Although he was nearly last to perform, Ilia ‘Quad God’ Malinin’s short program immediately put him in first place.
Malinin, who is the favorite to take gold during the free skate on Friday, performed to music from the “Prince of Persia” video game.
The routine included a quad flip, a triple axel, and a quad lutz and triple toe loop combination. He scored 108.16, taking first place.
Only two other skaters, Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama and France’s Adam Siao Him Fa, broke 100 in the judge’s scoring.
Malinin will be the final skater on the ice on Friday.
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