Seven Team USA athletes will travel to Challenger Series and Junior Grand Prix Series events this week. The Challenger Series continues with 2021 Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany, while the 2021 International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (JGP) Series continues in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Nebelhorn Trophy, set for September 21-25, is the final qualifying competition for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. Based on the results of the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2021, the United States earned two Olympic entries in both the women's and men's competition with the opportunity to confirm a third entry at Nebelhorn Trophy.
Alysa Liu will compete to earn the third entry for the U.S. in the women's event. The 16-year-old is a two-time U.S. champion and the 2020 World Junior bronze medalist. Last season, she earned the pewter medal at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Las Vegas. In her senior international debut at Lombardia Trophy, Liu won gold, topping the field by over 30 points.
Vincent Zhou will skate for the third men's entry for the U.S. He is the 2019 World bronze medalist and a 2018 Olympian. He is also the 2019 Four Continents bronze medalist and a three-time U.S. silver medalist, most recently at the 2021 U.S Championships. At the 2021 World Championships, Zhou narrowly missed qualification for the free skate, finishing 25th overall.
In addition to the entries to be confirmed at Nebelhorn Trophy, the U.S. secured two Olympic entries in pairs and three in ice dance at the 2021 World Championships.
The ISU Challenger Series is a group of 10 senior-level international figure skating competitions held each year to help skaters prepare and qualify for ISU Championship events.
The United States will bring a team of five to the Junior Grand Prix in Ljubljana, scheduled for Sept. 15-18.
Lindsay Thorngren will headline the U.S. women's contingent in Slovenia. She is the 2020 U.S. junior champion and earned gold at the JGP in France earlier this season. She will compete to earn a spot in the Junior Grand Prix Final in Osaka, Japan, this December. Thorngren is joined by Ava Ziegler, who placed sixth at JGP Slovakia. She is the 2021 U.S. junior pewter medalist.
In the men's competition, Matthew Nielsen is the sole athlete for Team USA. The Ohio native is making his third Junior Grand Prix appearance and recently won gold in the junior competition at 2021 Cranberry Cup.
Reigning U.S. junior champions Katarina Wolfkostin and Jeffrey Chen will represent Team USA in ice dance. The Michigan-based duo won the JGP event in France earlier this season and will look to secure their spot in the Junior Grand Prix Final.
Entering its 24th season, the ISU Junior Grand Prix Series consists of seven international events in a cumulative point-scoring format. Each athlete is eligible to score points in two of the seven scheduled events (pairs can compete in two of four designated events). Depending on the developments during the JGP Series, the ISU Council will evaluate if and how the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2021 (scheduled for Dec. 9-12, 2021, in Osaka, Japan) could be held by applying alternative qualification criteria. The ISU will stream all events live on its YouTube page.
U.S. ENTRIES AT 2021 NEBELHORN TROPHY
Athlete(s) | Hometown | Training Town
Women
Alysa Liu | Richmond, Calif. | Oakland, Calif.
Men
Vincent Zhou | Palo Alto, Calif. | Colorado Springs, Colo. & Kyoto, Japan
U.S. ENTRIES AT 2021 JUNIOR GRAND PRIX SLOVENIA
Athlete(s) | Hometown | Training Town
Women
Lindsay Thorngren | Montclair, N.J. | Hackensack, N.J.
Ava Ziegler | Dover, N.J. | Hackensack, N.J.
Men
Matthew Nielsen | Wooster, Ohio | Strongsville, Ohio
Ice Dance
Katarina Wolfkostin and Jeffrey Chen | Ann Arbor, Mich.; Fremont, Calif. | Novi, Mich.
