Alysa Liu has completed a remarkable career comeback, winning the women's gold medal at the Olympic figure skating competition in Milan. Liu, who stepped away from the sport at 16, returned physically stronger and creatively refreshed, sealing the title with an electrifying free skate featuring seven clean triple jumps.
Japanese skaters Kaori Sakamoto took silver, with 17-year-old Ami Nakai and 20-year-old Mone Chiba securing bronze and fourth place respectively.
In stark contrast, U.S. star Ilia Malinin endured a stunning collapse. Leading the men's competition, Malinin's planned quadruple Axel turned into a single, followed by two falls, dropping him to eighth place. Kazakhstan's Mikhail Shaidorov capitalized to win the men's title.
Malinin cited mental fatigue and drew encouragement from gymnast Simone Biles. He has since handled the disappointment with poise, delivering an emotional closing-gala performance.
Ice dance saw a surprise victory for France's Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron over U.S. veterans Madison Chock and Evan Bates. In pairs, Japan's Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara won gold with a powerful free skate.
The competition opened with Liu and Malinin helping the U.S. secure a second straight Olympic team gold medal.