Mississauga / Canada

The ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships will be held in Mississauga (CAN) March 10 and 11. A total of 19 teams representing 14 ISU members have been entered for the Championships. This is the third edition of the ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships that was a biennial event, but will become annual beginning in 2017. The previous two editions took place in Helsinki (FIN) in 2013 and in Zagreb (CRO) in 2015. Finnish teams have been dominant, winning the gold and silver medals in the first two Championships. Canada was a bronze medalist in 2015 and Russia the bronze medalist in the inaugural event in 2013.

The leading teams are back in action in Mississauga. Defending champions Team Musketeers (Finland 2) will face again the 2015 World Junior silver medalists Fintastic (Finland 1) and the reigning bronze medalists and 2016 ISU Junior World Challenge Cup Champions Les Supremes (Canada 2). Other contenders include Team Crystal Ice Junior (Russia 1), Team Nexxice (Canada 1) and the Skyliners (Team USA 1) as well as 2013 World Junior bronze medalists Junost (Team Russia 2) and the Swedish team Spirit (Sweden 1).

Teams from Australia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey are competing as well.

Originally called Precision Skating, Synchronized Skating was introduced in the 1950s. It is a highly technical form of Figure Skating characterized by speed, precisions, unison, intricate formations, synchro elements, difficult footwork, spectacular lifts and exciting transitions. A synchronized team consists of 16 skaters (plus up to four alternates).

The Junior Short Program consists of five required elements: Intersection Element, Move Element, No Hold Element, Pivoting Element – Block and Rotating Element – Circle. The Short Program is 2 min 50 seconds +/- 10 seconds in length.

The Junior Free Skating program contains five required elements: two different Intersection Elements, No Hold Element, Travelling Element – Wheel, Pair Element (one of pair pivot, pair spin, pair step sequence) plus two elements that have to be chosen from two different groups of elements. The Free Skating program is 4 min +/ - 10 seconds in length.

The schedule of the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2017 is as follows:

Friday, March 10: Short Program

Saturday,March 11: Free Skating

For more information, full entry lists and results please see:

www.isu.org and the official event page https://skatecanada.ca/event/isu-world-junior-synchronized-skating-championships-2017/ Hashtag: #WorldJSynchro

The ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships 2017 will be live streamed on https://www.youtube.com/SkatingISU