NHK Trophy preview, broadcast schedule

By Nick ZaccardiNov 23, 2016, 9:53 AM EST

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A U.S. figure skating drought can end this week.

It has been five years since an American man qualified for the sport’s most exclusive event, the Grand Prix Final. Never before in the event’s two-decade history had the U.S. men been shut out of back-to-back Grand Prix Finals.

The last of six qualifying competitions for December’s Grand Prix Final is this week’s NHK Trophy in Sapporo, Japan. Three U.S. men are still in the running for the three remaining Grand Prix Final berths, including two who are competing at NHK.

First, there is Jason Brown, a 2014 Olympian and 2015 U.S. champion. Brown finished second at his first qualifying event, Skate America, last month. That means he will qualify for the Grand Prix Final with a podium finish in Sapporo, and perhaps even if he finishes fourth.

Brown has been in this position before. Two years ago, he also took silver at Skate America. But he stumbled in the short program of his second qualifier and finished fifth.

Brown would have made the 2014 Grand Prix Final over Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu had Hanyu scored .16 of a point lower at that season’s NHK Trophy (or if American Jeremy Abbott scored .16 higher). It was an agonizing miss for Brown, who rebounded to finish fourth at the 2015 World Championships but missed most of last season with a back injury.

Hanyu and Brown headline this week’s NHK Trophy men’s field. While Hanyu is the heavy favorite to win, Brown’s podium chances are also strong. They are the only two men in Sapporo who have Grand Prix gold or silver medals to their names.

Perhaps the most intriguing skater in the field is Nathan Chen, a 17-year-old American. Chen attempted five quadruple jumps in his Trophée de France free skate two weeks ago and finished fourth overall.

If Chen finishes second or higher at NHK, he will almost surely qualify for the Grand Prix Final. He would be the youngest man to make the six-skater Grand Prix Final since Hanyu in 2011.

Then there’s 2016 U.S. champion Adam Rippon, who is not competing at NHK. Rippon is the clubhouse leader in the standings for the last three available Grand Prix Final spots by virtue of his third-place finishes at Skate America and Trophée de France.

If NHK goes to plan, with Hanyu and Brown finishing one-two, then Hanyu, Brown and Rippon will take the final three spots in the Grand Prix Final. It would mark the first time since 2009 that the U.S. puts multiple men into the Grand Prix Final.

Meanwhile, there are likely to be zero U.S. women in the Grand Prix Final for the first time since 2008.

Like Rippon, Ashley Wagner is the clubhouse leader for the three remaining available Grand Prix Final spots. But she damaged her chances by placing sixth at last week’s Cup of China.

Russians Anna Pogorilaya and Maria Sotskova will pass Wagner if they are on form and make the podium (or perhaps lower) at NHK. Essentially, the same goes for lesser favorites Wakaba Higuchi and Satoko Miyahara of Japan, though with only three Grand Prix Final spots available, only one of them needs to be on form (with the Russians) to KO Wagner.

The most compelling head-to-head at NHK will be in ice dance, between two-time reigning world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France and Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. Virtue and Moir returned this year after taking two full seasons off following silver medals in Sochi.

MORE: U.S., world champion figure skaters join Mannequin Challenge

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NHK Trophy broadcast schedule (all times Eastern)

Friday	Pairs short program	12:20 a.m.	Icenetwork.com
Friday	Women’s short program	2:10 a.m.	Icenetwork.com
Friday	Men’s short program	5:11 a.m.	Icenetwork.com
Friday	Short dance	10:45 p.m.	Icenetwork.com
Friday	Women’s, men’s short programs	8-10 p.m.	UniHD
Saturday	Pairs free skate	12:35 a.m.	Icenetwork.com
Saturday	Women’s free skate	2:57 a.m.	Icenetwork.com
Saturday	Men’s free skate	5:30 a.m.	Icenetwork.com
Saturday	Free dance	9:45 p.m.	Icenetwork.com
Saturday	Pairs free skate	8:30-9:30 p.m.	UniHD
Sunday	Free dance	3-4 p.m.	UniHD
Sunday	NHK Trophy	4-6 p.m.	NBC, NBC Sports app

Grand Prix Final Standings (Top 6 Qualify)
Men
1. Javier Fernández (ESP) — 30 points (qualified)
2. Patrick Chan (CAN) — 30 (qualified)
3. Shoma Uno (JPN) — 28 (qualified)
4. Adam Rippon (USA) — 22
5. Jin Boyang (CHN) — 20

Skating at NHK Trophy
Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN) — Will qualify if 3rd or higher
Jason Brown (USA) — Will qualify if 3rd or higher
Oleksii Bychenko (ISR) — Will qualify if 2nd or higher
Nathan Chen (USA) — Will qualify if 1st

Women
1. Yevgenia Medvedeva (RUS) — 30 points (qualified)
2. Yelena Radionova (RUS) — 28 (qualified)
3. Kaetlyn Osmond (CAN) — 26 (qualified)
4. Ashley Wagner (USA) — 20

Skating at NHK Trophy
Anna Pogorilaya (RUS) — Will qualify if 4th or higher
Maria Sotskova (RUS) — Will qualify if 3rd or higher
Wakaba Higuchi (JPN) — Likely qualify if 3rd or higher
Satoko Miyahara (JPN) — Likely qualify if 3rd or higher

Pairs
1. Aliona Savchenko/Bruno Massot (GER) — 30 points (qualified)
2. Yu Xiaoyu/Zhang Hao (CHN) — 28 (qualified)
3. Yevgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov (RUS) — 24 (qualified)
4. Julianne Séguin/Charlie Bilodeau (CAN) — 22
5. Natalja Zabijako/Alexander Enbert (RUS) — 22

Skating at NHK Trophy
Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford (CAN) — Will qualify if 4th or higher
Peng Cheng/Jin Yang (CHN) — Will qualify if 3rd or higher
Wang Xuehan/Wang Lei (CHN) — Will likely qualify if 2nd or higher

Ice Dance
1. Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani (USA) — 30 points (qualified)
2. Yekaterina Bobrova/Dmitry Soloviyev (RUS) — 26 (qualified)
3. Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) — 26 (qualified)
4. Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue (USA) — 26 (qualified)
5. Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje (CAN) — 24

Skating at NHK Trophy
Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (FRA) — Will qualify if 3rd or higher
Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir (CAN) — Will qualify if 3rd or higher

Top Grand Prix Season Scores
Men
1. Javier Fernández (ESP) — 292.98 (Rostelecom Cup)
2. Javier Fernández (ESP) — 285.38 (Trophée de France)
3. Shoma Uno (JPN) — 285.07 (Rostelecom Cup)
4. Patrick Chan (CAN) — 279.72 (Cup of China)
5. Shoma Uno (JPN) — 279.34 (Skate America)
6. Jin Boyang (CHN) — 278.54 (Cup of China)
7. Denis Ten (KAZ) — 265.26 (Trophée de France)
8. Jason Brown (USA) — 268.38 (Skate America)
9. Adam Rippon (USA) — 267.53 (Trophée de France)
10. Patrick Chan (CAN) — 266.95 (Skate Canada)

Women
1. Yevgenia Medvedeva (RUS) — 221.54 (Trophée de France)
2. Yevgenia Medvedeva (RUS) — 220.65 (Skate Canada)
3. Anna Pogorilaya (RUS) — 215.21 (Rostelecom Cup)
4. Kaetlyn Osmond (CAN) — 206.45 (Skate Canada)
5. Yelena Radionova (RUS) — 205.90 (Cup of China)
6. Maria Sotskova (RUS) — 200.35 (Trophée de France)
7. Ashley Wagner (USA) — 196.44 (Skate America)
8. Kaetlyn Osmond (CAN) — 196.00 (Cup of China)
9. Yelena Radionova (RUS) — 195.60 (Rostelecom Cup)
10. Wakaba Higuchi (JPN) — 194.48 (Trophée de France)

Pairs
1. Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford (CAN) — 218.30 (Skate Canada)
2. Aliona Savchenko/Bruno Massot (GER) — 210.59 (Trophée de France)
3. Aliona Savchenko/Bruno Massot (GER) — 207.89 (Rostelecom Cup)
4. Yevgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov (RUS) — 206.94 (Trophée de France)
5. Yu Xiaoyu/Zhang Hao (CHN) — 203.76 (Cup of China)
6. Yu Xiaoyu/Zhang Hao (CHN) — 202.08 (Skate Canada)
7. Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres (FRA) — 198.58 (Trophée de France)
8. Peng Cheng/Jin Yang (CHN) — 197.96 (Cup of China)
9. Natalya Zabiyako/Alexander Enbert (RUS) — 197.77 (Rostelecom Cup)
10. Julianne Séguin/Charlie Bilodeau (CAN) — 197.31 (Skate America)

Ice Dance
1. Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (FRA) — 193.50 (Trophée de France)
2. Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir (CAN) — 189.06 (Skate Canada)
3. Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) — 188.24 (Skate Canada)
4. Yekaterina Bobrova/Dmitry Soloviyev (RUS) — 186.68 (Rostelecom Cup)
5. Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani (USA) — 185.75 (Skate America)
6. Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani (USA) — 185.13 (Cup of China)
7. Piper Gilles/Paul Poirier (CAN) — 182.57 (Skate Canada)
8. Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) — 182.13 (Rostelecom Cup)
9. Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje (CAN) — 181.54 (Cup of China)
10. Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte (ITA) — 180.35 (Skate Canada)

Faith Kipyegon breaks second world record in eight days; three WRs fall in Paris

By OlympicTalkJun 9, 2023, 8:12 PM EDT

Kenyan Faith Kipyegon broke her second world record in as many Fridays as three world records fell at a Diamond League meet in Paris.

Kipyegon, a 29-year-old mom, followed her 1500m record from last week by running the fastest 5000m in history.

She clocked 14 minutes, 5.20 seconds, pulling away from now former world record holder Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia, who ran 14:07.94 for the third-fastest time in history. Gidey’s world record was 14:06.62.

“When I saw that it was a world record, I was so surprised,” Kipyegon said, according to meet organizers. “The world record was not my plan. I just ran after Gidey.”

Kipyegon, a two-time Olympic 1500m champion, ran her first 5000m in eight years. In the 1500m, her primary event, she broke an eight-year-old world record at the last Diamond League meet in Italy last Friday.

Kipyegon said she will have to talk with her team to decide if she will add the 5000m to her slate for August’s world championships in Budapest.

Next year in the 1500m, she can bid to become the second person to win the same individual Olympic track and field event three times (joining Usain Bolt). After that, she has said she may move up to the 5000m full-time en route to the marathon.

Kipyegon is the first woman to break world records in both the 1500m and the 5000m since Italian Paola Pigni, who reset them in the 1500m, 5000m and 10,000m over a nine-month stretch in 1969 and 1970.

Full Paris meet results are here. The Diamond League moves to Oslo next Thursday, live on Peacock.

Also Friday, Ethiopian Lamecha Girma broke the men’s 3000m steeplechase world record by 1.52 seconds, running 7:52.11. Qatar’s Saif Saaeed Shaheen set the previous record in 2004. Girma is the Olympic and world silver medalist.

Olympic 1500m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway ran the fastest two-mile race in history, clocking 7:54.10. Kenyan Daniel Komen previously had the fastest time of 7:58.61 from 1997 in an event that’s not on the Olympic program and is rarely contested at top meets. Ingebrigtsen, 22, is sixth-fastest in history in the mile and eighth-fastest in the 1500m.

Olympic and world silver medalist Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic won the 400m in 49.12 seconds, chasing down Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who ran her first serious flat 400m in four years. McLaughlin-Levrone clocked a personal best 49.71 seconds, a time that would have earned bronze at last year’s world championships.

“I’m really happy with the season opener, PR, obviously things to clean up,” said McLaughlin-Levrone, who went out faster than world record pace through 150 meters. “My coach wanted me to take it out and see how I felt. I can’t complain with that first 200m.”

And the end of the race?

“Not enough racing,” she said. “Obviously, after a few races, you kind of get the feel for that lactic acid. So, first race, I knew it was to be expected.”

McLaughlin-Levrone is expected to race the flat 400m at July’s USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships, where the top three are in line to make the world team in the individual 400m. She also has a bye into August’s worlds in the 400m hurdles and is expected to announce after USATF Outdoors which race she will contest at worlds.

Noah Lyles, the world 200m champion, won the 100m in 9.97 seconds into a headwind. Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs of Italy was seventh in 10.21 in his first 100m since August after struggling through health issues since the Tokyo Games.

Lyles wants to race both the 100m and the 200m at August’s worlds. He has a bye into the 200m. The top three at USATF Outdoors join reigning world champion Fred Kerley on the world championships team. Lyles is the fifth-fastest American in the 100m this year, not counting Kerley, who is undefeated in three meets at 100m in 2023.

Olympic and world silver medalist Keely Hodgkinson won the 800m in 1:55.77, a British record. American Athing Mu, the Olympic and world champion with a personal best of 1:55.04, is expected to make her season debut later this month.

World champion Grant Holloway won the 110m hurdles in 12.98 seconds, becoming the first man to break 13 seconds this year. Holloway has the world’s four best times in 2023.

American Valarie Allman won the discus over Czech Sandra Perkovic in a meeting of the last two Olympic champions. Allman threw 69.04 meters and has the world’s 12 best throws this year.

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Iga Swiatek sweeps into French Open final, where she faces a surprise

By OlympicTalkJun 9, 2023, 5:30 PM EDT

Iga Swiatek marched into the French Open final without dropping a set in six matches. All that stands between her and a third Roland Garros title is an unseeded foe.

Swiatek plays 43rd-ranked Czech Karolina Muchova in the women’s singles final, live Saturday at 9 a.m. ET on NBC, NBCSports.com/live, the NBC Sports app and Peacock.

Swiatek, the top-ranked Pole, swept 14th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil 6-2, 7-6 (7) in Thursday’s semifinal in her toughest test all tournament. Haddad Maia squandered three break points at 4-all in the second set.

Swiatek dropped just 23 games thus far, matching her total en route to her first French Open final in 2020 (which she won for her first WTA Tour title of any kind). After her semifinal, she signed a courtside camera with the hashtag #stepbystep.

“For sure I feel like I’m a better player,” than in 2020, she said. “Mentally, tactically, physically, just having the experience, everything. So, yeah, my whole life basically.”

Swiatek can become the third woman since 2000 to win three French Opens after Serena Williams and Justine Henin and, at 22, the youngest woman to win four total majors since Williams in 2002.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Broadcast Schedule

Muchova upset No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus to reach her first major final.

Muchova, a 26-year-old into the second week of the French Open for the first time, became the first player to take a set off the powerful Belarusian all tournament, then rallied from down 5-2 in the third set to prevail 7-6 (5), 6-7 (5), 7-5.

Sabalenka, who overcame previous erratic serving to win the Australian Open in January, had back-to-back double faults in her last service game.

“Lost my rhythm,” she said. “I wasn’t there.”

Muchova broke up what many expected would be a Sabalenka-Swiatek final, which would have been the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 match at the French Open since Williams beat Maria Sharapova in the 2013 final.

Muchova is unseeded, but was considered dangerous going into the tournament.

In 2021, she beat then-No. 1 Ash Barty to make the Australian Open semifinals, then reached a career-high ranking of 19. She dropped out of the top 200 last year while struggling through injuries.

“Some doctors told me maybe you’ll not do sport anymore,” Muchova said. “It’s up and downs in life all the time. Now I’m enjoying that I’m on the upper part now.”

Muchova has won all five of her matches against players ranked in the top three. She also beat Swiatek in their lone head-to-head, but that was back in 2019 when both players were unaccomplished young pros. They have since practiced together many times.

“I really like her game, honestly,” Swiatek said. “I really respect her, and she’s I feel like a player who can do anything. She has great touch. She can also speed up the game. She plays with that kind of freedom in her movements. And she has a great technique. So I watched her matches, and I feel like I know her game pretty well.”

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