American star Ilia Malinin successfully defends his world figure skating crown with a stunning performance.

American sensation Ilia Malinin defended his world figure skating title on Saturday with a commanding performance at Boston’s packed TD Garden.

Widely regarded as the best figure skater in the world, Malinin only confirmed what many already believed. The 20-year-old secured the title with a mesmerizing free skate that earned a standing ovation from the crowd.

Skating to “I’m Not a Vampire” by Falling In Reverse, Malinin dazzled with six quadruple jumps, finishing his title defense with a season-high score of 318.56 points—over 31 points ahead of runner-up Mikhail Shaidorov.

Yet, ever the perfectionist, Malinin expressed a desire for improvement after narrowly missing a planned seventh quadruple jump.

“The home crowd was really inspiring for me, and I am glad that I was able to work out the whole season to get to this moment,” Malinin reflected. “It means a lot to me, and I really hope that in future seasons, I can really improve and work on the things that I didn’t accomplish today.”

Entering the free skate with a narrow lead from the short program, Malinin’s dominance made his victory seem inevitable. Only significant errors could have derailed his title defense, but his performance was nothing short of brilliant.

His routine featured the legendary quad-axel—a jump only he has successfully completed in competition—alongside a breathtaking one-footed backflip.

Already considered the favorite for Olympic gold next year, his latest triumph only strengthens that status.

“I’ll spend the offseason trying to master this to make sure that I can be as efficient as I can because for me, I think this is my perfect layout for the Olympics,” Malinin stated. “I want it to be something I can execute effortlessly and efficiently, along with the rest of the components.”

Malinin’s victory capped off a stellar world championships for the US, where Alysa Liu became the first American woman in 19 years to win a figure skating world title. Additionally, Madison Chock and Evan Bates successfully defended their ice dance crown, marking a historic week for the US, which claimed three of the four disciplines at the championships for the first time.