From Nathan Chen's near-record breaking performance to a first-place rhythm dancing finish to the Olympic debut of local skater Alexa Knierim's new partnership, Team USA's figure skating stars got off to an incredible start at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Team USA now leads the team event with 28 points, followed by the ROC and China with 26 and 21 respectively.
The Americans will look to extend the lead on Saturday, but for now, re-watch their incredible performances below.
Nathan Chen
Team USA got off to a hot start in the events as Nathan Chen recorded a personal best of 111.71 in the men’s short program, just .11 from the world record.
Chen opened with his quad flip, followed by a triple Axel and quad Lutz-triple toe loop combination on the way to hitting all of his jumps.
Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue
Team USA built off Chen’s victory with another in the rhythm dance, where Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue topped the competition with a score of 85.56. The pair were almost overtaken by the ROC, but Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov fell short with a score of 85.06, placing second.
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Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier
Addison, Illinois-native Alexa Knierim is no stranger to the Olympics, but Beijing marks the first Olympic appearance of her partnership with Brandon Frazier and the pair did not disappoint, recording a personal best score of 75.00 to place third in the pairs short program.
The Americans were leading until Han Cong and Sui Wenjing of China scored an 82.83. Second place was then stolen by the ROC, who leapfrogged USA with a score of 82.64.
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