Photo Credit Melanie Heaney/U.S. Figure Skating
By Kristen Henneman
Team USA will send a full slate of athletes to 2024 Skate America – which kicks off the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series – Oct. 18-20 in Allen, Texas.
Taking place at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center, the United States will have the maximum three skaters or teams in each of the four disciplines. The Team USA lineup is headlined by its four 2024 World Championship medalists: Madison Chock and Evan Bates, Ilia Malinin and Isabeau Levito. Half of the 18 U.S. skaters competing in Texas will make their Grand Prix debut.
Chock and Bates, the 2022 Olympic team event gold medalists and two-time reigning World champions, make their season debut at Skate America. The 18-time Grand Prix medalists as a team are the favorites for their fifth Skate America gold, which would tie Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto for the most golds in ice dance in the event’s history.
They also look to continue their personal winning streak as the now married couple has won gold at every competition they’ve skated at since the 2023 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
There is also a Team USA gold medal streak on the line. A U.S. ice dance team has stood atop the Skate America podium every year since 2009, a record started by Belbin and Agosto.
The other two U.S. ice dance teams competing in Allen will make their Grand Prix debut.
Leah Neset and Artem Markelov were dominant at the junior level last season, going undefeated, including wins at the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2023 and ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2024. Their first season competing as seniors, the three-time U.S. junior champions earned bronze last month at Lombardia Trophy.
While this is the first Grand Prix for Isabella Flores and Ivan Desyatov, they also have podiumed internationally, securing bronze at 2023 Golden Spin of Zagreb and silver at 2024 Egna Dance Trophy.
In the men’s event, a U.S. man has clinched gold at Skate America every year since 2017. The last two years, that winner was Malinin, who is aiming to become the third U.S. men’s skater to win Skate America golds in three consecutive years.
The reigning World champion and two-time U.S. champion has medaled at every Grand Prix he’s competed at and is undefeated so far in the 2024 calendar year. He started the 2024-25 season at Lombardia Trophy, where he dominated the competition by more than 21 points.
Two-time U.S. pewter medalist Maxim Naumov will compete at Skate America for the second straight year. He finished 11th at his first international competition of the season, Nebelhorn Trophy.
Lucas Broussard looks to build on his gold at his first international of the season – Cranberry Cup – in his second season competing in the Grand Prix Series.
In the women’s competition, Team USA will be represented by Levito, Bradie Tennell and Elyce Lin-Gracey.
Levito, the 2024 World silver medalist, has earned silver at Skate America the last two seasons and medaled at every Grand Prix she’s competed at. The 2023 U.S. champion has placed on the podium at both her international events to start the season.
Tennell, the 2018 Olympic team event bronze medalist, missed the majority of last season with an ankle injury, but is back this season. In her first event since October of 2023, Tennell claimed silver at Shanghai Trophy earlier this month.
Although the Grand Prix Series hasn’t yet started, Lin-Gracey is in the midst of a breakout season. Her second season competing at the senior level and making her Grand Prix debut, Lin-Gracey clinched gold at Nebelhorn Trophy last month with a score that would have placed on the podium at the World Championships last season.
In the pairs competition, Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea will lead Team USA. The 2024 Four Continents bronze medalists and U.S. champions have medaled at their first two international events to start the season, including gold at 2024 John Nicks Pairs Challenge International, where they set a new personal best.
Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov as well as Katie McBeath and Daniil Parkman will both skate on Grand Prix ice for the first time since forming their new partnerships.
Standing next to Kam and O’Shea with silver at the 2024 John Nicks Pairs Challenge International was Efimova and Mitrofanov. The pair, who teamed up in June 2023, also secured silver at the 2024 U.S. Championships.
After teaming up in May 2023, McBeath and Parkman finished fifth at their first international competition together at the 2024 John Nicks Pairs Challenge International.
Competition kicks off Friday with the pairs and women’s short programs. The rhythm dance starts the full day of action on Saturday, followed by the pairs free skate, where the first medals will be awarded. The day finishes with the men’s short program and women’s free skate. Competition wraps up Sunday with the men’s free skate and free dance. Sunday evening, select athletes will skate in the Prevagen Skating Spectacular.
Tickets to 2024 Skate America are still available. Visit 2024SkateAmerica.com to purchase tickets and catch all the action live in Texas.
NBC Sports will include television coverage on all three days of Skate America. In addition, Peacock will livestream every skater with all events available on Peacock for 72 hours following their conclusion. The full broadcast schedule can be found on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone and the Peacock streaming schedule is available at peacocktv.com/skating.
The Grand Prix Series, which started in 1995, consists of six international events in a cumulative point-scoring format. Each athlete or team is eligible to score points in up to two of the six scheduled events. The top six point-earners in each discipline qualify for the 2024 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, set for Dec. 5-8 in Grenoble, France.
For a full schedule, results, news and more, visit the Skate America Competition Central.
U.S. ENTRIES AT 2024 SKATE AMERICA
Athlete | Hometown | Training Town
Women
Isabeau Levito | Mount Holly, N.J. | Mount Laurel, N.J.
Elyce Lin-Gracey | Arcadia, Calif. | Colorado Springs, Colo.
Bradie Tennell | Carpentersville, Ill. | West Orange, N.J.
Men
Lucas Broussard | Seattle, Wash. | Seattle, Wash.
Ilia Malinin | Vienna, Va. | Reston, Va.
Maxim Naumov | Norwood, Mass. | Norwood, Mass.
Pairs
Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov | Norwood, Mass.; Houston, Texas | Norwood, Mass.
Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea | Colorado Springs, Colo.; Colorado Springs, Colo. | Colorado Springs, Colo.
Katie McBeath and Daniil Parkman | Garfield Heights, Ohio; Saint Petersburg, Russia | Irvine, Calif.
Ice Dance
Madison Chock and Evan Bates | Redondo Beach, Calif.; Ann Arbor, Mich. | Montreal, Quebec
Isabella Flores and Ivan Desyatov | Colorado Springs, Colo.; Colorado Springs, Colo. | Colorado Springs, Colo.
Leah Neset and Artem Markelov | Minot, N.D.; Volgograd, Russia | Colorado Springs, Colo.
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