2019 Skate Canada International, the second of the six-event Grand Prix Series, takes place at Prospera Place in Kelowna, British Columbia, Oct. 25-27.
Japan′s Yuzuru Hanyu headlines the competition. Fresh off a victory at Autumn Classic International in mid-September, he is the odds-on favorite to capture his first title in his fourth appearance. Hanyu has three silver medals from 2013, 2015 and 2016 — each time losing to Canada′s Patrick Chan. Other medal contenders include Italy’s Matteo Rizzo, the 2019 European bronze medalist, and homeland favorite, Nam Nguyen. Russia′s Mikhail Kolyada was scheduled to make his first appearance at a Skate Canada International competition but has withdrawn. He has been suffering from sinusitis issues for more than a year and will likely require nasal surgery now.
The ladies event will be the polar opposite of the men with Japan′s Rika Kihira, the 2018 Grand Prix Final champion, squaring off against 2019 World bronze medalist Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia and her teammate Alexandra Trusova, the two-time and reigning World Junior champion. Kihira will bring a triple Axel but Trusova, who will make her senior Grand Prix debut in Kelowna, now has four quads in her arsenal. South Korea′s Yelim Kim and Young You will also make their first senior Grand Prix appearances at this competition.
Russia’s Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov headline the pairs event and are odds-on favorites to take the gold in Kelowna. The highlight of this discipline could be the battle between the two Canadian teams for silver and bronze. Reigning national champions Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro will go up against the new tandem of Liubov Ilyushechkina and Charlie Bilodeau. We are expecting a showdown between those two teams.
In ice dance, Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, the top-ranked team at this competition, will be looking to secure a berth at the Grand Prix Final. Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, who defeated the Americans at 2019 Four Continents, will be aiming to repeat that feat and capture the top step of the podium.
Bronze is up for grabs, with Spain’s Sara Hurtado and Kirill Khaliavin and Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker of the U.S. at the top of the medal contender list.
The ISU will live stream all competitions on its YouTube channel this season, starting with the Grand Prix Series.
In Canada, CTV/TSN will air 2019 Skate Canada online and on the small screen. The NBC network (available in Canada) will air a recap of the competition on Sat., Oct. 27, from 4:30 – 6 p.m ET. Check your local listings for times in your area.
START ORDERS/RESULTS
ENTRIES
EVENT SCHEDULE
WORLD CLOCK
ISU YOUTUBE CHANNEL
Available in countries with no TV rights holder
LIVE STREAMS
Russia, Kazakhstan
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2019 GRAND PRIX ASSIGNMENTS