More digging...

Anonymous...as per your request.

And the Winner Is....

Mao Asada!

But not because she won the free skate, but rather because she was the most consistent in the event, placing second in both the short and long...that was good enough for a win here!

Fumie Suguri actually won the Free Skate, rallying from fifth place after the short to take the silver medal. Despite a fourth place showing in the free, Miki Ando was able to hang on to the bronze ahead of Akiko Suzuki who outscored her in the free skate.

Leader after the short program, Yukari Nakano fell all the down to fifth place after a dismal performance. Nana Takeda rounded out the top six.

Check the full results here.

Now if I can just find the results from Russia....

UPDATE: I did a little digging and found both Fumie Suguri and Mao Asada's Free Skates on YouTube.

Bit of News...

Coming out of Japan...Nobunari Oda is the Men's National Champion. He defeated Takahiko Kozuka (who took Silver) by a little over 18 points with an impressive 243.70.

After the ladies short program, it is very close between the top three. Yukari Nakano (67.26) leads Mao Asada (65.30) who is just ahead of Miki Ando (65.02)...all three ladies are separated by just a little over two points. Yukari is leading due to a huge Technical Element Score compared to the other competitors.

She spoke with the Japan Times after her short program:
"It was one of my best short programs ever. I'd never had the lead after the short program, so I'm thrilled. I have to admit I feel pressure heading into the free skate, but I'll just focus on four minutes of free skating tomorrow. I'll do what I have to do and hopefully I can earn a place at the world championships." she said.

Also according to the article Mao under rotated the second jump in her combination and was only credited with a triple-single combination.

2009 National Championships

This week, Russia and Japan will crown it's National Champions for the 2009 season (I know, I know...it's still 2008...it's just how they do it.) Lots of talent will be competing in these events.

The Russian National Championships, which will be in Kazan, boasts some great competitors. Six solid mens competitors will vie for the title including reigning champion Sergei Voronov. Challenging him will be Andrei Lutai, Alexander Uspenski, Andrei Griazev, Artem Borodulin, and Sergei Dobrin. A fierce showdown is possible in Ice Dance between Domnina & Shabalin and Khoklova & Novitski. Khoklova & Novitski upset Domnina & Shabalin at Cup of Russia. Unfortunately we weren't able to see the rematch because Jana and Sergei withdrew due to stomach illness on Sergei's part. Should be interesting. In pairs, Kawaguchi & Smirnov will face off against Mukhortova & Trankov...both teams are coming off a dismal showing at the Grand Prix Final.

4078 miles away in Nagano, Japan, Japan's best take to the ice for the Japanese crown. The ladies event is chock full of competitors inclusing Mao Asada, Yukari Nakano, Miki Ando, Fumie Suguri, Akiko Suzuki, Nana Takeda, and others...talk about a deep field! However, the clear favorite is Mao Asada. Look for her (I'm gonna call trademark) double dosage of Triple Axels. All the others will be looking for the other podium finishes. A fun rivalry of sorts may possibly develop here. Both Nobunari Oda and Takahiko Kozuka have looked impressive this season, each winning a Grand Prix event and Takahiko winning the silver at the Grand Prix Final. It'll be fun to see how this plays out.

Russia's event begins tomorrow and runs through Sunday while Japan's event will begin December 25th and run through Saturday. Keep your fingers crossed for your favorite competitors!