In the final international championship before the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, drama, Japanese and US dominance and fiercely contested battles lit up the ice at the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing, China (21–25 January). From razor-thin margins in the men’s title fight to historic podium sweeps in ice dance and the women’s event, this championship was a fantastic showcase for what the Olympics might bring, as well as showcasing the skaters that did not make the cut.
Men’s
In a breathtaking conclusion to the men’s event, Kao Miura of Japan claimed his second ISU Four Continents title, narrowly edging out South Korea’s Junhwan Cha (273.62) by only 0.11 points with a total of 273.73. Miura’s expressive free skate showcased his artistry and precision, making this close victory one of the defining moments of the competition. After a difficult season, Cha’s beautiful free skate upset the Japanese 1-2-3 after the short program, whilst bronze went to Japan’s Sota Yamamoto (270.07), rounding out a strong showing for the Japanese men in general. In sad news for the discipline, America’s Tomoki Hiwatashi announced his retirement after the evening.
Women’s
The Japanese women dominated the event with an uncontested podium sweep, with the stunning Yuna Aoki (217.39) beating out the other Olympic selects with two near-flawless performances that brought the house down in her championship debut. Her tears of joy at her PBs and gold medal were felt by all watching in attendance and around the world. Behind her, Ami Nakai took silver (215.78) and Mone Chiba claimed bronze (202.23), in a final practice for the two before the hit Olympic nice in a mere few days.
Pairs
In pairs, the American duo of Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov rose from third after the short program to capture the Four Continents gold (205.34), marking a major milestone in their partnership. Their emotionally charged performance, inspired by Love Story, captivated the judges and crowd alike, and was surely a more than satisfying victory for the pair given that they will not be able to attend the Olympics due to citizenship issues. China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong came in second (200.99) after a few falls from which Sui will hopefully be able to recover before the Olympics, whilst the young Japanese team of Yuna Nagaoka and Sumitada Moriguchi weathered a few errors to show why they are one of the teams to watch when it comes to the future of pairs skating in Japan. They claimed bronze with 197.46 points.
Ice Dance
Ice dance showcased US dominance this time around as the rising duo of Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik spearheaded a USA podium sweep, the first for the country at Four Continents since 2005. Zingas / Kolesnik claimed gold (202.86) with two undeniably commanding performances, followed by Caroline Green and Michael Parsons (194.72) and Oona Brown and Gage Brown (190.78). This underscores the strength and depth of the American ice dance field heading into Milano-Cortina, especially considering that Green / Parsons and the Browns haven’t even made the Olympic team.
With less than two weeks before the Olympics and with several Olympic contenders missing in order to focus on being ready for the biggest stage in the world, this year’s 4CC has been a fascinating chance to see last practices for Olympic newcomers, as well as the many brilliant competitors that have sadly not made the cut (but undoubtedly will earn that coveted Olympic spot very soon).