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MONTREAL – Ilia Marin may already be the best jumper in figure skating history, but judges still have a ways to go to master the art of the sport before judges consider him one of the greatest skaters of all time. I believe.
Or even the best one this time.
In Thursday’s short program at the world championships, Marinin landed every jump with grace, power and apparent ease. However, that wasn’t enough to make up for the deficiencies on the Program Components (PCS) side, and he finished third behind the stellar overall results of two-time reigning world champion Shoma Uno of Japan and compatriot Yuma Kagiyama.
The two Japanese men competed with Marinin for each quad, and each landed two spectacular quads. However, Marinin would have needed his unusual jump, quad axel, to cover the difference in his PCS.
The world of figure skating: result | Broadcast schedule
Marinin said his decision not to do the quad axel was due to physical problems so serious that he would not consider competing in the world championships, although he did not specify the details.
He said he considered missing January’s U.S. Championships, where he won his second straight title, because of continued problems with his skate boots.
“It’s been pretty tough mentally and physically just going through a lot of injuries,” Marinin said Thursday. “There were a lot of questions in my mind. It was a very difficult time for me to want to skate.”
Marin scored 105.97 points, Uno 107.72 points, and Kagiyama 106.35 points. He had nearly three fewer PCS points than Uno and two fewer than Kagiyama, and he thought the difference was one point from his body rather than a message from the judges.
“Even though I was able to get up and land everything, today wasn’t the best short program I’ve had,” he said. “We definitely know we can try harder to get through that second goal (if things go well) or we can make everything a little bit cleaner and easier.”
Shortcomings in these areas caused me to lose points for performing step sequences and final spins that did not reach maximum level.
Marinin should be able to close the gap on her Japanese rivals in Saturday’s free skate if she lands her usual quads, including the axel, if she feels strong enough to do so.
Meanwhile, evergreen Jason Brown, who doesn’t have a quad, slipped into fourth place with a score of 93.87. Brown has considered ending his competitive career at times – including as recently as February – with unexpected results this past season.
For the two-time Olympian, now 29 years old, balancing training for competition and commitment to the big show has become more difficult than when he first tried it last season. He was able to finish second to Marinin at this year’s and last year’s U.S. Championships.
“I can’t tell you how many times I came up to Tracy (Coach Wilson) and said, ‘I think I should give you a call.’ I think I really overextended myself,” Brown said. . “It was too much.”
The support of Wilson, his family and U.S. Figure Skating supported Brown’s persistence. One thing Wilson suggested to compensate for the lack of consistent training was to do a short program during the show.
“He’s going down a little different path,” Wilson said. “And I think anytime you’re an outlier, it’s very lonely.
“In his mind, it was going to be over after the (2022) Olympics. And late last year, he said, ‘Okay, I think it’s over.’ Then he called me from tour and said he wanted to come back. ”
They performed a short program under the direction of a skater who had practiced many times.
The music was by the same composer used by Nathan Chen on his excellent “Nemesis” program, and included a passage that Brown said was definitely an homage to Olympic champion Chen.
The way Brown handled that impressive choreography with his step sequences, when his body movements created the impression of matching the tempo of the music, it was classic Jason Brown artistry.
Philip Hirsch has covered figure skating at the past 12 Winter Olympics. NBCSports.com.
Japan’s Uno takes world lead in short program
Japan’s Shoma Uno, aiming to defend his world title for the third consecutive year, took first place in the men’s short program at the 2024 World Figure Skating Championships with a score of 107.72.
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