Ilia Malinin successfully executed what is becoming his signature element – the quadruple Axel – to propel him to the top
of the podium at 2022 Skate America, while reigning world champions
Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier claimed the pairs title.
The first of six ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series events continued Saturday in Norwood, Massachusetts, where two U.S. women and two U.S. ice dance teams hold podium positions following the rhythm dance and short program.
Malinin opened his "Euphoria" free skate with the quad Axel, becoming the first skater to complete the element at a Grand Prix. He earned a +4.11 in grade of execution – but that's not all. His program continued with four more quads, including a toe, Lutz, Salchow and another Lutz in combination. With a score of 194.29 and 280.37 overall, he earned new international personal bests in both the free skate and total score.
At 17 years old, the 2022 World Junior champion is the youngest male Skate America champion in history and he extended the U.S. men's winning streak at this event to six years.
"I am very excited that I won my first Skate America here," Malinin said. "It's an amazing feeling. I enjoyed the audience and everyone. It was a very fun time. I'm still in shock – I didn't know what happened. It was very fun."
Liam Kapeikis skated to music from
Moulin Rouge! and earned 145.21 points in his free skate for a total of 219.50 points, landing in seventh place overall.
After he finished his program which included a quad Salchow, he stood at center ice, "thinking about how I felt about the program," he explained. "'OK you did it, you finished.' It was OK and kind of what I expected. I was saying 'yep, I'm happy with that.' We can move on and grow."
Rounding out the U.S. trio in the men's event,
Dinh Tran finished 10th after earning 134.69 points in the free skate and 199.68 overall points, both international personal bests. In his free skate, set to music from the
Matrix, Tran executed seven triples, including three in combination.
"The people [here] are really exciting," he said "It's something you don't get, like ever… I wish I could've trained more for this. It is what it is. I'll just make sure to do my training before nationals."
The men's podium also included Kao Miura of Japan with the silver medal and 273.19 points and Junhwan Cha of South Korea with the bronze medal and 264.05 points.
Reigning World champions
Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier became the first U.S. pair to win Skate America since 2006, outside their victory at the domestic-only Skate America in 2020 due to the pandemic when they won together at their first Grand Prix as a team. Their free skate to Harry Styles' "Sign of the Times" earned 126.20 points for a total score of 201.39 points.
"I'm very proud of Alexa and I for trusting each other to get through that program," Frazier said. "It's a starting base for us. I can see this program growing throughout the season and I'm excited to get home and get back to work."
Their third Grand Prix medal overall, Knierim and Frazier's next Grand Prix assignment is MK John Wilson Trophy in Sheffield, Great Britain in mid-November.
Maria Mokhova and Ivan Mokhov, the brother-sister pair making their senior Grand Prix debut, skated to "Die Fledermaus" and finished in fourth place with 96.02 points in the free skate for a total score of 145.23 points. Their next competition is Grand Prix de France and until then, the pair said they'll work hard to build upon what they learned at Skate America.
Valentina Plazas and Maximiliano Fernandez earned 96.23 points in their "Endgame"-themed free skate for a total of 143.55 points, good enough for sixth place in their senior Grand Prix debut.
"We have to keep our mental game clear with the jumps and the throws and keep that consistency going at each international, treating it just like an everyday job," Fernandez said when asked how the team would prepare for their appearance at next week's Skate Canada event.
Canadian teams took the other podium spots, with Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps taking the silver medal at 197.89 points, followed by Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Ethier earning the bronze medal at 156.94 points.
Earlier on Saturday, two U.S. teams grabbed the top spots in the rhythm dance. 2022 Olympic silver medalists
Madison Chock and Evan Bates led the action by earning 82.63 points in the rhythm dance, a performance set to a remix of "Let's Dance" by David Bowie.
"We really like the rhythm dance that we created this summer and feel like it's got loads of potential," said Bates, a two-time Skate American champion with partner Chock. "We don't take for granted the opportunity to skate in front of a home audience."
Holding the silver medal position,
Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker totaled 79.12 points in their performance inspired by the television show "I Love Lucy."
"We checked the protocol and there's still a lot of room for improvement, so that's also very optimistic that we can continue to grow the program," Hawayek said. "But we were happy with the performance today and it was super nice to be back in front of a home crowd."
Rounding out the U.S. teams in the field,
Lorraine McNamara and Anton Spiridonov sit in sixth place following their program set to "Careless Whisper" by George Michaels, which earned 66.07 points. They earned Level 4 marks on their twizzles and curved lift, but it was called extended.
Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain le Gac of Canada round out the top three after the rhythm dance.
Two U.S. women stand in podium position following the short program.
Reigning world junior champion
Isabeau Levito earned 71.30 points in her senior Grand Prix debut, enough for second place. Skating to "Una Noche Mas" by Yasmin Levy, Levito received positive grades of execution on her solo triple flip and her double Axel.
"I felt like the energy from the audience gave me energy," said Levito, who is undefeated this season following victories at Philadelphia Summer International and Ondrej Nepela Memorial. "I really enjoyed that. I felt pretty happy with my performance, even though it wasn't perfect. I feel very content with myself now."
Just behind Levito,
Amber Glenn earned 68.42 points in her fourth Skate America appearance. She earned positive grades of execution on all three jump elements, plus Level 4s on three additional elements in her "Hit the Road Jack" short program.
"I felt the feeling that causes me to skate, the reason why I love competing," Glenn said. "The reason why I do what I do is for moments like that … That right there is the reason why I'm skating this season."
She moved away from her longtime training home of Texas to Colorado Springs before this season got underway, and called that decision a "very motivating, humbling and a great experience."
2014 Olympic team event bronze medalist
Gracie Gold followed in fifth place to round out the American contingent. She earned 64.18 points during her "East of Eden" short program, which she said she felt "85% really good about." With her triple Lutz-triple toe combination, Gold, at the age of 27, extends her record as the oldest athlete to land the combination in competition.
"The fall on the triple loop was uncharacteristic but in the past, if anything, I've tended to maybe double or pop – at least I committed to rotating it," said Gold, a two-time Skate America medalist. "Starting off with the triple Lutz, triple toe [combination], good double Axel, and I got all Level 4s on my other stuff. Overall, really good, just a little frustrating; it was really close to being perfect."
Japan's Kaori Sakamoto won the short program with 71.72 points.
Competition wraps up Sunday with the free dance and women's free skate. Follow all the action on the
2022 Skate America Competition Central page on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
