Lysacek won't compete again in 2010

Olympic gold medalist Evan Lysacek is taking some time off. How much time off, he hasn't decided.

Lysacek said Thursday he won't compete the rest of this year, meaning he will skip the Grand Prix season. But he still wants to skate, and hasn't ruled out the U.S. championships in mid-January.

"I miss it. I miss competing. I miss training," Lysacek said. "Obviously I love doing all the work I'm doing with charities and sponsors. At the same time, I'm a skater and I love to skate. I'm itching to get back on the ice as much as I can. I guess I would know if I felt my career was done.

"The fact I still love to skate and I'm really happy when I get the chance to get back on the ice is a great sign."

Lysacek's decision to take a break hardly comes as a surprise considering his whirlwind schedule since Vancouver, where he became the first American since Brian Boitano in 1988 to win the men's figure skating title. He was the runner-up on "Dancing with the Stars," and has crisscrossed the globe doing ice shows and promotional appearances.

He was a judge at the Miss Universe pageant and is hosting an event next week as part of New York's Fashion Week. He also recently signed on with Help USA, a charity devoted to helping the homeless.

"It was such a stark contrast to my training mentality, which was, say no to everything and block out all the distractions," Lysacek said. "The last couple of months, I've said yes to everything."

That, however, leaves little time to train.

"Most of the time I'm only home for only two or three days at a time. And I'm usually only home once a month," he said.

But Lysacek said he's already started getting himself back in competitive shape. He did his short program from Vancouver during shows in Japan last week. And while he hasn't had new programs done yet, he was thinking about what music he might want to use while he trained Thursday.

The national championships are Jan. 23-30 in Greensboro, N.C. Lysacek said he plans to spend time in Sun Valley, Idaho, in late December. Training there will give him a good indication on whether he'll be ready for nationals.

"My decision about whether to jump back into skating will basically be dominated by if I'm ready. If I'm trained and ready," he said. "Athletes know. I'm doing my best to try and get back to where I think I should be in order to compete. Hopefully I'll get there in time."