Sota Yamamoto (JPN) scored 92.42 to top the Short Program standings on the first day of the Grand Prix de France © ISU
Sota Yamamoto led the Japanese men to a one-two finish with his teammate Kazuki Tomono in the Men’s Short Program at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating’s Grand Prix de France. Adam Siao Him Fa of France currently sits in third place at the event, which opened on Friday in Angers (FRA).
Yamamoto hit a quad toe-triple toe combination and a triple Axel in his program to “Yesterday”, but his quad Salchow was somewhat shaky and slightly underrotated (q). The Japanese skater had a level four for his spins and footwork to earn 92.42 points.
Yamamoto was the only skater in the Men's Short Program to score more than 90.00 © ISU
“During my warmup I knew I felt great, but I could do better. For the performance I was able to do that fine-tuning and basically I was just doing it like in practice in Japan. I was happy about that,” Yamamoto commented. “As for the Free Skating tomorrow, I practiced much more my free skating than the Short Program. I just need to put out everything that I have.”
Kazuki Tomono (JPN) thrilled the crowd in Angers with his jazz choreography as he took second in the Short Program © ISU
Tomono’s entertaining program “Happy Jazz” was highlighted by a quad Salchow-double toeloop, a triple Axel and difficult footwork. However, the 2022 ISU Four Continents silver medalist stumbled on his quad toe. He achieved a season’s best with 89.46 points.
“Today I was in very good condition. I was actually overrotating my quad toe a bit in the warmup - that is what happened in Short Program. I usually made a mistake on my Salchow after an error (on the toe), but I trained in Japan a lot to not let that happen,” Tomono explained.
Adam Sioa Him Fa (FRA) performed an emotional routine to take third place © ISU
Siao Him Fa reduced his opening combination to a double toe-triple toe but recovered to complete a quad Salchow and triple Axel. The Frenchman set a season’s best of 88.00 points.
“I am pretty happy about my performance. It was not perfect at the beginning, but I was able to focus for the next jumps and elements after the error on the toeloop. After the mistakes I knew that the program was not done yet I had to continue to skate. I felt really free when I was skating,” Siao Him Fa shared.
Nika Egadze (GEO) heads the best of the rest in fourth © ISU
Nika Egadze (GEO) ranked fourth on 82.44 points ahead of Mihhail Selevko (EST) with 79.40 points. Luc Economides (FRA) rounded off the top six with 77.23 points.
The Grand Prix de France in Angers (FRA) November 4-6 is the third of six events in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.
More than 150 Skaters/Couples representing 29 ISU Members have been invited to the series. The maximum number of entries for each event is 12 Ladies, 12 Men, 8 Pairs and 10 Ice Dance couples.
The General Announcement of the 2022/23 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series is available here. The individual announcements are published under the respective events. Full entry lists and further information are available on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series page.
Selection Criteria
In order for a Skater/Couple to be eligible to compete at an ISU Grand Prix event, a minimum total score must have been achieved in the 2021/22 or current 2022/23 season in an ISU event (Grand Prix, Junior Grand Prix, Championships) or a Challenger Series event. Exceptions apply to host country Skaters, previously ranked Skaters or split ranked Couples who return with new partners. The minimum total score is 3/5 of highest score per discipline at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2022 and are as follows: Women: 141.65, Men: 187.49, Pairs: 132.65, Ice Dance: 137.89.
Following the IOC recommendation and in order to protect the integrity of ice skating competitions and for the safety of all the participants of international ice skating competitions, the ISU Council based on Article 17.1.q)i) of the ISU Constitution, agreed that with immediate effect and until further notice, no Skaters belonging to the ISU Members in Russia (Russian Skating Union and the Figure Skating Federation of Russia) and Belarus (Skating Union of Belarus) shall be invited or allowed to participate in International ice skating competitions including ISU Championships and other ISU Events. The same applies to Officials listed in the respective ISU Communications and/or Regulations under Russia and Belarus (see ISU Communication 2469).
Grand Prix Standings
Men Women Ice Dance Pair Skating
Where to Watch
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events will be live streamed on the official ISU 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:
21 - 23 Oct, 2022 Skate America, Norwood (USA)
28 – 30 Oct, 2022 Skate Canada International, Mississauga (CAN)
04 - 06 Nov, 2022 Grand Prix de France, Angers (FRA)
11 - 13 Nov, 2022 MK John Wilson Trophy, Sheffield (GBR)
18 - 20 Nov, 2022 NHK Trophy, Sapporo (JPN)
25 - 27 Nov, 2022 Grand Prix Espoo, Espoo (FIN)
08 - 11 Dec, 2022 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, Torino (ITA)
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 Grand Prix events towards the qualification for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Only the top six Skaters / Couples in each discipline can qualify for the Final.
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