Fumie Suguri of Japan has qualified for the world figure skating championships after winning the women's final at the Four Continents event in Gangneung, South Korea.
The two-time world bronze medalist led the event after the women's short program. But her countrywoman, Yoshie Onda, completed seven triple jumps and skated brilliantly in Saturday's free program.
Suguri responded by skating a clean free program with one less triple jump. However, her artistic scores allowed her to edge Onda and claim her third Four Continents crown. American Jennifer Kirk took third place.
Suguri had to finish the tournament as the top Japanese competitor to qualify for her country's team at next month's world championships. If Suguri had failed to win, Onda would have earned the spot on Japan's team.
Some information for this report provided by AP.