Powered by another stellar performance by Daisuke Takahashi, Japan opened up an eight-point lead over the United States on the second day of the World Team Trophy on Friday.
A night after establishing a world record in his short program, Takahashi wowed the crowd at Yoyogi Gymnasium again with a nearly flawless free skate. He won the men's singles event with a total score of 276.72, in the process handing two-time defending world champion Patrick Chan of Canada his first loss since the 2010 Cup of Russia. Japan has 59 points to top the pack in the three-day, team competition between six nations. The U.S. is second with 51, while France is third with 44.
The 2010 world champion, skating to "Blues for Klook," landed his opening quadruple toe loop and then rattled off jump after jump on the way to victory. In addition to the quad, he hit eight triple jumps (under-rotating one triple toe loop) as he racked up a season-best score of 182.72 for the free skate.