BOSTON — The 2025 world figure skating championships are underway at TD Garden in Boston − and already off to a somewhat surprising start.

American Alysa Liu, who retired after the 2022 Beijing Olympics at the age of 16, is sitting atop the standings after the first half of the women’s singles competition, followed by Mone Chiba of Japan and another American, Isabeau Levito. That trio ensured that two of the favorites were left off the podium for the short program. Three-time defending world champion Kaori Sakamoto is sitting in fifth place, while reigning two-time U.S. champ Amber Glenn is ninth.

The last American woman to win a world championship was Kimmie Meissner in 2006. When asked about possibly ending the drought, Liu demurred.

‘We’ll just have to see Friday, if any of us win or not,’ she said with a laugh. ‘I didn’t know that. That’s a fun fact.’

Wednesday night also featured a tribute to the 28 members of the figure skating community who died in the mid-air collision outside Washington, D.C., on Jan. 29, followed by the first half of pairs competition. Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan lead after the short program, followed by Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii of Italy. The German team of Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin is in third.

As the last major international competition before the 2026 Winter Olympics, these world championships will not only help determine Olympic quota spots but also set the stage for Milan-Cortina. It’s a chance for athletes to see how they stack up, and it will largely determine which skaters will enter the Olympics as the favorites to land on the podium.

Here’s everything you might have missed from Day 1:

Team USA’s Alysa Liu cartwheels, then dazzles in short program

Alysa Liu made a dramatic entrance when her name was announced at TD Garden, cartwheeling in her skates before stepping onto the ice. And her short program was no less impressive.

Liu, who represented Team USA at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, was nearly flawless in her debut performance at worlds, landing all of her jumps cleanly and rocketing into first place with a score of 74.58. Liu’s score was a full 10 points better than the previous leader, Sofia Samodelkina.

‘I felt pretty good about my skate. (Though) I haven’t watched it back yet, so that answer might change,’ Liu said. ‘It felt very nice, kind of start to end − especially in my footwork.’

Much of the figure skating community was shocked when Liu retired following the 2022 world championships. She was just 16 years old, and thought to be entering the prime of her career. But she’s since said her time away from figure skating altered her perspective on the sport in a crucial way.

When Liu returned to competition last year, it was only because she wanted to. Nothing more, nothing less.

‘I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t decide to retire for a little bit,’ Liu said. ‘I just am glad that I listen to myself and just do whatever, because it just works out in the end.’

Isabeau Levito in podium contention after injury return

Isabeau Levito, the reigning world silver medalist, is not just back at the world championships but also back from injury. A bone injury in her foot kept her sidelined for roughly three months.

One wouldn’t know it, though, by watching her short program. She looked completely at ease en route to a score of 73.33, which was good for third. Along the way, she personified her simple pre-skate message to the crowd: ‘Smile!’

‘I think how I skated today was the best I could have today, with everything I went through this year,’ Levito said afterwards, still grinning. ‘So I’m very happy to have kept it together.’

Levito returned to competition for an Olympic test event last month but missed nationals. U.S. Figure Skating essentially gave her a bye to compete at worlds, based on past performance and pending her physical readiness.

“Yeah, it was frustrating to just sit at home and do nothing,” Levito said Tuesday. “But it gave me a new perspective, and I take all of this for granted less. I feel much more grateful for what I do have and being able to skate every day and being able to jump.”

Amber Glenn sitting in ninth after fall on triple axel

Amber Glenn has blossomed over the past year into one of the brightest stars in American figure skating. But she will have a bit of an uphill climb to win a world title in Boston after her short program performance Wednesday.

Glenn is sitting in ninth place after registering a score of 67.65 in her short program, hindered in part by a tough fall on her first jumping pass: The famed triple axel. While Glenn has struggled with the jump at times this year, she is one of the few American women to have landed it clean in international competition.

Since finishing 10th at last year’s world championships in Montreal, Glenn has won all five of the competitions in which she’s been entered − including U.S. nationals and the Grand Prix final late last year. She will need to put up a massive score in the long program Friday to keep her winning streak going.

A fun wrinkle: Jumbotron messages

If you’re watching tonight’s competition on Peacock, you might be missing a fun wrinkle here at TD Garden.

Before every program, the jumbotron over center ice displays not just the nationality, music and coaches of the competitor(s), but also a message from the skater(s) to the crowd in Boston. Some of them have been, well, a little boring. But others have been either fascinating or just whimsical.

‘It’s party time!’ Hungarian pairs skaters Maria Pavlova and Alexei Sviatchenko’s message read.

‘Calm beast’ is what flashed on the screen before Amber Glenn’s short program.

The Swiss pairs team of Oxana Vouillamoz and Tom Bouvart went with: ‘Let him cook.’

American pairs in fifth, ninth at halfway point

Pairs − which, unlike ice dance, features overhead lifts and throws − has not traditionally been a strong event for the Americans. U.S. teams finished 11th, 12th and 13th at the 2024 world championships.

This year, however, the Americans got off to a solid start at the first home worlds in the U.S. since 2016. Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea had a few minor errors but nailed their closing sequence of elaborate lifts to record a score of 68.61. Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov, who train at the nearby Skating Club of Boston, also enjoyed a warm reception from the crowd after their score of 63.70 was announced.

‘We absolutely loved the crowd,’ Mitrofanov said. ‘They were loud, they were cheering us on. That gave us strength and support to be out there today.’

The U.S. teams are sitting fifth and ninth entering the free skate, which is Thursday.

Who are the favorites in pairs?

The three medalists from last year’s world championships in Montreal could very well be back on the podium this week in Boston. But the order of finish is anyone’s guess.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps of Canada are the reigning world champions in this discipline, though they’ve had some inconsistent performances this season while dealing with injuries and illness. The German team of Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin won the Grand Prix final, which is considered to be one of the most prominent events in the sport outside of worlds or the Olympics. And Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara helped Japan win team silver in Beijing and have racked up several podium finishes in the years since.

What channel is the world figure skating championships on?

USA Network and NBC are televising portions of this week’s world championships, but the entirety of all sessions will be available on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock.

World figure skating championships schedule

Here is the complete schedule for the 2025 world figure skating championships, with channel and television coverage start times in parentheses.

Thursday, 11:05 a.m. to 4:44 p.m. ET: Men’s short program (USA Network, 3 p.m.)

Thursday, 6:15 p.m. to 9:55 p.m. ET: Pairs free skate (USA Network, 8 p.m.)

Friday, 11:15 a.m. to 4:54 p.m. ET: Rhythm dance (USA Network, 3 p.m.)

Friday, 6 p.m. to 9:52 p.m. ET: Women’s free skate (NBC, 8 p.m.)

Saturday, 1:30 p.m. to 4:50 p.m. ET: Free dance (USA Network, 3 p.m.)

Saturday, 6 p.m. to 9:52 p.m. ET: Men’s free skate (NBC, 8 p.m.)

Watch the World Championships with Fubo free trial

World championships pays tribute to crash victims

The first night of the 2025 world championships featured a poignant tribute to the members of the figure skating community who died in the mid-air collision near Washington National Airport on Jan. 25. 

All told, 28 skaters, coaches and parents died in the collision − including six from the Skating Club of Boston, which is helping host the world championships at nearby TD Garden.

When does Ilia Malinin compete at the 2025 world figure skating championships?

Ilia Malinin, the 20-year-old defending world champion from Reston, Virginia, will take the ice for the first time at the 2025 world championships on Thursday afternoon. He is expected to perform his short program around 4:30 p.m. ET. That portion of the session will be televised on USA Network.