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Reigning World Champions Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) danced to a confident lead as the ISU Grand Prix Skate America continued with the Rhythm Dance in Allen, Texas (USA) Saturday. Their rocky Rhythm Dance saw them finish ahead of Marjorie Lajoie/Zachary Lagha of Canada and France's Evgeniia Lopareva/Geoffrey Brissaud.

Chock/Bates put out an excellent dance to “Another One Bites the Dust”, “Who Wants To Live Forever” and “I Want It All” – and they wanted it all indeed, picking up 84.87 points and a seven point lead. The ISU World and Four Continents Champions collected a level four for the twizzles, rotational lift and her part of the midline step sequence.
 

Chock and Bates danced a Queen-inspired routine at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU

 

“It was so great to perform here in Texas,” Chock shared.

“The audience was amazing. It made our performance feel like it was super short and went by very fast. We had a lot of fun doing our program here. It was just a pleasure to skate and perform to Queen.”

The couple had to overcome a fall in the morning practice on their lift. “Really unfortunately this morning I lost control of the lift at the end of our program and it's a terrible feeling as a partner especially as a lifting partner,” Bates explained.

“What we do is dangerous and I feel like sometimes that's overlooked. It was a scary moment. Honestly our coaches and the doctors were wonderful and checked on both of us and Maddie in particular. When we got here we knew we were both feeling okay and our hearts were set on skating but we needed to get the okay from the medical staff which we did before we competed.”

Chock and Bates scored 84.87 in the Rhythm Dance at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU

 

Marjorie Lajoie/Zachary Lagha brought Michael Jackson on to the ice with “Thriller”. The two-time ISU Grand Prix bronze medalists earned a level four for the twizzles and the lift. However, the midline steps merited only a level one. Nevertheless, the Canadians set a seasons best with 77.80 points. 

Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha in action at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU 

“It was really fun. We felt like we could perform very well,” Lajoie noted. 

“I don't think anybody is too young to enjoy Michael Jackson or Queen. A lot of amazing artists were from the 80s. It's actually an honor to skate to such wonderful artists,” Lagha added.

Evgeniia Lopareva/Geoffrey Brissaud are just 0.60 points behind the Canadian team. They had opted for two songs of French singer Mylene Farmer and completed level-four twizzles and a level-four stationary lift to score a personal best of 77.20 points. 

“Our coach suggested to skate to Mylene Framer. This French artist is really 80s and we decided to do it.  The music choice is super easy this season for the Rhythm Dance this year,” Brissaud commented. 

Evgeniia Lopareva and Geoffrey Brisaud scored a season's best in the Rhythm Dance at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU 

 

Natalie Taschlerova/Filip Taschler (CZE) are currently ranked fourth at 75.21 points. 2022 ISU Four Continents Champions Caroline Green/Michael Parsons (USA) finished fifth (75.05 points) followed by the new team of Olivia Smart/Tim Dieck (ESP) on 71.96 points.

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series consists of six events: Skate America, Skate Canada International, Grand Prix de France, Cup of China, the Grand Prix Espoo (FIN) and NHK Trophy(JPN). Skaters collect points to qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2023/24 in Beijing (CHN). 

The General Announcement of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series is available here on the ISU website. The individual announcements are published on the ISU Event section under each dedicated Grand Prix event (filter with the relevant Event Series).

For full entry lists and further information regarding the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series please visit here.

All Media Accreditation details and deadlines for the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series can be found here.

Where to Watch

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events will be live streamed on the official ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 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:

20 - 22 Oct, 2023          Skate America, Allen, Texas (USA)

27 – 29 Oct, 2023         Skate Canada International, Vancouver (CAN)

3 - 5 Nov, 2023             Grand Prix de France, Angers (FRA)

10 - 12 Nov, 2023         Grand Prix Cup of China, Chongqing (CHN)

17 - 19 Nov, 2023         Grand Prix Espoo, Espoo (FIN)

24 - 26 Nov, 2023         NHK Trophy, Osaka (JPN)

7 - 10 Dec, 2023           Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, Beijing (CHN)

 

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 events towards the qualification for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Only the top six Skaters / Couples in each discipline qualify for the Final.