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Three-time world champion Kaori Sakamoto performed a near-flawless free skate on Saturday to defend her title in what she says will be her final NHK Trophy.
Sakamoto said in June she will retire from competition after next year's Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics and was determined to put in a stirring performance at her home Grand Prix in Osaka, Japan.
Skating to a selection of music from Edith Piaf, Sakamoto landed seven triple jumps to score a Grand Prix season-high score among all competitors of 227.18.
"It was a great experience for me to be able to perform in my hometown," said Sakamoto. "This was an international competition close to my local fans and I feel great I was able to put in such a strong performance."
Combined with her second place finish at the Grand Prix de France, Sakamoto secured a slot in the Dec. 4-7 Grand Prix Final in Nagoya, Japan.
WATCH | Sakamoto wins gold on home ice:Kaori Sakamoto takes the win in the women’s competition at the NHK Trophy with a score of 227.18 in Osaka, Japan.Teenager Sofia Samodelkina of Kazakhstan, making her Grand Prix debut, was second with 200 points followed by Loena Hendrickx of Belgium.
Ottawa's Katherine Medland Spence, the lone Canadian entry, finished 11th among the 12 skaters in her Grand Prix debut with 146.63 points.
WATCH | Canada's Medland Spence finishes 11th:Ottawa's Katherine Medland Spence finishes in 11th place with a score of 146.63 at the NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan.Skating to "La Alegria," 2024 European Champion Loena Hendrickx landed six triple jumps cleanly to earn a total of 198.97 points.
Hendrickx returned to the Grand Prix series after sitting out the past season due to surgery to repair her right ankle in February.
Watch live coverage of the Grand Prix season on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. A full streaming schedule is available here.
Hendrickx qualified for the Olympics by finishing third at the ISU Skate to Milano Figure Skating qualifier in September.
After winning three consecutive world championships through 2024, Sakamoto finished second at this year's worlds in Boston in March.
The 25-year-old won the women's singles bronze medal at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games.
Sakamoto finished second behind 17-year-old compatriot Ami Nakai at the season-opening Grand Prix de France last month and came to her home Grand Prix aiming to regain her dominance.
WATCH | NHK Trophy — full replay of women's free program:Watch the women's free program at the NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan.Japan's best hope for a medal at the Olympics, Sakamoto will have to contend with Russian figure skater Adeliia Petrosian in Italy.
The International Skating Union has decided to allow Russians to compete in Milan-Cortina as neutrals but only in the men's and women's competitions.
The 18-year-old Petrosian has won two straight national titles and is unbeaten over the past two seasons, winning eight straight domestic events. Petrosian has landed triple axels and quads in competition while no other woman has done so consistently this year.
Kagiyama overcomes mistake to win goldIn the men's singles, 2022 Olympic silver medalist Yuma Kagiyama overcame an early mistake to win his third straight NHK Trophy.
First after the short program, Kagiyama fell on his quadruple toe loop but landed all his other jumps to finish with an overall score of 287.24
Kagiyama's Japanese compatriot Shun Sato, who won the Cup of China last month, landed three flawless quad jumps on his way to a personal-best of 189.04 in the free skate for a total of 285.71.
With Saturday's result, Sato confirmed a spot in next month's GP Final in Nagoya, Japan.
Lukas Britschgi of Switzerland took the bronze medal with 246.94 points.
WATCH | Kagiyama wins 3rd straight NHK Trophy men's title:Yuma Kagiyama of Japan wins the men’s competition at the NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan, with a total score of 287.24.Kagiyama was skating in his first Grand Prix of the season and is hoping to carry the momentum to the Grand Prix final in December and the Winter Olympics next year.
"I had a mistake early on but was able to recover after that. This was far from perfect but I did the best I was able to do today," said Kagiyama, who will take part in the Nov. 21-23 Grand Prix Finlandia Trophy.
British duo take ice dance goldWorld bronze medalists Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson of Great Britain won the ice dance gold medal with an overall score of 205.88 to qualify for the Grand Prix Final.
Three-time European Champions Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbari of Italy earned the silver medal while 2022 Four Continents champions Caroline Green and Michael Parsons of the United States took the bronze.
Fear and Gibson impressed the judges and the Japanese fans with their Scottish dance routine in tartan costumes that featured spectacular lifts and intricate footwork.
"We're just very proud of our performances because we put a lot of work in a short amount of time between France and here, and it really showed up in competition, which is one of the most gratifying feelings," Fear said.
The Canadian duo of Alicia Fabbri, from Terrebonne, Que., and Paul Ayer, from Calgary, placed ninth out of the 10 teams after earning a season-best score of 174.71 points.
WATCH | Fear, Gibson dance to gold in Osaka:Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson of Great Britain win the ice dance competition at the NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan, with a total score of 205.88.Italy's Conti, Macii win pairs titleIn pairs, the Italian duo of Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii upstaged 2022 Olympic champions Sui Wenjing and Han Cong of China to take the gold medal.
Maria Pavlova and Alexei Sviatchenko of Hungary earned the silver medal while Sui and Han, who were first after the short program, had to settle for bronze.
WATCH | Conti, Macii capture pairs gold:Italy's Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii finish first in the pairs competition at the NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan, with a total score of 208.58.