2021_World_Figure_Skating_Championships

2021 World Figure Skating Championships

2021 World Figure Skating Championships

Figure skating competition


The 2021 World Figure Skating Championships were held in Stockholm, Sweden from March 22–28, 2021.[1] Figure skaters competed for the title of world champion in men's singles, ladies' singles, pairs, and ice dance. The competition was used to determine the entry quotas for each federation at the 2022 World Championships and was the first qualification event for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Quick Facts Type:, Date: ...

Stockholm was announced as the host in June 2018.[2] It was the first time that Stockholm had hosted the World Championships since 1947 and the first time that Sweden had hosted since 2008.[3]

The World Championships were the only ISU Championship event held during the 2020–21 season, as the European, Four Continents, and World Junior Championships were all cancelled. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, event organizers hosted the event in a bubble.[1]

No public spectators were allowed at the event. Like the 2020–21 Grand Prix series, the World Championships were livestreamed on the ISU's YouTube channel with geographical restrictions for markets that have TV rights in place.

The 2015 Eurovision contest winner Måns Zelmerlöw and runner-up Polina Gagarina recorded the official song for the event, "Circles and Squares", which they performed live at the exhibition gala.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

Scheduling

In early December, even as the 2021 European Championships and the 2020–21 Grand Prix Final were cancelled, ISU Vice President Alexander Lakernik stated that the ISU would make "every effort" to hold the World Championships.[4] Initial concerns about Swedish COVID restrictions led Lakernik to comment that the ISU would have considered moving the competition to Russia, if not for the Court of Arbitration for Sport ban on the country holding World Championship events.[5] A Swedish government ban which limited entrants in international competitions hosted by Sweden to only those from the European Union had been lifted on November 20, 2020.[6] However, on December 22, 2020, Skate Sweden, the host federation, cancelled all domestic championships for the remainder of the 2020–21 season in compliance with Public Health Agency of Sweden guidelines.[7]

During its January 28 meeting, the ISU Council affirmed that the World Championships would proceed as scheduled.[8] The council also announced that the World Championships' status as an Olympic qualification event would be reevaluated and any potential changes determined based on the entries received by the ISU as of the March 1, 2021 deadline.[9] On March 4, the ISU affirmed that the Olympic qualification process would proceed as previously announced, as nearly all ISU member nations with qualified skaters had confirmed entry to the 2021 World Championships.[10]

In an effort to limit the number of skaters gathering in one place, the ISU announced that instead of a drawing process, the starting order for the free skate/free dance would be the reverse of the short program/rhythm dance placements.[11]

ISU member nations' response

As early as November 2020, Skate Canada stated that there was a possibility, if the event continued as planned, that they would not send skaters due to insufficient COVID-19 protocols.[12] Despite the cancellation of its national championships and lack of competitive opportunities for its skaters, Skate Canada announced its selection criteria for naming a Worlds team in January 2021.[13]

The Japan Skating Federation withdrew their delegation from the 2021 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships, scheduled for early March in Dordrecht, Netherlands, calling into question their figure skaters' participation at Worlds.[14][15] The Japan Skating Federation eventually decided to send skaters to Worlds, due to it being an Olympic qualification event, unlike the World Short Track Speed Skating Championships. The Japanese delegation arrived at the competition throughout the weekend of March 20–22, with all athletes testing negative upon arrival.[16]

All members of the Chinese Skating Association's team were vaccinated prior to flying to Stockholm.[17]

Skaters' response

Skaters came into the event with varying levels of preparation due to their respective governments' and federations' responses to the pandemic in their home country.[18][19] Multiple skaters were also unable to train with their main coaches due to travel and/or visa restrictions and spent the season in temporary training situations, either on their own or with a different set of coaches.[20][21]

In January 2021, four-time and defending ice dance world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France announced that they would not compete at the World Championships, citing uncertainties regarding COVID; they planned to focus on the 2022 Winter Olympics next season instead.[22] Several other skaters scheduled to compete at Worlds, including two-time defending men's world champion Nathan Chen of the United States, expressed during the weeks leading up to the competition that while they were grateful for the opportunity to compete, they had similar concerns about COVID safety protocols at Worlds;[23][24] however, some skaters felt that proper precautions were being taken and that they would likely be safe at the event.[25][26]

Criticism and concerns

COVID management

During the months preceding skaters' and officials' arrival in Stockholm, a petition calling for the ISU to implement a tighter bubble and stricter quarantine rules garnered thousands of signatures.[27] The ISU did not address the campaign's concerns about how COVID safety protocols would be enforced at the event.[23]

The attendance of the Figure Skating Federation of Russia (FSR) drew particular scrutiny, as the federation was accused of holding several domestic and international events – including a Grand Prix event, the 2020 Rostelecom Cup – in violation of the ISU's COVID safety guidelines.[18] In addition, a significant number of Russian skaters contracted COVID; at least 11 members of Russia's 17-person Worlds team tested positive at some point during the season.[28] Nevertheless, all members of the FSR delegation tested negative during the initial round of testing administered upon arrival in Stockholm.[29]

Judging

Judges who could travel with fewer COVID restrictions were more available than those who could not, resulting in a geographically uneven distribution of judges on the panel.

After the event, there were some suggestions that, depending on the skaters’ nationality, judges were applying criteria inconsistently when awarding both TES and PCS marks.[30] In addition, FSR's Alexandra Trusova's five-quad free skate performance, during which she fell multiple times and completed only one quad cleanly, was cited as an example of judges inflating TES and PCS marks in favor of "technical bravery over artistic brilliance".[31] Trusova rose from 12th after the short program to the bronze medal position.[32]

COVID at Worlds

Crown Princess Victoria had been scheduled to open the competition and participate in the opening ceremony, before she and her husband, Prince Daniel, contracted COVID-19 in the weeks prior to the event.[33] She instead appeared in a video message from Haga Palace to welcome the athletes.[34]

Delegations began arriving on March 20 and 21, and members underwent the required multiple PCR tests and quarantine period in their hotel rooms until a negative result was returned. Attendees were not eligible for accreditation until passing a second PCR test. After receiving accreditation, limited testing was conducted and attendees were only required to fill out daily symptom questionnaires and undergo temperature checks.[35]

On March 22, the ISU announced that one positive case had been found during one of the initial rounds of testing and that contact tracing procedures were being undertaken.[36] The person with the positive case, later revealed to be Viktoriia Safonova of Belarus, was quarantined and not allowed to participate. Safonova's coach subsequently tested negative in a second round of testing, and Safonova, who traveled from a different city, had had no contact with the other members of the Belarusian team or their coaches.[37] The ISU did not enforce an isolation period for close contacts.[35]

On March 24, the ISU announced that a second positive case had been found, also during the initial round of testing upon arrival and prior to accreditation. Without accreditation, neither positive had been let into the competition bubble.[38]

On March 26, the ISU announced that a third positive case had been found, with this case being discovered within the bubble.[39] After the event, ice dancer Simon Proulx-Sénécal of Armenia revealed that he had tested positive on March 25, the day before the ice dance competition was scheduled to start, and asked for a re-test prior to the rhythm dance on March 26. As the test result did not come back until after the rhythm dance had concluded, Proulx-Sénécal and his partner, Tina Garabedian, were not allowed to compete. The result came back as a second positive. Proulx-Sénécal expressed that he believed his first test was a false positive, as his federation later received a written test result stating that his second test taken the morning of the rhythm dance was negative, not positive as initially conveyed to their team doctor.[40] He subsequently tested negative twice more, once the day after the rhythm dance in Stockholm (March 27) and once upon returning to his training base in Montreal on March 29.[41] As of June 2021, the ISU had launched an investigation into the handling of the situation.[42]

Qualification

Age and minimum TES requirements

Skaters were eligible for the 2021 World Championships if they turned 15 years of age before July 1, 2020, and if they met the minimum technical elements score requirements. For the 2021 World Championships, the ISU accepted scores if they were obtained at senior or junior-level ISU-recognized international competitions during the current or preceding two seasons and recorded at least 21 days before the first official practice day of the championships.[1]

More information Discipline, SP / RD ...

Traditionally, scores must be attained from an ISU-recognized senior-level international competition during the current or preceding season. However, due to the ongoing pandemic, the ISU extended the validity to scores attained at an ISU-recognized international competition at either the senior or junior level during the current or preceding two seasons. Skaters who did not have any technical minimums (e.g. new pairs or ice dance teams) or still did not meet technical minimums under the expanded timeline could submit video via their federations to the ISU for virtual judging.[43]

Number of entries per discipline

Normally, the number of entries would be based on the results of the preceding Worlds. Because the 2020 World Championships were cancelled, results from the 2019 World Championships were used instead.[44]

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Schedule

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Entries

Member nations began announcing their entries in December 2020. The International Skating Union published a complete list of entries on March 2, 2021.

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Changes to preliminary entries

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Medal summary

Medalists

Medals awarded to the skaters who achieve the highest overall placements in each discipline:

Small medals awarded to the skaters who achieve the highest short program or rhythm dance placements in each discipline:

Medals awarded to the skaters who achieve the highest free skating or free dance placements in each discipline:

Medals by country

Table of medals for overall placement:

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Table of small medals for placement in the short/rhythm segment:

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Table of small medals for placement in the free segment:

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Results

Men

Nathan Chen of the United States became the second American and the fifth skater since 1980 to win three consecutive World titles, following Scott Hamilton, Kurt Browning, Alexei Yagudin, and Patrick Chan.[87]

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Ladies

The Russian team, competing as FSR due to CAS sanctions against the country, became the second team to ever sweep the ladies' podium at a World Championships after the United States did so in 1991.[88]

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Pairs

Anastasia Mishina / Aleksandr Galliamov of FSR became the first pairs team to win gold in their Worlds debut since Ekaterina Gordeeva / Sergei Grinkov of the Soviet Union did so in 1986.[91]

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Ice dance

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Olympic qualification event

The results of the 2021 World Championships determined 82 spots for the 2022 Winter Olympics: 23 entries in men's singles, 24 in ladies' singles, 16 in pairs, and 19 in ice dance. The available spots were awarded going down the results list, with multiple spots being awarded first. One allocated spot in men's singles was unused due to an insufficient number of member nations meeting the criteria, and the spot was re-allocated to the qualification event, 2021 CS Nebelhorn Trophy.[93]

At the World Championships, countries were able to qualify up to three entries in each discipline according to the system in place for earning multiple spots to the 2022 World Championships. However, for the Olympics, if a country earned two or three spots, but did not have two or three skaters/teams, respectively, qualified for the free segment, the country must qualify the second or third spot at Nebelhorn Trophy. Each discipline qualified independently.

The following ISU member nations earned Olympic quota spots for their National Olympic Committee at the World Championships:[93]

Notes

  1. Under the Court of Arbitration for Sport ban, Russia may not use its name, flag, or anthem and must present themselves as "Neutral Athlete" or "Neutral Team" at any world championships until December 16, 2022.[60] Thus, Russian skaters competed under a modified flag of the Figure Skating Federation of Russia (FFKKR) and the name "FSR" at the 2021 World Championships.[61] The ISU approved the FFKKR's request for their skaters to use Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in lieu of the Russian national anthem during award ceremonies.[62]
  2. Russia, which was not allowed to use its name or flag at the World Championships due to doping sanctions against the country, will compete as "ROC" under the Russian Olympic Committee flag at the 2022 Winter Olympics for the same reason.[lower-alpha 3]

References

  1. "Stockholm World Figure Skating Championships 2021". International Skating Union. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  2. "Александр Лакерник: "ISU приложит все усилия для того, чтобы чемпионат мира был"" [Alexander Lakernik: "ISU will make every effort to ensure that the World Championships are held"]. Olympic Channel (in Russian). December 10, 2020.
  3. Zhukov, Vladislav (January 9, 2021). "Вице-президент ISU заявил о невозможности переноса ЧМ в Россию" [Vice President of ISU announced the impossibility of transferring the World Championships to Russia]. RBC Sport (in Russian).
  4. "Stockholm 2021 – ett annorlunda VM" [Stockholm 2021 – a different World Championships] (in Swedish). Skate Sweden. November 27, 2020.
  5. "Förbundstävlingar ställs in resten av säsongen" [Federation competitions are cancelled for the rest of the season] (in Swedish). Skate Sweden. December 22, 2020. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  6. "Чемпионат мира по фигурному катанию пройдет в запланированные сроки" [World Figure Skating Championships will be held as scheduled]. TASS (in Russian). January 28, 2021.
  7. "2021世界ショートトラックスピードスケート選手権大会" [2021 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships] (in Japanese). Japan Skating Federation. January 26, 2021.
  8. "フィギュア世界選手権はどうなる? ショートトラック世界選手権派遣を見送り" [What about the World Figure Skating Championships? Send off the Short Track World Championships dispatch]. Yahoo! Japan (in Japanese). January 26, 2021.
  9. Japan Skating Federation [@skatingjapan] (March 22, 2021). "選手権(スウェーデン ストックホルム)に出場する日本代表選手たちは全員無事にPCR検査で陰性の結果を受け取り、いよいよ試合に向けて最終調整に入ります。" [All the Japanese national team players who will participate in the championship (Stockholm, Sweden) have successfully received a negative PCR test, and are finally making final adjustments for the match.] (Tweet) via Twitter.
  10. Jia, Nan, ed. (March 22, 2021). "全队接种新冠疫苗,隋文静韩聪领衔中国花滑出征世锦赛" [The entire team is vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, Sui Wenjing and Han Cong lead the Chinese team at the World Figure Skating Championships]. Sina (in Chinese).
  11. Chernyshova-Melnik, Marina (March 9, 2021). ""Здесь фигурное катание популярно только в период рождественских праздников". Первое большое интервью новых чемпионов Франции" ["Figure skating is only popular here during the Christmas season." The first big interview of the new champions of France]. Match TV (in Russian).
  12. "Patinage Artistique : Gabriella Papadakis et Guillaume Cizeron Forfaits pour Les Mondiaux" [Figure Skating: Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron Withdraw from Worlds]. Radio Scoop (in French). January 19, 2021.
  13. Flade, Tatjana (March 17, 2021). "Елизавета Туктамышева: "Очень мало спортсменов вам скажут, что их заставляют ехать на чемпионат мира"" [Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: "Very few athletes will tell you that they are forced to go to the World Championships"]. Olympic Channel (in Russian).
  14. "Российские фигуристы получили разрешение начать тренировки на ЧМ по фигурному катанию" [Russian figure skaters received permission to start trainings at the World Figure Skating Championships]. Sport Express (in Russian). March 21, 2021.
  15. "羽生結弦の「点数低すぎ」問題 フィギュア界の "生き字引" が指摘するジャッジの潮流" [Yuzuru Hanyu's "underscoring" problem: the judging trends pointed out by the "living encyclopedia" in the figure skating world]. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). March 31, 2021.
  16. "Белорусская фигуристка Виктория Сафонова не примет участия в чемпионате мира по фигурному катанию из-за положительного теста на коронавирус" [Belarusian figure skater Viktoria Safonova will not take part in the World Figure Skating Championships due to a positive test for COVID-19]. Ministry of Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Belarus (in Russian). March 23, 2021. Archived from the original on June 8, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  17. Boutin, Richard (March 30, 2021). "COVID-19: deux patineurs victimes de négligence" [COVID-19: two skaters victims of negligence]. Le Journal de Québec (in French).
  18. Skate Austria (February 15, 2021). "Team 🇦🇹 goes Stockholm!" (Instagram). Archived from the original on 2021-12-26.
  19. "Олег Васильев: исполнение четверных в парном катании — вопрос времени" [Oleg Vasiliev: the performance of quads in pair skating is a matter of time]. RIA Novosti (in Russian). February 25, 2021. In what composition will the national team of Belarus perform at the World Championships 2021 in Stockholm?
  20. "Kunstschaatsster Loena Hendrickx schrijft Challenge Cup in Den Haag op haar naam" [Figure skater Loena Hendrickx has won the Challenge Cup in The Hague]. Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). February 26, 2021. In four weeks, Hendrickx will be the only Belgian participant in the world championships in Stockholm.
  21. Ivanova, Kristina (February 15, 2021). "Александра Фейгин и танцовата ни двойка с нови волни програми за СП" [Alexandra Feigin and our dance couple with new free programs for Worlds]. Bulgarian National Radio (in Bulgarian).
  22. "中国花样滑冰协会关于2021年世界花样滑冰锦标赛参赛运动员名单的公示" [Announcement from the Chinese Figure Skating Association on the list of athletes participating in the 2021 World Figure Skating Championships] (in Chinese). Chinese Skating Association. February 13, 2021.
  23. "Proběhlo MMČR, Jirka Bělohradský první, Eliška Březinová druhá" [The MMČR took place, Jirka Bělohradský first, Eliška Březinová second.] (in Czech). Czech Figure Skating Association. December 16, 2020.
  24. Estonia
  25. "Taitoluistelun MM-joukkue on nimetty" [The World Figure Skating Team has been named] (in Finnish). Suomen Taitoluisteluliitto. February 28, 2021.
  26. "Mondiaux: La Sélection Française" [Worlds: The French Selection] (in French). Fédération Française des Sports de Glace. March 1, 2021. Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  27. "Музыка Чайковского будет звучать на награждении российских фигуристов на чемпионате мира" [Tchaikovsky's music will sound at the awards ceremony for Russian figure skaters at the World Championships]. TASS (in Russian). February 16, 2021.
  28. "ISU разрешит российским фигуристам использовать музыку Чайковского на чемпионате мира" [ISU will allow Russian skaters to use Tchaikovsky's music at the World Championships]. TASS (in Russian). February 12, 2021.
  29. "Состав сборной России на чемпионат мира по фигурному катанию в Стокгольме" [The composition of the Russian national team for the World Championships in Stockholm] (in Russian). Figure Skating Federation of Russia. March 1, 2021.
  30. Georgia
  31. "RANKING AL 17/02/2021 PER ASSEGNAZIONE MONDIALI 2021" [RANKING AS OF 17/02/2021 FOR 2021 WORLDS ALLOCATION] (PDF) (in Italian). Federazione Italiana Sport del Ghiaccio. February 17, 2021.
  32. Kazakhstan
  33. "Donovan Carrillo hace historia al calificar al Campeonato Mundial de Patinaje Artístico" [Donovan Carrillo makes history by qualifying for the World Figure Skating Championships]. Marca (in Spanish). February 28, 2021.
  34. "'Historische selectie' naar WK Kunstrijden in Stockholm" ['Historical selection' to World Figure Skating Championships in Stockholm] (in Dutch). Royal Dutch Skating Federation (KNSB). March 1, 2021.
  35. Lim, Jong-ryul (February 26, 2021). "'韓 피겨 간판 엇갈린 희비' 차준환 웃고 유영 울었다" [Cha Jun-hwan laughed and You Young cried]. No Cut News (in Korean).
  36. "Josefin Taljegård klar för VM" [Josefin Taljegård ready for the WC] (in Swedish). Skate Sweden. March 1, 2021.
  37. "Затверджено склад команди України для участі в чемпіонаті світу" [The composition of the Ukrainian team for participation in the World Championships has been approved] (in Ukrainian). Ukrainian Figure Skating Federation. February 25, 2021.
  38. "Paarläufer Hase/Seegert müssen Start bei Eiskunstlauf-WM absagen" [Pair skaters Hase / Seegert have to withdraw from the World Figure Skating Championships]. B.Z. (in German). February 15, 2021.
  39. Kerry, Brendan (March 4, 2021). "Disappointing end to what was already a difficult season". Archived from the original on 2021-12-26 via Instagram.
  40. "Smart & Díaz y Hurtado & Jalyavin se disputan una plaza en el Mundial" [Smart & Díaz and Hurtado & Jalyavin compete for a place in the World Championships] (in Spanish). Real Federación Española de Deportes de Hielo. March 2, 2021.
  41. "Sara Hurtado & Kirill Jalyavin representarán a España en el Mundial de Estocolmo" [Sara Hurtado & Kirill Jalyavin will represent Spain at the Stockholm World Championships] (in Spanish). Real Federación Española de Deportes de Hielo. March 8, 2021.
  42. Panina, Anastasia (March 17, 2021). "Галустян рассказала, из-за чего снялась с ЧМ по фигурному катанию" [Galustyan explained why she withdrew from the World Figure Skating Championships]. Match TV (in Russian).
  43. "Українська спортивна пара не братиме участі у ЧС-2021 через коронавірус" [Ukrainian pair out of 2021 Worlds due to coronavirus] (in Ukrainian). Ukrainian Figure Skating Federation. March 20, 2021. Archived from the original on March 20, 2021.
  44. Yalung, Brian (March 21, 2021). "Fil-Italian Figure Skater Alisson Perticheto Pulls Out of ISU Figure Skating Tilt". Sports Bytes Philippines.
  45. Hayrapetyan, Slavik [@slava_636] (March 22, 2021). "Это видео сделано 19.03 числа на первой тренировке, за день до запланированного вылета на Чемпионат Мира..." [This video was taken on March 19 at the first training session, the day before the scheduled departure to the World Championship ...] via Instagram.
  46. Baldwin, Alan (March 26, 2021). Sarkar, Pritha (ed.). "Figure skating-Shcherbakova wins gold in podium sweep for Russian women". Reuters.
  47. France tv sport [@francetvsport] (March 24, 2021). "Le diagnostic est tombé : la Française Maé-Bérénice Méité, victime d'une chute lors du programme court des Mondiaux de patinage artistique, souffre d'une déchirure du tendon d'Achille" [The diagnosis fell: the French Maé-Bérénice Méité, victim of a fall during the short program of the Worlds of figure skating, suffers from a tear of the Achilles tendon] (Tweet) via Twitter.

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