SPOKANE, Wash. -- Alexei Yagudin's brilliant career might not last much longer.

	Alexei Yagudin's winning routine Friday included a portion where he pretended he was driving a car.

After winning the men's short program at Skate America on Friday night, the Olympic gold medalist and four-time world champion said a hip problem that's bothered him since last December could force him out of competitive skating.

Asked whether Skate Canada next weekend might be his last competition, tears filled Yagudin's eyes.

''Yes,'' he said. ''Other skaters called me this morning, and it was just so sweet that everyone wanted to wish me luck. I can't just sit and watch the other skaters.

''We'll just see what happens.''

Yagudin said he was born with a bad right hip. The socket doesn't cover the bone completely, causing irritation. Doctors have told him he would have developed problems eventually, even if he wasn't a skater.

But because of the pounding his body takes, particularly with all of the quadruple jumps he does, the problem showed up much earlier.

''I couldn't even imagine at age 22 that I would have that serious problem,'' he said. ''I seriously don't know what to do, because for 18 years, all I've done is skate. I can't see myself doing something besides figure skating because I can't do anything else.

''I really have to think what's the best thing for me.''

He's had two steroid injections this year to reduce the pain, but the effectiveness decreases with each one. Surgery isn't really an option, either, he said. Doctors would have to rotate his hip socket, and there's no guarantee it would cure the problem.

Yagudin said he plans to meet with more doctors, both in the United States and his native Russia.

''We have to sit down and think what is the thing to do,'' he said.

Since finishing fifth at the Nagano Olympics, Yagudin has dominated the sport. He's won four of the last world titles, and last year he won every competition he entered, including the Olympics.

He's pushed the sport along the way, doing tougher and tougher maneuvers. In his Olympic free skate, he did two quadruple jumps, including a quad-triple-double combination. But he's also one of the most artistic skaters ever.

In Salt Lake City, he earned four 6.0s for artistry. No other man had ever earned more than one perfect mark at the Olympics.

On Thursday night at Skate America, Yagudin performed while most of the other skaters simply tried to make it through the required elements in the short program without a mistake.

Skating to ''Played A Live,'' a techno number, he looked like he was driving a race car. He had the audience clapping along as he did quick, lively footwork, looking as if he was using the clutch and shifting gears.

He did a jig on the ice at one point, and did a little moonwalk during his straight-line footwork.

He landed his jump combination, a quadruple toe loop-triple toe, with ease, giving a little pump of his fist as he landed. His only problem came when he popped a triple lutz into a double.

''There's still something that motivates me,'' he said. ''I couldn't just watch the other guys compete.''

Brian Joubert of France was in second place and Russia's Alexander Abt was third. Two-time U.S. champion Michael Weiss was in fifth after two-footing his quadruple toe loop jump, the first in his combination, and stepping out of his triple axel.

''On the triple axel, I rotated past the 3½ (turns) and I was on my way to four,'' Weiss said, laughing. ''I stepped out quickly and tried to disguise it by going right on to the next element. But for the first time of skating this program, it felt good for me.''

In pairs, world silver medalists Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin of Russia won despite a couple of minor errors in their free skate. Anabelle Langlois and Patrice Archetto of Canada were second, and China's Pang Qing and Tong Jian were third.

Marinin stepped out of their side-by-side triple toe loops and didn't do a double toe, the second half of the combination. He also took a slight stumble forward during their footwork.

But their program to "The Cotton Club'' was more polished than anyone else's. Their side-by-side triple salchows were very smooth, and their throw triple loop looked so effortless he could have been tossing a ball into the air.

In ice dance, there was -- surprise -- no change from the first day of competition. Elena Grushina and Ruslan Goncharov of Ukraine won the original dance, while Russia's Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov were second. Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto of the United States were in third.