New York ¨C World Champion Alysa Liu surprised herself with her first Grand Prix title at Skate America on Sunday, overtaking Rinka Watanabe in the free skate by a slim margin in Lake Placid.
The American was less than a point off the lead after Saturday¡¯s short program and looked stunned when the final results were announced, as she had a combined 214.27 points to Watanabe¡¯s 210.96.
Georgia¡¯s Anastasiia Gubanova was third with 204.69.
¡°To be honest, when I did it ¡ª jump wise ¡ª I did not feel very good, so that¡¯s why I was confused,¡± Liu said in televised remarks.
¡°I thought all my jumps were horrible, terrible. But maybe they weren¡¯t. And also, I forget spins and my footwork and choreography, that all has a part in my score ¡ª I forget it¡¯s not just jumps.
¡°I¡¯ll have to rewatch my performance, and then I¡¯ll see how I feel.¡±
Liu, who came out of retirement in 2024, appeared totally in control during the free skate despite a couple of under rotations, with an early triple Lutz-triple toe combination.
A favorite of the U.S. fans, she sent cheers through the stands with a gutsy triple Lutz double Axel double toe sequence and gave the crowd a thumbs up as the judges rewarded her with a season¡¯s best score of 140.54.
Watanabe followed with a brilliant, technical performance that included a fine triple Axel-triple toe combination.
She kept her composure when she slipped on the takeoff for a triple Axel early in the program and landed awkwardly, the only obvious blemish in a performance that broadcasters at first believed would net her the gold medal.
Reigning world champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates claimed a record-tying fifth Skate America title in the ice dance, bringing the house down with a Flamenco-themed free dance for a combined score of 212.58.
Canadians Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha were second in the standings after Saturday¡¯s rhythm dance and held on to the second spot on the podium with an elegant free dance for a 197.16 point total.
France¡¯s Evgeniia Lopareva and Geoffrey Brissaud (192.61) finished third.
The Americans Chock and Bates are hungry to add ice dance Olympic gold to their trio of world titles at February¡¯s Milano Cortina Winter Games, after finishing just off the podium in Beijing.
¡°We can make a lot of improvements on both programs,¡± Bates said. ¡°We feel like there¡¯s a lot of potential for this to be a really powerful Olympic free dance.¡±
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