World and Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu suffered an injury to his right ankle during afternoon practice for the NHK Trophy at Osaka Municipal Central Gymnasium on Thursday afternoon and his status for the event is unclear.
Hanyu fell while attempting a quadruple lutz and appeared to injure himself. However, he did not leave the practice early. He skated during the run-through for his free skate to "Seimei" after the mishap and did some spins, but no jumps, while not seeming to be in any great pain.
"As all of you are aware who were at the rink during the official practice, Yuzuru Hanyu injured his leg and he is undergoing treatment, so he will not be attending this press conference," Japan Skating Federation spokesman Tamio Suzuki told the assembled media at an Osaka hotel on Thursday evening.
"Please accept our apology, we do not know the details of the injury or whether he will be taking part in the competition from tomorrow," Suzuki added. "There are no reports from the doctor at this moment."
If the 22-year-old Hanyu were to pull out of the NHK Trophy, he would not be able to qualify for next month's Grand Prix Final in Nagoya.