Patrick Chan of Canada performs during the men's short program competition at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships in Moscow, April 27, 2011. [Photo/Agencies]

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MOSCOW - Canada's Patrick Chan recorded the highest ever score to win the men's short programme at the world figure skating championships on Wednesday and take a giant step towards his first global title.

The 20-year-old dazzled the Moscow crowd with a near-perfect performance by earning 93.02 points to beat the previous best mark set by Russian former world and Olympic champion Yevgeny Plushenko last year by more than a point.

"I knew that if I skated really well I would get in the high 80s but I didn't expect to get above 90 and that's amazing. I'm so happy," the Ottawa native told reporters.

"To be able to achieve this, it's a dream come true. The program itself was excellent. I was really proud of myself."

Chan, who finished second at the last two world championships, leads his nearest rival, Nobunari Oda of Japan, by more than 11 points heading into Thursday's free skate at the Khodynka Ice Palace.

Oda's compatriot, Daisuke Takahashi, who became the first Asian man to win the world title when he triumphed last year in Turin, was third with 80.25 points.

With Plushenko, who is serving an indefinite ban from competition, watching attentively from the stands, Takahashi avoided any major slip-ups but his sum was 10 points lower than his personal best achieved at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics where he finished third.