Ilia Malinin (USA) wins gold during the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating at Espoo (FIN) © ISU
Ilia Malinin (USA), nicknamed “Quad God” for a reason, jumped to gold and right into the ISU Grand Prix Final. Japan’s Shun Sato moved up from third to second to take the silver and a spot in the Final as well. Kevin Aymoz of France celebrated a successful comeback from injury by earning the bronze.
Malinin stood in second place following the Short Program, and from the very first second he made it clear that he meant business. He went for his quad Axel right out of the gate and stood up on it, although he underrotated a bit and touched down with his hand.
Malinin then went on to reel off a quad flip, quad toe, slightly underrotated quad Salchow and another quad toe-Euler-triple Salchow in his routine to “Euphoria”.
To top it off, he threw in a triple flip-triple Axel sequence right at the end, and got a level four for the change camel spin and the footwork. The 17-year-old scored 192.82 points and racked up 278.39 points.
“I’m still in shock at how was I was able to perform,” Malinin said. “I was a little mad after yesterday’s performance. I was really hoping that today I would forget about it and gain my confidence again, just to make sure that I am able to be in control of everything. I definitely put it out there.”
The ISU World Junior Champion is looking forward to the ISU Grand Prix Final – which will be his first one. He had qualified for the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final in the past season, but it was cancelled because of the pandemic.
“The Grand Prix Final always has been a dream of mine, but I couldn’t go with the cancellations. I put a lot of effort into trying to make the Grand Prix Final,” he told the press.
Skating to “The Red Violin”, Sato delivered a strong performance as well, and landed a quad Lutz, quad toe-triple toe, another quad toe and five clean triples. The 2022 MK John Wilson Trophy bronze medalist achieved a personal best with 180.62 points and moved up one spot at 262.21 points total.
Shun Sato (JPN) takes silver during the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating at Espoo (FIN) © ISU
“Yesterday I was not happy with my short program, but I was able to recover and make up for it. My coach told me tomorrow is another day and I was able to skate clean,” Sato said.
“Of course I’m really happy I am in the Grand Prix Final. I didn’t think I can make it to the Final. It is an event full of top skaters.”
Overnight leader, Aymoz, impressed with an emotional performance to “Gladiator” that was highlighted by two triple Axels, five more triples and smooth step sequences.
Kevin Aymoz (FRA) takes bronze during the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating at Espoo (FIN) © ISU
The French Champion earned 166.73 points and had the highest component score. He accumulated 255.69 points and slipped to third, but was excited to have won the bronze medal.
“I am really proud. Tonight I was confident, happy, there are many words. I was just in the moment and it was the best for me,” the Warsaw Cup 2022 Champion said.
“Skating last was difficult. It’s like the six minutes warm-up almost don’t exist. It’s a 45-minute wait, and you have to go out on the ice and be ready. I worked with my psychologist to try to eliminate what stressed me, and I just used the tools she gave me and voilà.”
Tatsuya Tsuboi (JPN) moved up from fifth to fourth place with a personal best performance at 244.90 points. Camden Pulkinen (USA) finished fifth (229.92 points) ahead of Nikolaj Majorov (SWE) at 209.55 points.
Schedule of the event
The schedule is as follows:
Friday, November 25: Pairs, Women’s & Men’s Short Programs, Rhythm Dance
Saturday, November 26: Pairs, Women’s & Men’s Free Skating, Free Dance
Sunday, November 27: Exhibition Gala
The Grand Prix Espoo in Espoo (FIN) November 25-27 is the sixth and last event in the 2022/23 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series.
More than 150 Skaters/Couples representing 29 ISU Members have been invited to the Series. The maximum number of entries for each event is 12 Ladies, 12 Men, 8 Pairs and 10 Ice Dance couples.
The General Announcement of the 2022/23 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series is available here. The individual announcements are published under the respective events. Full entry lists and further information are available on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series page.
Selection Criteria
In order for a Skater/Couple to be eligible to compete at an ISU Grand Prix event, a minimum total score must have been achieved in the 2021/22 or current 2022/23 season in an ISU event (Grand Prix, Junior Grand Prix, Championships) or a Challenger Series event. Exceptions apply to host country Skaters, previously ranked Skaters or split ranked Couples who return with new partners. The minimum total score is 3/5 of highest score per discipline at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2022 and are as follows: Women: 141.65, Men: 187.49, Pairs: 132.65, Ice Dance: 137.89.
Following the IOC recommendation and in order to protect the integrity of ice skating competitions and for the safety of all the participants of international ice skating competitions, the ISU Council based on Article 17.1.q)i) of the ISU Constitution, agreed that with immediate effect and until further notice, no Skaters belonging to the ISU Members in Russia (Russian Skating Union and the Figure Skating Federation of Russia) and Belarus (Skating Union of Belarus) shall be invited or allowed to participate in International ice skating competitions including ISU Championships and other ISU Events. The same applies to Officials listed in the respective ISU Communications and/or Regulations under Russia and Belarus (see ISU Communication 2469).
Grand Prix Standings
Men Women Ice Dance Pair Skating
Where to Watch
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events will be live streamed on the official ISU YouTube Channel in most countries. Find out where to watch the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating competitions.
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ISU Grand Prix Schedule
The schedules of each ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events are available below:
21 - 23 Oct, 2022 Skate America, Norwood (USA)
28 – 30 Oct, 2022 Skate Canada International, Mississauga (CAN)
04 - 06 Nov, 2022 Grand Prix de France, Angers (FRA)
11 - 13 Nov, 2022 MK John Wilson Trophy, Sheffield (GBR)
18 - 20 Nov, 2022 NHK Trophy, Sapporo (JPN)
25 - 27 Nov, 2022 Grand Prix Espoo, Espoo (FIN)
08 - 11 Dec, 2022 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, Torino (ITA)
About ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series started in 1995 (previously known a s the ISU Champions Series) and consists of six invitational international senior events and the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. The top six of the past World Championships are seeded. Competitors collect points in their Grand Prix events towards the qualification for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Only the top six Skaters / Couples in each discipline can qualify for the Final.
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