SASKATOON, Canada (AP) — U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin broke the world record for the free skate in winning Skate Canada with ease on Sunday, keeping his two-year unbeaten streak intact and underscoring his status as favorite to win Olympic gold at the Milano-Cortina Games.

The 20-year-old from Fairfax, Virginia, landed six quads along with a triple axel during a sublime free skate, set to music from the French supernatural thriller “Les Bal des Folles,” to finish with a personal-best 333.81 points. That left the two-time and reigning world champion 76.6 points clear of second-place Aleksandr Selevko, an absurd margin in figure skating's elite events.

Malinin's free-skate score of 228.97 surpassed the previous record under the current scoring system of 224.92, set by Olympic champion N

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