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Mao Asada signs up for marathon

Mao Asada

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 02: Mao Asada of Japan skates in the Ladies Free Skate on Day 6 of the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2016 at TD Garden on April 2, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Maddie Meyer

Mao Asada, an Olympic silver medalist and three-time world champion figure skater, will tackle a different athletic challenge on Dec. 10 -- the Honolulu Marathon.

The 5-foot-3, 27-year-old retired from figure skating in April and decided on the marathon in September, according to Sports Nippon.

Honolulu Marathon officials confirmed that Asada is entered.

Asada said her goal is to break 4 hours, 30 minutes, to beat her older sister Mai’s time from the Nagoya Marathon in March, according to the newspaper.

Asada took silver at the 2010 Vancouver Games behind Yuna Kim. She won world titles in 2008, 2010 and 2014.

The Honolulu Marathon is sponsored by Japan Airlines, which has put Asada’s image on the side of a plane.

NBCOlympics.com producer Rachel Lutz contributed to this report.

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