Above: photo credit Melanie Heaney/U.S. Figure Skating
Team USA will send eight up-and-coming junior athletes to the second stop of the Junior Grand Prix Series taking place Sept. 4-7 in Ostrava, Czech Republic.
Heading into her fourth season competing in the Junior Grand Prix Series, Josephine Lee looks to start the season strong and earn her first podium finish on the circuit. The two-time World Junior Championships team member is the reigning U.S. silver medalist at the senior level.
Two ice dance teams will represent the stars and stripes: Katarina Wolfkostin and Dimitry Tsarevski and Emily Renzi and William Lissauer.
Although they competed at the senior level last season, due to ISU rule changes, Wolfkostin and Tsarevski are a top team to watch in the JGP Series this season. The duo will look to earn their second podium finish this season after securing silver on home soil at the 2024 Lake Placid Ice Dance International.
Skating at a Junior Grand Prix for the first time, Renzi and Lissauer capped off their 2023-24 season with a silver medal in the advanced novice event at 2024 Egna Dance Trophy.
In the men’s event, Patrick Blackwell will make his Junior Grand Prix debut. Blackwell competed at Cranberry Cup International earlier this month – his first-ever international event – and secured a top-10 finish.
Pairs team Saya Carpenter and Jon Maravilla will compete in Ostrava in their first international competition outside of the United States. Last season, they won gold in the junior competition at the 2023 John Nicks Pairs Challenge in New York City, New York.
Competition kicks off Thursday with the men’s, pairs and women’s short programs. On Friday, the rhythm dance will open the competition, and the first medals will be awarded following the pairs and men’s free skates. Competition concludes Saturday with the women’s free skate and the free dance.
Fans can watch all the action from JGP Czech Republic, as well as the entire Junior Grand Prix Series, live on the ISU YouTube channel.
Entering its 27th season, the ISU Junior Grand Prix Series consists of seven international events in a cumulative point-scoring format. Each athlete is eligible to score points in two of the seven scheduled events (pairs can compete in two of four designated events). The top six point-earners in each discipline qualify for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2024, taking place Dec. 5-8 in Grenoble, France.
For more information on the Junior Grand Prix Series, including full results, news and more, visit the Junior Grand Prix Competition Central on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
U.S. ENTRIES AT JGP CZECH REPUBLIC
Athlete | Hometown | Training Town
Women
Josephine Lee | Irvine, Calif. | Lakewood, Calif.
Men
Patrick Blackwell | East Greenwich, R.I. | Norwood, Mass.
Pairs
Saya Carpenter and Jon Maravilla | Canton, Mich.; West Bloomfield, Mich. | Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
Ice Dance
Emily Renzi and William Lissauer | Robbinsville, N.J.; Glastonbury, Conn. | Montclair, N.J.
Katarina Wolfkostin and Dimitry Tsarevski | Ann Arbor, Mich.; Lakewood, Colo. | Canton, Mich.
