2026 Milano-Cortina Olympics - Figure Skating Qualification

[Sabine-Yuna]

So, does that mean that even if Yoshida/Morita don’t qualify in Beijing, Japan would get the spot for them as one of the best qualified teams?

No. If Japan has only qualified 1 spot, Y/M could only go if JPN 1 is not able to compete (which hopefully doesn't) happen.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Who is the #1 Dance team in Japan, if not Yoshida/Morita?

If they don’t earn an individual spot in Beijing, as one of the top qualifying teams, they could fill in their team for dance with two of the additional athletes quota (5 in total, since Italy qualified in all individual events in Boston).

 

[fan]

Australia hasn't already qualified in dance? H/C made the FD in boston

 

[Karen-W]

Australia hasn't already qualified in dance? H/C made the FD in boston

No, only 19 spots were awarded in ice dance at Worlds. AUS was the unlucky fed to miss out on a spot.

 

[Private Citizen]

[Lafornara] does not, but as of last Fall, he said it was on track.

Perhaps splitting hairs, but I believe Lafornara has Italian citizenship, ius sanguinis, according to Italian law. He "just" has to go through the process to have it legally recognized and obtain a passport. I put "just" in quotes because it can be a long and involved process, but 1) there are shortcuts for those with money and time, and 2) I imagine Italy would find a way to expedite his case.

Recognition of existing citizenship through descent is still much easier than skaters who have to apply for citizenship through naturalization. There is no residency requirement, language or other test, etc. He has been a citizen since birth, according to Italian law, and there is virtually no chance he will be denied recognition if he has represented the situation accurately and submits the correct paperwork.

Italian citizenship through naturalization is extremely difficult (among the most difficult in Europe). Italian citizenship through descent may well be the most generous citizenship-by-descent law in the world (certainly within Europe).

 

[kwanfan1818]

Similarly for Pairs: only 16 spots were awarded, and three teams making the FS didn't earn spots for their members (UKR, FIN, SUI).

I was thinking about what it would have looked like before the rule change:

For Men, 24 spots in Boston

• USA-3
• KAZ-3*
• JPN-3
• FRA-3*
• KOR-2*
• GEO-2*
• ITA-2
• LAT-2
• SUI
• CAN
• AZE
• SVK

*Instead of KAZ, FRA, KOR, and GEO earning the right to qualify another in Beijing, SWE, CHN, EST, ESP, and POL would have been in the mix fighting to qualify there for the one they were guaranteed under the current rules.

For Women, 24 spots in Boston:

• USA-3
• JPN-3
• BEL-2*
• EST-2*
• KOR-2
• SUI-2
• CAN
• ITA
• KAZ
• FRA
• ISR
• AUT
• FIN
• ROU
• POL
• BUL

*Instead of BEL and EST earning the right to qualify another in Beijing, GBR and LTU would have had to compete there for one of five spots.

For Pairs, 16 spots in Boston:

• JPN-2*
• GER-2
• ITA-2
• GEO-2*
• CAN-2
• USA-3*
• HUN-2*

*That's 15. Instead of JPN, GEO, USA, and HUN having to earn an extra spot in Beiing, that would have put AUS in the same spot as USA Pairs in 2018 in earning only one spot when the Worlds rules would have given them two, being awarded the 16th spot with no right to earn another. (Even if this is moot for AUS.) UZB would not have earned one spot for their Top 10 Team, joining GBR, POL, and NED needing to earn a spot in Beijing.

For Dance, 19 spots in Boston:

• USA-3
• CAN-3
• GBR-2
• ITA-2*
• ESP-2*
• FRA-2
• GEO-2*
• FIN-2

*That's 18. Instead of ITA, ESP, and GEO having to earn an extra spot in Beijing, CZE would have been in the same boat as US Pairs in 2018 in earning the 19th spot for one of their two dance teams, -- and not moot in this case -- and no chance to earn another in Beijing. GER and KOR would also have to be in Beijing to earn any spot, instead of getting one each guaranteed here.

This system is so, so much better than the old system. It's fine for Worlds, because the restriction on the field size by the TES minimum constraint allows so much more inclusion, but Olympic spots are so fewer.

 

[NinjaTurtles]

Perhaps splitting hairs, but I believe Lafornara has Italian citizenship, ius sanguinis, according to Italian law. He "just" has to go through the process to have it legally recognized and obtain a passport. I put "just" in quotes because it can be a long and involved process, but 1) there are shortcuts for those with money and time, and 2) I imagine Italy would find a way to expedite his case.

Recognition of existing citizenship through descent is still much easier than skaters who have to apply for citizenship through naturalization. There is no residency requirement, language or other test, etc. He has been a citizen since birth, according to Italian law, and there is virtually no chance he will be denied recognition if he has represented the situation accurately and submits the correct paperwork.

Italian citizenship through naturalization is extremely difficult (among the most difficult in Europe). Italian citizenship through descent may well be the most generous citizenship-by-descent law in the world (certainly within Europe).

Just this past week Italy introduced a new law to tighten jure sanguinis, and I imagine it will pass Parliment in 60 days. This potentially throws a wrench in my own paperwork.

IDK Noah‘s pathway, if he’s going to the great-grandparent level or not, but hopefully it doesn’t cause him delays.

 

[PRlady]

FWIW my friend here who’s applying based on her grandmother says the new law won’t impact her.

 

[tony]

I know what the rules are now but I am still bothered by the three or two-skater/team countries leapfrogging a country that only has one skater/team vying for a spot.

Imagine the dance results went like this:
14. Australia
15. France (2nd team)
16. Czechia (2nd team)
17. United States (3rd team)
18. Great Britain (2nd team)
19. Finland (2nd team)
20. Canada (3rd team)

Every single country from 15-20 then jumps ahead of Australia for the final spots. This happened with just one other country (Canada) but I still don't like it. Let those countries go to the Olympic qualifying event to confirm their spots. It puts the single-entry teams at a disadvantage in both pairs and dance where not every team qualifies even if they make the free skate/dance.

 

[farahfan]

Pairs (3 spots):
Russia
China (Sui & Li?)
Japan's #2 team (Nagaoka/Moriguchi)
will just miss: USA's #3 team (I wonder if USA could send a team without citizenship like McBeath/Parkman to get the 3rd spot?)

I think the North Korean team, if they show up, could be a viable contender. They get so few opportunities to perform that they might be extra motivated. They showed big improvement from the fall 2024 Challengers to the 2025 AWG.

Also, Kim Dunaway said there is a Russian pair team that's been to asking permission switch to Armenia for some time now and, if they succeed, would likely be serious contenders. I assume she means Karina Akopova and Nikita Rakhmanin. They were scoring in the 190s-200s before the 2022 ban.

 

[marbri]

I know what the rules are now but I am still bothered by the three or two-skater/team countries leapfrogging a country that only has one skater/team vying for a spot.

Imagine the dance results went like this:
14. Australia
15. France (2nd team)
16. Czechia (2nd team)
17. United States (3rd team)
18. Great Britain (2nd team)
19. Finland (2nd team)
20. Canada (3rd team)

Every single country from 15-20 then jumps ahead of Australia for the final spots. This happened with just one other country (Canada) but I still don't like it. Let those countries go to the Olympic qualifying event to confirm their spots. It puts the single-entry teams at a disadvantage in both pairs and dance where not every team qualifies even if they make the free skate/dance.

If Green and Parsons were in the same position as Fabbri/Ayer would it still bother you as much?

I know you will probably publicly say you would feel the same, that it's the principle for you, but privately ponder that situation

 

[tony]

If Green and Parsons were in the same position as Fabbri/Ayer would it still bother you as much?

I know you will probably publicly say you would feel the same, that it's the principle for you, but privately ponder that situation

Seeing how by the rules I've always been, yes it would bother me.

I've been accused of being anti-American on this board for not being all uppity on looking the other way on jump technique for US skaters, so why you even bother to question it is beyond me.

 

[Private Citizen]

Just this past week Italy introduced a new law to tighten jure sanguinis, and I imagine it will pass Parliment in 60 days. This potentially throws a wrench in my own paperwork.

IDK Noah‘s pathway, if he’s going to the great-grandparent level or not, but hopefully it doesn’t cause him delays.

FWIW my friend here who’s applying based on her grandmother says the new law won’t impact her.

Thanks for alerting me to the change. Ninjaturtles, if Lafornara has (or you have) already applied, the rules won't affect him / you.

Grandparent will still be OK; it's beyond grandparent that will no longer be allowed.

If you haven't applied, you may still be OK, depending on how the courts view this. The change took effect on 28th March, 2025... but IMO it's likely to apply only to those people BORN after this date, though that will be a matter for the courts. I'll be watching to see if my sister's kids still have the entitlement, which they would have had up to the 27th of March, or whether they have now lost it.

I do think the citizenship rule changes are fair and bring Italy more in line with every other European country.

 

[Amy L]

Also, Kim Dunaway said there is a Russian pair team that's been to asking permission switch to Armenia for some time now and, if they succeed, would likely be serious contenders. I assume she means Karina Akopova and Nikita Rakhmanin. They were scoring in the 190s-200s before the 2022 ban.

I think this is the team as well. They were hoping to get their release by the end of 2024 but I guess it didn't work out yet. I heard there are some injury issues as well. Akopova/Rakhmanin were pretty consistently beating Geynish/Chigirev (with their former partners) domestically.

 

[Karen-W]

Seeing how by the rules I've always been, yes it would bother me.

I've been accused of being anti-American on this board for not being all uppity on looking the other way on jump technique for US skaters, so why you even bother to question it is beyond me.

I still think the easiest solution would be for the ISU & IOC to agree to award 20 spots for ice dance at Worlds & only have 3 available at the OQE in the fall.

Let's apply your scenario to Pairs, where 20 teams make the FS but there are only 16 spots awarded at Worlds... Why weren't you fussed about Hocke/Kunkel securing their spot (Germany's 2nd) last week while finishing behind Holichenko/Darenskyi missed out on securing a spot for Ukraine?

I don't know why you got on this particular quirk of the qualification system just on Saturday during the FD, but it's interesting to note that you voiced no such dismay over Holichenko/Darenskyi suffering the same plight less than two days earlier.

 

[Karen-W]

I think the North Korean team, if they show up, could be a viable contender. They get so few opportunities to perform that they might be extra motivated. They showed big improvement from the fall 2024 Challengers to the 2025 AWG.

Ehhhh... Maybe. Their AWG score was no great shakes & I don't think they'd beat most of the other teams likely to be in the running.

Also, Kim Dunaway said there is a Russian pair team that's been to asking permission switch to Armenia for some time now and, if they succeed, would likely be serious contenders. I assume she means Karina Akopova and Nikita Rakhmanin. They were scoring in the 190s-200s before the 2022 ban.

I think this is the team as well. They were hoping to get their release by the end of 2024 but I guess it didn't work out yet. I heard there are some injury issues as well. Akopova/Rakhmanin were pretty consistently beating Geynish/Chigirev (with their former partners) domestically.

I quite liked Akopova/Rakhmanin when we last saw them internationally. They've been rumored to have requested the release since at least fall 2023, so I'm not sure how soon it will be coming, if ever.

 

[tony]

I still think the easiest solution would be for the ISU & IOC to agree to award 20 spots for ice dance at Worlds & only have 3 available at the OQE in the fall.

Let's apply your scenario to Pairs, where 20 teams make the FS but there are only 16 spots awarded at Worlds... Why weren't you fussed about Hocke/Kunkel securing their spot (Germany's 2nd) last week while finishing behind Holichenko/Darenskyi missed out on securing a spot for Ukraine?

I don't know why you got on this particular quirk of the qualification system just on Saturday during the FD, but it's interesting to note that you voiced no such dismay over Holichenko/Darenskyi suffering the same plight less than two days earlier.

Because I was there Karen and I wasn't on my phone the whole time.

I feel the same way about any skater/team that misses out, the end.

I already made it very clear in my last post that it sucks for skaters in dance and pairs because of the amount of teams qualifying to the free skate not matching the Olympic spots given, did you miss that?

 

[Karen-W]

Because I was there Karen and I wasn't on my phone the whole time.

I feel the same way about any skater/team that misses out, the end.

Uh-huh...

Honestly, I don't care much about Harris/Chan, who finished 19th, losing out on an Olympic spot in favor of Canada getting a 3rd spot. But, here's my question... How would you fix it?

The only reason it worked out in 2021 to not affect any countries was because Galyavieva/Thauron & Lopareva/Brissaud finished 16th & 17th in the FD, so FRA only earned 1 spot & every country that made the FD earned a spot.

 

[tony]

Uh-huh...

Honestly, I don't care much about Harris/Chan, who finished 19th, losing out on an Olympic spot in favor of Canada getting a 3rd spot. But, here's my question... How would you fix it?

The only reason it worked out in 2021 to not affect any countries was because Galyavieva/Thauron & Lopareva/Brissaud finished 16th & 17th in the FD, so FRA only earned 1 spot & every country that made the FD earned a spot.

Karen, what is your point with the 'uh-huh'? I literally mentioned pairs in my first post. You didn't acknowledge it. You're trying for gotcha moments all over the board when there isn't one to be had here.

It puts the single-entry teams at a disadvantage in both pairs and dance where not every team qualifies even if they make the free skate/dance.

I already said how to fix it. Go straight down the list, and when you run out of spots, send the other teams in the free skate/dance to the Olympic qualifier to confirm their spots. ETA clarifying here- the other teams who earn multiple entries by virtue of other skaters from their country.

 

[Karen-W]

Karen, what is your point with the 'uh-huh'? I literally mentioned pairs in my first post. You didn't acknowledge it. You're trying for gotcha moments all over the board when there isn't one to be had here.

I already said how to fix it. Go straight down the list, and when you run out of spots, send the other teams in the free skate/dance to the Olympic qualifier to confirm their spots.

You do that and you screw a bunch of better pairs teams out of their spot. I ran the numbers for pairs in both 2021 & 2025 and there would be countries that placed higher than the ones that barely scrapped into the FS who lost a 2nd spot.

I'm sorry, but I fundamentally disagree with you on this subject. The cleaner solution is to increase the # of spots awarded in ice dance to 20.

 

[marbri]

Seeing how by the rules I've always been, yes it would bother me.

I've been accused of being anti-American on this board for not being all uppity on looking the other way on jump technique for US skaters, so why you even bother to question it is beyond me.

Tony, don't assume I have a notebook with all your thoughts and opinions jotted down that I reference on the regular
I have NO idea that you have been "accused of being anti-American". Just not something that has pinged my radar or anything I have taken note of, and if it is taking place in US themed threads well I just don't read those.

I picked Green and Parsons simply because the US is the only other country that I recalled at the time of my post that qualified three teams for ice dance. So the question was really about whether it bothered you more because you may not rate F&A and highly as you rate G&P.

 

[tony]

You do that and you screw a bunch of better pairs teams out of their spot. I ran the numbers for pairs in both 2021 & 2025 and there would be countries that placed higher than the ones that barely scrapped into the FS who lost a 2nd spot.

I'm sorry, but I fundamentally disagree with you on this subject. The cleaner solution is to increase the # of spots awarded in ice dance to 20.

What are you talking about?

You go down the list until you hit the 16 spots. If a country has 2 or 3 teams in those first 16 spots, then they get all of those spots automatically. In the case of pairs, H/D from Ukraine would get the 16th and final spot, and then the second German team, presumably Hocke/Kunkel, go to China to try to get their second spot confirmed.

 

[kwanfan1818]

I already said how to fix it. Go straight down the list, and when you run out of spots, send the other teams in the free skate/dance to the Olympic qualifier to confirm their spots.

That's certainly doable. It gives the spots outright to the skaters who did the best, but it also gives the skaters below the cut-off to earn a spot.

I love the current system, but I think that is an improvement on it.

Applied this year, UKR would have gotten the last Pairs spot, and GER would have an entry to Beijing. AUS would have gotten the last Dance spot, and CAN would have an entry to Beijing. (ETA: which would have been the case if R/A hadn't missed the FD unexpectedly.)

ETA: the only tweak might be to allow anyone below the cut to represent their country at the qualifier, even if they make the free.

It doesn't matter for singles, if they continue to allocate 24 at Worlds, because the next one on the list didn't make the FS.

 

[Andrea82]

Just this past week Italy introduced a new law to tighten jure sanguinis, and I imagine it will pass Parliment in 60 days. This potentially throws a wrench in my own paperwork.

IDK Noah‘s pathway, if he’s going to the great-grandparent level or not, but hopefully it doesn’t cause him delays.

If needed, I would still expect citizenship by government decree for sport merits for the Junior World Champion.
They did it for Guignard in August 2013. They also did it in 2023 for a triple jumper and a volleyball player.

 

[Karen-W]

What are you talking about?

You go down the list until you hit the 16 spots. If a country has 2 or 3 teams in those first 16 spots, then they get all of those spots autmoatically. In the case of pairs, H/D from Ukraine would get the 16th and final spot, and then the second German team, presumably Hocke/Kunkel, go to China to try to get their second spot confirmed.

Ah, I wasn't understanding what you were proposing. I suppose, but I still think it would be simpler for ID to just award 20 spots. Beyond that, I tend to think that Lauriault/Le Gac would have beaten Harris/Chan in Boston and this would be a moot point. The fact that Canada sent Fabbri/Ayer instead of Les Gacs doesn't mean that Harris/Chan & Australia's ice dance program is actually stronger than Canada's.

Who knows if this will even matter for 2030, given there's an ISU working group to evaluate different qualification system options that will likely present a new proposal at the ISU Congress in 2026.

 

[Karen-W]

That's certainly doable. It gives the spots outright to the skaters who did the best, but it also gives the skaters below the cut-off to earn a spot.

I love the current system, but I think that is an improvement on it.

Applied this year, UKR would have gotten the last Pairs spot, and GER would have an entry to Beijing. AUS would have gotten the last Dance spot, and CAN would have an entry to Beijing.

ETA: the only tweak might be to allow anyone below the cut to represent their country at the qualifier, even if they make the free.

It doesn't matter for singles, if they continue to allocate 24 at Worlds, because the next one on the list didn't make the FS.

You know, I'd actually enhance the opportunities further...

1) Change the dance spots awarded at Worlds to 20 - 4 warm-up groups just like singles & pairs
2) Pre-Olympic Season Worlds - 5 warm-up groups make the FS/FD in all disciplines

That would allow more countries to have a chance to really earn the 24/16/20 spots in each discipline and make the FS/FD matter more than it seemed to this year, especially in the singles disciplines.

 

[kwanfan1818]

1) Change the dance spots awarded at Worlds to 20 - 4 warm-up groups just like singles & pairs
2) Pre-Olympic Season Worlds - 5 warm-up groups make the FS/FD in all disciplines

They only allow a max of five warm-up groups into the Olympics in total -- although they now have removed one skater/team from all disciplines instead of raising them to five full groups, making the first group smaller -- so I wouldn't want to see all of the spots allocated at the Pre-Olympic Season Worlds (#2). I get that there is a possibility of the host using the Additional Athlete Allocation for three disciplines (2+2+ 1, or 1+1+2) and raising the individual fields by one, but they could always have four full groups earned at the Pre-Olympic Worlds, and if the host didn't qualify and is using the allocated spots, remove them from the number earned at the qualifier to not go over the last group. (Example: five dance spots for the qualifier, four other than the host.) The host would also have to declare which spots they were planning to use if none qualified, so that they couldn't horse trade or suck up after-the-fact, because there aren't enough allocation spots for a full team. But the IOC's greed knows no bounds, saving money by chacking six athletes, when they extort so much out of the hosts and have TV contracts and sponsorships, and the cost of those athletes doesn't even cover the IOC member lounge snacks budget.

 

[Karen-W]

They only allow a max of five warm-up groups into the Olympics in total -- although they now have removed one skater/team from all disciplines instead of raising them to five full groups, making the first group smaller -- so I wouldn't want to see all of the spots allocated at the Pre-Olympic Season Worlds (#2). I get that there is a possibility of the host using the Additional Athlete Allocation for three disciplines (2+2+ 1, or 1+1+2) and raising the individual fields by one, but they could always have four full groups earned at the Pre-Olympic Worlds, and if the host didn't qualify and is using the allocated spots, remove them from the number earned at the qualifier to not go over the last group. (Example: five dance spots for the qualifier, four other than the host.) The host would also have to declare which spots they were planning to use if none qualified, so that they couldn't horse trade or suck up after-the-fact, because there aren't enough allocation spots for a full team. But the IOC's greed knows no bounds, saving money by chacking six athletes, when they extort so much out of the hosts and have TV contracts and sponsorships, and the cost of those athletes doesn't even cover the IOC member lounge snacks budget.

I'm not saying to allocate all of the Olympic spots at Worlds.

Stick with 24 for Singles, 16 for Pairs & increase to 20 for Ice Dance.

But allow 5 warm-up groups for the FS/FD at the pre-Olympic Worlds, to allow for some of those skaters/teams that were on the cusp - Gubanova, An, Reed/Ambrulevicius, Yoshida/Morita, Hyungyeom Kim, etc - to move up into the top 24/16/20 and earn one of the coveted spots.

Then, as @tony suggests, allocate the spots in order of finish - 1-24, 1-16, 1-20 and let everyone else go to the OQE to earn the last 5 spots in singles & the last 3 spots in pairs/dance, plus allow countries who were under the point requirement to gain another spot to send 1 entry to the OQE also, as the system is currently designed.

 

[kwanfan1818]

But allow 5 warm-up groups for the FS/FD at the pre-Olympic Worlds, to allow for some of those skaters/teams that were on the cusp - Gubanova, An, Reed/Ambrulevicius, Yoshida/Morita, Hyungyeom Kim, etc - to move up into the top 24/16/20 and earn one of the coveted spots.

Thank you -- now I understand.

 

[DreamSkates]

I'm sure I missed the answer to this but why not the same number of spots for pairs as for ice dance?