The joke for many years was that Four Continents feels sometimes like a consolation prize competition. It’s usually too close to US and Canadian Nationals and too far from North America for the top skaters to go, and every four years, it’s too close to the Olympics for most of the Olympians to take the leap. But given the depth of a lot of the Asian and North American fields this season—and the fact that some Olympians are, in fact, going to this week’ s Four Continents Championships—it’s going to be a great event. And none more than the women’s field, which is, dare I say, Olympic-worthy.
Four Continents predictions
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GOLD Ami Nakai JPN - Perhaps the real test of Nakai’s medal potential for Milano, Four Continents will be the biggest competition that she’s ever been a medal contender for. And she goes up against teammate and fellow Olympian Mone Chiba here. At Japan Nationals, the triple axel looked better overall than it has all season, and even though the one in her free skate misfired there, it was promising. How she handles this competition as one of the gold medal favorites may point to how she handles the pressure of her first Olympics in a few weeks. She’s been the breakout skater this season, and she can really make a statement this week.
SILVER Mone Chiba JPN - The World bronze medalist was sixth here last year, and her last international competition was nervy, especially after winning the short program. At Japan Nationals, she was good but cautious, and you have to wonder how much of the nerves will come in this week as she approaches the Olympics as a medal contender. The sal and the loop will be telltale signs in the free skate—they are her two least favorite jumps and have been an issue when she’s a bit tight.
BRONZE Jia Shin KOR - Has the Korean champ finally found her stride? Her season has been up and down internationally as she’s had some inconsistent skates, but she’s coming off two domestic competitions where she has delivered her best skating of the season. But her consistency has come a bit at the expense of a more all-around skate, as she’s made she sure to focus on getting those jumps right over immersing herself in the choreography in these last two events. It will be important for her to combine both of those here if she is to contend for the title, but another consistent performance will be really good for her confidence going into the Olympics.
4. Bradie Tennell USA - Just off the US team after a fourth-place finish at Nationals, Tennell put down two of the best programs in recent memory for her and had one of the moments of that competition. She was second here last year and is definitely in the hunt for the podium, especially if she can deliver again like she did in St. Louis.
5. Sarah Everhardt USA - After an inconsistent season, Everhardt showed the kind of skating we have expected from her this season—big jumps, improvements in choreography. And with those two programs at Nationals, she will be coming into Beijing feeling more confident than she has all season. She was the bronze medalist last season in her Four Continents debut and will be a podium contender again this week.
6. Yuna Aoki JPN - A magical free skate at Japan Nationals vaulted her to fifth there, and it’s the kind of skating she’s been hoping for all season. At her best, she’s got one of the most all-around packages of this whole event, and she’s got dark horse potential written all over. But can she rediscover the magic from Nationals here? This will be her first time at an ISU Championship event, and she very much has a chance at the podium.
7. Sofia Samodelkina KAZ - After a great start to her season, Samodelkina was dealing with an illness late last year that hampered her competition at Golden Spin and forced her to withdraw from Kazakh Nationals. She’s had over a month to recover, but you wonder how much that’s taken out of her preparation for her first Olympics. If she’s on, she’s got an outside shot at the podium.
8. Gabrielle Daleman CAN - Making her return to Four Continents after four years, Daleman has made a phenomenal comeback after injuries and surgeries took her out of most of the past few seasons. She took silver at Canadians with two strong performances that showcased some of the big powerhouse skating that took her to two Olympic Games.
9. Haein Lee KOR - Fifth at Korean Nationals, Lee won the tight battle between her and Chaeyeon Kim for the second Olympic spot. Her season has been anything but consistent, and a lot of where she places this week will depend on the rotation of her jumps.
10. Ruiyang Zhang CHN - It’s been a successful senior debut season for Zhang, who not only qualified an Olympic spot for China but ended up being the one to claim that spot after it was all said and done. She was second at Chinese Nationals and makes her Four Continents debut at home.