BEIJING, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) — 2022 Winter Olympic champions Sui Wenjing and Han Cong completed first within the pairs quick program on the ISU Figure Skating Four Continents at residence on Thursday.
China’s Sui and Han led the sphere with 76.02 factors, adopted by Yuna Nagaoka and Sumitada Moriguchi of Japan with 71.95 factors, simply 0.10 factors forward of the third-placed American pair Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov. Fellow Chinese pair Zhang Jiaxuan and Huang Yihang scored 69.05 factors to position fourth. The pairs free skate takes place on Saturday.
“We felt delighted to participate in the Four Continents Championships again. Our performance was not that perfect today. We need to forge ahead step by step to achieve higher goals at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics,” mentioned Han, 33, who has claimed six Four Continents titles along with Sui.
Japanese skaters led the ladies’s quick program, with 17-year-old Ami Nakai first on 73.83 factors, 2.42 factors forward of runner-up Yuna Aoki, with Mone Chiba third on 68.07 factors.
“I was in good form today to find my rhythm, which boosted my confidence in skating and jumping. I was satisfied with my performance today and will try to keep improving,” mentioned Nakai.
China’s Zhu Yi, Zhang Ruiyang and An Xiangyi ranked tenth, eleventh and sixteenth respectively within the girls’s quick program.
American skaters took the highest three locations within the ice dance rhythm dance. Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik topped the rankings with 79.97 factors, with Caroline Green and Michael Parsons second on 78.66 factors, adopted by Oona Brown and Gage Brown on 74.24 factors.
Chinese pairs Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu, Ren Junfei and Xing Jianing, and Xiao Zixi and He Linghao positioned eighth, tenth and eleventh respectively.
“After the National Figure Skating Championships last month, we adjusted some details to make the show more impressive. We did great today but still have to do more to achieve our best,” Liu mentioned.
As the final ISU determine skating occasion earlier than 2026 Winter Olympics, the Four Continents event runs Thursday by means of Sunday at Beijing’s National Indoor Stadium.