WATCH: Japanese figure skater's gesture for emotional Alysa Liu after massive win breaks the Internet

Kaori Sakamoto's sporting gesture towards America's Alysa Liu and her coaching team recently amazed the fans on social media. Liu and Sakamoto displayed great sportsmanship as they embraced each other after winning first and second places at the 2025 ISU Figure Skating World Championships in Boston. Liu outshined Sakamoto by 4.99 points, preventing the defending champion from retaining her title on Saturday.

Alysa Liu, who won her US Championships title in 2019 and defended it the following year in 2020, announced her retirement in 2022 after stating she was satisfied with the mark she left on the figure skating realm.

She returned from retirement in 2024, posting impressive performances in back-to-back events like the CS Budapest Trophy and the 2024-25 Grand Prix, building up to the 2025 World Championships. Competing in the Worlds for the first time since 2022, Liu was in her top form in both the short and free programs.

The 19-year-old finished in pole position and earned her first World title, the first for an American woman skater to achieve in almost two decades. Sakamoto trailed in second, missing her second consecutive title defense. However, after the results, the two skaters representing the US and Japan, respectively, have made rounds on the internet for displaying great sportsmanship.

They embraced each other and celebrated their victories, while the warm-hearted Sakamoto even hugged Liu's coaches. Here's the video that garnered 4.5k likes and over 248k views on X.

Fans were impressed by the heartwarming gesture and shared their thoughts by on X.

"Put it in the louvre," wrote a fan.

"Incredible sportsmanship. World champion 🇺🇸Alysa Liu embraces with silver medalist and three-time World champion 🇯🇵Kaori Sakamoto. This is sport at its best," another fan tweeted.

Alysa Liu's total of 222.97 points was 4.99 more than the silver finisher, Sakamoto. The latter boasts an impressive figure skating trajectory, having amassed two Olympic and four World medals.

Alysa Liu makes her feelings known after winning the overall title at the 2025 World Championships

Alysa Liu after her win at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2025 - (Source: Getty)

Alysa Liu was the youngest figure skater in history to win the US Championships title in 2019. As one of the most formidable athletes in the circuit, the 19-year-old proved herself on the 2025 Worlds stage as well. However, she couldn't wrap her head around the victory she achieved on March 28, 2025. In an interview with NBC Sports, she said:

"I’m not going to lie, this is an insane story. I don’t know how I came back to be world champion.”

Reflecting on the season, she said:

"Personally, I can be so much better. That’s why I call this a starter season because this season is me picking up the pieces. So I don’t know how I just did this.”

Her teammate, Amber Glenn, was the only woman to attempt a triple Axel in the free event but finished fifth overall despite being a heavy favorite.