Slutskaya has won the GP final four times and was unbeaten last season, culminating with a brilliant performance in her native Moscow to win the world championship for the second time.
She has been even better this season with easy victories at the Cup of China and Cup of Russia.
The women's event also has the only American entry this year. Alissa Czisny, an 18-year-old who finished just seventh at the U.S. championships last January, took advantage of Kwan and Cohen's absences to come in second at Skate America and win Skate Canada.
"I am very honored to be here and represent the U.S. and just to get the experience," said Czisny, who had to interrupt her international studies at Bowling Green University to compete.
"I took my finals last week. They were supposed to be this week but my teachers let me take them early," she said.
Also entered at Tokyo is 15-year-old jumping sensation Mao Asada, one of three Japanese entrants.
Asada has promised two triple axels this competition and is one of just a handful of female skaters that have achieved the maneuver in competition. However she missed the July 1 age deadline for the Olympics by less than three months,
The men's event has been hit hard by injuries and withdrawals.
Switzerland's Stephane Lambiel, the 2005 world champion, is here but sixth qualifier, while Evan Lysacek of the United States had to withdraw due to a hip injury.
The next two alternates, Brian Joubert of France and Plushenko, also were injured or ill, leaving two-time American champion Johnny Weir. However he was contacted after the official deadline and he declined outright.
So, after having exhausted the list of alternates on call, the ISU decided to go with just five men entrants, including two Canadians Emanuel Sandhu and Jeff Buttle who have had success here.
Sandhu won as an alternate two years ago in Colorado Springs, Colorado and won two events this season after performing poorly in the short programs, jumping from sixth at Skate Canada and fourth at the Cup of China.
"The short program, I knew at the Grand Prix, wasn't as ready as the long program," Sandhu said. "I didn't expect perfection. It could have happened but it didn't because my focus was training the long program."
Last year at Beijing, Buttle came in second and used that as a springboard to gain the silver medal at the world championships behind Lambiel after Plushenko withdrew because of a groin injury.
Japan has local hopes in Daisuke Takahashi and Nobunari Oda who each won one event this season. However only one spot is available for Japanese men at the Olympics
Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin of Russia, who won the world titles in 2004 and 2005, are the favorites. Two other Russian pairs, two Chinese pairs and a German pair.
In ice dance, world champs Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov of Russia lead the field.
World silver medalists and the top American couple Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, won at Skate America but had to withdraw from their other event because of Agosto's groin injury. They are still hoping to gain Belbin's American citizenship before the Olympic deadline late in January.
Canadians Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon won two events on the circuit.
The short programs and original programs are Friday with the free skating on Saturday.
Copyright © 2004 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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