Ilia Malinin lands quad axel while winning second straight US figure skating title

Ilia Malinin lands quad axel while winning second straight US figure skating title
Ilia Malinin competes in the men's free skate on the way to winning the men's title at the US figure skating championships Sunday in Columbus, Ohio. (AP)
Short Url
Updated 29 January 2024
Follow

Ilia Malinin lands quad axel while winning second straight US figure skating title

Ilia Malinin lands quad axel while winning second straight US figure skating title
  • Malinin finished with 294.35 points, well below the world-leading score of 314.66 points he had at the Grand Prix Final in December
  • US Figure Skating announced later Sunday that Malinin, Brown and Pulkinen would be on the team they will send to worlds

LOS ANGELES: Ilia Malinin established such a big lead after his peerless short program at the US Figure Skating Championships that the phenom’s free skate Sunday was less a competition and more a coronation.

Even though kings sometimes fall down.

After starting his program with a textbook quad axel — a jump only Malinin has landed in competition — he doubled a planned quad loop, fell on a quad lutz and doubled another planned quad. But even with those miscues, the 19-year-old was still nearly 30 points better than the rest of the competition, cruising to his second consecutive national championship.

“Even though it wasn’t what I wished for,” he said, “it was a fun experience. I enjoyed having the crowd with me every step.”

Malinin finished with 294.35 points, well below the world-leading score of 314.66 points he had at the Grand Prix Final in December. But it was well ahead of Jason Brown in second with 264.50 points, while Camden Pulkinen soared from fifth after his short program into the bronze-medal position with 262.33 points.

Malinin had been bothered coming into nationals by a boot problem, and he resorted to wearing an old pair that he used at the Grand Prix Final. And with that issue still in the back of his mind, he wasn’t sure whether he would try the quad axel.

He did. And he landed it in spectacular fashion.

The opening pass to his free skate, set to music from the HBO hit series “Succession,” had a base value of 12.5 points, but it was so well done that he scored more than 16 points on that element alone. He followed with a perfect quad lutz before a mistake on his planned quad loop, which he turned into a double that appeared to slow down his momentum.

Malinin recovered to land a quad salchow before falling on his quad lutz. And after doubling his planned quad toe loop, he came back to land a triple lutz-triple axel-triple toe sequence that scored 21-plus points and ended his program on a high note.

Still, the perfectionist in Malinin was evident the moment he stepped off the ice inside Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, and began discussing the miscues with his father, Roman Skorniakov, a former Uzbekistani national champion.

Malinin, who won Skate America and was second at Grand Prix de France, was planning to use nationals as a warmup for the world championships in March. He finished third a year ago and will be considered among the favorites in Montreal.

“I definitely noticed a lot of improvement of just looking at the audience, having that connection between my own program and the audience,” he said, “and adding those cleaner lines and making everything neater — that’s the next step going to worlds.”

The biggest drama on the final day of the US championships was who would take silver and bronze.

The 29-year-old Brown, performing his “The Impossible Dream” program from last year, opened with two brilliant triple axels — one in sequence with a double — after missing the same jump during his short program. He struggled with a combination later in the program, and he singled a planned double axel, but the fan favorite was still pleased with his performance.

“Grit over perfection,” he told his coach, Tracy Wilson, after stepping off the ice.

“This was very special,” Brown added later. “The crowd was awesome, and just the support and energy helped that much more.”

Brown earned the silver medal ahead of the 23-year-old Pulkinen, who performed his free skate to works by Giacomo Puccini and earned the best finish at senior nationals of his career. Pulkinen earned big points with a huge opening quad toe loop, and he had a strong triple axel later in his program that helped him land the bronze medal.

“I knew after the short it was a tight race,” Pulkinen said. “That’s what the audience likes to see: a tight race.”

US Figure Skating announced later Sunday that Malinin, Brown and Pulkinen would be on the team they will send to worlds, while the duos of Emily Chan and Spencer Howe, national champs Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, and Valentina Plazas and Maximiliano Fernandez would take part in the pairs event. Chan and Howe, who won the short program at nationals, made the team despite withdrawing before the free skate so that Howe could continue his recovery from shoulder surgery.

Ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates will try to defend their world title while competing alongside the American teams of Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko and Emily Bratti and Ian Somerville.

Amber Glenn and Isabeau Levito, who went 1-2 in the women’s competition at nationals, also will compete in Montreal.


Xander Schauffele has 2 majors and still a long way from No. 1 in the world

Xander Schauffele has 2 majors and still a long way from No. 1 in the world
Updated 59 sec ago
Follow

Xander Schauffele has 2 majors and still a long way from No. 1 in the world

Xander Schauffele has 2 majors and still a long way from No. 1 in the world
  • Even without the No. 1 player at The Sentry, Schauffele feels a lot further away than his No. 2 ranking might suggest
  • The Sentry also starts a new structure on the PGA Tour in which only the top 100 players in the FedEx Cup keep their full cards

KAPALUA, Hawaii: Winning two majors only made Xander Schauffele that much more eager for the next one. The only downer about winning the claret jug at Royal Troon was knowing it would be more than eight months until the next one.

Also on his agenda is reaching No. 1 in the world.

That might take a little longer.

The PGA Tour embarks on a new season without Scottie Scheffler, who cut open his right hand on broken glass preparing Christmas dinner. Even without the No. 1 player at The Sentry, Schauffele feels a lot further away than his No. 2 ranking might suggest.

“It’s a wild time,” Schauffele said. “Winning two majors and being closer to the 30th-ranked player than the first ... hat’s off to Scottie. He’s a beast.”

Schauffele, of course, is no slouch. Both put together a season of remarkable consistency. Schauffele had 15 finishes in the top 10 out of his 21 starts in individual play on the PGA Tour. From May until the end of the season, he went 11 straight events no worse than 15th.

That included a birdie on the last hole to win the PGA Championship at Valhalla, and a command performance in the rain and wind of Royal Troon to win the British Open.

It was the latter that got the attention of Chris Kirk, the defending champion at Kapalua.

“You cannot accurately describe how horrible it is to play golf in that conditions,” Kirk said. “That was one where — obviously, I have a lot of confidence in myself, I believe in my game, I’m a top-50 player — I watched that and was like, ‘There’s no way in hell I could do that.’”

The difference in seasons was Scheffler converted more of those top 10s into titles — seven on the PGA Tour, Olympic gold, and the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, all of them boosting his lead at No. 1 to the largest gap since Tiger Woods in his peak years.

“It’s one of my goals that will just have to stay on the calendar for a few more years,” Schauffele said with an easy smile. “If I get there I’ll be very happy. But just based on looking at the numbers, yeah, it’s going to take some time and patience.”

Now he’s on island time, where no one is in a rush.

The 60-man field gets started on the mountainous Plantation Course at Kapalua, which is playing longer than ever with a steady dose of overnight rain.

The Sentry also starts a new structure on the PGA Tour in which only the top 100 players in the FedEx Cup keep their full cards, and the size of fields is shrinking to make sure those who have cards get into more tournaments.

This is the second year that a tournament once limited to only winners has been expanded to include anyone who finished in the top 50 in the FedEx Cup. Of the 60 players, 29 of them failed to win a tournament last year.

That includes Justin Thomas, who at least would appear to be on the upward trend. He missed out on the postseason in 2023 and made it back to the Tour Championship. It was a better year, but not enough for him to be picked for the Presidents Cup.

Consider that to be a big motivator this year with a Ryder Cup on the horizon. The first step is winning, which Thomas hasn’t done since the PGA Championship in 2022. Before that, he piled up 15 wins on the PGA Tour in a seven-year stretch.

“I truly felt like I was going to win multiple times every season pretty much, until I lost it a little bit,” Thomas said. “It’s just so hard to win out here. Naturally, the better player that you are, you can get away with more mistakes, but come the end of the week on Sunday, you have to win the golf tournament.

“I was fortunate where I was doing it quite often and I still feel like I’m fully capable and expect to do that more,” he said. “But I definitely felt like it should have happened regularly.”

Schauffele can appreciate the feeling. He also had gone two years without winning until he ended that drought in the best way possible — not one major, but two.

It starts with chances, and that has become his hallmark, much like it is for Scheffler. Schauffele comes into Kapalua with the longest active cut streak on the PGA Tour at 56 in a row, which will increase because there is no cut this week.

The record is 142 in a row by Woods. That might be even further away than his goal of replacing Scheffler at No. 1 in the world.


Seko Fofana joins French club Rennes after spell in Saudi Arabia

Seko Fofana joins French club Rennes after spell in Saudi Arabia
Updated 02 January 2025
Follow

Seko Fofana joins French club Rennes after spell in Saudi Arabia

Seko Fofana joins French club Rennes after spell in Saudi Arabia
  • In July 2023, he joined Al Nassr — where Cristiano Ronaldo plays — in the Saudi Pro League
  • Rennes said Fofana signed a four-and-a-half year deal

RENNES, France: Ivory Coast midfielder Seko Fofana ended his brief spell in Saudi Arabia to sign a long-term contract with French club Rennes on Wednesday.

The 29-year-old Fofana helped Lens to a second-place finish in Ligue 1 in 2022-23, and Rennes hope  he can provide a similar boost for the Brittany club.

Rennes said Fofana signed a four-and-a-half year deal. Financial terms were not disclosed. The team is in 12th place.

“There are some talented players at Rennes and I don't think the club is where it should be,” Fofana said in the team's announcement. “We're going to get the chance to play a series of games and show that the start of the season was below the club's potential. I hope we can turn things around very quick.”

Fofana scored 21 goals and provided 12 assists over 112 appearances for Lens.

In July 2023, he joined Al Nassr — where Cristiano Ronaldo plays — in the Saudi Pro League and then was loaned to Al-Ettifaq six months later.

Fofana previously played four seasons for Udinese in Serie A.

He has made 25 appearances for Ivory Coast and helped the team win the Africa Cup of Nations in February.


Arsenal moves up to 2nd place in Premier League with 3-1 win over Brentford

Arsenal moves up to 2nd place in Premier League with 3-1 win over Brentford
Updated 02 January 2025
Follow

Arsenal moves up to 2nd place in Premier League with 3-1 win over Brentford

Arsenal moves up to 2nd place in Premier League with 3-1 win over Brentford
  • Arsenal extended its unbeaten streak to 12 games in all competitions

LONDON: Arsenal is back into second place in the Premier League and in no rush to add players in the transfer window.
Mikel Arteta’s team beat Brentford 3-1 on Wednesday to leapfrog Nottingham Forest and close the gap on league leader Liverpool to six points.
“If there’s an opportunity, we’ll look at it,” Arteta said of the January window. “I really like my players. I really value what we have, because it’s a lot of quality and a lot of commitment from all of them.”
That includes 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who got his first Premier League start in place of the injured Bukayo Saka. The teenager was involved in second-half goals by Mikel Merino and Gabriel Martinelli.
Bryan Mbeumo put the home team ahead in the 13th minute at Gtech Community Stadium, but Gabriel Jesus made it 1-1 just before the half-hour mark — his sixth goal in the past four games.
Merino scored in the 50th minute and Martinelli added a third three minutes later.
It was Arsenal’s second straight win without Saka, who is likely to be sidelined until at least March. The England winger tore his right hamstring in a 5-1 win over Crystal Palace on Dec. 21.
Arsenal extended its unbeaten streak to 12 games in all competitions.
Liverpool has a game in hand on the Gunners, who play at Brighton on Saturday. Liverpool hosts Manchester United on Sunday.
Brentford remained in 12th place and has lost three of its past four Premier League matches.


Saudi Arabia hosts Italy’s football giants for Italian Super Cup

Saudi Arabia hosts Italy’s football giants for Italian Super Cup
Updated 01 January 2025
Follow

Saudi Arabia hosts Italy’s football giants for Italian Super Cup

Saudi Arabia hosts Italy’s football giants for Italian Super Cup
  • Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus and Atalanta prepare to battle it out in Riyadh

RIYADH: The Italian Super Cup hosted by Saudi Arabia gets underway on Thursday with giants Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus and Atalanta preparing to battle it out for the silverware.

The four-team knock-out tournament will take place at Al-Awwal Park Stadium in Riyadh.

Serie A champions Inter Milan will play the first semifinal against the Italian Cup runners-up Atalanta on Thursday. 

AC Milan, who finished second in Serie A last season, on Friday will play the second semifinal against Juventus, the Italian Cup winners.

The final will take place on Sunday, Jan. 6.

It will be the fifth time that Saudi Arabia has hosted the Italian Super Cup.

The event is organized by the Ministry of Sports and is expected to attract local and international attention from fans and media alike.

It is the latest major global sporting event to be hosted by the Kingdom as part of the Ministry of Sports’ commitment to the Saudi Vision 2030 reform program.

 


Second Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship set for Abu Dhabi this month

Second Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship set for Abu Dhabi this month
Updated 01 January 2025
Follow

Second Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship set for Abu Dhabi this month

Second Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship set for Abu Dhabi this month
  • First edition in 2024 attracted 10,000 participants across 5 rounds

ABU DHABI: The UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation will hold the second edition of its successful Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship from Jan. 17 to 19 at Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Registration is now open for the UAEJJF-sanctioned event, which features competitions across various categories including children, youth, adults and masters.

The first edition of the championship spanned five rounds — two for the no-Gi category and three for the Gi category. It was held in various emirates and attracted over 10,000 male and female participants from leading clubs and academies nationwide.

“We are proud of the success of the first edition of the Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship, which carries a name dear to us all,” said Mohamed Salem Al-Dhaheri, vice chairman of the UAEJJF.

“This achievement was made possible by the limitless support of our wise leadership for sports and athletes, especially jiu-jitsu.”

Al-Dhaheri said the championship reflects the federation’s strategy to strengthen jiu-jitsu’s presence locally and internationally while continuing to nurture and develop national talent.

He added: “The male and female athletes demonstrated incredible skill and competitive spirit throughout the five rounds, showcasing their dedication to improvement and success.

“The championship has succeeded in providing a platform to identify and develop talent while promoting jiu-jitsu as a sport that instils discipline, patience, resilience, courage, and teamwork.”

He said the event played a “central role in encouraging community participation in sports, helping to build a generation that is physically and mentally strong.

“The large turnout of families supporting their children highlights the championship’s significance. It has evolved into a comprehensive event, combining a professional sports environment with cultural activities, sports exhibitions, and entertainment for all.”