Sota Yamamoto (JPN) scored a season best 89.56 to win the Men's Short Program at Skate Canada International in Vancouver, Canada. © ISU
Japan’s Sota Yamamoto came out on top in the Men’s Short Program, beating favorite and reigning 2023 ISU World silver medalist Junhwan Cha of Korea for the lead at Skate Canada International on Friday.
Yamamoto’s teammate Kazuki Tomono placed third.
Yamamoto landed a quad toe-triple toe, a slightly underrotated quad Salchow and a triple Axel in his routine to “Chameleon”. Two spins and the footwork merited a level four. The ISU Grand Prix Final silver medalist scored 89.56 points, a significant improvement on his season’s best of 70.39. He was thrilled, given how he’d felt after practice.
“During my morning practice my body felt a little heavy. I thought if I go like in practice it’s not going to be good. I was able to psyche myself up. David Wilson … choreographed this program. Usually, I listen to many different music and submit it to the choreographer. I let David choose the music and I was in shock, not sure if I’m able to do it, and I was a little afraid. But he is a world-known choreographer and this is a great song. The more I perform it, the more I like it. I am happy to perform it in Canada, where David is from, and I was happy to show the new Sota, a new version of myself, and to show to David and the fans how I am progressing.”
Performing to “Masquerade Waltz”, Cha landed his opening quad Salchow-double toe combination, but fell on his quad toe. The 2022 ISU Four Continents Champion recovered to produce a triple Axel and level-four spins and footwork.
Junhwan Cha (KOR), 2023 ISU World silver medalist, was second after the Men's Short Program at Skate Canada International in Vancouver, Canada. © ISU
Cha netted 86.18 points, a season’s best, but had been hoping for better.
“I made some mistakes today, so I’m not very happy about my performance. This is just part of going through the season. I keep thinking positive, keep working hard and keep fighting tomorrow.”
“In the summer, Shae-Lynn (Bourne) was choreographing the short program. It was really hard to choose the music. Last year, I had the Michael Jackson and I wanted something totally different from last season and try something new.”
Tomono stepped out of his quad toe, but completed a good triple Axel and a quad Salchow-double toe combination. However, the Salchow was slightly underrotated and he slipped in the step sequence. The Nebelhorn Trophy silver medalist picked up 81.63 points.
Kazuki Tomono (JPN) finished third in the Men's Short Program at Skate Canada International in Vancouver, Canada. © ISU
“Today my skating condition was not my maximum, but I was able to control myself and keep mistakes at a minimum. I would have liked to perform at least one jump perfectly, then my score would have been higher.”
Kao Miura (JPN), the 2023 ISU Four Continents Champion, popped his planned quad toe into a double and is currently fourth (80.80 points).
Japan's Kao Miura is less than a point from the podium following the Men's Short Program at Skate Canada International in Vancouver, Canada. © ISU
The 2022 ISU World Junior silver medalist, Mikhail Shaidorov (KAZ) is fifth on 79.18 points, followed by Conrad Orzel (CAN) on 77.68 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).
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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 as 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.
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