Bradie Tennell reclaimed the U.S. title on Friday night at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Las Vegas at the Orleans Arena. Tennell (Skokie Valley SC) earned 153.21 points in her free skate on Friday night for 232.61 total points to win her first title since 2018.
“I’m very happy with my skate today,” Tennell said. “I’m kind of speechless. That was exactly the performance that I wanted to give and I enjoyed every second of it. I’m so happy and so grateful that we had this opportunity, and I was able to perform the way that I wanted to.”
Tennell, who returns to the top spot of the podium after winning the title in 2018, has medaled in four straight U.S. Championships (2019, silver; 2020, bronze). Tennell also became the first lady to win a second U.S. title after a three-year gap since Theresa Weld won her first title in 1914 and her second in 1920.
Amber Glenn (Dallas FSC) earned the silver medal—her career-best U.S. finish—with 144.50 points on Friday night for 215.33 overall points. With the finish, Glenn became the first openly LGBTQ+ U.S. ladies medalist.
Karen Chen (Peninsula SC) finished third with 214.98 total points and defending U.S. champion Alysa Liu (St. Moritz ISC) earned the pewter medal with 213.39 points.
In the rhythm dance, reigning U.S. champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates (All Year FSC/Ann Arbor FSC) set a new U.S. Championships record with a 90.10-point program. It was the tandem’s first competition skate in over 11 months.
“As the time came to step on the ice, we really found it again, the kind of calm and the connection that we have, the bond that we share that we kind of rely on when we go out into a high-pressure situation,” Bates said. “To think that we haven’t competed in 11 months is just bizarre. We tried not to think about it too much, but I would be lying if I said we were not a little bit extra nervous today. But we handled it, I think.”
Chock and Bates are seeking their third U.S. title.
Two-time U.S. champions Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue (Lansing SC) are close behind after earning 89.66 points in their rhythm dance.
Fellow Montreal training mates Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean Luc Baker (Detroit SC/Seattle SC) are third with 85.28 points, while Caroline Green and Michael Parsons (Pavilion SC of Cleveland Heights/Washington FSC) are fourth with 80.10 points.
On Saturday, the men’s competition will get underway from 4-6 p.m. ET on NBC. The pairs and ice dance competitions conclude on NBCSN from 9 p.m. – midnight. In addition to coverage on NBC and NBCSN, fans can watch every skater live on Peacock Premium. Fans can also visit U.S. Figure Skating’s virtual fan experience here.
U.S. Figure Skating also announced on Friday night the establishment of the Mabel Fairbanks Skatingly Yours Fund, which will support the training and development of promising figure skaters who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC).
The Fund, which will be announced annually at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships®, was made possible through a generous lead gift by the Lisa McGraw Figure Skating Foundation. The Fund’s purpose is to help BIPOC athletes in figure skating disciplines realize and achieve their maximum athletic potential, focusing on athletes who demonstrate and emphasize the attributes of good sportsmanship, commitment, perseverance and determination in striving to be their very best in the sport and in their off-ice pursuits. A selection committee comprised of members of the Mabel Fairbanks Disciples group, Lisa McGraw Figure Skating Foundation and U.S. Figure Skating’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force will annually consider a pool of applicants and nominees.
Team USA’s Starr Andrews has been selected as the inaugural recipient of the Fund’s top award of $25,000. This year, U.S. Figure Skating corporate partner Guaranteed Rate has matched the award (for a total of $50,000) as part of its commitment to identify opportunities to enhance U.S. Figure Skating’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Two additional awards, $10,000 (up-and-coming athlete) and $5,000 (developmental athlete), will be announced at a later date.
Tonight’s announcement of the Mabel Fairbanks Skatingly Yours Fund during NBC’s primetime coverage of the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships kicks off a yearlong campaign that encourages fans of the sport to honor Fairbanks through their own gifts to the Fund.
Charitable gifts may be made through the U.S. Figure Skating website or at SkatinglyYoursFund.com.
