SENDAI — With a trip to the Grand Prix Final hers for the taking, Miki Ando let it slip away in a calamitous outing at the NHK Trophy on Saturday night, where she finished fourth behind Italy's Carolina Kostner.

Trailing Kostner by less than a point after the short program, the 2007 world champion appeared well positioned to take the title, but came unglued in her free skate.

Ando fell on her planned triple lutz-triple loop opening combination jump, touched down on a triple flip, then fell again on a triple lutz. She topped it all off by botching a triple combination jump.