TOKYO (AP) — World champion Alysa Liu produced a flawless routine in the women’s free skate as the United States won its sixth gold medal at the figure skating World Team Trophy on Saturday.
Skating to “MacArthur Park” by Donna Summer, the 19-year-old Liu landed seven triple jumps for a personal-best score of 150.97 points. Teammate Amber Glenn was second with 148.93.
Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto was third with 145.00.
The United States finished the three-day competition with 126 points, 16 ahead of Japan. Italy was third with 86 points to claim its first ever medal in the event.
“We are just beaming. I'm so insanely proud of my team and everyone,” U.S. skater Jason Brown said. “It's been such an incredible season, and to end it here has been so special.”
Liu’s previous best free skate score was 148.39 only last month at the world championships in Boston.
“I was a little bit happier after my free skate at worlds but I’ll take this one,” Liu said. "I only ran it one time before coming here, so I wasn't expecting that. And I'm happy I could put out a good enough score for my team.”
Glenn also posted a personal best, which featured a triple axel.
“It's been consistent in practice, and I even did it in shows here in Japan,” Glenn said. “It's something I feel I'm able to do when I'm in the right place and I was today.”
The U.S. has medaled at every biennial World Team Trophy since its inception in 2009 and has won six of the nine competitions.
Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara won the pairs free skate as the host nation cut the Americans' lead to 11 points, but the dominant performances by Glenn and Liu clinched gold for the U.S.
The U.S. headed into the final day with a 15-point lead over Japan after victories in the men’s and ice dance competitions on Friday.
Two-time world champion Ilia Malinin won the men’s free skate to solidify the overall lead for the Americans. Malinin landed four quads in his program to “I’m Not a Vampire,” scoring 183.88 points.
Ice dance world champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates won the free dance segment. The three-time world ice dance champions received 12 points after a season’s best score of 133.51
The World Team Trophy features the top six figure skating teams. France was fourth, followed by Canada and Georgia.
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Amber Glenn, of the United States, performs during the women's free skating program at the ISU World Team Trophy figure skating competition at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on Saturday April 19, 2025 in Tokyo. (Kyodo News via AP)
Alysa Liu, of the United States, performs during the women's free skating program at the ISU World Team Trophy figure skating competition at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on Saturday April 19, 2025 in Tokyo. (Kyodo News via AP)
The first place winning U.S. team, from right, Jason Brown, Alysa Liu, Ilia Malinin, Amber Glenn, Madison Chock and Evan Bates, Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov, pose during the award ceremony of of the ISU World Team Trophy figure skating competition at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on Saturday April 19, 2025 in Tokyo. (Kyodo News via AP)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.
Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.
“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.
"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.
Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.
Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.
Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.
At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.
Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.
Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.
After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.
“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”
Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.
Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.
His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.
“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”
Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.
FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
