01/08/26 09:11:00
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01/08 09:09 CST Amber Glenn sets record at US Figure Skating Championships,
leads over world champ Alysa Liu
Amber Glenn sets record at US Figure Skating Championships, leads over world
champ Alysa Liu
By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer
ST. LOUIS (AP) --- Two-time defending champion Amber Glenn set the record for a
women's short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Wednesday
night, giving her a narrow lead over world champion Alysa Liu heading into the
free skate.
Liu had broken the record mere minutes earlier with a score of 81.11 points,
earning a standing ovation from a crowd packed into the home of the St. Louis
Blues. But then Glenn took the ice and was flawless from an opening triple axel
to a finishing combination spin, earning 83.05 points, a hug from coach Damon
Allen and a standing ovation of her own.
"I knew that I came here to do my job," Glenn said, "and I was happy to see
that scores were up, scores were good, and I was able to keep them going up. I
felt a responsibility to keep it going better and better and better."
Glenn wound up being the best.
Isabeau Levito was third with 75.72 points on the opening night of the national
championships, which are the last opportunity for skaters to impress the U.S.
Figure Skating officials who will decide the team for the Milan Cortina
Olympics on Sunday.
The dance competition gets started Thursday night alongside the men's short
program.
The 26-year-old Glenn, who four years ago missed nationals and a shot at the
Beijing Games because of COVID-19, channeled her trademark power and emotion
into a program set to "Like A Prayer" by Madonna. Glenn followed her axel with
a triple flip-triple toe loop, and her triple loop merely catapulted her into a
rollicking finish to an energetic program.
Allen was waiting for her rinkside, dressed in a maroon suit to match Glenn's
dazzling maroon dress.
"Of course I feel ecstatic. The score was huge," Glenn said. "My grandma passed
last year and she was with me from day one, and I just felt it today, and I'm
not usually one of those people that says it, but I felt like I had something
help me today."
Glenn's showcase came on the heels of a similarly splendid performance from the
20-year-old Liu, who finished sixth at the Beijing Games, then stepped away
from the sport entirely because of burnout, but is in the midst of a remarkable
comeback.
Last year, she became the first American world champion since Kimmie Meissner
in 2006.
Now, Liu is among a few U.S. hopefuls trying to deliver women's Olympic gold
for the first time since Sarah Hughes in 2002.
Liu performed the same short program from last year's world championships,
opening with a whirling triple flip, landing a solid double axel and finishing
with what coach Phillip DiGuglielmo called her best triple lutz-triple loop of
the season.
"I'm really happy with the lutz," Liu said. "That was good. That was real good."
Levito, the 2023 champion and a former world silver medalist, had to withdraw
from nationals last year because of injury. But she looked as if she had never
missed a day, performing with style and grace to a medley of music honoring
Sophia Loren.
"I felt really happy with myself that I did my job," Levito said. "I feel like
I'm in a really good place right now."
Earlier in the night, Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov began defense of their
U.S. pairs title with a near-perfect short program, leaving them nearly eight
points clear of the field as they hold out hope of making the American team for
the Winter Games.
While the 28-year-old Mitrofanov was born in the U.S., his 26-year-old partner
was born in Finland. And despite the couple having wed in early 2024, and
Efimova getting a green card approved that summer, she is still waiting for the
U.S. to decide whether to waive a three-year waiting period to become a citizen
--- one of the requirements to represent a nation in the Olympics.
But time is running out before U.S. Figure Skating must announce its Olympic
team on Sunday.
"We're hoping maybe a last-minute miracle might happen," Mitrofanov said.
Efimova and Mitrofanov seemed to glide inside Enterprise Center on Wednesday
night. They opened their short program with a beautiful triple twist, landed
their side-by-side triple toe loop in sync, their throw triple loop covered a
long expanse of ice, and they finished by pumping their firsts as their music
came to a close.
They wound up with a season-best 75.31 points, while Audrey Shin and Balazs
Nagy were second with 67.67, Ellie Kam and Danny O'Shea right behind with
67.13, and Valentina Plazas and Maximiliano Fernandez were within podium reach
with 67.03.
"We're definitely very proud with how we skated tonight. The crowd was
amazing," Mitrofanov said. "We really trusted each other. We trusted our
training. I was a little more nervous than normal, to be honest, and I was
proud of Alisa holding my hand throughout."
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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