UPDATE 1-Figure skating-Malinin leaps into lead at US Championships

"But I don't think either of us would have ever guessed that we would continue for 15 years or end up marrying each other and certainly not going for a seventh title, so it's all been the most rewarding journey." The three-times world champions ⁠have suggested that next month's Games, which will be the pair's fourth, could be their last.

Ilia Malinin impressed even himself with a brilliant short program at the U.S. Championships in St. Louis on Thursday, electrifying the crowd and showing why he is the runaway favourite to take ‌gold at next month's Olympics.

Malinin, 21, punched the air as spectators rose to their feet after he landed a quad flip, a quad Lutz-triple toe loop, and an audacious back flip. The Virginia native has 115.10 points heading into Saturday's free skate, with ⁠Tomoki Hiwatashi a distant second with 89.26 and Jason Brown in third with 88.49.

"I came into this competition just to see what happens out there and I impressed myself. I didn't know I was able to skate that complete, that good," Malinin said. Malinin said he briefly weighed a more conservative approach but abandoned it once he stepped onto the ​ice.

"I felt really good and everything flowed really well so I said let's go for what I originally planned," he said. Malinin was not selected for the U.S. ‍team four years ago and he has used that as fuel to become a singular force in figure skating similar to Simone Biles' dominance in gymnastics.

"That was such a hard moment for me to go through but it made me the skater I am today," he said. An emotional moment came when Maxim Naumov held up and kissed a picture of himself as a child holding hands with his parents, who ⁠died nearly a ‌year ago in a mid-air collision between ⁠their American Airlines flight and an army helicopter over Washington DC.

The jet was carrying 28 U.S. figure skating athletes, coaches, and family members returning from a development camp including Naumov's parents Vadim Naumov and Evgenia ‍Shishkova, the 1994 world champions in pairs. CHOCK AND BATES LEAD

Earlier, Madison Chock and Evan Bates moved into position to win a record seventh ice dance title with a rhythm dance performance that ​showed why they are the gold medal favourites at next month's Winter Olympics. Dancing to a medley of Lenny Kravitz hits, the married couple showcased the ⁠fluidity, connection and strong rotational lifts they hope will deliver them their first Olympic gold medal in their individual discipline.

Both of their mothers were in the stands in St. Louis and shed tears of joy after the ⁠performance, which was awarded a 91.70 by the judges, putting them ahead of Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik (85.98) and Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko (83.29) with the free dance to come on Saturday. The top three finishers will earn spots on the U.S. team for the Milano Cortina Games.

"It has been the best journey. I remember the day ⁠Maddie said she wanted to skate with me, it was one of the best days of my life," said Bates, who won gold with Chock in the team ⁠event at the Beijing Games four years ‌ago. "But I don't think either of us would have ever guessed that we would continue for 15 years or end up marrying each other and certainly not going for a seventh title, so it's all been the most rewarding journey."

The three-times world champions ⁠have suggested that next month's Games, which will be the pair's fourth, could be their last.

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