AKITA -- Akitainu Hozonkai, the Akita dog preservation society, revealed the Akita dog that will be given to Russian figure skater Alina Zagitova -- who won a gold medal at the Pyeongchang Olympics -- at a competitive dog show for the breed held in Odate, Akita Prefecture, on Thursday.
In response to Zagitova saying she wanted an Akita dog, the Odate-based association picked five candidates from among its branches around the nation and showed their photos to the gold medalist for her to choose.
The chosen dog is a female puppy with red fur born on Feb. 15 and weighing 8 kilograms.
Zakitova has reportedly said she intends to name the dog "Masaru" as she was inspired by the kanji character meaning victory.
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