Nine Teams Competing This Week at U.S. Intercollegiate Team Championships

(3/16/11) - Athletes from nine collegiate figure skating teams will compete March 19-20 at the 2011 U.S. Intercollegiate Team Figure Skating Championships in Ann Arbor, Mich. The University of Michigan is hosting the annual competition, which is now in its 11th year.

This competition is the culmination of the Intercollegiate Competition Series, in which colleges participated in three conference events in their respective sections (Eastern, Midwestern and Pacific Coast) throughout the year, earning team points for each skater's placement in an individual event. The teams that collected the most points throughout the season qualified to compete at the U.S. Intercollegiate Team Championships. Approximately 30 colleges entered the series, with the top three from each section qualifying.

The free skate and solo dance events are all day Saturday, while the short programs and team maneuvers take place Sunday. All competition will be held at Yost Ice Arena.

Intercollegiate team skating began in 1996. Colleges can have any number of athletes on their teams but are limited to a maximum of 35 starts per competition. No more than five athletes per college may enter a senior-level event, and no more than three from a college may enter any other particular event. The restriction on entries encourages teams to strategize to earn the maximum points with their athletes.

Boston University has won each of the last two U.S. Intercollegiate championships. Prior to that, Dartmouth College was the dominant program, winning the title every year from 2004-08. While those two schools are expected to battle it out once again for national supremacy, the University of Delaware, University of Wisconsin and Miami University will also contend for this year's crown.


Boston University
Dartmouth College
University of Delaware

Miami University
Michigan State University
University of Michigan (bye)*
University of Wisconsin

Colorado College (not competing)**
University of California, Berkeley
University of Denver

*Following a tie for third place in the Midwestern Section, the University of Michigan was granted a waiver to compete.
**The third-, fourth- and fifth-place finishers in the Pacific Section (Colorado College, Colorado State University and University of Colorado at Boulder, respectively) declined the invitation to compete due to scheduling conflicts.