Sakamoto wins gold in Montreal to become 1st woman to 3-peat as world champion since 1968
Canadian duo Gilles, Poirier sit 3rd in rhythm dance heading into weekend
Kaori Sakamoto of Japan is the first women's figure skater to three-peat as world champion since American Peggy Fleming from 1966 to 1968.
Sakamoto captured gold again Friday at the Bell Centre, climbing from fourth place after Wednesday's short program to the top of the podium with a near-flawless performance in the free program.
The 6,000 fans on hand to witness history roared with every sequence and serenaded Sakamoto with a standing ovation.
"After my triple-triple combination, the roar of the crowd was really, really loud, and I thought to myself 'if I ride this excitement, I will be spinning my wheels and I will not be able to finish it properly," Sakamoto said through an interpreter.
"I tried to keep myself calm until the end, and that's probably why towards the end, I looked very serious. But then at the end, after my spin, I could let it all out and say, `Yes, I did it."'
Despite starting from behind, the 23-year-old finished with 222.96 points to lead the pack by more than 10 points.
WATCH l Sakamoto captures 3rd straight title:
Isabeau Levito of the United States — a 2022 world junior champion — claimed silver (212.16) for her first medal at a senior worlds.
The 17-year-old held her mouth open in disbelief after a stellar free program of her own. Levito has encountered an up-and-down season, including a third-place finish at U.S. nationals despite leading after the short program.
"I'm so happy to be here," she said. "I feel like I had a very rough season and I was so disappointed in myself for a lot of the season. I was so confused with how I was skating.
Fellow 17-year-old Chaeyeon Kim of South Korea earned her first worlds medal with a bronze (203.59).
Belgium's Loena Hendrickx placed first in the short program Wednesday, but slipped to fourth after missing her rotation on a double lutz, triple-toe loop combination and subsequently falling on a triple flip.
The two-time world medallist (bronze in 2023, silver in 2022) finished 3.34 points off the podium.
Hendrickx said she didn't feel prepared due to a hip injury that's been nagging her since the European Championships in January.
"I'm still very proud of myself," she said. "The flight over here I was still unsure if I could compete, so that's why I'm not that disappointed. Normally, I would cry but three weeks ago it was mentally very hard, my body was tired, I couldn't do anything."
Canada's Madeline Schizas ranked 18th (171.78), her worst finish at the competition. Schizas needed a top-10 finish to earn Canada a second women's spot at next year's worlds.
"I'm very disappointed with my program," Schizas said. "It was not good, it was not what I practised and it wasn't what I wanted to show today. I think I'm just gonna have to go home and reflect on it a little bit and figure out what happened."
The 21-year-old from Oakville, Ont., has family roots in Montreal and says her entire family came out to watch her this week.
"It was exciting skating in front of a Canadian audience, but perhaps a little overwhelming," she said. "I was overwhelmed with the support even though it didn't go the way I wanted it to today, and for that I'm very grateful."
Earlier Friday, defending ice dance champions and 2022 Olympic gold medallists Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States finished first with a season-best 90.08 in the rhythm dance. Italy's Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri were second (87.52) ahead of Toronto's Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont.
WATCH l Gilles, Poirier earn 86.51 points in rhythm dance:
Gilles and Poirier won their second world championship bronze last year.
Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of Saint-Hubert, Que., posted a season-best 83.20 while skating to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" to rank fifth.
Competition ends Saturday with the free dance and the men's free program.
WATCH l Gilles, Poirier base their free dance on 'Wuthering Heights':
Allegations against Soerensen persist
The sexual assault allegations against Canadian-Danish ice dancer Nikolaj Soerensen overshadowed the rhythm dance competition Friday at the world figure skating championships.
In January, USA Today reported an American figure skating coach and former skater accused Soerensen of sexually assaulting her in Hartford, Conn., in 2012. Soerensen has denied the allegations, which have not been proven in court.
USA Today further reported Thursday that the attorney for Soerensen's complainant, Nancy Hogshead, said comments made by the ice dancer on March 6 in Montreal amount to "retaliation" against the complainant and should have been grounds for his suspension from the world championships.
"When something like that comes out in the media, the damage is kind of done and I think that was the intention more than anything," Soerensen said about the allegations at the time.
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The USA Today article also cites the complainant, who said via text message she'd hoped the case would remain confidential.
Soerensen said on Friday he was "not aware at all" of the recent comments from the complainant and her lawyer.
"I just follow the regulations and that's all I can say about that," said Soerensen, who when pressed further about their comments added: "Unfortunately I can't [answer]."
The case is now in the hands of Canada's Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner, which opened in 2022 to be an independent handler of abuse reports and complaints in federally-funded sports organizations.
Skate Canada chief executive officer Debra Armstrong said on March 6 the federation did not consider leaving Soerensen off the Canadian team because he and Fournier Beaudry qualified through the selection criteria.
Earlier Friday, ISU president Jae Youl Kim said "we respect the presumed innocence and the decision Skate Canada has made to enter Mr. Soerensen."
