By: Reese Holiday
The United States continued along the 2021 International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (JGP) Series this week, earning three medals in Courchevel, France. This was the second consecutive event in France; the event was originally scheduled to take place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, but was relocated due to local quarantine regulations.
In the ice dance competition, the sibling pair of Oona Brown and Gage Brown won gold with 154.25 total points in their fifth JGP event. The team also won the free dance with their performance “Exogenesis: Symphony, Part 1: Overture” and “I Belong to You” by Muse, earning 94.46 points.
The Browns edged out fellow Americans Isabella Flores and Dimitry Tsarevski who earned silver with 153.07 total points in their first JGP event. The tandem started strong with a first-place finish in the rhythm dance, then moved to second place in the free dance with 92.51 points behind the music of “Nuvole Bianche” by Ludovico Einaudi and “Earth Song” by Michael Jackson.
The ice dance bronze medal was awarded to Estonia’s Solene Mazingue and Marko Jevgeni Gaidajenko with 138.23 total points.
In the women’s competition, Isabeau Levito won gold with 202.35 total points in her junior international debut. The 2021 U.S. junior champion dominated her field, earning first in the short program with a clean skate, as well as first in the free skate with 131.10 points, clearing the field by more than 10 points.
Josephine Lee, who made her JGP debut, finished eighth overall with 144.97 total points, and seventh overall in the free skate with 93.67 points. Chaeyeon Kim of South Korea earned silver with 191.46 points, and Canadian Kaiya Ruiter took home bronze with 179.92 points.
In the men’s competition, Maxim Zharkov narrowly missed the podium by less than five points, placing fourth with 178.05 total points in his JGP debut. His free skate ended in a similar fifth-place finish with 117.60 points.
Right on Zharkov’s tail was U.S. teammate Kai Kovar who finished fifth overall with 175.87 points in his JGP debut. The two also ended their free skates with close scores as Kovar placed fourth in that segment with 118.63 points.
Wesley Chiu of Canada won gold with 199.89 points. Estonia’s Arlet Levandi grabbed silver with 196.93 points, and Edward Appleby of Great Britain took home bronze with 182.41.
At the two events in France, the U.S. collected eight medals - five golds, two silvers, one bronze.
The 2021 Junior Grand Prix Series will continue next week in Kosice, Slovakia, Sept. 1-4. The ISU will stream all events live on its YouTube page. Fans can follow along on the JGP Series Competition Central page on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
Team USA Brings Home Three Medals, Dominates Ice Dance in France
The United States continued along the 2021 International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (JGP) Series this week, earning three medals in Courchevel, France. This was the second consecutive event in France; the event was originally scheduled to take place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, but was relocated due to local quarantine regulations.
