By Rory Carroll
Milan, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Ilia Malinin made his highly anticipated Olympic debut at the Milano Cortina Games on Saturday but was outclassed by Japanese rival Yuma Kagiyama as the United States' lead in the team event was cut to just one point following the men's short programme.
Going on to the ice last, Malinin executed two soaring quadruple jumps and a crowd-pleasing backflip but his performance was far from flawless.
The 21-year-old looked stunned when his score of 98.00 points flashed
up on the big screen, leaving him well behind his closest rival Kagiyama, who delivered an exhilarating performance for 108.67 points.
At the halfway point of the competition, the U.S. lead the standings with a total of 34 points, followed by Japan on 33, Italy on 28, Canada on 27, and Georgia on 25 as the 10-team field was cut down to five for the free skates, following which the medals will be decided.
France, South Korea, China, Britain and Poland were eliminated.
Two-time world champion Malinin is the runaway gold-medal favorite for the men's individual event, with his quad-heavy programmes and explosive style making him one of the Games' top draws.
The Vienna, Virginia native has won 14 competitions in a row and has been undefeated since November 2023, putting enormous pressure on him in his first Olympic Games.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Milan, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
