Stuffed dragons rain after Ilia Malinin’s brilliant short program at US Figure Skating Championships

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Ilia Malinin delivered such a flawless short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Thursday night that it seemed to awe even himself, and it set the 21-year-old well on his way to a fourth straight title in his final tune-up for the Milan Cortina Olympics.

The two-time reigning world champion scored 115.10 points for his program, set to music from the action-adventure game “Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.” That was nearly 25 clear of Tomoki Hiwatashi and even further ahead of third-place Jason Brown.

While scores at nationals are typically inflated, Malinin nevertheless shattered the world-best this season of 108.87 that he set at the Lombardia Trophy. And he was nearly five points better than his own winning short program at nationals last year.

“I felt really good,” Malinin said, “and everything seemed to flow really well.”

Fresh off his third straight Grand Prix Final title, the wunderkind nicknamed the “Quad God” opened with a brilliant quad flip, then seemed to dance into the triple axel that vexes so many others. He finished his jumping passes with a quad lutz-triple toe loop, then added a fan-favorite backflip and his signature “raspberry twist” to bring the crowd to its feet.

Then those fans littered the ice with dozens of stuffed versions of Toothless from the film “How to Train Your Dragon.”

Malinin stars in an advertising spot for the Dreamworks live-action remake of the 2010 animated film, which is also being used to help promote NBC’s upcoming coverage of the Winter Games, where he is the overwhelming favorite to win the gold medal.

“I did not expect that. That was not my plan at all. I was just as surprised as you,” Malinin said of the wave of black stuffed dragons. “That made me feel so warm. And Toothless is kind of like my spirit animal, so that was incredible.”

Malinin has won everything he has entered since the 2023 worlds with the exception of one Grand Prix, where he finished second. In most of those events, the only real competition Malinin had was his own stubborn pursuit of perfection.

He was skipped over for the Olympic team four years ago in Beijing, primarily due to his age and inexperience. But he’s a lock to be on this year’s team when it is announced Sunday, and the big question is which two men will join him.

The 25-year-old Hiwatashi, who was sixth at nationals last year, has been on an upward trajectory all season. He was fourth at the Cup of China, and his score of 89.26 on Thursday night left him in podium position ahead of Saturday night’s free skate.

Brown, who is trying to make his third Olympic team, doesn’t have the big jumps of Malinin and other young skaters, but he makes up for it with sublime skating quality. With a refreshed version of his iconic “Riverdance” program, the 31-year-old Irish jigged his way to a score of 88.49, putting him in position for a ninth top-three finish at the national championships.

“Performance matters in this sport,” Brown said. “It’s been really cool to see everyone improve that performance aspect.”

Maxim Naumov, whose parents were killed in the plane crash over the Potomac River last year, was in fourth with 85.72 points, and Andrew Torgashev was fifth with 84.99 as they also try to earn a spot on the Olympic team.

“It’s the ultimate goal,” Naumov said. “That’s what we’re fighting for.”

Earlier in the night, Madison Chock and Evan Bates rocked their way through a Lenny Kravitz-inspired rhythm dance to build a big lead as they try to break a tie with Meryl Davis and Charlie White by winning a record seventh ice dance championship.

The three-time defending world champs, and the heavy favorites to win Olympic gold, scored a season-best 91.70 points. Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik were second with 85.98, and Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko third with 83.29.

“We felt like this was a really good skate and a good stepping-stone toward Milan,” Chock said.

Zingas and Kolesnik made a statement of their own for inclusion on the Olympic team. Their high-energy performance, set to music by the Boston-based 1990s hip-hop, R&B and soul group Bell Biv DeVoe, not only represented their personal-best by nearly five points but underscored their status as the next big thing in American ice dance.

“I think nationals, especially in an Olympic year, is a really special event,” Zingas said. “We felt the crowd behind us for sure. I could hear my sister screaming throughout our program. Yeah, it was fire, I thought. We felt really good. I’m really proud of us.”

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics