In pursuit of 4th world title, figure skater Kaori Sakamoto on top after women’s short program
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It’s time to say goodbye for Kaori Sakamoto, and she’s aiming to go out on a high with the world figure skating title.
Sakamoto’s short program music, Time to Say Goodbye, was charged with emotion as she targets a fourth world title before retirement.
Sakamoto shouted with joy and clapped as she learned her score of 79.31 in Prague, a season-best which put her into first place by less than a point from her fellow Japanese skater Mone Chiba on a personal-best 78.45 in her disco-themed program.
Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., sits in 15th place with 61.35 points.
Last month, the four-time Canadian champion failed to qualify for the free program at the Milano-Cortina Olympics after finishing 25th in the short program.
“If there’s anything people can take away from watching is, you know, it’s not always going to be perfect,” the 23-year-old said at the time. “I’m living a huge failure in front of hundreds, like thousands of people, but you know I’m going to come back stronger.”
Three-time world champion Kaori Sakamoto scored a season’s best 79.31 points to lead after the women’s short program, at the ISU figure skating world championships in Prague.
Sakamoto earned an Olympic silver medal behind Alysa Liu, who isn’t competing at worlds, after missing the second of one of her combination jumps.
In Prague, there’s a strong U.S. challenge for the medals with Amber Glenn third and Isabeau Levito fourth.
Without Liu, who withdrew from worlds amid a hectic media schedule, the focus was on whether Sakamoto could regain the title she won three times in a row from 2022 through 2024, and whether three-time U.S. champion Glenn could claim a first world medal.
Glenn came to the world championships with an Olympic team gold but missed the individual medals after a short-program error. She was back on form Wednesday, starting with a big triple axel on her way to scoring 72.65. Levito was just behind her with 72.16 for fourth in her return to form after 12th at the Olympics.
Ami Nakai’s triple axel propelled her into the Olympic short-program lead — she ended up with bronze — but went missing Wednesday. The 17-year-old Japanese skater could only manage an awkward double as her opening jump and has a tough task to recover from eighth.
The championships continue with the pairs short program later Wednesday.
Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., scored 61.35 points in the women’s short program, advancing in 15th place at the ISU figure skating world championships in Prague.
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