Gold medal favorite Rika Kihira of Japan dug herself into a hole with a popped triple Axel attempt at the World Figure Skating Championships in Saitama, Japan on Wednesday.
The Four Continents champion scored 70.90 points, good enough for seventh place headed into Friday’s free skate.
Instead, it’s Olympic champion Alina Zagitova currently atop the leaderboard with 82.08 points.
The last time the two 16-year-olds met, at the Grand Prix Final, Kihira came away with the victory.
Japanese national champion Kaori Sakamoto sits in second with 76.