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The 2023 ISU World Champions Riku Miura/Ryuichi Kihara (JPN) sparkled as the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2025 kicked off with an exciting Pairs Short Program in Seoul (KOR) Thursday. 

Riku Miura/Ryuichi Kihara (JPN) paint it gold in the Short Program

The 2023 World Champions Riku Miura/Ryuichi Kihara of Japan ‘painted it gold’ in the Short Program and are set to recapture the ISU Four Continents title they won two years ago. Reigning World Champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek/Maxime Deschamps of Canada, meanwhile, are surprisingly ranked only fourth. Ellie Kam/Danny O’Shea (USA) placed second in the Short Program, followed by Canada’s Lia Pereira/Trennt Michaud.

Japan's Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara take the lead in the Pairs Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

Miura/Kihara proved they are gaining momentum and put out a solid performance to “Paint It Black” that gave them the small Short Program gold medal. Their smooth performance was highlighted by a triple twist and throw triple Lutz as well as by a difficult step sequence and lift. The Japanese Champions scored 74.73 points, a little below their season’s best. 

“Even with (the) pressure we had, we were able to perform with all we got,” Kihara said. “Five years ago, we were here at Four Continents, exactly the same rink. And that was the first time Meagan (Duhamel, coach), Bruno (Marcotte, coach) and we went to an international competition together. Back then we were talking about that this is our dream to come back here and be in the top three. We are elated that we made our dream come true.

“Going forward for tomorrow, we're going to hold on to that gratefulness and happiness that we've made it thus far and perform well tomorrow as well.”

Kam/O’Shea started strongly into their routine to “Rain, In Your Black Eyes” with a triple twist and side by side triple Salchow. However, Kam stumbled on the throw triple loop. The 2024 ISU Four Continents bronze medalists picked up 70.32 points. This performance turned out to be an important stepping stone for the ISU Grand Prix Finalists after they had struggled at the US Championships, losing their national title.

The USA's Ellie Kam and Danny O'Shea, who came second in the Pairs Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

“The program was a little disappointing with the mistake on the throw, but overall we were able to make a lot of improvements from the last time we competed this short internationally,” Kam commented. “We were able to get all level fours, which was a goal that we had this season, and we are just really grateful to be up here with all these great teams.”

O’Shea agreed: ”It was a strong performance overall and was a good step for us after what I would say was a disappointing last skate for us at US Championships. It was a good step getting back out to competing and (we’re) going to continue growing and building as we skate the rest of the season.”

Perreira/Michaud (CAN) also had to overcome challenges: Pereira fell sick during the trip to Korea while Michaud lost his luggage. No wonder the Canadians were very pleased with their upbeat program to “Sing, Sing, Sing” that included a triple toe and throw triple loop. They achieved a new personal best score of 69.79 points. 

Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud of Canada: third place in the Pairs Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

“We have put in a lot of work since Cup of China (where they finished third), and that showed at our Canadian Nationals (finishing second). We use that as a motivation for the second half of the season,” Pereira noted.

“Unfortunately, I was very violently sick about 24 hours ago,” she explained. “As soon as we landed here in Korea, I was very sick and not sure if I was going to be able to skate today. So to, first of all, even be able to skate, and then to put out a really strong short program and a new personal best is something we're very proud of. And also, Trennt doesn't have his luggage. Two uncontrollable factors that we had to deal with, and we overcame them, and so we're just very happy.”

Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps who revealed Stellato-Dudek hurt her leg in a practice accident on the ice just before travelling to Korea were disappointed with their performance after Deschamps stepped out of the triple toe and she touched down on the throw triple loop, although other elements were much stronger. The defending ISU Four Continents Champions earned 69.66 points and remain within striking distance of the podium. The newly crowned US Champions Alisa Efimova/Misha Mitrofanov set a personal best of 67.59 points in their Four Continents debut to place fifth. The young Australian team of Anastasia Golubeva/Hektor Giotopoulos Moore were thrilled with their clean performance and their new personal best score of 65.36 points.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps (CAN): fourth place in the Pairs Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

What and when 

A total of 95 Skaters/Couples representing 15 ISU Members have been entered for this 26th edition of the ISU Four Continents Championships: 24 Men, 21 Women, 11 Pairs and 14 Ice Dance couples. Seoul hosts the event for the third time after 2020 and 2015. The schedule of the ISU Four Continents Championships 2025 is as follows:

• Thursday, February 20: Pairs Short Program, Rhythm Dance, Men’s Short Program
• Friday, February 21: Pairs Free Skating & Women’s Short Program  
• Saturday, February 22: Free Dance & Men’s Free Skating
• Sunday, February 23: Women’s Free Skating & Exhibition Gala

For more information, full entry lists and results, visit the ISU event page of the ISU Four Continents Championships 2025 and the official event website of the Championships. Follow the discussion on social media using #4ContsFigure and #FigureSkating.

Where to watch the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2025:

The ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships will be live streamed on the Skating ISU YouTube Channel. Geo-restrictions will apply in markets where TV rights are in place. You will find the full list in the Where to Watch news here.

Subscribe to the Skating ISU YouTube Channel to receive alerts when the live streams start and when new videos are posted.