Both held back knowing they had two more programs ahead. Slutskaya is seeking her fourth European title and Maria Butyrskaya her third.

Although she completed five triple jumps, Slutskaya said she was saving her best for later.

	Maria Butyrskaya of Russia is in search of her third European title.

"Why should I put in everything?" she said.

When Slutskaya does, she is capable of beating anyone. And that includes U.S. national champion Michelle Kwan, whom she has defeated three times in 2000.

Slutskaya didn't do any of her signature triple-triple combinations, notably her unique triple lutz-triple loop. She didn't need to as she was easily at the top of the field of morning session.

Butyrskaya skated early in the afternoon, performing a triple toe-triple salchow combination.

"It's the only one I have so I had better do it in my program," Butyrskaya said.

She had four triples, slightly two-footed another and had a couple rough landings.

"It was not the maximum today," Butyrskaya said.

The women's short program is Friday with the free skating ending the competition on Saturday.

Butyrskaya, who beat Kwan at the 1999 world championships, has won the European title in 1998 and 1999 while Slutskaya won in 1996, 1997 and 2000.

Slutskaya did not qualify for the championships in 1999, coming in fourth in the Russia. Then she rebounded with a stellar year in 2000, raising the technical bar in women's skating when she did two difficult triple-triple combinations in the Grand Prix final last January in beating Kwan.

That loss forced Kwan to increase her difficulty and the American beat Slutskaya for the world title in March.

On Wednesday, Slutskaya was not near the level of skating she had in those meets. The technical marks were not overwhelming, with a low of 5.4 and four 5.5s. Her artistic scores to music from the ballet "Don Quixote" were in the 5.6 to 5.8 range but she skated early in the session and the judges held back on the marks.

Butyrskaya received nearly the same marks, with a low of 5.4 to 5.8 to her routine of music from a famous Russian movie.

Julia Soldatova took second behind Butyrskaya. Soldatova skates now for Belarus after coming in fourth at the Russian championships last year and not qualifying for the international team despite winning a bronze medal at the worlds in 1999.

Second in Slutskaya's session was Ukraine's Elena Liashenko. Sarah Meier, a young Swiss, was third.

Russian Victoria Volchkova, who has been third the last two years at the Europeans, was fifth. She was hurt by an early drawing when she started in second position.

Still the Russians are in line to win their sixth consecutive women's championship. They are leading in the men's and pairs event.