“It was so inspirational to be out there. I got into my last spin and there was a rush through my whole body. It was tingling,” said Chan.

Chan struggled with shaky performances on the Grand Prix circuit last fall, raising questions about his chances to win again here.

Grabbing second place (91.56) was unheralded Denis Ten, of Kazakhstan, who opened with a beautiful quadruple toe-loop and delivered a flawless, yet less technically difficult, programme than Chan.

Canada’s number two, Kevin Reynolds, who scored an upset with his recent win at the Four Continents Championship, posted 85.16 points to sit third.

Known for his rapid rotation on his jumps, Reynolds produced two quadruple jumps -- a salchow and toe-loop, although he had to fight to hang onto the landing of the second.

Ten, seventh at the last year worlds, and Reynolds, who was 12th, both expressed surprise and excitement to be among the frontrunners.

Ten, a descendant of the famous Korean general Min Keung Ho, said the small medal he won for his short programme result was the first world championship medal for Kazakhstan.

“I will try to keep my mood and motivation the same for (Friday’s) final,” said Ten, who now works with the coach and choreographer who were behind US skating star Michelle Kwan’s brilliant career.

Chan was the only man among the four gold medal favourites to skate to his potential on a night when stellar performances were the exception.

“It’s not a matter of luck,” he said. “It’s how much work you put in and the confidence you have.

“I worked very hard the last three weeks.”

One by one, the other contenders faltered, finishing out of the top three.

While it is unlikely Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu, (ninth with 75.94) can claw his way back in the final and grab a medal, his countryman Daisuke Takahashi (fourth with 84.67) and Spain’s Javier Fernandez (seventh with 80.76) still have a shot at the podium.