Jackie Wong talked about this on his podcast. He asked the ISU about it and they said that further analysis is being undertaken and will be presented at the next meeting of the Council. No further comment. So, I guess it's still possible that an AIN skater like Petrosian could compete in the GP if they change the rules soon.
China did get Shaidorov, though. He's not seeded because he skipped Worlds.
Competitions in 2025/26 or the current season 2026/27.
This is not new, although I don’t remember if they ever stressed at least one skater/team had to have the minimums in the past.
So that (one host country skater must meet the minimum) takes precedence over the saying that “each” participant must meet the minimum, I guess.
I quoted the two travel considerations in my original post, and my posts are about observing where those considerations don't align with the goals.
But you're operating under a false premise that the Seeded 1-6 Skaters are still split into two sub-groups. The new selection doc makes it clear they are NOT. In fact, it doesn't even give skaters a choice n which GPs they receive (though I'm sure they're all consulted) and, in fact, says the GP Coordination Group can basically do whatever they want - see bolded below.
Not a single announcement ever did. That the skaters have had a choice, at least in the recent past, is info that was leaked/gleaned from what skaters have said.
Schizas is also only 23, born the same year as Gubanova. I get that you're considering more than age, but it's still a bit funny to read this comment.
Are they? I found that part a bit ambiguous.
We can read this as saying the Returning Split Couples would go at the end, since it's last on the list. But the list isn't numbered, and the only reference to placement/order is for JW medalists and JGPF gold medalists being at the top. And earlier in the document it says that Returning Split Couples "will be ranked in the list of season’s best scores by taking the season’s points of their partnership with their most recent previous partner". That may well just be for the initial selection and not the Alternate List, but it doesn't actually say that for sure either way.
I actually think we can treat that as the priority list based upon the Pairs assignments. Both Desrochers/Thrasher (guaranteed 1 due to WS Top 24) and Herrera/Khobta (guaranteed no GPs) got a 2nd assignment before teams who are higher than them on the SB list (Holichenko/Darenskyi & Liu/Bedard) got a 2nd assignment.
Sept 15th.
"Any “TBA” name must be confirmed by the host Member by September 15, 2026."
Bullet points are generally neutral, not ordered, except where explicit, which, in this case, means JWC medalists and GPF winner skating senior and not yet assigned to any or one. That makes three types of skater/team who could be at the top of the Alternate list: the juniors, alternate list medalists, and first event winners, all without regard to SB. We've had events in the past with very few alternates used, so the skaters/teams at the top of the list from junior results could, presumably, be pushed down before they were able to be assigned anything, but this is moot, because all of the juniors turning senior who were JGPF winners or JWC medallists were assigned two already: Shimada, Seo, Nakata, Kemp/Elizarov, Desrochers/Thrasher, Herrera/Khbota, Pidgaina/Koval. (Only Perrier Gianesini/Blanc Klapermann had a choice.) Is that a record number of new seniors with two from the get-go?
Yeah, that's how I read it as well, since it's not an ordered list, but then other people interpreted it to mean Lajoie/Baker would be at the bottom of the Alternate List. Whereas, I'd thought they would currently be at the top of the list based on Lajoie/Lagha's SB score, since there aren't any Jr medalists who have gone senior and don't yet have spots, and we don't yet have any alternate list medalists or first event winners.
I think that it does align with the goals when skaters have both their GPs on their home continent. And Daleman hasn't even been assigned to a second event. For all you know, someone else - like Sara-Maude Dupuis - will get that spot. There are so many skaters that they actually have already assigned. Almost all of them are not skating back to back and most of them (including many that you listed) do not have to travel twice to other continents.
That is nowhere in this document they released today. They do say that they want at least one medalist per competition - though this obviously is not always possible.
According to today's document, it is the ISU Grand Prix Coordination Group that is applying the criteria when placing the skaters into the 6 GP events. And, as mentioned above, it is the ISU Grand Prix Coordination Group that can change the selection result to ensure that the "quality" of the event has the highest priority. At least according to the doument, it's not just a free for all where a host federation can just choose whoever they want and be done with it.
It was never anywhere in any Announcement document. Skaters/teams have talked about this, so it appeared to be a thing. Just like until this year, host picks were far down on the list, when it was clear that they were selected first, and there were times in GP selection that a host Fed chose more than one seed, although not recently.
Once again, the travel criteria are "if possible." I don't know how we can know what was possible and that they were therefore imperfect at it.
Maybe the federations aren't sure, either.
I am guessing that, one way or another Lajoie/Baker will get a second GP. If they are not at the top of the alternate list with an assignment by September 15, they probably will get the TBD at Skate Canada.
Any two Canadian FSUers who can do the Dutch Waltz and decide to team up.
Well, there are a couple of other rumored partnerships yet to be fully announced, so Skate Canada may be waiting to see how those teams look & may want to try and get a 4th team on the GP for high-level international competitive experience sooner rather than later seeing as they still do have 3 spots for Worlds this coming year.
I’m in! Who is with me?Any two Canadian FSUers who can do the Dutch Waltz and decide to team up.
That has been the goal for decades, and the selections bear that out: in almost every case, based on prior Worlds, after retirements sit-outs were adjusted, the top 3 were distributed evenly, 4-6 were distributed evenly, and either 7-9/10-12 or 7-10 were distributed evenly. Then those left from WS and SB 24 were distributed evenly.
I am. And I'll do the lifts
Except if she's not done and he takes up coaching along Amodio maybe. But last season he had no retirement plans at all. Haven't talked to him since.
Yes. Everyone in the SB Top 75 for men, women & dance have earned the GP minimum score. For Pairs, it's only the SB Top 52 who have achieved the GP minimum score.
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