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かわいい!

Okay, I'd seen the moment where Yuma tries to stand on his toe picks to be taller but had not paid attention to Rio's reaction 😂

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So glad we got to end JNats with this wonderful event rather than the disaster that was the men. Kaori, Mao, Wakaba is a great podium! So happy that Wakaba made the podium and Rinka landed her 3A. This whole event was well skated but the last two groups were phenomenal!

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This podium was not on my bingo card but I am very happy with it.

a podium i did not expect but which has incredible vibes! yuma finally a national champion, rio getting silver while still a junior after landing a 4lo, and tatsuya making an unbelievable comeback from 14th in the short!!! a crazy comp for this entire podium, i do not envy jsf for having to choose assignments now after this lmao

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I’m glad Yuma did well!!! 😭 However I think it will take some time for me to recover from the horrors I witnessed at this event.

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Thank god for women.

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This short program was not very fun to watch. Hopefully the free will be better. The good news is that it looks like Kao still has a good chance at getting on the podium 🤞🏻

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Updated 100 Memorable Skating Programs

Back in 2018, I created the original version of this list. (You can find the master post here.) Since 2024 marks my 30th year as an official fan of figure skating and there have been some more great programs created since the last time, I thought it was about time to update the list in honor of World Ice Skating Day. Same rules apply as last time:

Only senior competitive programs starting from the 1993-1994 season are eligible, since that's the first season I really started watching figure skating.

Each skater may only be listed once, unless a partner/discipline switch is involved.

Choice of music may also not be repeated. (Yes, there are two James Bond programs on the list, but Yuna and Wakaba use different music for the most part, so I'm letting it slide.)

I debated long and hard about whether or not I should still include programs from skaters who have proven themselves to be not so great people. I'm someone who has little difficulty separating the art from the artist, so in the end, I decided to keep them listed (although most of them got knocked down a few pegs). This list is more about the choreography than the skater anyway, although there are certainly some problematic choreographers out there, too. (Looking at you especially, Morozov!) So, just because a skater is listed doesn't mean that I'm a fan of them or that I condone their actions! I just think certain programs are still great regardless of the skaters' terrible behavior off the ice.

Choreographers are noted if known. If you know who choreographed the programs without a choreographer named, please let me know!

I've also created a handy playlist on YouTube if you don't want to click on all these links.

Ashley Wagner - Moulin Rouge (Shae-Lynn Bourne) 2016 Worlds

Jason Brown - Melancholy (Rohene Ward) 2023 Nationals

Patrick Chan - Phantom of the Opera (Lori Nichol) 2011 Canadian Nationals

Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje -Je suis malade (Pasquale Camerlengo) 2012 Worlds

Meryl Davis/Charlie White - Kajra Re/Silsila Ye Chahat Ka/Dola Re Dola (Marina Zueva, Igor Shpilband, and Anuja Rajendra) 2010 Olympics

Mao Asada - Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 (Tatiana Tarasova) 2014 Olympics

Sui/Han - Rain, In Your Black Eyes (Lori Nichol) 2019 Worlds

Marina Anissina/Gwendal Peizerat - Romeo & Juliet 1998 Olympics

Cain/LeDuc - W.E. (Pasquale Camerlengo) 2022 US Nationals

Daisuke Takahashi - Blues for Klook (Pasquale Camerlengo) 2012 Worlds

Kurt Browning - Casablanca (Sandra Bezic) 1994 Olympics

Michelle Kwan - Salome (Lori Nichol) 1996 Worlds

Alexei Yagudin - Winter (Tatiana Tarasova and Nikolai Morosov) 2002 Olympics

Jamie Sale/David Pelletier - Love Story (Lori Nichol) 2002 Olympics

Jeremy Abbott - Exogenesis (Jeremy Abbott and Yuka Sato) Nationals 2012

Oksana Grishuk/Evgeni Platov - The Feeling Begins 1997 Worlds

Yuzuru Hanyu - Seimei (Shae-Lynn Bourne) 2015 Grand Prix Final

Chock/Bates - Egyptian Snake Dance (Marie-France Dubreuil, Ginette Cournoyer, and Sam Chouinard) 2019 Grand Prix Final

Javier Fernandez - Guys and Dolls (David Wilson) 2016 Worlds

Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres - Sound of Silence (John Kerr and Silvia Fontana) 2017 Euros

Evgenia Medvedeva - Anna Karenina (Daniil Gleichengauz) 2018 Olympics

Nathan Chen - Philip Glass medley (Shae-Lynn Bourne) 2021 Worlds

Gabriella Papadakis/Guilliame Cizeron - Elegie (Saxon Fraser and Marie-France Dubreuil) 2022 Olympics

Aljona Savchenko/Bruno Massot - La terre vue du ciel (Christopher Dean) 2018 Olympics

Kevin Aymoz - Bolero (Brice Mousset and Kevin Aymoz) 2023 Skate America

Julia Lipnitskaya - Schindler’s List (Ilia Averbukh) 2014 Olympics

Elena Berezhnaya/Anton Sikharulidze - Lady Caliph 2002 Olympics

Yu-na Kim - James Bond medley (David Wilson) 2010 Olympics

Shoma Uno - Buenos Aires Hora Cero (Mihoko Higuchi) 2016 Grand Prix Final

Michal Brezina - The Way You Look Tonight (Jeffrey Buttle) 2016 Skate Canada

Shae-Lynn Bourne/Victor Kraatz - Riverdance 1998 Olympics

Adam Rippon - O/Fly On (Benji Schwimmer) 2016 Trophee de France

Jeffrey Buttle - Bells of Moscow (David Wilson) 2005 Worlds

Piper Gilles/Paul Poirier - Vincent (Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs) 2019 Canadian Nationals

Rudy Galindo - Swan Lake (Sharlene Franke) 1996 US Nationals

Sasha Cohen - Malaguena (Tatiana Tarasova) 2004 Worlds

Aljona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy - Pina (Ingo Steur) 2011 Grand Prix Final

Samantha Cesario - Carmen (Inese Budevica) 2013 Trophee Eric Bompard

Tatsuki Machida - East of Eden (Phillip Mills) 2014 Worlds

Xue Shen/Hongbo Zhao - Turandot (Lea Ann Miller, Renee Roca, and Gorsha Sur) 2003 Worlds

Kaitlin Hawayek/Jean-Luc Baker - Liebestraume (Pasquale Camerlengo) 2018 Nationals

Olga Mikutina - My Nocturnal Serenade (Rostislav Sinicyn) 2023 Europeans

Lu Chen - The Last Emperor (Toller Cranston) 1995 Worlds

Giada Russo - Red Violin (Edoardo de Bernardis) 2016 Europeans

Junhwan Cha - Fate of the Clockmaker/Cloak and Dagger (Shae-Lynn Bourne) 2022 Olympics

Han Yan - La La Land (Yuka Sato and Kurt Browning) 2019 Chinese Interclub League

Wakaba Higuchi - Skyfall (Shae-Lynn Bourne) 2018 Worlds

Kazuki Tomono - Die Fledermaus (Misha Ge) 2022 Japanese Nationals

Yuma Kagiyama - Believer (Shae-Lynn Bourne) 2024 Worlds

Karen Chen - On Golden Pond (Karen Chen) 2017 Nationals

Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani - Coppelia (Marina Zueva and Cheryl Yeager) 2016 Nationals

Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirov - Manfred Symphony (Peter Tchernyshev) 2014 Skate America

Philippe Candeloro - The Three Musketeers (Natacha Dabadie) 1998 Olympics

Alexander Abt - Songs from the Victorious City 1998 Nations Cup

Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir - Prince medley 2017 Worlds

Ekaterina Gordeeva/Sergei Grinkov - Moonlight Sonata (Marina Zueva) 1994 Olympics

Satoko Miyahara - Madama Butterfly (Tom Dickson) 2017 Japanese Nationals

Marjorie Lajoie/Zachary Lagha - The White Crow (Romain Haguenauer and Ginette Cournoyer) 2023 Four Continents

Anjelika Krylova/Oleg Ovsiannikov - Masquerade Waltz 1997 Worlds

Alena Kostornaia - The Departure, November (Daniil Gleikhengauz) 2019 Grand Prix Final

Nelli Zhiganshina/Alexander Gazsi - Two from the Grave (Ilia Averbukh) 2013 Worlds

Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov - The Man and The Shadow (Nikolai Morozov) 2015 Grand Prix Final

Stephanie Rosenthal - Rockit (Stewart and Christi Sturgeon) 2006 Nationals

Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue - Across the Sky, Caught Out In The Rain (Marie-France Dubreuil) 2018 Nationals

Mikhail Kolyada - The Nutcracker (Ilia Averbukh) 2021 Gran Premio d'Italia

Sinead Kerr/John Kerr - The Landing/Turn Around/Gravity of Love (Evgeni Platov) 2008 Worlds

Kaetlyn Osmond - Sous le ciel de Paris, Milord (Lance Vipond) 2016 Grand Prix Final

Carolina Kostner - Ave Maria (Lori Nichol) 2014 Olympics

Karina Manta/Joe Johnson - Sweet Dreams (Christopher Dean) 2019 Nationals

Gracie Gold - Firebird (Lori Nichol) 2016 Nationals

Charlene Guignard/Marco Fabbri - Atonement/Song For A Little Sparrow (Barbara Fusar-Poli and Corrado Giordani) 2022 Europeans

Keegan Messing - Singing in the Rain (Lance Vipond) 2018 Worlds

Elizabeth Punsalan/Jerod Swallow - Astor Piazolla medley (Igor Shpilband) 1998 Olympics

Rika Kihira - A Beautiful Storm (Tom Dickson) 2018 NHK Trophy

Mariah Bell - Chicago (Rohene Ward) 2016 Skate America

Brian Joubert - Rise (Evgeni Platov) 2009 Europeans

Stephane Lambiel - Poeta (Antonio Najarro) 2007 Worlds

Kaori Sakamoto - The Matrix (Benoit Richaud) 2020 NHK Trophy

Akiko Suzuki - O (Pasquale Camerlengo) 2012 NHK Trophy

Qing Pang/Jian Tong - The Impossible Dream (Shae-Lynn Bourne and David Wilson) 2010 Olympics

Takahito Kozuka - Io ci saro (Lori Nichol) 2014 Japanese National

Smart/Diaz - Mask of Zorro 2022 Europeans

Matt Savoie - Ennio Morricone medley (Tom Dickson) 2006 Nationals

Deniss Vasiljevs - Puttin’ On The Ritz (Benoit Richaud) 2016 Worlds

Caroline Green/Michael Parsons - Violin Concerto No.1 Eso Concerto, Clouds, The Mind on the Wind (Elena Novak and Alexei Kiliakov) 2022 Four Continents

Tara Lipinski - The Rainbow (Sandra Bezic) 1998 Olympics

Denis Ten - SOS d'un terrien en détresse (David Wilson) 2017 Shanghai Trophy

Valentina Marchei/Ondrej Hotarek - Tu Vuo Fa L'Americano (Massimo Scali) 2018 Europeans

Krisztina Czako - The Addams Family (Igor Bobrin) 1997 Europeans

Cheng Peng/Yang Jin - My Drag (Lori Nichol) 2016 GPF

Bradie Tennell - Mechanisms, Chronos (Benoit Richaud) 2020 4CC

Evgeny Plushenko - Tribute to Nijinsky 2004 Russian Nationals

Vanessa Gusmeroli - Rats D'Hotel 1999 Worlds

Julianne Seguin/Charlie Bilodeau - Monde Inverse (Shae-Lynn Bourne and Shae Zukiwsky) 2015 Skate America

Isabeau Levito - Dulcea Și Tandra Mea Fiară (Yulia Kuznetsova) 2022 MK John Wilson Trophy

Elizaveta Tuktamysheva - Batwannis Beek/Sandstorm (Tatiana Prokofieva) 2015 Europeans

Kana Muramoto/Daisuke Takahashi - Soran Bushi (Marina Zoueva, Ilia Tkachenko, and Koyo Yanai) 2021 NHK Trophy

Amber Glenn - This Time (Kaitlyn Weaver and Randi Strong) 2024 Lombardia Trophy

Ivan Righini - You Raise Me Up (Ivan Righini) 2016 Europeans

Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte - Life is Beautiful (Liudmila Vlasova) 2017 NHK Trophy

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Japanese Nationals 2024 draw [x]

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Japanese National Championships Preview

Men - My Predicted Top 6 (in no particular order)

Kao Miura—He's had a lot of ups and downs this season, and he's also been dealing with his leg injury. If he puts everything together, he could finally make the podium here and make the World's team again. He is my fav so I really hope he does well here. #FuecocoTrioForever.

Kazuki Tomono - He's had a little trouble with consistency with his quads, but I really like his programs and he has good performance skills. I do think Kao, Shun, Sota, and Yuma will be fighting for the podium spots. Kazuki and Koshiro will be rounding out the top 6.

Koshiro Shimada - He's had a little trouble with the 3A this season and he's been stepping out of his combo, but he is a skilled performer and made a pretty big improvement from his first grind prix to his second.

Shun Sato - I'm still so happy that he made the podium at the Grand Prix Final. If he does well here I think it's pretty safe to say that he will finally make the World's team. He's been pretty solid all season except for the 4F in the free, so I'm nervous to see if he'll be able to put it down. #FuecocoTrioForever.

Sota Yamamoto - I really do think it's going to be a battle between him and Kao to see who will get bronze and who will get 4th in this competition. Last year Sota got 3rd but Kao got the World's spot because he went to the GPF, but this year neither of them went so we'll see what happens. I love both Sota and Kao so I am a little conflicted.

Yuma Kagiyama - He is truly the one to beat here. I just hope his 4S will be okay because it is such a good jump for him and I was surprised he made mistakes on it in both the short and free at the GPF. I hope we see a performance very similar to what we saw at the NHK Trophy. #FuecocoTrioForver.

Women - My Predicted Top 6 (in no particular order)

Hana Yoshida - The competition between the Japanese women is so tight I honestly don’t know what’s going to happen. Hana has been pretty consistent this season and has been putting the 3A in the free with various degrees of success. Both of her programs are a bit weird but she does weird well and she’s super cute.

Kaori Sakamoto - Didn’t have the skate she wanted at the GPF, mainly due to the fall on her combo in the short. I hope she doesn’t backload the combo again it makes me so nervous. If she pulls out two solid routines I have no doubt she’ll make it to the top of the podium.

Mao Shimada - I love seeing her compete against the seniors because it demonstrates just how strong she is. She had a couple of mistakes on her bigger elements at the GPF but her showmanship is great. Defying Gravity was such a great program choice and I think it fits her so well and so looks so happy when she performs it.

Mone Chiba - OUR HIGHEST RANKED JAPANESE WOMAN AT THE GPF!!! She has been so solid on all of her jumps this season. Would love to see her bring out her personality just a smidge more. Her skating skills are excellent and I’m already looking forward to seeing her spiral in the free program because it is gorgeous. I think her and Kaori are the closest to being locked in for the World’s team.

Rinka Watanabe - I like her programs this season so much better than her programs last season. Had a great showing at Skate America but the free program at the Cup of China betrayed her which was so sad because she landed her 3A. I love her so much and I just hope she has a good competition.

Wakaba Higuchi - I need Wakaba to get on this podium because I need her to be on the World’s team. I hope she learned her lesson from the GPF and doesn’t backload the combo in the short because it isn’t worth it. I hope she fully rotates her 3Lz3T again!

Pairs - My Predicted Top 3 (in no particular order)

Riku Miura / Ryuichi Kihara - They’re obviously winning this thing so I want to see a stellar performance since the pressure is low.

Sae Shimizu / Lucas Tsuyoshi Honda - I haven’t seen them skate this season but I looked at their stats and they’ve scored better than Yuzuki and Tristin so yeah.

Yuna Nagaoka / Sumitada Moriguchi - I actually really liked this team and was happy to see them get a second assignment after their performance at the NHK. I really like their short program and the free was nice too. They really struggled with the short at Finlandia so hopefully they can put down two clean programs.

Ice Dance - My Predicted Top 3 (in no particular order)

Ayano Sasaki / Yoshimitsu Ikeda - I also have not seen them compete this season but based on stats I think they’re gonna land ahead of Kuneshita and Alec.

Azusa Tanaka / Shingo Nishiyama - They were a bit slow at NHK but they served face so it’s okay. Not a big of their free program because Fur Elise is such a slow song and they were skating so slow so the whole thing was very slow idk.

Utana Yoshida / Masaya Morita - I think they’re the favs to win here since they scored higher than Azusa and Shingo at NHK. They had good edge quality and they were acting their faces off. I really liked their Romeo and Juliet free program.

I know JNats can be a bit hard for people to watch because the stream is behind a paywall and the time zone can be rough for a lot of people, but I hope those who want to watch are able. I love JNats so much because the depth of field in Japan is insane. I love pregaming Xmas with JNats, it just feels so right. Happy watching and I hope we all survive this JNats because I am super nervous!

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2024 Japanese Nationals Competitor List: The MEN

One of the most, if not the most competitive nationals in the figure skating world, the Japanese Nationals never fails to bring incredible stress every year. WHAT'S AT STAKE? The 2024 Japanese Nationals will decide the assignments for the following skaters: - 2025 World Championships - 2025 Four Continents Championships (4CC) - 2025 World Junior Championships. The National Champion automatically goes to Worlds. The 2025 World Championships will decide how many spots the Japanese Men will have at the 2026 Olympic Games, with 3 maximum spots available. Considering the level of internal competition between the men, they would/should do everything to send a Worlds Team that can keep those spots. Also at stake is the Skater's Development Level (read: receiving financial funding) for the 2025-2026 season: highest placements at Nationals will be listed as Special Development Players, and the placements below them will be listed as Development A and B. But no worries - should a skater receive Grand Prix invitations or qualify for the NHK Trophy host spot in 2025-2026 season, they can be moved up so they can get the funding necessary for travel and entry to attend the GP.

THE SEEDS: 2 SKATERS The silver and bronze medalists of last year's Japanese Nationals, Yuma Kagiyama and Sota Yamamoto received automatic qualification for Japanese Nationals and did not have to compete in the qualifying rounds (Regionals and Sectionals). Yuma is bidding for his first senior National title, having previously won 3 National bronze medals and 1 National silver medal.

EASTERN JAPAN: 9 SKATERS From this region, only Koshiro Shimada has medaled at senior Nationals with his silver in 2022. Kao Miura and Shun Sato are both bidding for their first senior Nationals podium. Kosho Oshima, Nozomu Yoshioka, Ryota Kitamura, Haruto Toda, Ryushin Yamada and Ryusei Kikuchi will also compete.

WESTERN JAPAN: 11 SKATERS From this region, the 2008 National Champion (?!?!?!?!) Nobunari Oda will compete at his final Japanese Nationals. The last time Nobu competed here was ELEVEN YEARS AGO. He also beat a bunch of kids to qualify as the 2024 Western Japan Regional Champion. Only Tatsuya Tsuboi and Kazuki Tomono have beaten Nobu this year. Takeru Amine Kataise, Shunsuke Nakamura, Takumi Sugiyama, Yuto Kishina, Sena Miyake, Shun Kobayashi, Haruki Honda and Shunya Matsuoka will also compete.

THE JUNIORS: 8 SKATERS JSF gives recommendations every year for the top finishers at the Japanese Junior Nationals to participate at the senior Nationals. Rio Nakata was just crowned as the new Junior National Champion, and the runner-up and his fellow JGP Finalist Sena Takahashi will want to join him in the Junior Worlds team. There is one more spot in the Junior Worlds team that will be decided here. Taiga Nishino, Shun Uemura, Shuntaro Asaga, Haru Kakiuchi, Ryoto Mori and Daiya Ebihara will also compete.

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Grand Prix Final Review

Men:

Ilia Malinin (USA) Total Score 292.12 - 1st in the short, 2nd in the free. He had new costumes for the both short and the free. His new short program costume was so bad I found it to be distracting when I was watching his short program. His new free costume is not bad but I still prefer the original. Despite how bad the new costume is, he had a pretty solid short program. In the free he executed all 6 quads, and did a total of 7 quads in the free program, however not a single jump was fully rotated (although I think the 4A was fully rotated imo). 7 quads in one program is very impressive and a great technical feat but it cost him a good program. He looked exhausted which makes sense, and it just felt like a jumping drill. I wish he would cut back on some of the quads so he can connect with his program more.

Yuma Kagiyama (Japan) Total Score 281.78 -2nd in the short, 1st in the free. It’s so disappointing that the 4S was not working out for him this competition as it is usually his best jump. I feel like the pressure of competing against Ilia is starting to get to him, and isn’t allowing him to fully connect with his programs because it feels like he is second guessing himself. I am still in shock that he only got a stsq 2 in the free, he deserved a level 3 at the very least. JNats is quickly approaching and I’m looking forward to watching him compete! #FuecocoTrioForever

Shun Sato (Japan) Total Score 270.82 - 4th in the short, 3rd in the free. I was shocked that he went down on the 4Lz since he’s been so consistent with it this season, however I wish he would take out the 4F in the free because he’s only landed it once in competition this season. His technical content is amazing which was reflected in him getting the highest TES in the free. I would love to his him emote some more and really work on connecting with the audience. Overall he has had a great season I will be surprised if he does not make the Worlds team this year. Also looking forward to seeing him compete at JNats! #FuecocoTrioForever.

Daniel Grassl (Italy) Total Score 254.96 - 5th in the short, 4th in the free. I really don’t think he should have ended up ahead of Mikhail here. He has a new short program which I liked better than his old one, but I still can’t stand his free. He is so slow on the ice.

Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan) Total Score 253.75 - 3rd in the short, 6th in the free. I have really enjoyed watching Mikhail become a fan favorite this season! He is just so warm and endearing, you just can’t help but root for him. He had some very sweet moments with the ice sweepers and his Kung Fu Panda gala program is excellent. I can’t believe he landed a 3T in the panda costume lol. He did a 3A1Eu4A in the free, but didn’t have the cleanest program. He needs to put more work into his components, because his stsq and spins are costing him points, but he knows that.

Kevin Aymoz (France) Total Score 238.63 - 6th in the short, 5th in the free. Was not the performance he was looking to have here but It’s nowhere near the flop that he had last year. He still looked to be in good spirts and even though the jumps did not go the way he wanted he never stopped performing. Interested to see how the rest of the season will go for him.

Women:

Amber Glenn (USA) Total Score 212.07 - 1st in the short, 1st in the free. Had me super worried when she finished the short and was saying that she hurt her back. I love seeing how solid she is with the 3A. Her jumps looked a bit tight and she had a couple of two footed landings but this is such a great victory for Amber and I’m so happy for her. I think this win will give her plenty of positive momentum going into the second half of the season.

Mone Chiba (Japan) Total Score 208.85 - 2nd in the short, 2nd in the free. I am in love with the short program especially the second half when it picks up and her spiral in her free program lives rent free in my head. Her consistency this season has been so impressive and I’m pretty confident that we’ll be seeing her on the Worlds team which is not an easy feat considering that there were 4 other Japanese ladies in this event.

Kaori Sakamoto (Japan) Total Score 201.13 - 4th in the short, 3rd in the free. She is the love of my life and I love her so much. She had a rough short program but I’m glad that she was able to make it onto the podium. I’m really excited to see her at JNats since she had such an incredible performance at NHK. Her speed and the quality of her movement is unmatched and she demonstrated excellent sportsmanship at this event.

Wakaba Higuchi (Japan) Total Score 195.96 - 6th in the short, 4th in the free. No more saving the combo for last because it is not good for my stress levels and it betrayed her at this event. Her stsq in both the short and free were incredible. I still think the first half of her free is a bit boring and I just find myself waiting for it to get to the Kate Bush section. According to Jackie Wong this is the first time this season that she’s been given full credit for the 3Lz3T! I hope she does well at JNats because I really really want to see her on the Worlds team!

Hana Yoshida (Japan) Total Score 194.02 - 3rd in the short, 5th in the free. I think she has a great set of programs and it is clear that weird works well for her. Had a pretty solid short program, and her free was a little messy but she made it through. I love both of her costumes and I just think that she is so cute and enduring.

Rino Matsuike (Japan) Total Score 189.02 - 5th in the short, 6th in the free. I am praying that she can’t put down a clean short program at JNats because I need to see this program clean at least once this season! Put down a clean free but her GOE combined with her mistake in the short just wasn’t enough her get her higher. Her skating skills are absolutely unmatched. She looks so light and airy and her skating looks effortless.

Pairs:

Minerva Fabienne Hase / Nikita Volodin (Germany) Total Score 218.1 - 1st in the short, 1st in the free. They were so solid here. The only mistakes some hands down during the SBS jumps in the free. They both committed to the story and were great actors in the short, and they ate the Four Seasons free program as well.

Riku Miura / Ryuichi Kihara (Japan) Total Score 206.71 - 2nd in the short, 3rd in the free. I love their short program so much and I was surprised that they ended up in 2nd after the short although it was very close. Riku had a bit of a rough free program but I’m glad that they were able to hang onto the silver medal. Unlike the singles Japanese men and women at this event their JNats will be easy peasy so I’m looking forward to watching them perform with a little less pressure.

Anastasiia Metelkina / Luka Bergulava Georgia) Total Score 205.78 - 3rd in the short, 2nd in the free. Their 3Tw and throw jumps are stunning. I love their short program, they have such great energy and are great performers. I don’t really understand the story behind the free, so if someone knows and can fill me in that would be great! Shame about the throw 2Lo in the free as it cost them the silver medal.

Ice Dance:

Madison Chock / Evan Bates (USA) Total Score 219.85 - 1st in the rhythm, 2nd in the free. They are stunning. The short has grown on me a lot since the first time I saw it at Skate America, but I am obsessed with the free. Take 5 is so iconic and Maddy’s costume is amazing. Both of them are wonderful performers and they just look so good together. I could not look away.

Charlene Guignard / Marco Fabbri (Italy) Total Score 206.11 - 2nd in the rhythm, 3rd in the free. I really like the rhythm dance. They look like ketchup and mustard in a good way, and I think the program is cute and has a lot of personality. I am still conflicted with the robots program. I did not like the OG robot costume but the new costumes don’t look like robots at all so there has to be a happy medium somewhere. I am shocked with how close they ended up being with Lilah and Lewis.

Lilah Fear / Lewis Gibson (Great Britain) Total Score 205.18 - 3rd in the rhythm,4th in the free. I just now noticed that rhythm dance costumes has some purple in it! I feel bad because I was complaining about how plain and boring their costumes are but I apologize for my past actions. Still don’t like the music cuts between the two songs. I am a big fan of the Beyoncé program, I am such a sucker for Halo, and they eat the ending up. They brought back the Rocky program for the gala and omg it’s so iconic.

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Team Japan supporting Mone and Amber in the green room at the 2024 Grand Prix Final!

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can’t add videos to reblogs but @mauxanhduong here u go

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I take back my earlier comments his new costume is quite nice. I really like the back.

Based on Ilia’s new short program costume I do not have high hopes for his new vampire costume 😓

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Based on Ilia’s new short program costume I do not have high hopes for his new vampire costume 😓

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the small podium in my heart

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misha said stop being sad and he's right!!!!!!