TOKYO, Dec. 13 -- Japan’s star figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu will miss the upcoming national championships in Osaka due to a right ankle injury, the Japan Skating Federation said on Thursday.

It will be the third straight time for the two-time Olympic champion to miss the nationals after a similar injury and a flu prevented him from participating in the two previous ones respectively.

The 24-year-old superstar said in a statement that he had done everything he could and he was very disappointed that he couldn’t make it to the nationals.

The All Japan Figure Skating Championships, held from Dec. 20 to 24, will also serve as a qualifier for the world championships next year. But the JSF would probably qualify Hanyu in another way, according to local media.

Hanyu twisted his right ankle in a fall in practice on Nov. 17 at the ISU Grand Prix Rostelecom Cup in Moscow.

He was told by doctors that he would need three weeks of rest and one month of rehabilitation to recover.

Despite the injury, he won the Rostelecom Cup, his second Grand Prix title this season, but was forced to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final held earlier this month in Vancouver, Canada.

【体坛英语资讯：Japan’s Hanyu to miss national championships due to ankle injury】相关文章：

★ 体坛英语资讯：Milwaukee Bucks trade Yi to Nets

★ 体坛英语资讯：Spain beat Germany 1-0 to lift Euro 2008 title

★ 体坛英语资讯：Davydenko not worried about betting probe

★ 体坛英语资讯：Li Na wins as Peng Shuai crashes

★ 体坛英语资讯：Netherlands lands Prix title, China takes silver

★ 体坛英语资讯：Olympic basketball hopes in jeopardy: Yao

★ 体坛英语资讯：Ajax rout Excelsior to narrow gap with Eindhoven

★ 体坛英语资讯：Hurdler Liu to skip Golden League for Games

★ 体坛英语资讯：Zambrotta returns to Italy with AC Milan

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Paris tones down the bling