Ilia Malinin earned 96.74 points to build a 5.45-point lead over Japan's Sota Yamamoto in the Skate America short program. The 21-year-old put a hand down on his quadruple Lutz and reduced his combination to a double toe-loop, but he recovered by cleanly landing a quadruple flip and a triple Axel. Mexico's Donovan Carrillo placed third with 86.49 points ahead of the free skate. Malinin stated his primary goal for the season opener was simply to test out the routine before a live audience.
Key points
Superior technical difficulty allowed Malinin to retain the competition lead despite an e…: Superior technical difficulty allowed Malinin to retain the competition lead despite an error on his combination jump.
The Everett event serves as Malinin's first official appearance since securing his third…: The Everett event serves as Malinin's first official appearance since securing his third consecutive world title in Prague.
Malinin will next compete at the NHK Trophy to secure qualification for December's Grand…: Malinin will next compete at the NHK Trophy to secure qualification for December's Grand Prix Final.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
EVERETT, WASHINGTON, Nov 14 : American Ilia Malinin shrugged off a minor error to lead the men's short program at Skate America in Everett, Washington, on Friday in his first competition since winning a third world title in March.
The 21-year-old scored 96.74 points to open a 5.45-point advantage over Japan's Sota Yamamoto, while Mexico's Donovan Carrillo sat third with 86.49 points heading into Saturday's free skate.
Malinin landed a quadruple flip and a triple Axel but made a mistake on his quadruple Lutz, putting a hand down on the ice and managing only a double toe-loop combination.
The error proved costly only on paper as the American's superior technical score kept him comfortably clear of the field.
"I think coming into the first competition, my goal was just to feel out the program, how it feels on the ice in front of the crowd," Malinin said.
"I definitely felt a lot of support behind that short program. I feel like as the season goes on, this short program is going to be really easy to skate."
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