The event will see 39 countries competing but will once again be lacking skaters from Russia, the sport's dominant country, who will be absence for the second Championships following a ban imposed after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Uno, 25, winner of an Olympic silver medal at Pyeongchang 2018 and bronze at Beijing 2022, will be favourite to win the men’s title at the Saitama Super Arena.

He won  the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Turin in December with a season’s best of 304.46 points.

Ilia Malinin of the United States, who made history this season by successfully performing the first quad Axel in competition, will be providing strong opposition in the Japanese city 30 kilometres north of the country's capital Tokyo.

Other likely challengers will include Japan’s ISU Grand Prix Final silver medallist Sota Yamamoto, competing in his first World Championships, European gold medallist Adam Siao Him Fa of France, and 2023 ISU Four Continents silver medallist Keegan Messing of Canada.

Other skaters looking to make an impression will be 2022 ISU Four Continents champion Junwhan Cha of South Korea, China’s two-time ISU World Championship bronze medallist Boyang Jin, 2023 European silver medallist Matteo Rizzo of Italy, his compatriot Daniel Grassi, the 2022 European silver medallist, and Jason Brown of the United States.

Sakamoto, winner of team and individual bronze medals at Beijing 2022, did not make the podium at the ISU Grand Prix Final, but was back at the top of her game at the Challenge Cup in February in Tilburg in The Netherlands. 

Her compatriot Mai Mihara, the ISU Grand Prix Final champion, returns to the World Championships for the first time.since 2017, when she finished fifth, and has her eyes firmly set on the podium.

Other likely opposition will come from the 2022 world silver medallist Loena Hendrickx of Belgium. 2023 European champion Anastasia Guvanova of Georgia, ISU Grand Prix Final silver medallist and 2022 ISU World Junior champion Isabeau Levito of the United States, Japan’s Rinka Watanabe, 2023 ISU Four Continents champion Haein Lee of South Korea and compatriot Yelim Kim, the silver medallist.

Reigning Pairs world champions and Beijing 2022 silver medallists Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier of the US will seek to defend their title against last year’s silver medallists Rihu Miura and Ryuichi Kihara.

The Ice Dance competition will witness a duel between Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Canada and world  bronze medallists Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States.

The Canadians dominated in the first half of the season and won the ISU Grand Prix Final.

The couple missed the National Championships and the ISU Four Continents Championships after Gilles had had to undergo an appendectomy, and they are now seeking to return to their earlier form.