Olympic figure skating champion Hanyu to miss the GP Final

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Two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan will miss the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final due to a right ankle injury, the Japan Skating Federation said on Thursday.

The 23-year-old Hanyu twisted his right ankle during a practice at the Rostelecom Cup on November 17 and will be unable to compete in the GP Final which will be held between December 6-8 in Vancouver, Canada.

Hanyu's withdrawal means Shoma Uno, the champion of the NHK Trophy, will be the lone Japanese male taking part.

Yuzuru Hanyu performs during the men's short program skating event at the Rostelecom Cup 2018 in Moscow, Russia, November 16, 2018. /VCG Photo

In addition to winning back-to-back Olympic golds and world championships, Hanyu won the GP Final four consecutive times between 2013 and 2016. He was aiming to become the first skater, male or female, to win five GP titles overall.

The GP Final features the top skaters from six GP series of the International Skating Union (ISU). Hanyu qualified by winning the GP of Helsinki and the Rostelecom Cup, the third and fifth of six events in the 2018-19 ISU series.

Due to his injury, Hanyu did not show up at the 2018 Internationaux de France, the last championship of the series.

Peng Cheng (top) and Jin Yang (below) perform during the pair competition at the 2018 Skate Canada International in Laval, Canada, October 27, 2018. /VCG Photo

Team China's pair Peng Cheng and Jin Yang qualified for the final by winning the second prize at the Skate Canada International in October and Japan's NHK Trophy in November. However, another Chinese pair, Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu, could not qualify for the final.

Jin Boyang makes a closing gesture during his performance at the 2018 Internationaux de France in Grenoble, France, November 24, 2018. /VCG Photo

China's famous skater Jin Boyang could not make his way to the final either as he ranked ninth in the men's free skating event during the French competition in November.

(With inputs from AP)