(Reuters) – Japanese teenager Kao Miura survived a shaky opening quadruple Salchow to lead the men’s short programme at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Colorado on Thursday, while South Korea’s Kim Ye-lim was on top in the women’s event.
Skating to “Michelangelo 70” and “La Muerte del Angel”, Miura launched into a triple axel before landing a massive quad-triple combination to earn 91.90 points, finishing ahead of retiring Canadian Keegan Messing and American Jimmy Ma.
The 17-year-old, who won bronze last year, notched two podium finishes at Grand Prix events in the United States and Canada and rebounded in impressive fashion after finishing sixth at the Japan nationals.
“From the Grand Prix Series, I tend to have a good outing in my short program,” Miura said. “In the international setting, I could say that is my forte. There are still a lot of issues to solve.”
Messing, 31, was 0.6 points ahead of Ma, who registered a career-best 86.83, while 2018 champion Jin Boyang of China scored 85.32 on his return to competition after sitting out the Grand Prix series with injury.
South Korea’s reigning champion Cha Jun-hwan was fifth with 83.77 points after falling on his triple Lutz-triple toe-loop combination.
Earlier, Kim Ye-lim soared to 72.84 points after her near-flawless short programme, giving her a slight edge over teenage rivals Isabeau Levito and Kim Chae-yeon.
Last year’s bronze medallist Kim, 20, opened her “Mercy” programme with a fluid triple Lutz-triple toe-loop combination before landing a double axel and triple flip.
“I was so, so nervous before,” Kim said. “But I did an almost clean programme and I am happy about that.”
Reigning American champion Levito, 15, finished 1.34 points behind with 71.50, while 16-year-old Kim Chae-yeon of South Korea was third with 70.86.
The Four Continents, which features skaters from non-European nations, is the last major event before next month’s world championships in Saitama, Japan.
The competition continues on Friday with the women’s free skate, pairs short programme and rhythm dance. The men’s free skate will be held on Saturday.
(Reporting by Hritika Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
