Yuzuru Hanyu propelled himself into the lead with an electrifying performance in the men's short program, stunning defending champion Daisuke Takahashi at the Japan Figure Skating National Championships on Friday.
The 18-year-old boy wonder riveted the crowd at Makomanai Ice Arena with his performance to the jazzy "Parisienne Walkways" by Gary Moore en route to the highest score of 97.68, nearly 10 points ahead of Takahashi who was second with 88.04.
Hanyu eclipsed his own world record of 95.32, although the mark will not be officially recognized by the International Skating Union.