Team USA will send eight junior athletes to compete at the Winter Youth Olympic Games Lausanne 2020. The 13-day competition runs Jan. 9-22 in Lausanne, Switzerland. The figure skating competition kicks off on Friday, Jan. 10 with the men's and pairs short program and closes on Wednesday, Jan. 15 with the Team Event.
In the ladies competition,
Audrey Shin and
Kate Wang will represent the United States. Shin is the 2019 U.S. junior silver medalist and finished 12th at the Junior Grand Prix in Russia. Wang made her Junior Grand Prix debut this season, placing sixth in Russia and 11th in Italy.
The U.S. will send two men to compete in Lausanne.
Ilia Malinin is the reigning U.S. novice bronze medalist. This fall, he made in Junior Grand Prix debut, finishing fourth and seventh at his events in Lake Placid, New York, and Italy, respectively.
Liam Kapeikis finished fifth in the novice competition at the 2019 U.S. Championships. He also made his Junior Grand Prix debut this season, placing 12th in Latvia.
In the pairs competition,
Cate Fleming and Jedidiah Isbell are the lone U.S. team. They are the 2019 U.S. novice runners-up and are competing at the junior level internationally for the first time this season.
The United States will send
Katarina Wolfkostin and Jeffrey Chen to Switzerland. In their first season as a couple, the Michigan-based team finished in the top five at their Junior Grand Prix events in Russia (fourth) and France (fifth). They also topped the junior podium at the 2020 U.S. Ice Dance Final and finished second in the junior competition at the Golden Spin of Zagreb.
The Games will be broadcast on Olympic Channel daily, beginning with the Opening Ceremony on Jan. 9. In addition, OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app will offer live streams, replays and highlights.
The Youth Olympic Games are an international multisport event held every two years, consistent with the current format of the Olympic Winter Games. The Winter Youth Olympic Games are the second-largest multisport winter event, second only to the Olympic Winter Games. A hallmark of the event is a unique culture and education program – Learn & Share – that is designed to equip athletes with the skills they need to succeed in sports and in their daily lives. For more information, visit the event website.
