The ‘Quad God’ strikes again: Ilia Malinin (USA) took his third consecutive title at the ISU Grand Prix Final in Nagoya on Saturday with an incredible performance, setting a record score en route. The Men delivered a thrilling competition that had the 10,000 spectators in the packed IG Arena on their feet. 

Ilia the Incredible rules in Nagoya

Fueled by his disappointment in the Short Program, Malinin was determined to fight. And he did. The two-time ISU World Champion reeled off seven quadruple jumps including his quad Axel that no other skater has performed yet in competition. But he did more than that: his energetic performance to “The Ball” and “The Smell of the Sea” was also highlighted by his choreo-sequence that included a backflip and a combination spin with an acrobatic twist. Malinin broke his own record score in the Free Skating with 238.24 points and racked up 332.29 points to win gold with 30 points to spare. 

Ilia Malinin (USA) celebrates gold in the Men's competition at the ISU Grand Prix Final in Nagoya (JPN) © ISU

“This performance for me was just such an honor,” Malinin said. “I just felt like everything was starting to click in every element one after the other. I just felt like everything was settling down. I was able to be in my own zone and I'm just so glad I was able to get through the whole program in one piece.” 

A record, seven quads and the quad Axel are not yet everything Malinin has in store. 

“I think from now on, for me, is going to be trying to specifically polish my own program as well as being able to complete all of these jumps pretty easily, but after that there's going to be so much more coming and planned in the future, so everyone should stay tuned for that,” he explained.

Overnight leader Yuma Kagiyama of Japan had to skate last. His powerful performance to “Turandot” featured three quadruple jumps and a triple Axel-Euler-triple Salchow combination as well as excellent spins and footwork. Kagiyama ranked fourth in the Free Skating with a season’s best of 193.64 points but overall held on to second place at 302.41 points, claiming back-to-back silver medals in the Final. 

Overnight leader Yuma Kagiyama (JPN) finished with the silver medal in the Men's competition at the ISU Grand Prix Final in Nagoya (JPN) © ISU

“To be honest, I'm very disappointed, but I've seen Ilia Malinin perform amazingly well, and Sato Shun has continued to perform well all season, so I'm really inspired by them,” Kagiyama said. “I want to work even harder to perform even better in preparation for the Olympics. 

“Just like in the Short Program, I entered the rink with confidence,” he added. “I think I was able to focus on myself throughout my performance and skate well from start to finish, so there are many small mistakes and areas for improvement. However, I was able to find some areas where I did well, so I would like to continue to improve on those.”

Kagiyama’s teammate Shun Sato let his “Firebird” fly high again with another spectacular performance. He nailed three quads including a quad Lutz and achieved a personal best of 194.02 points in the Free Skating and overall with 292.08 points.

 Shun Sato (JPN) took the brronze medal in the Men's competition at the ISU Grand Prix Final in Nagoya (JPN) © ISU

“Before the start, I heard Ilia Malinin's score and I was extremely nervous, but I was able to turn that nervousness into strength and perform well, so I'm really happy,” Sato said. “The All Japan Championships are coming up next week, so I'll do my best to perform even higher quality jumps and programs there.”

Daniel Grassl (ITA) produced a personal best as well in his routine to “Conclave” to finish second in the Free Skating and fourth overall (288.72 points). Two-time ISU European Champion Adam Siao Him Fa (FRA) came fifth (258.64 points) while 2025 ISU World silver medalist Mikhail Shaidorov (KAZ) remained in sixth place (242.19 points). 

ISU Grand Prix Final schedule:

Thursday, December 4: Pairs & Men’s Short Programs, Rhythm Dance
 Friday December 5: Pairs Free Skating, Women’s Short Program
 Saturday, December 6: Men’s & Women’s Free Skating
 Sunday, December 7: Exhibition Gala
 

ISU Grand Prix Standings

Check out the road to the ISU Grand Prix Final:

Men                               Women                    Pairs                      Ice Dance

For full entry lists and further information regarding the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series please visit here.