Madison Chock and Evan Bates swept to Ice Dance gold at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU
ISU World Ice Dance Champions Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) claimed their fourth Skate America title and the fifth ISU Grand Prix gold medal of their career as the first event of the season continued with the Free Dance in Allen, Texas (USA) Sunday. Marjorie Lajoie/Zachary Lagha of Canada won their first ISU Grand Prix silver medal while France’s Evgeniia Lopareva/Geoffrey Brissaud picked up the bronze.
Nine years ago, Chock/Bates won their first Grand Prix gold at Skate America and they have been ever-present on the podium for a decade. The ISU World Champions delivered again a top performance to “Time”, “Breathe” and “Eclipse” by Pink Floyd. They earned a level four for the lifts, twizzles, spin and her part of the one foot step sequence to score 128.09 points. Overall the ISU Four Continents Champions collected 212.96 points for a clear victory with 16 points to spare.
Chock and Bates finished 16 points clear of the rest of the field at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU
“It (the first Skate America title in 2014) really seems like a lifetime ago,” Chock said. “We've certainly come a long way and experienced a lot through this sport. I'm so happy to have been on this whole journey with Evan.
"Skating has brought so much into our lives and I just feel so fortunate and so grateful for the lessons, for the experiences and for all the wonderful people that we've met in the sport.”
The couple chose the music from the album “The Dark Side of the Moon” by Pink Floyd that celebrates its 50th anniversary. “We loved the music, but we knew we wanted to tell a story with it, so then we chose ‘time’,” Bates explained.
Chock and Bates danced to a medley of Pink Floyd songs at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU
“We dove deeper into this concept, this storytelling of time being a construct that we've made as humans, and then this narrative of trying to break free of this construct to appreciate the time that we have, because it's fleeting.
"We've been skating for a long time, and obviously the years ahead are maybe less than the years that have passed, so taking the time to really appreciate what we've got while we got it, that's sort of what we're trying to tell.”
Dancing to “Roses” by Quebec artist Jean-Michel Blais, Lajoie/Lagha completed five level-four elements. The reigning ISU Four Continents bronze medalists set a season's best of 119.19 points and totaled 196.99 points.
Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha won their first ISU Grand Prix silver at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU
“Since Worlds is in Montreal, we really wanted to find something that was from Montreal,” Lajoie noted. “We listened to a lot of music, we were struggling to find it, and then we had a session with Guillaume (Cizeron) , and we just played a lot of different songs, and then we both really liked the songs.
We were told that the artist is from Montreal. We don't really like to have a specific story, we prefer to have emotion and connection, and just enjoy the movement, so it's a lyrical music, and we're trying to show those emotions with the music and connecting to each other.”
Lajoie and Lagha scored 119.19 for their Free Dance at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU
Lopareva/Brissaud had chosen “Elegie in E-Flat Minor, Op. 3, No. 1” and “Prélude in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 3” by Sergei Rachmaninov for their Free Dance. Six elements were rated a level four and the French Champions achieved a season's best with 116.27 points and 193.47 points total.
“It (the bronze) is an honor for us because there were a lot of strong teams and we were really fighting for this place,” Lopareva commented. “So we're glad to achieve what we wanted and we're glad to compete with such strong teams.”
Evgeniia Lopareva and Geoffrey Brisaud achieved a season's best score at Skate America 2023 in Allen, USA © ISU
Lopareva suggested the music for the Free Dance. “The story is about Rachmaninov and it's about the moment in his life when he was about leave Russia to go in America. It was a difficult moment of him because he was leaving his home country and he wasn't able to come back so it's a lot of struggles.
"In our program, Geoffrey is Rachmaninov and I represent all these things that happened to him during this moment of his life.”
2022 ISU Four Continents Champions Caroline Green/Michael Parsons (USA) moved up one spot to fourth place with their dance to “Denmark” and “Wind and Snow” (185.07 points). Natalie Taschlerova/Filip Taschler (CZE) came in fifth just behind the Americans (184.84 points) while Olivia Smart/Tim Dieck (ESP) finished sixth in their ISU Grand Prix debut as a team (180.67 points).
Chock/Bates have collected 15 points for the ISU Grand Prix standings and will compete again at the Grand Prix Espoo (FIN). Lajoie/Lagha (13 points) hope to qualify for their first ISU Grand Prix Final at their next event, the Cup of China. Lopareva/Brissaud (11 points) will compete again at their home Grand Prix, Internationaux de France in Angers.
ISU Grand Prix Standings
For full entry lists and further information regarding the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series please visit here.
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 towards to qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2023/24 in Beijing (CHN).
The General Announcement of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series is available here on the ISU website. The individual announcements are published on the ISU Event section under each dedicated Grand Prix event (filter with the relevant Event Series).
All Media Accreditation details and deadlines for the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series can be found here.
Where to Watch
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events will be live streamed on the official ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 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:
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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