Hanyu thrilled the crowd with a stunning performance that scored more than 100 points © International Skating Union
Two-time Olympic Champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan swept aside the competition in the Men’s Short Program at Skate Canada in Kelowna on Friday, winning with 20 points to spare in a stunning performance. Grand Prix debutant Camden Pulkinen (USA) surprisingly came second ahead of Canada’s Nam Nguyen.
Hanyu opened his dramatic performance to “Otonal” by Raul di Blasio with a quadruple Salchow and a triple Axel followed by a quadruple-triple toeloop combination. The 2019 world silver medalist collected a level four for his spins and earned a mammoth 109.60 points to the delight of the enthralled crowd.
A packed arena gave Hanyu a standing ovation as the Olympic champion dominated the Men's Short Program © International Skating Union
“It was not so great, but I felt I did my best today. I felt calm today, but I am not sure if my calmness led to me being more focused,” the two-time World Champion explained.
Pulkinen pulled off a surprise second place on his Grand Prix debut © International Skating Union
Pulkinen produced a quadruple toeloop, triple Axel, triple Lutz-triple toeloop and solid spins in his routine to “Caruso” to set a personal best of 89.05 points.
“This is my senior Grand Prix debut, so I think I surprised myself with scoring 89 points. I never really knew I could do that until I actually did it. I was just happy that I could hold together a complete program, hold my spins and nail my jumps,” the 19-year-old said.
Nguyen enjoyed performing in front of the home crowd in Canada © International Skating Union
Nam Nguyen’s performance to “Blues for Klook” included a quadruple Salchow-triple toeloop combination, a somewhat shaky triple Axel and a triple flip. The Canadian Champion scored 84.08 points.
“Everything fell into place today. The crowd was great, the energy was insane. The program overall felt great. It was a big step up from Nebelhorn Trophy, but there is a lot more work that needs to be done,” Nguyen commented.
Deniss Vasiljevs (LAT) remained within striking distance of the podium in fourth place at 84.01 points. Keiji Tanaka (JPN) ranks fifth and Andrei Lazukin (RUS) rounds off the top six (78.99 points).
ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Standings Men
Overall, 60 skaters/couples representing 14 ISU members are competing at Skate Canada International from October 25 - 27. The top 6 qualifiers of the Grand Prix series in each discipline will proceed to the Final in Torino (ITA), from December 5 - 8, 2019. Full entry lists, results, the General Announcement of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series are available on isu.org.
Where to watch and follow the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2019?
Viewers will be able to watch the Series either via their national broadcaster / channel and for countries where there are no broadcasters, the ISU will offer a live stream on the Skating ISU YouTube Channel as of season 2019/20. You will find the full list in the Where to watch news here.
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ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2019/20
Skate America - Las Vegas (USA) – October 18 – 20
Skate Canada International – Kelowna (CAN) – October 25 – 27
Internationaux de France – Grenoble (FRA) – Novembre 1 – 3
SHISEIDO cup of China – Chongqing (CHN) – November 8 – 10
Rostelecom Cup – Moscow (RUS) – November 15 – 17
NHK Trophy – Sapporo (JPN) – November 22 – 24
ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final (Senior & Junior) – Torino (ITA) – December 5 – 8
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series started in 1995 (previously known as the ISU Champions Series) and consists of six international senior invitational events and the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. The skaters are seeded and invited to the six Grand Prix of Figure Skating events based on the results of the previous ISU World Figure Skating Championships. Competitors collect points in their ISU 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.
