Skip to main content

Patrick Chan, Ashley Wagner qualify for Grand Prix finals

  • Author:
  • Publish date:
Ashley-Wagner-1.jpg

SOCHI, Russia (AP) -- Two-time world champion Patrick Chan of Canada and U.S. national champ Ashley Wagner are among the skaters who have qualified for the Grand Prix finals.

The finals will be held Dec. 6-9 in Sochi, Russia, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Chan and world bronze medalist Yuzuru Hanyu and Takahiko Kozuka, both of Japan, each won one event and finished second in the other to advance from the six-event international series. Chan won Rostelecom Cup, Hanyo won NHK Trophy and Kozuka won Skate America.

Also in the men's finals will be Tatsuki Machida of Japan, world silver medalist Daisuke Takahashi of Japan, and Javier Fernandez of Spain. Machida is the only newcomer to the finals.

Wagner and Japan's Mao Asada each had two victories to qualify, with Wagner winning Skate America and Trophee Bompard. Asada won Cup of China and NHK Trophy.

Other women's finalists are Kiira Korpi of Finland, who won the Grand Prix event in Moscow, Akiko Suzuki of Japan, and Julia Lipnitskaia and Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, both of Russia.

Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White and 2010 Olympic gold medalists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada have made the dance finals. Davis/White won Skate America and NHK Trophy. Virtue/Moir struck gold at Skate Canada and in Russia.

Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat were victorious in China and in France to also make the finals. Joining them will be Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev and Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov, all of Russia, along with Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte of Italy.

In pairs, the finalists will be Russia's Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov, Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov, and Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov; China's Pang Qing and Tong Jian; and two couples from Canada, Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford, and Kirsten Moore-Towers/Dylan Moscovitch.