events

Twelve U.S. Athletes to Compete in Two International Events this Week

icenetwork.com 2011 Skate Canada event page
icenetwork.com 2011 Cup of Nice event page

Rachael Flatt (Photo by Michelle Harvath)

(10/25/11) - Seven U.S. athletes will compete at 2011 Skate Canada International, the second event of the 2011 International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series, while five athletes will head to France for 2011 Cup of Nice.

All four disciplines will take the ice Friday, the first day of competition, from the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ontario. Senior competition begins Friday at Cup of Nice with the pairs and men's short programs and the short dance.

NBC will broadcast the ladies and men's free skates from Skate Canada on Saturday, Nov. 5 from 3-5 p.m. (ET) with additional broadcast coverage on Universal Sports. Coverage of the event will also be available to UniversalSports.com subscribers. Visit www.UniversalSports.com for more information. For full coverage of the event, including news, photos and results, visit www.icenetwork.com. Live and on-demand video coverage of Skate America will be available to icenetwork.com Season Pass subscribers.

Rachael Flatt, the reigning U.S. silver medalist, makes her Skate Canada debut this year. Flatt is a four-time Grand Prix Series medalist and earned a pair of silvers in her 2010 assignments to Skate America and NHK Trophy before competing at the 2010 Grand Prix Final. Mirai Nagasu continues the season after most recently winning 2011 Nebelhorn Trophy earlier this fall. She finished the 2010-11 season with a bronze medal at the Four Continents Championships after winning bronze at the U.S. Championships. Ashley Wagner, a four-time Grand Prix medalist, makes her second appearance at Skate Canada. Last season, she placed fifth at NHK Trophy before winning bronze at Rostelecom Cup.

Adam Rippon, who begins his fourth Grand Prix season, goes to Ontario in defense of his bronze medal at the 2010 edition of this event. Reigning U.S. bronze medalist Ross Miner begins his second season on the Grand Prix circuit.

Newly formed team Madison Chock & Evan Bates make their Grand Prix Series debut together after starting the season with a third-place showing at 2011 Finlandia Trophy. With her former partner Greg Zuerlein, Chock is the reigning U.S. bronze medalists, while Bates was a 2010 Olympian with former partner Emily Samuelson.

The Grand Prix Series, now in its 17th season, consists of six international events in a cumulative point-scoring format. Approximately 300 athletes from 30 countries are expected to participate in the series. Each athlete is eligible to score points in two of the six scheduled events. The top six point-earners in each discipline qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Quebec City, Canada, Dec. 8-11. Athletes will compete for a total of more than $1.35 million in prize money throughout the series.

Keegan Messing makes his senior international debut in France. Messing most recently placed fourth at the 2011 World Junior Championships.

Reigning U.S. pewter medalists Mary Beth Marley & Rockne Brubaker made their Grand Prix Series and season debuts last week at 2011 Hilton HHonors Skate America. Joining them are Ashley Cain & Joshua Reagan, the 2011 U.S. junior champions, begin their senior international careers in Nice before they are scheduled to compete at Rostelecom Cup over Thanksgiving weekend.