American skater Malinin lands first quad axel in competition

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer

Ilia Malinin made history late Wednesday when the 17-year-old wunderkind, and the heir apparent to Olympic champion Nathan Chen among American figure skaters, successfully landed the first quad axel in competition. Malinin pulled off the four-and-a-half revolution jump while winning the lower-level U.S. Classic in Lake Placid, New York, before a small crowd in a mostly empty arena. It sent shockwaves through the sport as the final and most difficult of the quadruple jumps had finally been conquered.