The final event of the Junior Grand Prix Series, 2018 JGP Armenia, takes place Oct. 10-13 at the Irina Rodnina Figure Skating Centre in Yerevan. This event will have historical significance as it is the first international figure skating competition ever hosted by this nation.
This is a “go big or go home” competition for a handful of skaters who will be chasing one of the final spots at the Junior Grand Prix Final in December.
With four berths in the men’s event locked down, the outcome of this competition will determine who nails the final two. Russia’s Andrei Mozalev, 15, mined gold in his JGP debut in Ostrava in week five of the Series. He needs a top-three finish to qualify. His teammate, Artur Danielian, 14, placed fifth at his first event in Slovenia in week six. He will need a victory here to have even a slim chance of sliding into the top six.
Two other contenders could be hot on the heels of the Russian men. Adam Siao Him Fa of France, who is coached by Brian Joubert, placed third in Canada. Likewise, Japan’s Yuto Kishina was third in Lithuania. A win by either man would secure a place at the Final. Second place with a score higher than that of Koshiro Shimada of Japan would also guarantee a berth.
The Russian ladies have three spots locked up at the end of six events. That will most likely be four at the end of this competition as reigning World junior champion Alexandra Trusova is set to compete in Yerevan. The 14-year-old attempted three quad jumps in the long program at her first event in Kaunas, Lithuania. Though two were unsuccessful, Trusova became the first lady to successfully execute a quad toe loop-triple toe loop combination in competition. It is highly probable she will attempt all three quads again here.
Her teammate, Alena Kanysheva, 13, skated into second in her international debut in Austria. Should she place second, she will need a higher score than South Korea’s Yelim Kim (388.23) and Anna Tarusina (374.92) — who also have two second-place finishes — to earn a place at the Final.
In ice dance, two Russian teams — Arina Ushakova and Maxim Nekrasov, first in Lithuania, and Elizaveta Shanaeva and Devid Narshnyy, second in Ostrava — will battle it out with Maria Kazakova and George Reviya of Georgia, second in Bratislava, for the last two spots at the Final.
2018 JGP Armenia will be live streamed on the ISU YouTube Channel.
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2018 JUNIOR GRAND PRIX SERIES