Jin Boyang 5th in short program at ISU Four Continents in Shanghai
Chinese skater Jin Boyang showed steady form and placed fifth after the men's short program of the 2024 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships being held at the SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai's Pudong New Area.
The two-time ISU world bronze medalist completed his program with almost no faults in front of the home crowd.
Jin Boyang of China in action during the men's short program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Shanghai on Thursday.
The top three finishers of the short program all presented their season-best performances. Japan's Yuma Kagiyama, the 2022 Olympic silver medalist, leads the table on 106.82 points, followed by compatriot Shun Sato (99.20) and 2023 World medalist Cha Jun-hwan from South Korea.
A total of 112 skaters from 15 countries and regions of the four continents of the Americas, Oceania, Asia and Africa are taking part in the event which runs through Sunday.
Other star skaters include reigning ISU world champions Riku Miura/Ryuichi Kihara from Japan, 2023 world medalist Lee Hae-in from South Korea, as well as Canadian pair Piper Gilles/Paul Poirier.
Chinese skaters Jin, Chen Yudong and Dai Dawei are competing in the men's singles, while Chen Hongyi, Zhu Yi and Cheng Jiaying line up for the women's singles.
There are three pairs of Chinese competitors in the ice dance and pairs competitions, respectively.
Chen Yudong also put up a steady performance, achieving a season-best of 78.74 in the short program to place 9th.
The men's free skating will be held at 4pm on Saturday.
Japan's Mone Chiba leads the women's short program of the 2024 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships.
On Thursday morning, Japan's Mone Chiba led the women's short program with 71.10 points. She was followed by South Korea's Kim Chae-yeon (69.77) and Ava Marie Ziegler of the United States (68.25).
China's Chen Hongyi and Zhu Yi placed 13th and 15th, respectively.
The women's free skating is scheduled for Friday afternoon. The pairs free skating will be held at 1pm on Saturday. The ice dance free dance is set for Sunday noon.
The opening ceremony of the championships was held on Thursday afternoon, which was attended by star performers, including musicals singer Ayanga, vocalist Cai Chengyu, pianist Chen Sa, as well as retired Chinese pairs skater Zhang Dan.
Musicals singer Ayanga (left) and vocalist Cai Chengyu perform during the opening ceremony of the event at Pudong's SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center.
Pianist Chen Sa performs during the opening ceremony.
"Figure skating is a special item, a combination of sport and art," said Zhang. "In the opening ceremony performance, I could put aside the cruelty of competition and fully present the beauty of figure skating for audiences."
Zhang used to pair with Zhang Hao and the duo won the silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games. Zhang is a four-time world medalist and two-time Four Continents champion, who retired from competition in 2012.
"Now the Chinese pairs are going through a change of generation process, which is also a cruel side of professional sport," she noted. "The young skaters need more time to grow, and we will make pairs China's strong suit again in the future."
