Akita society chief gifts champion skater Alina Zagitova a dog

Russia's figure skating gold medallist Alina Zagitova holds holds the Akita gifted to her by Japanese Prime Minister in Moscow on Saturday. Pic/AFP

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday took part in a ceremony to present a Japanese Akita dog to Russia's Olympic figure skating champion Alina Zagitova during a visit to Moscow.

Zagitova, 16, who won gold at this year's Pyeongchang Olympics, proclaimed her love for Akitas after spotting them while training in Japan. Local officials then pledged to find one for her.

The head of the Akita preservation society, Takashi Endo, gifted her a puppy called Masura in the ceremony in a central Moscow hotel. Abe, who spoke at Saint Petersburg's Economic Forum this week and will hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, took part in the presentation. In 2016, the governor of Japan's Akita region gifted an Akita puppy named Yume to Putin.

Catch up on all the latest sports news and updates here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever