France's Brian Joubert and American Jeremy Abbott off to strong start at NHK Trophy

By JIM ARMSTRONG , Associated Press

Last update: November 6, 2009 - 5:21 AM

NAGANO, Japan - Brian Joubert of France finished first in the men's short program at the NHK Trophy on Friday, edging Jeremy Abbott of the United States.

Joubert opened his routine with a quadruple toe loop, triple toe loop combination and received 85.55 points to finish ahead of Abbott, who was second with 83.00 points. American skater Johnny Weir was third with 78.35 points.

"I'm very happy because my first Grand Prix was difficult," said Joubert, who finished fourth at the Trophee Bompard in Paris. "I was very disappointed with the result (in Paris) so it was important for me to get a good result today and for the rest of this competition."

Joubert, the 2007 world champion, stumbled on the landing of a triple lutz but skated a clean program otherwise.

Abbott, the U.S. champion skating in his first GP of the season, opened with a triple flip, triple toe loop combination and hit all his jumps.

"I was pleased that I got everything done and did everything with quality," Abbott said. "I didn't miss any jumps and that was important."

Abbott left his coach of 10 years, Tom Zakrajsek, in May and is training with former world champ Yuka Sato.

"Last season was a big breakthrough for me," Abbott said. "But the end of the season wasn't that good and I felt like I needed a change. My new coach has made me skate with a lot of confidence and even when I feel bad I am able to be comfortable on the ice."

Weir, battling a cold he may have picked up on the 13-hour flight to Japan, turned in his best performance of the season.

"I skated well today," he said. "I wasn't thinking about skating. I was just trying to save energy for Saturday's free skate."

Japan's Daisuke Takahashi, skating in his first GP since returning from knee surgery, had a strong performance but had a weak landing on a triple lutz and fell during a step sequence.

Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White were first after the compulsory dance while Russians Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov topped the pairs short program.

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