking the lead by 4.72 points over Mao Asada, even with Asada's triple Axel in combination, the first time the combination was completed at the Olympics. Kim accomplished her best score in the short program, breaking her own world record by over two points. She later told reporters that she felt no pressure going into the free skate. After her short program, Kim was called "in a league of her own". Philip Hersh of the Chicago Tribune speculated that it was unlikely that she would lose the free skate and the gold medal, stating that her short program scores were high enough that she could make one major mistake in her free skate and still win.
 On February 25, Kim won the free skate, which Agence France-Presse called "a stunning performance" and "spellbinding", with 150.06 points, setting a new world record for the free skate. Bryan Armen Graham of The Atlantic called Kim's free skate "our generation's Nadia Comaneci moment: the abstract of perfection made flesh"  and "a performance of such artistic beauty, charisma, and splendor, it may never be surpassed". Skating before Asada in the final group of skaters, she landed six triples and eleven jumps in all: a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, a triple flip, a double Axel-double toe loop-double loop combination jump, a double Axel-triple toe loop combination jump, a triple Salchow, a triple Lutz, and a double Axel. Overall, Kim totaled 228.56 points, breaking her own personal best and previous world record. Philip Hersh stated that her Olympic free skate was "of transcendent brilliance that brought her immortality in South Korea". Kim later said that it was the first time she had skated cleanly in both her programs, and that she was happy that it happened at the Olympics. She won the gold medal, becoming the first South Korean skater to medal in any discipline of figure skating at the Olympic Games. She defeated silver medalist Mao Asada by 23.06 points, the greatest margin recorded in women's singles at the Olympics or World Championships since the introduction of the ISU Judging System; Kim's GOE scores alone added ten points to her advantage over Asada. Kim's gold medal was South Korea's first medal at the Winter Olympics in a sport other than speed skating.
 Kim's short program, free skate, and combined total scores at the 2010 Winter Olympics were the highest scores since the creation of the ISU Judging System, and were registered in the Guinness World Records. Dorothy Hamill, the 1976 Olympic champion, said that Kim had "jaw-dropping magnificence", adding "The height of her jumps, the power, and the fluid beauty of her skating are like magic". Jacques Rogge, who was president of the International Olympic Committee at the time, stated that Kim's performance "touched me in a way that I haven't been touched since Torvill and Dean in Sarajevo". U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who met with and congratulated South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan the following day, also praised Kim's performance, calling it "extraordinary". Ten years later, in 2020, Kim told Hersh that her win confounded her, brought back the nervousness she felt, and overwhelmed her. She also told Hersh, "I’d been pretending to be fearless, but I think the moment the program was over, the pressure that had built up inside me came bursting out". Orser later said that he knew that Kim was going to win the gold medal from the time they arrived in Vancouver. He also said that she was calm and that she took control of what was happening, calling the entire week "just perfection". In South Korea, the stock market halted all business during Kim's performances. She and Orser flew immediately to Seoul after the Olympics to meet with South Korean president Lee Myung-bak at his official residence. Christopher Clarey from The New York Times reported that Kim considered retiring from competition at the end of the season.
 In August 2010, Kim and her coach, Brian Orser, parted ways. According to the Associated Press, it was "a move that has taken many by surprise—Orser included" and according to Reuters, no reason was given for the decision. Orser stated that his firing was "out of the blue". David Wilson called the split "like a nightmare". The Toronto Star reported that later that same month, Orser leaked, without permission, Kim's music she planned to use for her free skating program during the upcoming season, something frowned upon in figure skating. At first, Kim continued to train in Toronto, without a coach and no plans to hire one. By the fall of 2010, she began training in Artesia, California, outside of  Los Angeles, at the East West Ice Palace, a rink owned and operated by Michelle Kwan's family. In October, after her camp asked Wilson to coach her, an offer he refused, she hired Peter Oppegard and continued to work with Wilson as her choreographer.
 
Kim was assigned to the 2010 Cup of China and to the 2010 Cup of Russia for the 2010–11 ISU Grand Prix season. However, she chose not to compete in the Grand Prix series to focus on the 2011 World Championships in Moscow, her only competition of the season and her first competition in over a year. American coach Frank Carroll, while recognizing the difficulty of competing after such a long period, stated that she had "the guts and the strength of character to do it". She told CNN that her focus, instead of being on the results, was to enjoy and show a different side of herself. Kim also chose not to compete at the 2011 Four Continents because the previous Olympics had sapped her energy. A large contingent of reporters from South Korea and Japan were at Worlds, but Kim did not experience as much pressure compared to the Olympics. Skating to music from Giselle, she placed first in the short program, with 65.91 points, a lead of less than one point ahead of Miki Ando. She stumbled out of her triple Lutz, so she was unable to include her planned triple-triple combination jump, but she added a double toe loop to her planned triple flip in order to fulfill the combination jump requirement. Oppegard later told reporters that he thought that Kim was nervous because it was her first competition in a year. Kim told reporters that getting back into training was difficult and that she often lacked motivation to continue. It was reported that she looked strong and focused during practices, but although she occasionally popped her triple flips, she completed her triple-triple combinations during her short program without difficulty. Kim came in second in the free skate with 128.59 points and won the silver medal, with a total score of 194.50 points, 1.29 points behind Miki Ando. Skating to Korean music, which she called "a love letter to my country", Kim landed her opening triple Lutz-triple toe combination jump and landed another triple Lutz and two triple Salchows, but she popped her flip jump. Golden Skate reported that Kim "continued her impressive record" of earning a medal in every competition she had entered since the Junior Grand Prix in 2015.
 Kim said she might miss the next Grand Prix series due to her work promoting South Korea's successful bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics. On October 18, 2011, she officially announced she would be sitting out the entire 2011–12 season, the first time in her junior and senior careers. She later said that she took the break due to the high expectations and pressure she felt going into the Vancouver Olympics.
 In July 2012, Kim announced her intention to skate competitively in the 2012–13 season, with the ultimate goal of skating in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. She later told Nancy Armour of the Associated Press that she was "determined not to be suffocated by the pressure again". She said that returning to competition after winning the Olympics and after a long break was difficult, but that she felt less pressure because she was not as desperate to win. She told reporters that she had no regrets for taking so much time off from competitive skating and although she recognized she had her work cut out for her, she considered Sochi an opportunity to start over. She also told reporters that she found inspiration from younger Korean skaters while training at home during her break. Despite her past successes, however, Kim was not invited to skate in the 2012–13 Grand Prix circuit, so she chose to compete in minor events to score enough technical points to qualify for the 2013 World Championships.
 Kim left Oppegard and started training with her childhood coaches Shin Hea-sook and Ryu Jong-hyun. Her coaches reported that Kim's technique was no problem, even after her long break, but that they were working on her stamina in training. Shin was in charge of Kim's overall training and Ryu was in charge of her fitness training and conditioning. Kim chose music from the 1963 film The Kiss of the Vampire, at David Wilson's suggestion, for her short program, and selections from the musical Les Miserables for her free skate. She used movie and musical soundtracks because she wanted to use something new. 
 Kim's first competition of the season was the 2012 NRW Trophy which was held in Dortmund, Germany. It was the first time she competed since 2011. Reporter Moon Gwang-lip called it "an impressive comeback". Tickets to the NRW Trophy sold out in six hours and instead of the few media outlets that would usually attended the event, over 50 credentials, which included several news outlets, were issued for it. Although it was not important for her to win the competition, she placed first in the short program with a score of 72.27 points and also won the free skate with 129.34 points to claim the gold medal. Klaus-Reinhold Kany of Ice Network pointed out that because the NRW Trophy was a minor international competition, the ISU did not include Kim's short program score in its list of the season's best rankings, even though her score was the highest recorded that season. She needed to earn 48 points in her technical element scores during her free skate in order to qualify for the 2013 World Championships, which she easily did, with 60.82 points. She had applied to compete at the Golden Spin of Zagreb, in case she did not earn enough points, but withdrew her application after the NRW Trophy.
 Kim later admitted that she felt nervous during the warm-up before her free skate, but she kept her nerves under control and considered skating at a minor competition a positive experience. She also stated that she concentrated on her elements, but intended to improve upon her free skate's choreography and emotional aspect and was looking towards the Korean National Championships and the 2014 Olympic Games. Moon reported that Kim began her free skate "with indelible poise and sublime grace...launching herself fearlessly into jumps and landing with implausible softness". Kany called Kim's opening triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump "brilliant"; Kim also successfully executed a triple flip that earned her a +2 GOE, two additional triples, and a double Axel coming out of an Ina Bauer, although she singled her first Axel, turned her two planned double toe loops into single jumps, and fell during her triple Salchow-double toe combination jump. Kany stated, however, that although she appeared tired towards the end, the rest of her program was "solid". With the technical qualifications met, Kim's agency said she would focus on Korean Nationals and the World Championships. Kim also told reporters that she was enjoying her reunion with Shin and Ryu, and that she had missed training at home in Korea.
 
Instead of competing in other international events, Kim focused on the 2013 South Korean Championships and the 2013 World Championships. She was a strong favourite to win Korean Nationals. Kim skated a clean short program, placing first with a score of 64.97. She also won the free skate with a score of 145.80 points and 210.77 points overall. She won her fifth national title and qualified to compete in the World Championships. Koh Dong-wook of the Yonhap News, who called Kim's free skate a flawless performance", reported that even though she felt nervous going into the free skate because of a fall during practice, she completed her program with no errors. She received a GOE of 1.40 points in her opening triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump and a GOE of 1.28 points on her triple flip. She earned a Level 4 on her combination spin, a GOE of 1.05 points on her triple Salchow, a GOE of 1.33 points and a Level 3 on her step sequence, a GOE of 1.17 points on her triple Lutz, and successfully executed her double Axel-double toe loop-double loop combination jump. At the 2013 World Championships and looking towards winning her second World title, Kim placed first in the short program with a score of 69.97 points. Skating 14th out of 35 competitors, she completed a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, a triple flip, which was downgraded due to her take-off on the wrong edge of her skate, and a double Axel. She lost almost half-a-point on her flying camel spin, which she called "a bit shaky", early in her program. She successfully executed a Level 3 triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, a Level 4 step sequence, and a double Axel coming out of an Ina Bauer. According to the Korea Herald, she also "performed flawless spins and step sequences the rest of the way". Kim took the lead over Carolina Kostner from Italy, who earned 66.86 points, and Kanako Murakami from Japan, who earned 66.64 points. She later told reporters that she was disappointed with her score but had no regrets about her short program. She also said that she enjoyed skating "in the middle of the pack" because skating later on made her more nervous.
 Kim also won the free skate after executing a clean program that earned her 148.34 points. With 218.31 points overall, Kim claimed her second world title, surpassing the rest of the competitors by 20.43 points, the largest difference between gold and silver in the nine years the ISU Judging System had been used in the World Championships. Her free skate included a "string of perfectly executed triple-triple combinations". As Nancy Armour of the Associated Press said, Kim "could have stood at center ice for the second half of her program and still won". Kim, who told reporters that she felt less pressure, also seemed "able to enjoy the moment". Armour speculated that if Kim continued to skate like that in Sochi, she would be hard to beat at the Olympics. Kim received a standing ovation for her free skate, which Philip Hersh of the Chicago Tribune called "an ethereal free skate of surpassing brilliance". Last to skate, her free skate included six "flawless" jumps, one of which was in combination. She was only skater who skated a clean program. Kim said later that she felt happy with her free skate; she also said that it was the first time she no longer focused on the results, but had been able to enjoy both skating and competing. Up to that point, Kim had earned medals at all 30 of her international competitions, both at the junior and senior levels, and had won gold medals at 19 of them. Her world title secured three spots for South Korea in the women's event for the 2014 World Championships.
 For the 2013–14 ISU Grand Prix season, Kim was assigned to compete in the 2013 Skate Canada International and in the 2013 Trophée Eric Bompard. However, on September 26, it was announced that Kim would not compete in the Grand Prix series due to a metatarsal injury to her right foot (bruised bones) from excessive training, with recovery expected to take up to six weeks.
 Kim competed in the 2013 Golden Spin of Zagreb, her first competition in nine months. She placed first in the short program with a score of 73.37 points and won the free skate with 131.12 points. She earned a total score of 204.49 points, beating Miki Ando by 27.67 points. According to Yoo Jee-ho of the Yonhap News, "the level of competition at the second-tier event in Croatia was far from world class" and pointed out that Kim made unusual errors, which may have meant that she was not yet fully recovered from her foot injury. Yoo stated that Kim's choice of music for her short program, "Send in the Clowns," was a departure from her recent choices, which tended to be set to "more powerful tunes" and could have fallen flat in its choreography, but that Kim made up for it with "a series of exquisite steps and spins". During her short program, Kim landed her opening triple-triple combination jump and added a triple flip, but was unable to complete her double Axel, putting her hand down on the ice. She earned the highest short program component scores of her career and the highest short program score in the Grand Prix that season. Yoo called Kim's free skate, which was set to the tango piece "Adiós Nonino," a "dense, breathless program, jam-packed with complicated step sequences" and the most challenging free skating program of her career. Kim fell after the first jump of her opening triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, but she successfully landed the rest of her jumps and added a double toe loop after her triple Lutz halfway through her program, which earned her extra points. Her overall score was the fifth-best of her career and the third consecutive time she scored over 200 points.
 In early January, Kim competed in the 2014 South Korean Championships. She came in first after the short program, with 80.60 points, which was her personal best score, and won the free skate, which was called "flawless", with 147.26 points. She successfully landed her opening triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, her triple flip, triple Salchow-double toe loop combination jump, a combination spin, and a triple Lutz. She missed the final jump in her double Axel-double toe loop-double loop combination jump and popped her double Axel into a single jump, but successfully executed her triple Salchow, layback spin, and choreographic sequence. Kim won her sixth national title and second Nationals in a row, with a total score of 227.86 points, the second-highest score ever earned. Yonhap News stated that Kim's victory raised expectations for winning a second gold medal at the Olympics.
 
In February 2014, Kim competed at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, seeking to become the first woman to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals since Katarina Witt and with the intention of retiring from competitive skating afterwards. According to Moon Gwang-lip of Korea JoongAng Daily, she did not want to not feel burdened or pressured and wished to finish her career with no regrets. Kim was unable to train on the ice for six weeks before the Olympics due to a foot injury. Bryan Armen Graham reported that she attracted a large group of the press at practices, adding that "she skated well but with almost no spark, seeming almost unhappy at times". She narrowly came in first place after the short program with 74.92 points. Jeré Longman of The New York Times called her short program "a mature and elegant routine, even if it did not equal her stirring performance four years ago at the Vancouver Games". Longman stated that Kim defied the convention that skaters must compete throughout the season, in the Grand Prix circuit, in order to remain at the highest levels. She skated earlier than the other favorite competitors, 17th out of 30 skaters, due to her lower international standing, although she later said that it lessened her pressure. Paul Wylie, the 1992 silver Olympic medalist from Canada, stated that it demonstrated that Kim could skate well "whenever, wherever, whatever". Longman reported that Kim appeared anxious during her warm-up, but was able to give "a flowing if imperfect performance dressed in a sparkly chartreuse costume, similar in color to one that Peggy Fleming wore in 1968". Her triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump was "bounding and fluid", but her footwork sequence and layback spin appeared "slow and not wholly formed". Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic champion from the U.S., speculated that she might be judged in her free skate in comparison with her 2010 performance, not by her most recent accomplishments or in comparison with the current field of skaters. Graham stated that Kim was probably underscored in her short program, which might have been as a result of her early skating order. Skating last in the free skate, Kim successfully executed six triple jumps, three in combination; Adelina Sotnikova from Russia, who won the gold medal, had seven triple jumps in her program. Kim later admitted that she was not as motivated as she was in Vancouver. Graham reported that although the audience cheered throughout the previous two skaters' performances, they were quiet as Kim took the ice; Graham called her "sublime" triple flips and step sequences "the stock-in-trade of an athlete in full command". Graham also stated that Kim's free skate "awed the crowd" and reported that many observers had proclaimed her the winner. Her overall score was 219.11 points, 5.5 points less than Sotnikova's score. Her silver medal win was, as Graham called it, "controversial", and said that it "strikes a blow to the artistry that sets figure skating apart from all other sports—and to many, seems to stink of corruption". Graham cited Sotnikova's free skate score, 149.95 points, which was 40 points higher than her average score over the previous year and less than one point than Kim's free skating score in Vancouver, as well as impropriety about two judges, as the reasons for the controversy. He called the outcry against the decision "swift", reporting that a petition demanding an investigation had crashed Change.org's servers and had garnered 1.8 million signatures. He also stated that although the scores supported Sotnikova's win, "the elegance and virtuosity of Kim's performance were good enough to carry the day in Sochi". Kim declined to comment on the controversy at the press conference after the Olympics and told Philip Hersh in 2020 that her feelings about it had not changed. 
 Ashley Wagner from the U.S., who came in seventh place overall, called for the elimination of anonymous judging in figure skating. Kurt Browning, four-time World champion and commentator for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, stated: "Yu-na Kim outskated [Sotnikova], but it's not just a skating competition anymore—it's math". American Olympic champion Dick Button stated: "Sotnikova was energetic, strong, commendable, but not a complete skater". In 2023, the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee requested that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) reinvestigate the results of the women's figure skating competition in Sochi, after Sotnikova admitted to failing her first doping test earlier that year, but the IOC refused. As anticipated, Kim announced that the 2014 Olympics would mark the end of her competitive skating career and that she would not compete in the 2014 World Championships. During an interview in 2016, David Wilson expressed his "great disappointment" about her retirement.
 
Kim participated in the South Korean ice show, Superstars on Ice, in 2006, shortly before her senior debut, and in the Japanese show Dreams on Ice the following year. Between 2008 and 2010, she performed in Festa on Ice, produced by her agency, IB Sports. She hosted a charity ice show, Angels on Ice, on December 25, 2008, in Seoul, appearing alongside 2008 World bronze medallist Johnny Weir and ten young South Korean figure skaters. Kim stated she wanted to show her gratitude to local fans for their support. In April 2009, she headlined three shows in Korea. IB Sports produced another ice show, Ice All Stars, which took place in Seoul on August 14–16, 2009. Michelle Kwan also performed. In April 2010, Kim left IB Sports and with her mother, set up her own management agency called All That Sports Corporation (AT Sports). They organized an ice show, All That Skate, which as of 2020, was held annually. In October 2010, AT Sports debuted All That Skate LA, an American version of their Korean ice show brand, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The show, directed by David Wilson, featured Kwan, the reigning Olympic champions from three skating disciplines including Kim, and many world champions. It received positive reviews from both figure skating fans and critics for bringing a new style of skating show to the U.S. and for overall high production quality.
 In June 2012, Kim took part in Artistry on Ice in China. According to Li Sheng, president of SECA, the host of the show, it took two years to attract Kim. He added, "It's a breakthrough in Artistry on Ice, and even in China's figure skating history, although she only took part in the Shanghai stop". Kim held farewell ice shows in Seoul following her retirement from competition in 2014. In 2018, she made a special appearance in an All That Skate show, performing on the ice for the first time in four years. She skated to the song "House of Woodcock" from the soundtrack of the film Phantom Thread, which she thought was not flashy or dramatic and suited her well. She worked with David Wilson in Canada to develop the program, even though they had not spoken in four years. Kim also mentored younger skaters who appeared in the show. Kim did not include any jumps in her show program, but wanted a program that was "pure and beautiful, not dramatic". She "enthralled the crowd" with her signature Ina Bauer and Yuna camel, as well as a new twizzle spin. The audience gave her a standing ovation.  Also in 2018, she appeared in the Spanish ice show Revolution on Ice, hosted by Javier Fernández. She donated her skater's fee to UNICEF. In 2019, Kim performed again in All That Skate, using music from Variations from the Russian song "Dark Eyes" and the 2017 Julia Michaels song "Issues". Wilson and Sandra Besic created the program's choreography.
 In 2010, Kim told Susannah Palk of CNN that the tickets to the shows she headlined sold out a few minutes after going on sale. She also said that her fellow performers wanted to return to her shows because of the audience's responses. In 2009, Canadian singles skater Patrick Chan said that he and other skaters, including Canadians ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, enjoyed performing at Kim's ice shows because of the enthusiastic reactions from the audiences.
 Kim was known for the "lighter-than-air grace in her movements on the ice", her jumps, her speed, and her grounding in the demands of the ISU judging system. According to Michelle Kwan, Kim was what competition judges were looking for, "when it comes to jump quality, spin quality and edges". She was known for her execution of her In Bauer jump, her triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, and her "signature" layover spin, also called the "Yuna Camel". In 2009, the Associated Press praised Kim's ease, lightness, speed, power, strength, and landings. In 2020, Scott Hamilton stated that Kim was the best model of how to earn the most points under the IJS, especially her component scores and praised her speed, technique, and spiral sequences.
 During Kim's junior years, South Korea had limited facilities for figure skaters, which impacted Kim's training. Early in Kim's skating career, her parents were her most important financial support for her career, although the South Korean skating community provided her with grants to pay for her training expenses. One of Kim's first coaches in South Korea, Ryu Jong-hyun, considered the injuries Kim struggled with early on "almost routine"; Korean news outlet KBS Global considered her 2005 Junior Grand Prix Final win an example of Kim's ability to overcome obstacles and her "invincible determination". In the summer of 2006, Kim relocated to Toronto to work with choreographer David Wilson and her coach, Brian Orser. Juliet Macur of The New York Times called it "the turning point of her career". Her team of specialists worked with her on her presentation skills, on her interpersonal skills, and the treatment and prevention of her injuries. In 2010, Orser said that Kim was able to lead a more "normal life" in Toronto, without the great fame she experienced in South Korea.In 2009, she told Golden Skate that she liked to be "perfectly prepared", and that when she was, she felt that she was able to give a better performance.
 According to Bae Young-eun of Donga Ilbo, Kim had "no rival in terms of artistry". Music was as important a part of her skating as her elements were and was part of the reason for her success. Despite the pressure she felt as a skater, she did not compete to win competitions or for her country, but that she did it for herself. Kim was highly praised for her skating and presentation skills. Philip Hersh of the Los Angeles Times said about Kim, after the Vancouver Olympics, "Never have athlete and artist been more perfectly balanced than they are with Kim. Never has a skater with both those qualities displayed them so flawlessly in the sport's most important competition". Frank Carroll, who was Michelle Kwan's coach, said that Kim was able to combine athletics and artistry, despite it being "almost impossible" under the new judging system.
 David Wilson initially began working with Kim as her choreographer prior to the 2006–07 season, shortly after her 2006 Junior World Champion title. He choreographed all of Kim's competitive programs from the 2007–08 season to her retirement in 2014. Wilson later said that it was a challenge to connect with her because she expressed very little emotion and spoke almost no English and that he spent the first three months getting Kim to smile and to laugh. Eventually Kim relaxed and learned to use facial expressions to win over both her audiences and the judges. Wilson praised Kim's work ethic, noting that she "took everything [he] said to heart" and said that she believed in him, which was fulfilling, adding that she had never been rude or temperamental with him. He called her "an absolute dream" to work with. He also praised her integrity as a person.
 As early as 2005, it was reported that Kim's success boosted the popularity of figure skating in South Korea, where she was called "Queen Yuna". As Philip Hersh stated shortly before the 2010 Olympics, no other figure skater was as celebrated as Kim was in her country. Former skater and Kim's coach in 2005, Chi Hyun-jung, stated that Kim's success served as a turning point for skating in South Korea and expressed the hope that it would produce more competitors there. In 2020, her coach, Brian Orser, said that Kim's performances at the 2010 Olympics were among the greatest ever and that she inspired thousands of South Korean girls to take up figure skating. International Figure Skating magazine stated in 2009 that some felt that she was the invigoration figure skating needed. In 2010, according to Forbes magazine, she was one of the highest paid athletes in the world.
 Kim and Japanese skater Mao Asada were called rivals since they competed as juniors. In 2009, when Kim won the Worlds Championships and Asada came in second place, the Associated Press called their rivalry "the best thing going in skating these days" and stated that it was the reason for their fame in their respective countries.
 In 2005, Kim was appointed a public relations ambassador by the South Korea Olympic Committee's unsuccessful bid to host the 2014 Olympics. In 2010, she was one of 24 Korean athletes chosen to a committee to promote their bid for the 2018 Olympics. She was later credited with helping Korea win the bid. In October 2011, Kim was appointed a member of the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Winter Games Organising Committee and was named an official ambassador for the 2018 Olympics. She appeared as the final torch bearer and lit the Olympic flame in the Opening Ceremony. In February 2022, she was named the honorary ambassador for the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics in Gangwon, South Korea. She was also appointed a member of the Organising Committee.
 Kim has been active in a variety of fields, including music, television, and fashion. In 2021, it was reported that due to her sponsorships, she was one of highest-paid athletes in South Korea, well into her retirement. In early 2023, when she donated 127 million Korean won (US $100,000) to aid earthquake recovery efforts in Turkey and Syria, Kim's "history of philanthropy" was reported. In 2010, she was named as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF.
 Kim has received many awards and honours during her career and afterwards in South Korea and from around the world. In 2008 and 2009, a major Korean newspaper named her Korea's "person of the year" and Gallop polls named her South Korea's top athlete in the three years preceding the 2010 Olympics. In August 2010, the city of Los Angeles designated August 7 as "Yu-Na Kim Day" and granted her honorary citizenship. She has been featured in various lists, including the Time 100 (2010) and several Forbes lists (2016).
 Kim, along with her mother, became a Roman Catholic in 2008 after they came in contact with local nuns and Catholic organizations through her attending physician at a sport clinic in Seoul, a devout Catholic who was treating her for knee injuries. Her confirmation name is Stella from Stella Maris in Latin, meaning Our Lady, Star of the Sea, an ancient title of The Blessed Virgin Mary. In 2014, National Catholic Register called her "an example of how to live the faith publicly" and reported that she would pray while on the ice during the Vancouver Olympics and other competitions, when she would make the sign of the cross and when she bowed her head before competing. In 2010, she joined with the Korean bishops in a national campaign that explained the Rosary to the public; she wore a rosary ring, which many fans mistook for an engagement ring. She also made charitable donations and volunteered at Catholic hospitals, universities, and organizations.
 By 2020, Kim was "very protective" about her private life, making infrequent posts on Instagram and no Twitter posts since 2018. On July 25, 2022, it was confirmed that Kim would marry singer Ko Woo-rim of Forestella, with whom she had been in a relationship for three years. They had met at the 2018 All That Skate show, where Forestella performed. They married in a private ceremony on October 22, 2022, at Hotel Shilla in Seoul.
 Kim has broken world records 13 times in her career in the +3/-3 GOE judging system, including two historical junior records.
 
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