American figure skating sensation Ilia Malinin sheepishly grinned when his closest rival, Japanese star Yuma Kagiyama, said what seems to be on everyone’s minds these days: “I’m starting to think he’s invincible.” The 20-year-old Malinin certainly looked that way at the world championships Thursday night.
The reigning gold medalist delivered a season-best short program, highlighted by a pair of quads and a brilliant triple axel, and scored 110.41 points, just three off the world record set by American predecessor Nathan Chen at the 2022 Winter Olympics. The big score put Malinin three points clear of Kagiyama in what is quickly becoming a two-man race to this year’s title. “I felt really confident on the ice today. As the music started playing and I got in the flow, it took me where I wanted it to take me,” Malinin said afterward. “I’m really proud of my performance. It was such a remarkable experience for me.”
In the pairs competition later Thursday, Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan returned to the top step of the podium after losing their world title a year ago. Their season-best free skate, set to “Adios” by British musician Benjamin Clementine, left them with 219.79 points – just 71-hundredths ahead of Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin of Germany. “I’m so happy and I appreciate everybody,” a breathless Kihara told the crowd. “Thank you so much.” Hase and Volodin delivered the highest-scoring free skate, but it was only good enough to climb into second ahead of Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii of Italy. Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov were sixth for the U.S. after their career-best performance.
Their teammates, Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, were seventh to provisionally qualify the maximum three spots for American pairs at the Winter Olympics. Two are guaranteed and a third could be secured at a qualifying event in Beijing later this year. “I have no words to explain what I’m feeling right now,” Efimova said with a smile. Malinin, who has not been beaten since 2023, has become the overwhelming favorite to deliver more U.S. gold at the Milano-Cortina Games. And the Grand Prix Final champion from Fairfax, Virginia, doesn’t seem to mind all that pressure, performing with a swagger that belies his age, even if he felt compelled to point out Thursday night: “I’m still human.” Good luck convincing Kagiyama and the rest of the field of it. As Malinin wrapped up his short program, set to “Running” by American rapper NF, the TD Garden crowd stood in ovation.
“He just looks so effortless,” said Malinin’s veteran American teammate, Jason Brown. “That, to me, is what is so mind-blowing. What he does with so much ease, you feel like the sky’s the limit.” Kagiyama, already a three-time world silver medalist, nearly set his own career-best with 107.09 points. Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan was a distant third with 94.77 entering Saturday night´s free skate to finish out the world championships. The big question is whether Malinin, the only skater ever to have landed the quad axel in competition, can set a record for a free skate by landing seven four-revolution jumps in a single program. The best he has done this season is six.
“That would be my goal,” Malinin said, “to go for all of those.” One of the subplots to worlds is how many spots each nation can secure in each discipline for the Olympics. The formula is a bit complicated, but for countries such as the U.S. with two or three competitors at worlds, their top two placements must total 13 or less for a nation to receive the maximum of three spots at the Winter Games.
Malinin is certain to give the Americans one good score Saturday night. The other will depend on the performances of Andrew Torgashev and Brown, the 30-year-old, two-time Olympian, who simply continues to defy his age.