U.S. figure skaters could win the majority of the gold medals at Skate America, the top annual international competition held in the States, for the first time since 2003.
NBC Sports and Peacock air live coverage Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Peacock also has a practice cam on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Emerging American talent, mixed with the absence of Olympic medalists from other nations and Russia’s ban, means the U.S. should be all over the podium at the first event of the Grand Prix Series signaling the start of the season.
Americans are medal contenders in all four disciplines and the headliners in the men’s, pairs’ and ice dance fields.
The last time the U.S. won at least three of the four events at a single Skate America was in 2003 (not counting 2020, when the event was overwhelmingly red, white and blue due to pandemic travel restrictions).
Skate America Broadcast Schedule
All TV coverage also streams on NBCSports.com/live and the NBC Sports app for subscribers.
| Day | Event | Time (ET) | Platform |
| Friday | Pairs’ Short Program | 7:20-8:45 p.m. | Peacock |
| Pairs’/Men’s Short Programs | 7:30-10:30 p.m. | USA Network | |
| Pairs’ Short Program | 8:45-10:30 p.m. | Peacock | |
| Saturday | Rhythm Dance | 2:40-4:15 p.m. | Peacock |
| Rhythm Dance/Women’s Short Program | 3-6 p.m. | NBC | |
| Women’s Short Program | 4:15-6 p.m. | Peacock | |
| Pairs’ Free Skate | 7:15-8:45 p.m. | Peacock | |
| Pairs’/Men’s Free Skates | 8-11 p.m. | USA Network | |
| Men’s Free Skate | 9-11 p.m. | Peacock | |
| Sunday | Free Dance | 1-2:45 p.m. | Peacock |
| Free Dance/Women’s Free Skate | 2-5 p.m. | E! | |
| Women’s Free Skate | 3-5 p.m. | Peacock |
In ice dance, Madison Chock and Evan Bates are favored to extend the U.S.’ 13-year win streak at Skate America. Chock and Bates, who won Skate America in 2014 and 2015 (their last Grand Prix title), placed fourth at the Olympics in February and earned bronze at March’s world championships.
They are the world’s top returning dance couple.
Olympic champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France are taking at least this season off. Olympic silver medalists Viktoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov cannot compete as all Russians are banned indefinitely due to the war in Ukraine. Olympic bronze medalists Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, who won the last four Skate Americas, retired.
“It’s true much has changed in the last eight months since the Olympics, but nothing really changed for us,” said Bates, who at 33 is trying to become the oldest ice dancer to win a Skate America title. “I think with that kind of turnover, there’s a certain amount of embracing that we’ve done.”
In March, Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier delivered the U.S. its first world title in pairs since 1979. None of the top five finishers from the Olympics were in that field — the three Russian teams were banned due to the war and China didn’t send any skaters to worlds. None of them are at Skate America, either, clearing the way for Knierim and Frazier to possibly become the first American pair to win any Grand Prix since 2006 Skate America (again, not counting 2020).
The talk of the competition will likely be the reigning world junior champions from the U.S. who make their Grand Prix Series debuts.
Ilia Malinin, the 17-year-old son of Uzbek Olympic skaters, became the clear men’s favorite after Olympic and world silver medalist Yuma Kagiyama of Japan withdrew due to injury. Malinin, who last month became the first skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, can become the youngest men’s champion in Skate America history.
Like Malinin, 15-year-old Isabeau Levito followed a podium finish at last January’s senior U.S. Championships by winning the world junior title in April. Levito can become the youngest U.S. woman to make a Skate America podium since 2007 (Caroline Zhang), but Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto is favored for the top step. She is the world’s top skater in the absence of the banned Russians after taking Olympic bronze and world championships gold last season.
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