The new season will jump right into the Chubu Block Tournament arc!
The official X (formerly Twitter) account of the hit Winter 2024 anime “Medalist” has unveiled a new visual and promotional video announcing its 24 January, 2026 premiere.
The second season will follow where Season 1 left off, with Inori advancing to the novice class. Fierce competition awaits her, as they all aim for the coveted All Japan Championship.
The promotional video:
The visual:
Medalist Season 2 unveils new characters and opening theme song
Besides its January 2026 premiere, Medalist Season 2 also revealed 10 new additional characters and cast members:
- Natsuko Abe as Yuna Yagi
- Mao Ito as Rinna Sarukawa
- Maria Naganawa as Manaka Roba
- Minami Tanaka as Yotsuha Ushikawa
- Hikaru Tono as Kurumi Risu
- Takako Tanaka as Sakina Anaguma
- Yuko Natsuyoshi as Sana Niwatori
- Hibiku Yamamura as Iruka Okazaki
- Kotomi Aihara as Riina Kojoh
- Ai Kayano as Marika Kurione
These new characters will be introduced as Inori’s rivals during the Chubu Block Tournament.
While returning cast members are:
- Inori Yuitsuka voiced by Natsumi Haruse
- Tsukasa Akeuraji voiced by Takeo Otsuka
- Hikaru Kamisaki voiced by Kana Ichinose
- Jun Yodaka voiced by Yuma Uchida
- Rioh Sonidori voiced by Makoto Koichi
- Shinichiro Sonidori voiced by Taito Ban
The opening theme song is titled “Cold Night”, and is performed by HANA.
Yasutaka Yamamoto is returning to direct the second season at Studio ENGI. Jukki Hanada continues to write the scripts, while Chinatsu Kameyama designs the characters. Yuuki Hayashi is composing the music.
The staff also underwent some changes, with the art director now being Hazuki Nakamura. Kentaro Kashiwagi is director of photography, and Takasumi Miura is animation producer.
Kodansha publishes the Medalist manga by Tsurumaikada in their Monthly Afternoon magazine. The publication describes the story as:
Inori is a little girl who dreams of becoming a figure skater. Yet, the obstacles to this dream feel insurmountable: Inori’s already “too old” (she’s 11); she’s always had trouble at school; and, worst of all, her older sister’s skating dreams ended in failure, so her mother is dead set against putting her other daughter through a similar experience. Still, the rink is the only place Inori can be herself, and she’s out on the ice when a fateful meeting takes place. Tsukasa, a frustrated coach on the edge of giving up competitive skating himself, will join Inori to form an unstoppable duo powered by hard work, transcendent joy, and an unshakeable belief that they can prove everyone wrong.
Medalist Season 1 is currently streaming on Disney+ globally.