Fernandez in pole for sixth title

MOSCOW: Spanish veteran Javier Fernandez has one hand on a sixth successive European men’s figure skating title after a near flawless short programme in Moscow on Wednesday.

The 26-year-old has danced off with the continental honours every year since Zagreb in 2013. And he showed he is still the man to beat in this his last competitive season, wooing the crowd at Moscow’s Megasport rink with an opening quad-triple toe loop combination. Set to the music from Charlie Chaplin’s classic film Modern Times, Fernandez’s routine earned him 103.82 points to gain a substantial lead over Russian teenager Dmitri Aliev on 91.33, a season’s best, ahead of Friday’s free dance.