Japan's Yuzuru Hanyu Takes Figure Skating Gold As Canada's Chan Falls With Medal On The Line

After a record-setting short program yesterday, Hanyu held on to the top spot as both he and Chan turned in shaky performances in the free skate.

Lucy Nicholson / Reuters

Yesterday, Yuzuru Hanzu turned in the highest-scoring short program of all time (above is his reaction to hearing his score). His performance in today's free skate wasn't as flawless — he fell twice — leaving an opening for Canada's Patrick Chan, who skated after Hanzu. But Chan stumbled several times in his own routine and finished with the silver.

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David Gray / Reuters

In the end, Hanzu's four-point lead from Thursday was enough to hold on for the win after a disappointing performance from Chan. It's Japan's first-ever gold medal in men's figure skating; Shizuka Arakawa won the country's first women's gold in the sport in 2006. Kazakhstan's Denis Ten took bronze.

The United States' Jeremy Abbott finished 12th, while 19-year-old Jason Brown came in ninth. WATCH OUT FOR JASON BROWN IN 2018, WORLD.