Eight U.S. athletes will compete as a team at the ISU World Team Trophy 2021, April 15-18 in Osaka, Japan. The event features the six best figure skating teams of the 2020-21 season, which includes Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States.
Each team consists of two ladies, two men, one pairs team and one ice dance team. Each skater/team will receive points based on placements in the short program/rhythm dance and free skate/dance. The points will be combined across the four disciplines with the highest point total winning.
Bradie Tennell and Karen Chen will compete in the ladies competition. Tennell is the reigning U.S. champion and finished ninth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2021 last month in Stockholm. Chen finished fourth at the World Championships and earned the bronze medal at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Both ladies are making their second World Team Trophy appearances.
In the men’s competition, Nathan Chen and Jason Brown will take the ice. Chen recently claimed his third consecutive World title in Stockholm and is also undefeated this season, winning his fifth U.S. title at gold at 2020 Guaranteed Rate Skate America. Brown finished seventh at the World Championships and earned the U.S. bronze medal in January. Both men will make their third World Team Trophy appearance and Brown was voted captain of Team USA.
Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier will represent Team USA in pairs. In just their first season together, Knierim and Frazier claimed the top spot at both Skate America and the U.S. Championships. They went on to finish seventh in their debut World appearance. Knierim is making her second World Team Trophy appearance, last competing with husband and former partner Chris Knierim in 2015. Frazier will make his event debut.
Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker will represent Team USA in ice dance. They are the three-time reigning U.S. bronze medalists and earned the silver medal at Skate America this fall. The Montreal-based duo finished ninth in Stockholm and are attending their first World Team Trophy.
U.S. skaters were assigned to World Team Trophy based on previous events and ISU World Standings. Teams will compete for a total of $1 million USD in prize money.
Held every odd year, Team USA has medaled in all six World Team Trophy events. Most recently, Team USA won the 2019 event with 117 points. The United States also won the inaugural 2009 competition, earned silver in 2012 (held in an even year because the 2011 event was postponed due to an earthquake and tsunami in Japan) and won gold in 2013 and 2015.
U.S. Figure Skating also announced that in addition to the competition being available live and in its entirety on Peacock Premium, there will also be three broadcasts of 2021 World Team Trophy on NBCSN, all same-day delayed broadcasts. A full schedule is below.
U.S. ENTRIES AT ISU WORLD TEAM TROPHY 2021
Name / Hometown / Training Town
Ladies
Karen Chen / Fremont, Calif. / Colorado Springs, Colo.
Bradie Tennell / Carpentersville, Ill. / Colorado Springs, Colo.
Men
Jason Brown / Highland Park, Ill. / Toronto
Nathan Chen / Salt Lake City / Irvine, Calif.
Pairs
Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier / Addison, Ill.; Colorado Springs, Colo. / Irvine, Calif.
Ice Dance
Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker / East Aurora, N.Y.; Edmonds, Wash. / Montreal
ISU WORLD TEAM TROPHY 2021 STREAMING ON PEACOCK PREMIUM
(All times Eastern; subject to change)
Thursday, April 15
Rhythm dance – 2:05 a.m.
Ladies short – 3:25 a.m.
Men’s short – 5:25 a.m.
Friday, April 16
Pairs short – 2:20 a.m.
Free dance – 3:45 a.m.
Men’s free – 5:10 a.m.
Saturday, April 17th
Pairs free – 2:15 a.m.
Ladies free – 3:50 a.m.
ISU WORLD TEAM TROPHY 2021 TELEVISION SCHEDULE
(All times Eastern; check local listings)
Thursday, April 15 | 11:30 p.m. – 1:30 a.m. ET | NBCSN
Friday, April 16 | 6 – 8 p.m. ET | NBCSN
Sunday, April 18 | Midnight – 2 a.m. ET | NBCSN
