This final, the conclusion of the Grand Prix circuit which sets the pace for the first half of the season, brings together the very best skaters in the world every year.
Its cancellation deprives them of a last direct confrontation two months before the Beijing Olympics (February 4-20).
For the French Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron in particular, 2018 Olympic vice-champions and quadruple ice dance world champions in search of gold at the 2022 Olympics, it was to be the scene of their first face-to-face since nearly two years with their main opponents, the Russians Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov, crowned world champions in March in their absence.
"We offer our deepest apologies to all involved to whom we cause inconvenience, but we hope for your understanding," the Japan Skating Federation wrote in a statement.
The International Skating Federation "regrets that organizing the event in Osaka in December is no longer possible" and "will assess the possibility of a postponement at the end of the season," she said.
The Japanese government on Wednesday asked airlines to suspend all new bookings to its territory for a month, amid fears over the Omicron variant, before partially relaxing the rule on Thursday so its nationals can return. their country.
Two international competitions are still on the calendar before the Beijing Games, the European Championships in January in Tallinn, followed by the Championships of the four continents (all except Europe), also in the Estonian capital.
The Grand Prix final was scheduled from December 9 to 12.
In 2020, scheduled for Beijing and to serve as a pre-Olympic competition, it had already been canceled due to the pandemic.
© 2021 AFP