BOSTON (AFP) — Alysa Liu won the women’s figure skating world title on Friday, delivering a dazzling free skate to edge three-time defending champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan.

Liu, who walked away from the sport in 2022 at the age of 16 and returned just a year ago, defied the pressure Sakamoto piled on with a brilliant free skate of her own and became the first US woman to win the world title since Kimmie Meissner in 2006.

“This is an insane story,” Liu, still just 19, told broadcaster NBC.

“I don’t know how I came back to be world champion. I never would have thought.”

“Even, like, coming into this competition, I couldn’t believe I won the short. I was like, I don’t think I’m the best in the world. I was like, this doesn’t feel like a win. But now, I don’t know. I have to process this.”

Skating last as the leader after the short program, Liu had seen Sakamoto surge from fifth to first with a captivating, technically strong performance.

But the American responded, bringing the sellout crowd at TD Garden to their feet with a thrilling routine to Donna Summer’s “MacArthur Park.”

From her opening jump, the gold-clad Liu went from strength to strength, scoring 148.39 for the free skate for a total of 222.97 points.