Kim Chaeyeon, 19, on Feb. 23 won the gold medal in the women's singles at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships at Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul with a career-high score. (Yonhap News) 

By Jeon Misun 

Kim Chaeyeon, 19, has won the gold medal at the International Skating Union's (ISU) Four Continents Figure Skating Championships with a career-high score.

Winning the women's singles gold just a week earlier at the Asian Winter Games in Harbin, China, she has sparked talk of being the nation's newest superstar in the sport with her latest victory.

At Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul, Kim on Feb. 23 came in first with a combined score of 222.38 (148.36 in the free program and 74.02 in the short), beating runner-up Bradie Tennell from the U.S. (204.38) by 18 points.

The Four Continents are a major event for figure skaters from North and South America, Asia, Africa and Oceania excluding Europe. Kim is the country's third female skater to claim the tournament's women's singles title following Kim Yuna in 2009 and Lee Haein in 2023.

Kim Chaeyeon will compete next in the ISU World Championships in Boston next month for a chance to qualify for the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics. She won the bronze at the championships last year.

In men's singles, Cha Jun-hwan, 24, won the silver at the Four Continents with a combined score of 262.02. In 2022, he was the nation's first man to hoist the gold at the competition.

msjeon22@korea.kr