SAN JOSE, Calif. — The new leading man of U.S. figure skating is here, and he’s impossible to ignore. That doesn’t mean the old guard is going away quietly.
Rising star Ilia Malinin scored a personal-best 110.36 in the men’s short program to kick off the second day of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Friday, leading second-place veteran Jason Brown by more than 10 points.
Malinin entered as the favorite to win his first U.S. title and had the most difficult planned technical content of every competitor, executing a clean skate that included a quad lutz-triple toe loop combination that netted him nearly 20 points. The 18-year-old finished second to Olympic champion Nathan Chen in his senior nationals debut last year but was passed over for the Olympic team in favor of the more experienced Brown.
When Brown delivered a remarkable pair of performances to earn sixth place at last year’s Olympics, it had all the makings of a farewell to a decorated 12-year career at the highest level of competitive skating. But the two-time Olympian and perennial fan favorite decided he had unfinished business, much to the joy of the SAP Center fans who gave him a warm ovation before he even stepped foot on the ice.
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Best known for his artistry and skating skills, Brown rose to the occasion and performed a moving short program set to “Melancholy” by Alexey Kosenko, earning a score of 100.25 and a standing ovation in his first competition since the Beijing Games.
Brown has found sustained success in figure skating despite not consistently landing quads — unlike Friday’s leader in Malinin, who has dubbed himself the “quad god” on social media. Malinin became the first skater to land the quad axel in competition earlier this season and is expected to attempt the jump in the free skate.
Sitting nearly 25 points out of the lead, Tomoki Hiwatashi put down a redemptive performance to earn a score of 85.43, good for third place after the short program. Hiwatashi was the U.S. bronze medalist in 2020 but finished outside of the top six the following season.
Liam Kapeikis, who finished in seventh place in his senior nationals debut in 2022, found himself in podium position after earning a personal-best 82.27. He did not attempt a quad but landed all three of his jumping passes cleanly to sit in fourth place heading into Sunday’s free skate.
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