Hajime Miura at the 2026 World Yo-Yo Contest

I went through a brief yo-yo phase in junior high during which I picked up a few tricks, including “Around the World,” “Rock the Baby,” and “Walk the Dog.” It was fun and all, and I think I impressed several friends (though, sadly, no girls). But whatever yo-yo skills I might’ve possessed absolutely pale in comparison to Hajime Miura’s feats.

Miura has been one of the world’s most dominant yo-yo pros for quite some time now, ever since winning the world title in 2014. (Just search for him on Wikipedia’s list of yo-yo world champions.) He specializes in the 3A style, which involves performing tricks with two yo-yos, and he pulls off moves and routines that are astonishing in their grace and intricacy.

Miura’s performance at the 2026 World Yo-Yo Contest is a true showcase of his talents, and when combined with the meditative music, is really something quite beautiful. The only thing that might be more enjoyable than watching Miura’s moves — which I’m pretty sure defy at least a few laws of physics, particularly the sequence that occurs between 2:40 and 2:48 — is to listen to the crowd’s reactions. You can actually hear their brains melting in real time, starting at the 0:24 mark.

Shockingly, Miura came in fifth in the competition, mainly due to the penalty he received for switching to a second set of yo-yos after his first set got tangled up. But as others have pointed out, Miura doesn’t seem all that concerned with winning given his dominance over the years. Rather, it seems like he just wanted to create a beautiful experience for everyone, which he absolutely did.