The men and women of the United States will be chasing their first Olympic medals in singles figure skating since 2010 and 2006, respectively, when they took to the ice at the Beijing Olympics. The figure skating competition will take place at Capital Indoor Stadium, which hosted indoor volleyball during the 2008 Summer Games.
Japan are in the hunt for their third straight men’s singles gold medal after star Yuzuru Hanyu went straight in 2014 and 2018 – thanks in part to American Nathan Chen’s missteps in Pyeongchang – although he has been hampered by injuries in recent years.
On the women’s side, Russian athletes have dominated the sport, winning gold in 2014 and 2018, as well as five of the last six world titles.
The United States has lagged considerably behind several nations, including Russia, China and Germany, in pairs for decades, their last medal in the discipline dating back to 1988. In ice dancing, however, the Americans could be vying for a medal in their fifth consecutive Games.
Chen, who has dominated the men’s singles since 2018, is the top contender for an American medal. Teenager Alysa Liu could challenge for a women’s medal, while ice dance veterans Madison Chock and Evan Bates are also in the hunt for their first Olympic medals.
Take a look at the breakdown of rosters, schedules, and athletes to watch:
United States team
Singles men
Nathan Chen
Vincent Zhu
Jason Brown
single women
Alysa Liu
Mariah Bell
Karen Chen
Pairs
Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier
Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDuc
ice dancing
Madison Chock and Evan Bates
Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue
Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker
Timing and format
Olympic figure skating includes the team event, pairs, men’s singles and women’s singles. Singles and pairs have a short program and a free skate component, while ice dance has a short dance and a free dance. The team event consists of eight parts – the two components of each discipline.
Thursday February 3
8:55 p.m. ET — Team event: Men’s Pairs Short Program; rhythm dance
Saturday February 5
8:30 p.m. ET — Team Event: Women’s Short Program, Pairs Free Skating
Sunday February 6
8:15 p.m. ET — Team event: men’s and women’s free skate, free dance
Sunday February 7
8:15 p.m. ET — Men’s Short Program
Wednesday February 9
8:30 p.m. ET — Men’s Free Skating
Saturday February 12
6 a.m. ET — Rhythm Dance
Sunday February 13
8:15 p.m. ET — Ice Dance
Tuesday February 15
5 a.m. ET — Women’s Short Program
Wednesday. February 16
11 p.m. ET — Women’s Free Skating
Athletes to watch
Nathan Chen: Chen went undefeated in competition for more than three years after his shocking fifth-place finish at the 2018 Games. The 22-year-old has placed first in all competitions he has entered, including three consecutive world championships. He eventually fell to fellow American Vincent Zhou at a Grand Prix last fall, but easily clinched his sixth national title in early January.
Alyssa Liu: Liu, just 16, won national titles in 2019 and 2020 and was the highest-ranked in the world of all American women at the time of the 2022 nationals. Liu, however, tested positive for COVID-19 at Nashville after their short program, but successfully applied to make the Olympic team.
Madison Chock and Evan Bates: The top contenders in ice dancing are the veteran couple, two-time world medalists and three-time national champions. In ice dancing, the United States is looking to regain a podium without Canadian stalwarts Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who retired after winning their second gold in 2018, and American siblings Maia and Alex Shibutani, who won bronze in Pyeongchang. .
The American contingent also has a good chance of winning a medal in the team event, behind the athletes of the Russian Olympic Committee.
(Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
