Shaidorov shines to become the first Four Continents champion from Kazakhstan in 10 years
SEOUL, South Korea — Mikhail Shaidorov produced a season-best score in the free skate on Saturday to become the first skater from Kazakhstan to win the Four Continents title since Denis Ten in 2015.
Skating at the same venue where Ten won, Shaidorov held a 12-point lead after the short program and was equally impressive in the free skate, landing four quadruple jumps and three triples for 190.37 points for an overall total of 285.10.
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Associated Press
28-03-2025
- Associated Press
Chock and Bates lead for US at world figure skating championships as they chase 3rd straight title
BOSTON (AP) — American ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates built a big cushion Friday night as they chase a third consecutive world title, scoring a season-best 90.18 points for their rhythm dance to lead Canadian rivals Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier. In what has fast become the best rivalry in figure skating, Gilles and Poirier scored 86.44 points to their dance, set to the most American of music: The Beach Boys. Then the American team followed them to the ice, and Chock and Bates — cheered on by a big home crowd in TD Garden — roared when they finished their 'tour of the decades' program. 'It was probably the most fun I've had thus far on competitive ice in a performance, maybe ever,' Chock said. 'It was really a joy to perform in front of a home crowd and share that excitement with Evan. It was the best.' Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson were third with 83.86 for Britain, and Italy's Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri looked out of sync while scoring 83.06 for fourth. They were the only nations to break up a whole lot of Canada and U.S. on the leaderboard. Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha were fifth for Canada, just ahead of two American teams — Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko and the duo of Caroline Green and Michael Parsons — giving the neighboring nations five of the top seven. 'We really enjoyed this program,' said Gilles, who along with Poirier took silver behind Chock and Bates last year, but recently beat the U.S. dynamo at Four Continents. 'I think we really drilled it in training, and we know exactly where each step needs to be. That allowed us to lose ourselves in the performance. And so we just had so much fun.' The International Skating Union sets the requirements for the rhythm dance each season, and this year the world governing body settled on social dances and styles of the 1950's, 60's and 70's, providing the skaters plenty of latitude for their programs. There were sock hops aplenty, and Chubby Checker implored everyone in the arena to twist ''til we tear the house down.' There were Watusis and Madisons, the 'Soul Bossa Nova,' and proof that disco isn't quite dead yet. And there were several homages to Donna Summer, who was born in the Boston neighborhood of Mission Hill. Chock and Bates threw all of it into their tour through the decades. There was the 'Hawaii Five-O' theme and 'Let's Twist Again.' They were 'Stayin' Alive' and took a trip through the 'Car Wash.' The couple even tried to 'blame it on the boogie' before getting the crowd to do the 'Y.M.C.A.' And they fittingly finished with Summer's rendition of 'Last Dance.' The competition continued Friday night with the women's free skate, where American comeback kid Alysa Liu was trying to hold down first place following a short program that those in TD Garden rewarded with a standing ovation. Liu, who stepped away from the sport shortly after the 2022 Winter Olympics, announced her comeback early last year. And while there have been some bumps along the way, the 19-year-old delivered one of her career-best performances Wednesday night, scoring 74.58 points to take a narrow lead over Mone Chiba of Japan and American teammate Isabeau Levito. The U.S. has not had a women's world champion since Kimmie Meissner in 2006. Wakaba Higuchi and Kaori Sakamoto are close behind, and Sakamoto could make some history if she can overcome her 3-point deficit and become the first woman to win four consecutive world titles since Carol Heiss in the 1950s and '60s. ___
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Yahoo
Ilia Malinin sets personal best to lead after short program at world championships
Ilia Malinin of the United States performs his short program on Thursday at the world figure skating championships in Boston. Photograph: Cj Gunther/EPA Ilia Malinin arrived in Massachusetts as the clear favorite to defend his world figure skating championship. On Friday afternoon at TD Garden, he performed like a man unbothered by that weight, launching his title defense with one of the greatest short programs ever performed. The 20-year-old American nicknamed the Quad God delivered a career-best first segment, scoring 110.41 points to take a 3.32-point lead over Japan's Yuma Kagiyama heading into Saturday night's free skate. It was the highest short program score of Malinin's career, and ranks behind only Olympic gold medallists Nathan Chen and Yuzuru Hanyu on the ISU's all-time list. Advertisement Schedule All times EST. Wed 26 Mar • Women's Short, 12.05pm (Peacock) • Women's Short, 3pm (USA Network) • Remembrance Ceremony, 6.15pm (Peacock) • Pairs' Short, 6.45pm (Peacock) Thu 27 Mar • Men's Short, 11.05am (Peacock) • Men's Short, 3pm (USA Network) • Pairs' Free, 6.15pm (Peacock) • Pairs' Free, 8pm (USA Network) Fri 28 Mar • Rhythm Dance, 11.15am (Peacock) • Rhythm Dance, 3pm (USA Network) • Women's Free, 6pm (Peacock) • Women's Free, 8pm (NBC/Peacock) Sat 29 Mar • Free Dance, 1.30pm (Peacock) • Free Dance, 3pm (USA Network) • Men's Free, 6pm (Peacock) • Men's Free, 8pm (NBC/Peacock) Advertisement Sun 30 Mar • Exhibition Gala, 2pm (Peacock) How to watch outside the US United Kingdom As of last year, Premier Sports holds the broadcasting rights for the World Figure Skating Championships in the UK, with coverage extending until 2028. To watch the championships, you'll need a subscription to Premier Sports, which offers live coverage of the events. You can subscribe through their official website or via certain TV providers that include Premier Sports in their packages. Australia SBS provides live and free coverage of the World Figure Skating Championships in Australia through SBS On Demand. Advertisement With Kagiyama also skating one of the best programs to date – about one point shy of a personal best himself – the stage is set for a showdown between two of the most electrifying skaters in the sport today. Kazakhstan's Mikhail Shaidorov (94.77), this year's Four Continents winner, sits in third but more than 15 points adrift of Malinin's mark. Related: Amber Glenn, the skater redefining what power looks like on the ice 'I can't describe how I feel right now,' Malinin said. 'All I remember is getting on that ice. I felt really nervous, more than usual, and I didn't know what was going to happen. But once the music came on, I just got into a flow state and it really just went from there.' Malinin's performance, set to Running by the American rapper NF, included a clean quadruple flip, a triple Axel and a quad Lutz–triple toe loop combination. He typically saves his signature quad Axel – the four-and-a-half-revolution jump that had never been landed in competition until Malinin pulled it off at the 2022 US Classic – for the free skate. He hasn't lost since 2023 and is riding a win streak of eight straight events. Advertisement By the time Malinin closed with his signature raspberry twist with about a half-minute to go, the entire building was on its feet and aroar. 'I heard the cheering but I didn't take enough time to see how people were reacting to me,' Malinin said. 'I was so excited. I didn't even finish skating yet and they were already standing and cheering me so loud.' His main rival, Kagiyama, was elegant and precise in his own right, continuing a return to form after an injury-hit season. The 2022 Olympic silver medalist had offered an offered an extraordinary confession seated beside Malinin at last year's worlds after coming in second – 'If we both perform at 100% of our ability, I don't think that I will be able to win,' he said – but has spent the year recommitting himself to closing the gap. 'I was able to skate and perform as I planned,' Kagiyama said. 'I know the special pressure skating after Ilia, but I just imagined how cool it is to do a great skate as the last skater. I was more excited about my being able to close the competition with a great skate than any other negative thinking.' Behind them, France's Adam Siao Him Fa – bronze medallist at last year's worlds and the reigning European champion – has work to do after falling on the back half of his opening quad Lutz-triple toe combination and placing ninth (87.22). The 23-year-old was the last skater to beat Malinin internationally, back at the 2023 Grand Prix de France, and has rebounded well from injury earlier this season. Advertisement The men's free skate on Saturday will bring more than medals into play. Malinin is expected to attempt a full seven-quad layout, including the quad Axel, and he'll likely feature his signature backflip – a legal addition to his program for the first time at worlds. The move hasn't been landed legally at a world championships in nearly 50 years. The last to do it was American Terry Kubicka in 1976, after which the International Skating Union banned the element for being too dangerous. It returned last June, with the ISU stating: 'Somersault-type jumps are very spectacular and nowadays it is not logical anymore to include them as illegal movements.' Famously, France's Surya Bonaly defied the ban at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, landing a one-footed backflip in protest. Though penalized, the move became a symbol of resistance and individuality in the sport. Malinin, a former gymnast, first debuted the backflip in competition at the Lombardia Trophy in September and has used it as a crowd-pleasing punctuation ever since. 'It fits the music really well,' he's said. 'It gets that audience applause, feels really suspenseful, and I really just like doing it.' Advertisement While it doesn't earn points, the flip enhances his performance scores and speaks to his creative flair – something few others in the field can match. It's that combination – technical innovation, competitive nerve and choreographic audacity – that's made Malinin a star. And the crowd seems to be catching on. The lower bowl and much of the upper deck of the 17,850-seat TD Garden were filled for Friday afternoon's session – an unusually robust crowd for a Thursday afternoon in a sport where weekday sessions often play to half-full arenas. It was a signal that Malinin's profile is growing, both within the sport and beyond. Fellow Americans Andrew Torgashev and Jason Brown also delivered strong performances, with Torgashev finishing eighth (87.27) and Brown 12th (84.72) after each posted their highest international scores of the season. But Friday belonged to Malinin. He skated clean, he skated fearless, and on a stage primed for something bigger, he delivered his best. The first medals of this year's worlds will be doled out later Thursday with the pairs' free skate, with Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan leading Italy's Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii after Wednesday's short program.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Yahoo
Standing ovation as defending champ Malinin grabs world figure skating lead
Defending champion Ilia Malinin on his way to victory in the short program (Geoff Robins) Defending champion Ilia Malinin seized command of the men's competition at the World Figure Skating Championships on Thursday with one of the greatest short programs ever performed. Fans gave the 20-year-old American a standing ovation before his finish in a routine that earned judges scores of 110.41 points, fourth-best short program score ever in the event at worlds. "I heard the cheering but I didn't take enough time to see how people were reacting to me," Malinin said. "I was so excited. I didn't even finish skating yet and they were already standing and cheering me so loud." Advertisement Nicknamed "Quad God" for his skill at quadruple jumps, Malinin dazzled the spectators with a brilliant performance. His effort left Japan's Yuma Kagiyama, the 2022 Olympic runner-up and a three-time world runner-up, second on 107.09 with Kazakhstan's Mikhail Shadorov, the Four Continents champion, a distant third on 94.77. Malinin said he felt more nervous than usual as he stepped onto the ice but responded when his music began. "I can't describe how I feel right now," Malinin said. "All I remember is getting on that ice. I felt really nervous, more than usual, and I didn't know what was going to happen. Advertisement "But once the music came on, I just got into that slow skate and it really just went from there." The men's title will be decided in Saturday's free skate final. "It's going to be really fun and I'm really excited," Malinin said of his free skate program. He said he was pleased to see Kagiyama deliver such a strong performance just after him in the final performance of the session. "I'm so excited for Yuma. He looked really confident out there," Malinin said. "I was watching him boardside right after I got off so I was supporting him and I'm glad he did really good." Advertisement The pairs title will be decided later Thursday with the free skate final after Japan's Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara won Wednesday's short program. The meet is being conducted with heavy hearts after 28 of 67 people who died when an American Airlines plane collided with a military helicopter in Washington on January 30 were members of the skating community, three of them who trained at Malinin's Washington Skating club. js/dj
