Fifteen Americans are set to compete at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2021, March 22-28, in Stockholm. Taking place in a bubble environment with no spectators, athletes will return to the world stage for the first time since the 2019 World Championships after the 2020 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Official practice begins today, while competition will start on Wednesday, March 24. The ladies and pair will lead off the competition, while men will begin Thursday, March 25 and ice dancers on Friday, March 26.
In the ladies field, Olympians Bradie Tennell and Karen Chen will represent the U.S. in Stockholm. Tennell reclaimed the U.S. ladies title at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Las Vegas and placed seventh at the 2019 World Championships. Chen earned the bronze medal in Las Vegas and last competed at Worlds in 2017 where she finished fourth. The duo will be looking for their combined placements to be 13 or less to earn the United States three ladies entries at the Olympic Winter Games 2022 Beijing.
Two-time defending World champion Nathan Chen leads the men’s contingent, looking to become the first American man to win three World titles since Scott Hamilton accomplished the feat (four times, 1981-1984). Only six American men have won multiple World Championships.
Chen is undefeated in his last 13 outings, winning his fifth straight U.S. title and fourth consecutive Skate America® title this season. Vincent Zhou, who took silver at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Championships, looks to reclaim a spot on the podium after earning the World bronze medal in 2019. Jason Brown will round out the American contingent having finished third in Las Vegas. Last season, Brown earned the silver medal at the 2020 Four Continents Championships.
In the pairs competition, Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier will make their Worlds debut in Stockholm. In their first two outings as a team, the California-based team grabbed the top spot at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Championships and 2020 Guaranteed Rate Skate America. Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDuc return to Worlds after finishing ninth in 2019, earning back a second pairs spot for Team USA. The 2019 U.S. champions finished third in Las Vegas at the U.S. Championships. Both pairs tandems will be looking for their combined placements to be 13 or less to earn the United States three pairs entries at the Olympic Winter Games 2022 Beijing.
The United States brings three strong teams to the ice dance competition. Three-time U.S. champions Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue placed third at the 2019 World Championships in Saitama and will look to collect their third World medal this week. Madison Chock and Evan Bates, who were atop the podium at the Four Continents Championships in 2019 and 2020, are also seeking their third World medal after taking silver in 2015 and bronze in 2016. Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker will make their third consecutive Worlds appearance after placing ninth in 2019. American ice dancers have medaled at Worlds in the last four outings.
NBC will broadcast coverage of the ladies free skate at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 27, followed by a recap show at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 11. There will be an additional 16 hours of competition coverage on NBCSN. Additionally, the full competition can be streamed live at Peacock Premium. A full schedule is below.
U.S. ENTRIES AT 2021 WORLD FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Name / Hometown / Training Town
Ladies
Karen Chen / Fremont, Calif. / Colorado Springs, Colo.
Bradie Tennell / Carpentersville, Ill. / Colorado Springs, Colo.
Men
Jason Brown / Highland Park, Ill. / Toronto
Nathan Chen / Salt Lake City / Irvine, Calif.
Vincent Zhou / Palo Alto, Calif. / Colorado Springs, Colo. and Kyoto, Japan
Pairs
Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDuc / Coppell, Texas; Cedar Rapids, Iowa / Euless, Texas
Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier / Addison, Ill.; Colorado Springs, Colo. / Irvine, Calif.
Ice Dance
Madison Chock and Evan Bates / Novi, Mich.; Ann Arbor, Mich. / Montreal
Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker / East Aurora, N.Y.; Edmonds, Wash. / Montreal
Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue / Sylvania, Ohio; Madison, Conn. / Montreal
2021 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS STREAMING ON PEACOCK PREMIUM
(All times Eastern; subject to change)
Wednesday, March 24
Ladies short – 5 a.m.
Pairs short – 1:30 p.m.
Thursday, March 25
Men’s short – 6:30 a.m.
Pairs free – 1:10 p.m.
Friday, March 26
Rhythm dance – 5:52 a.m.
Ladies free – 1 p.m.
Saturday, March 27
Men’s free – 6 p.m.
Free dance – Noon
2021 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS TELEVISION SCHEDULE
(All times Eastern; check local listings)
Wednesday, March 24
Ladies short – 9-11 a.m. (NBCSN, Live)
Thursday, March 25
Paris short – 1:30-3 a.m. (NBCSN)
Pairs free – 3-5 p.m. (NBCSN, Live)
Men’s short – 5-7 p.m. (NBCSN)
Friday, March 26
Ladies free – 2:30-5 p.m. (NBCSN, Live)
Rhythm dance – 10:30 p.m. – 12:30 a.m. (+1) (NBCSN)
Saturday, March 27
Men’s free – 8-10 a.m. (NBCSN, Live)
Free dance – 4-6 p.m. (NBCSN)
Ladies free – 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT/7 p.m. MT/6:30 p.m. PT (NBC)
Sunday, April 11
Event recap – 3 p.m. (NBC)
