2-time Olympic champ Hanyu spectacular at Japanese nationals

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer

Two-time and reigning Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu returned from a long injury layoff to land two quadruple jumps and score a world-leading 111.31 points in his short program at the Japanese championships. Hanyu and American skater Nathan Chen are expected to go toe-to-toe for Olympic gold at the Beijing Games in February. Hanyu leads reigning Olympic silver medalist Shoma Uno by nearly 10 points heading into the free skate. At the Russian championships, Olympic favorite Kamila Valieva landed four triple jumps during her packed short program to score 90.38 points. She leads Sofia Muravieva and Anna Shcherbakova by nine points heading into the free skate.