World junior champions Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya (18 years old) and Harley Windsor (21 years old) are competing together for the second season.
Ekaterina was born on January 1, 2000 in Moscow. Until December 2011, she studied singles skating at the CSKA Sports School (Moscow), first with Inna Goncharenko, and later with Svetlana Sokolovskaya. In the spring of 2012, she moved to Dnepropetrovsk, where she first teamed up with Vladislav Lysov in the pair skating group of SK Meteor under coach Vladislav Zhovnirsky.
But in 2014, the girl returned to Moscow and became a couple with Alexander Epifanov at the Sports Complex “Inspiration” of the Vorobyovy Gory Sports School. However, due to low results, the couple does not seek the right to compete at international competitions.
In the spring of 2016, Ekaterina received an offer from the Australian federation to compete with Harley Windsor under the guidance of Russian coaches Andrei Hekalo and Nina Moser. In the summer, the Russian Federation agreed to change Ekaterina’s sports citizenship.
And since the 2016/17 season, Alexandrovskaya has been playing for Australia. At the beginning of September, the couple made their debut on the international stage in Ostrava at the junior stage of the Grand Prix, where they took a place at the bottom of the standings. However, a month later in Tallinn, at the next junior stage of the Grand Prix, they created a sensation and won it. This allowed them to become the first substitutes for the final itself. At the same time, they qualified for the continental and junior championships.
A week later, the skaters made their debut among adults in Espoo at the Finnish Trophy, where they were in the middle of the table.
At the beginning of December 2016 in Melbourne, Alexandrovskaya and Windsor confidently became champions of Australia. At the Junior Grand Prix Final in Marseille, Australian skaters finished fifth, but managed to improve on their previous achievement in the short program.
In mid-February 2017, the couple made their debut in South Korea at the continental championship, but their performance was not entirely confident, finishing at the bottom of the standings.
Championship regulations
According to the rules of the tournament, skaters included in the ranking of the International Figure Skating Association have the right to participate in it. The Grand Prix program includes 4 main rounds:
- single skating (men);
- single skating (women);
- pair skating;
- sports dancing on ice.
The games calendar consists of 6 stages and 1 final performance. In the process of passing each stage, championship participants gain points, the sum of which is used to form the final tournament table. It will include athletes who managed to accumulate the most points.
Skaters who distinguished themselves at the last World Championships, which took place in Helsinki in 2017, enjoy special privileges. Athletes who take one of the top 6 positions in the standings receive the status of “seeded”, i.e. tournament favorites.
Grand Prix participants
In addition to the above, the championship regulations provide for several additional requirements for athletes, namely, the participant must be at least 15 years old and obtain a certain number of points in one of the tournaments preceding the Grand Prix. “Passing scores” look like this:
- men (singles): 160.67;
- women (singles): 130.97;
- pair skating: 135.42;
- sports dancing: 113.74.
Teams consisting of 12 athletes and, accordingly, the same number of pairs can take part in each of the presented disciplines. However, the Grand Prix regulations provide for the only exception - the country that is the host of the tournament has the right to delegate up to 3 of its athletes to each category.
Where will the championship be held?
As mentioned above, the schedule of the upcoming competition consists of 6 stages, which are traditionally held in the following countries:
- Skate America (United States of America);
- Skate Canada (Canada);
- Cup of Russia (RF);
- Trophée Eric Bompard (France);
- Cup of China (PRC);
- NHK Trophy (Japan).
All six stages will take place from October to December 2017. The competition will end with a series of final performances. Last year, the final performances took place from December 8th to 10th in Marseille, France. The Grand Prix Final 2017 – 2018 is scheduled for December 8 – 10, 2017. It will take place in Nagoya, Japan as part of the NHK Trophy stage.
Representatives from Russia
For Russian figure skating fans, the composition of the national team is, first of all, interesting. At present, the exact list of participants from Russia has not been published, however, it is likely that some of the athletes who performed in the final part of the last Grand Prix will take part in the upcoming championship.
- Category “women's single skating” Stars: Anna Pogorilaya, Evgenia Medvedeva, Elena Rodionova, Maria Sotskova.
- Category “pair skating”: Vladimir Morozov and Evgenia Tarasova.
- Category “Sports Ice Dancing”: Dmitry Soloviev and Ekaterina Bobrova.
In the 2015–2016 season, our team was represented in three of the four disciplines of the Grand Prix stages. Despite the fact that the Russian team did not manage to win a full set of awards, domestic fans do not lose hope that in 2017 our athletes will be able to make up for lost time and rise to the highest steps of the podium in both single and overall competitions.
It is worth recalling that the broadcast of all performances of the future Grand Prix will be available on air on most Russian sports channels and web resources.
Video
The 2017-2018 Figure Skating Grand Prix Series is a unique chance to see the best athletes who will compete for an honorary trophy. This commercial tournament attracts the attention of all fans of ice dancing, and the attendance of performances is only increasing. Ice skating winners will be named after several weeks of competition.
The 2017-2018 Figure Skating Grand Prix consists of six separate stages, which will take place in different countries, as well as one final round. The competition is scheduled to start on August 21 and end on October 15. Athletes who have won the most points based on the sum of all performances advance to the final competition in Nagoya, Japan (December 7-10, 2017). Skaters who took the first six places at the last competition enjoy special preferences.
The singles scoring system is as follows:
- 1st place – 15;
- 2nd place – 13;
- 3rd place – 11;
- 4th place – 9;
- 5th place – 7;
- 6th place – 5;
- 7th place – 4;
- 8th place – 3.
For greenhouses, points are awarded only for the first six lines in the protocol. In total, the tournament has 4 competition categories: men's and women's singles skating, sports dances, pair skating. Up to 12 participants or pairs are allowed to participate in a particular discipline, and the host country of the stage can nominate up to 3 representatives in a separate competition category.
Who will be allowed to the tournament?
Only athletes who have reached the age of 15 at the time of the stage can compete in the Figure Skating Grand Prix 2017-2018. In addition, the participant is required to score a set number of points in previous tournaments. “Passing points” were set by the organizers of the competition at the following level:
- for men in single skating – 160, 67;
- for women in single skating – 130.97;
- for ice dancers – 113.74;
- for couples – 135.42.
As mentioned earlier, a certain quota for the finals in Japan is given to the first six skaters who excel at the World Championships in their competitive disciplines. These athletes receive the status of “seeded”.
Tournament schedule
You can find the schedule of the Figure Skating Grand Prix for the 2017-2018 season in the following table:
the date of the | Name | Location |
"Cup of Russia" | Russia Moscow |
|
"Skate Canada" | Canada, Regina |
|
"Audi Cup of China" | China, Beijing |
|
Japan, Osaka |
||
"Trophée de France" | France, Grenoble |
|
"Skate America" | USA, Lake Placid |
|
"Grand Prix Final" | Japan, Nagoya |
As for tickets, at the Russian stage of the Grand Prix their cost will vary between 1.5-20 thousand rubles. The bulk of the tickets will go on sale two months before the start of the event.
Composition of participants from Russia
At the moment, the Russian Figure Skating Federation has identified almost all the athletes who will compete to get into the final part of the tournament. Among the men, the following names stand out:
- Maxim Kovtun;
- Mikhail Kolyada;
- Dmitry Aliev;
- Alexander Samarin.
Unfortunately, the change of generations in men's single skating has dragged on. The glory of Alexei Yagudin and Evgeni Plushenko has long faded, and figure skaters from Russia are not yet able to pick up the fallen banner of the undisputed best on the planet. Maxim Kovtun has more or less good prospects of qualifying for the finals, while the rest of the galaxy of athletes have a long way to improve.
In women's single skating, the honor of the country will be defended by Evgenia Medvedeva, Elena Radionova, Alena Leonova, Anna Pogorilaya and others. It is noteworthy that neither Adelina Sotnikova nor Yulia Lipnitskaya will take part in the Grand Prix. The reasons for the absence of the 2014 champions are not reported.
In pair skating from Russia the following will perform:
- Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov;
- Natalya Zabiyako/Alexander Enbert;
- Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov;
- Kristina Astakhova/Alexey Rogonov and others.
In the dance discipline, Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitry Solovyov, Victoria Sinitsyna/Nikita Katsalapov, Alla Loboda/Pavel Drozd, Alexandra Stepanova/Ivan Bukin will demonstrate their programs. In this spectacular type of program, which combines elements of choreography and acrobatics, a number of Russians have a good chance of qualifying for the finals.
On the eve of the Figure Skating Grand Prix 2017-2018, it will become one of the most interesting sporting events, where the best athletes of our time will show their skills. Spectators of the tournament will be treated to intense emotions, uncompromising competition, and stunningly beautiful elements of the ice skating.
Watch the performance of Russian figure skater Evgenia Medvedeva in the 2016 Grand Prix finals in the following video:
Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2017/2018 – will be held from October 20 to December 10, 2017. The tournament will be divided into 6 stages, which will take place in Russia, Canada, China, France, USA and Japan. Based on their results, the best skaters will compete for competition awards in the final performances. They will be held in the Japanese city of Nagoya in December 2017. Who will be the main characters of the upcoming season? This question worries more than one thousand figure skating fans!
Schedule of the Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2017/2018
Competitions for adult figure skaters will be held from October 20 to December 10, 2017 in six countries. The competition program will consist of 6 stages and a final. The Junior Grand Prix will take place from August 21 to December 10. It will include 7 rounds. The final for juniors and adult athletes will be common.
Let us analyze in detail all stages of the Grand Prix for adult athletes.
As the name suggests, this is the domestic round of the competition. Grand Prix of figure skating 2017/18 will be hosted by Moscow. The tournament will visit the Russian capital for the 16th time. Athletes will perform within the walls of the Megasport sports complex.
The Canadian round will take place in Regina for the second time in a row.
Beijing will host the Grand Prix for the 10th time. The competition will be organized on the territory of the Capital Sports Palace.
Spectators will see the fourth stage of the Grand Prix among figure skaters in the 2017/18 season in the Land of the Rising Sun. The strongest figure skaters on the planet will meet in the Japanese city of Osaka.
French Grenoble will host the penultimate round of the Grand Prix of Figure Skating. This is the first time the city will host such a competition. Last year, the capital of the Fifth Republic, Paris, received this honor.
The tournament will be summed up by the last stage, which will take place in the United States of America. The city of Lake Placid will host the competition for the 5th time.
The climax of the entire season. The best skaters will meet in the Japanese city of Nagoya. The athletes will be hosted by the local sports complex Nippon Geisha Hall.
The final competitions will be organized in Japan for the fifth time. But Nagoya will be the site of the climactic performances for the first time. In the last edition of the tournament, the final was held in Moscow.
Participants of the Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2017/2018
Athletes who have reached the age of 15 as of July 1, 2017, and who have fulfilled the qualifying standards at previous international competitions, can participate in the competition.
Juniors are selected for the Grand Prix based on quotas for each national federation, which are formed on the basis of the last World Championship.
Athletes will compete for awards in the following disciplines:
- men's single skating;
- dancing on Ice;
- women's single skating;
- pair skating.
Participants from Russia at the Grand Prix of figure skating 2017-2018
Our skaters are one of the main contenders for medals. Therefore, spectators and sports commentators pay special attention to their persons.
This is what the preliminary composition of the Russian national team looks like for the upcoming tournament.
Men's singles
- Dmitry Aliev
- Mikhail Kolyada
- Maxim Kovtun
- Alexander Samarin
- Alexander Petrov
- Dmitry Aliev
- Sergey Voronov
Women's singles
- Evgenia Medvedeva
- Elena Radionova
- Anna Pogorilaya
- Maria Sotskova
- Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
- Alina Zagitova
- Alena Leonova
- Evgenia Medvedeva
- Polina Tsurskaya
Couples
- Ksenia Stolbova/Fyodor Klimov
- Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov
- Natalya Zabiyako/Alexander Enbert
- Kristina Astakhova/Alexey Rogonov
Dancing couples
- Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitry Soloviev
- Alexandra Stepanova/Ivan Bukin
- Alla Loboda/Pavel Drozd
- Tiffany Zagorski/Jonathan Gureiro
- Victoria Sinitsyna/Nikita Katsalapov
In general, get ready to buy tickets to the Grand Prix 2017/2018 in figure skating - the best domestic skating masters will participate in the championship! Of the strongest athletes, only Yulia Lipnitskaya and Adelina Sotnikova were not entered into the tournament. However, there are still vacancies in the team. Therefore, fans have the right to hope that they will see the performances of these famous figure skaters!
Loading...