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Mikhail Shaidorov (KAZ) stormed into the lead as the first day of the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2025 concluded with an exciting Men’s Short Program in Seoul Thursday. The suspense at the Mokdong Ice Rink lasted until the very last Skater. A lot can happen in the Free Skating on Saturday, so stay tuned.

Mikhail Shaidorov (KAZ) tops Men’s Short

Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Shaidorov took the Men’s Short Program by storm. While Shaidorov was among the favorites, the second place secured by Jimmy Ma (USA) came rather unexpectedly. Kazuko Tomono of Japan is ranked third. 

Shaidorov skates to “Dune” and was fierce and powerful, just like the movie character he portrays, hitting a quad Lutz-triple toe and a quad toe plus triple Axel. The combination in particular was of the highest quality and earned him 19.15 points – the highest-scoring element of the day. The Asian Winter Games bronze medalist netted 94.73 points overall for a strong lead with 12 points to spare. 

Mikhail Shaidorov (KAZ) on his way to top spot in the men's Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

“I wasn’t nervous at all”, Shaidorov revealed. “This is basically the third competition in a row for me and I am coming off the Asian Winter Games, which are the biggest event for Kazakhstan. So here it was a bit calmer for me. I’m happy with how I skated, only the toeloop could have been a bit better.”

The 20-year-old who made history by landing the first triple Axel-quad toe combination last fall has had a lot of success this season and keeps building. “I didn’t change anything, I just worked very hard,” he said, laughing. “I have worked a lot on my skating skills and choreography a lot before and during the season and I am continuing to do so.” 

Ma originally wasn’t even assigned to compete at the ISU Four Continents Championships and got in shortly after the US National Championships when Andrew Torgashev (USA) withdrew. Ma delivered a captivating performance of his fast-paced routine to “Mexican Phonk Eki” showing off his expressiveness and connection with the crowd. The 29-year-old threw in a quad toe, triple Axel and triple Lutz-triple toe combination for a season’s best score of 82.52 points. 

Jimmy Ma (USA) sits in second place after the men's Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

“Obviously, I wasn't initially selected for this competition, which was a little bit disappointing and obviously I wanted to do Worlds, which is in my training backyard (in Boston),” Ma said. “Upon receiving the news that I got to compete here, I had to cut Chinese New Year dinner short and I had to rush back home and unfortunately after that we received terrible news.

“My mindset coming into this competition is completely different after a couple of hours, however, we still had to keep fighting. This competition is close to some of the families’ hearts because they are from Korea and I know that every single one of the families would want us to just keep fighting. We're just incredibly grateful to be here. It's a privilege to perform for you guys.”

Tomono is another entertainer on the ice and got the crowd going with his African-inspired program to “Tshegue” and “Muanapoto”. The opening quad toe-triple toe combination was solid but then he doubled the planned quad Salchow. The 2022 ISU Four Continents silver medalist picked up 79.84 points.

Kazuki Tomono (JPN): third in the men's Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, Rep. Korea © ISU

“Overall my body moved well and I would say the performance felt good for me but I feel like the body was too light and soft,” Tomono explained. “There are some mistakes where my Salchow turned into a double.

“This is one of the big events, and I've participated many times in the past. However, every time I participate, I feel excited and also a little nervous. We have a lot of high-level athletes here, but every time I come here, I see new faces and new possibilities. That's an exciting thing to witness every time I come here,“ the Japanese Skater noted.

Coming off a strong victory at the Asian Winter Games, Junhwan Cha (KOR) was considered a top favorite but he popped the Salchow into a double and although he recovered instantly to land a triple Lutz-triple loop combination and a triple Axel, he was edged out of the top three by just 0.6 points with a score of 79.24 points. The 2023 ISU World silver medalist can catch up in the Free Skating on Saturday. The 2023 ISU Four Continents Champion Kao Miura (JPN) placed fifth after falling on his triple flip-triple toe combination (78.80 points). Tatsuya Tsuboi (JPN) completes the top six at 78.07 points.

What and when 

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. 

Stay connected with the ISU: 

ISU website:                 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2025 

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