Boyang wins in Taiwan before Olympics

TAIPEI: China’s Jin Boyang won gold at the Four Continents championships in Taipei on Saturday, saying the medal is a confidence booster as he heads to his first Olympics next month.

Jin, 20, was returning after an ankle injury that had forced him to withdraw from the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Nagoya last month.

He finished with a total score of 300.95 points Saturday after a free skating programme to a selection of songs featured in the Star Wars franchise, including “Cantina Band” by John Williams. Japan’s Shoma Uno, 20, took second place while American skater Jason Brown, 23, won bronze. Speaking at a press conference after his performance, Jin said he hopes to skate even better at the upcoming Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Jin described the training coming back from his injury as the hardest he has ever had.

Uno said he kept calm despite being thrown off initially during his free skate number when he stumbled on a quad flip. North Korean figure skaters Ryom Tae-Ok and Kim Ju-Sik stole the show Friday, taking bronze for the pairs competition — their first international medal.