Washington, March 27 -- Defending champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan placed fifth in the women's short program at the 2025 World Figure Skating Championships in Boston, while America's Alysa Liu topped the standings with 74.58 points.
China's An Xiangyi, making her worlds debut, finished 27th with 47.52 points and did not qualify for the free skate.
Sakamoto, the 2022, 2023 and 2024 world champion and 2022 Olympic bronze medalist, scored 71.03 in the short program on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old, who also earned a silver at the 2025 Asian Winter Games in Harbin earlier this year, trails Liu by 3.55 points heading into Friday's free skate.
Liu led a tight podium race, narrowly edging Japan's Mone Chiba (73.44) and Isabeau Levito of the U...