As it happened: Wins for Kostornaia and Chen on last day of competition in Turin | ISU Grand Prix Final - Day 3

All times below are Central European Time/CET (UTC +1 hours). Most recent posts appear first.

23:25 Closedown

That's us pretty much done from Turin. We do hope you've enjoyed our coverage of the 2019 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. It's certainly been a thrilling three days, four if you include Wednesday practice.

There have been plenty of highlights - number one would have to be Nathan Chen breaking two world records to take the men's title today with Yuzuru Hanyu trying his heart out on his 25th birthday. You can read the full report from that thrilling men's free skate here.

And there was Alena Kostornaia showing you don't need quads to come out on top as she took the ladies' Grand Prix title.

Kostornaia led a Team Tutberidze 1-2-3 from Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova, although one wonders what the future holds for Olympic champion Alina Zagitova after her disappointing free skate saw her slip from second overnight to sixth.

We mentioned Trusova and her dog in the press conference. What we missed was that Tina made it onto the ice for the medal presentation as well.

Anyway, there's still the gala to come tomorrow with Trusova hoping the organisers allow her to perform a parallel quad jump with Hanyu. That would be something.

There's also our exclusive chat between Meryl Davis and Nathan Chen. Make sure you look out for that.

23:14 Trusova and Tina

And here's the proof...

22:44 Trusova brings dog to press conference

From 'Who let the bear out?' to 'Who let the dog out?' - Alexandra Trusova has brought her pooch to the post-skate press conference.

Olympic Channel viewers will know that her dog, which she received from her parents after performing a double Axel in competition for the first time, is called Red Bourbon Baby Bounti or Tina for short.

You can see her in this video.

22:20 Bitter taste for Shcherbakova

More reaction from the leading ladies in the Grand Prix Final.

Alexandra Trusova was third after becoming the first woman to land a quad flip in competition with runner-up Anna Shcherbakova falling whilst attempting the same jump.

Trusova said, "I did a flip for a long time already. We didn’t make an arrangement. I learned it at the end of last year but just didn’t have the time to properly practise it. And now everything was working out and I decided to try it.

But she fell on two of her quad attempts and added, "I think it was nerves. I rushed at my Salchow. I already skated five quads in practice.

"Three quads is not enough for me already. I know I can do more. Pity it works in practice and not in competition."

Runner-up Anna Shcherbakova said, "In general, I am pleased but I have a bit of a bitter taste because the flip didn’t work out.

"It was my first try (in competition). I hope to be more confident in the future. Despite it not working out, I'm glad that I stayed focused and performed the rest of the program right."

Let's not forget that Shcherbakova won the free skate with a new personal best.

And remember we told you about two enormous bears hitting the ice after Alina Zagitova's skate? Here's one of them before it entered the fray.

22:01 No rest for Kostornaia

Alena Kostornaia has been interviewed in front of the crowd. Her English is certainly coming on leaps and bounds. She said, "This competition was a challenge for me because it is the third competition at this high level. It's really cool that I came to be first.

When asked what she would do when she got home she said, "I think I will work, work and work."

21:51 Disappointment for Zagitova as Kostornaia takes gold

She had the crowd on her side but this was not **Alina Zagitova'**s night.

A two-footed landing on a triple loop, downgraded, was followed by a fall on a double Axel, and her jumps lacked the fluency she showed in yesterday's short program with a number of elements given as under-rotated.

Without the quads or triple Axels of her training partners, she needed her jumping to be spot on to make the podium. But it was not to be.

Two huge teddy bears landed on the ice at the end of her skate and it's clear she still has plenty of fans. But she is definitely behind the '3A' and that means she may not be able to defend her world title in March.

The Olympic champion is close to tears in the 'kiss and cry' and she looks pretty devastated when her score of 125.63 comes up on the board. That's sixth place on the day and sixth overall.

So it's a 1-2-3 for Team Tutberidze with Alena Kostornaia taking gold from Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova.

21:42 Kostornaia takes lead in style

Nerveless stuff from overnight leader Alena Kostornaia after watching her two training partners scorch the ice.

She landed a triple Axel-double toe loop to start and then another triple Axel with the pressure not affecting her in the slightest.

A triple flip-Euler-triple Salchow combination was a highlight and then she nailed a triple Lutz to complete a brilliant clean skate.

Her technical elements score was six points down on leader Shcherbakova so it all comes down to execution. What will the judges decide?

The score is in - 162.14, beating her season's best of 159.45, for second in the free and first place overall on 247.59. That should be gold for the 16-year-old with Team Tutberidze sweeping the podium.

That just leaves Olympic champion Alina Zagitova. Can she make the podium?

21:36 Shcherbakova takes over

Not quite the fireworks of her team-mate, but not far off from Anna Shcherbakova.

She landed an exquisite quad Lutz-triple toe loop combination to start but then fell on a quad flip before landing another quad Lutz which was adjudged as under-rotated.

Her mid-skate costume change - from blue to red - brought cheers from the crowd and the jumps kept on coming.

Indeed, her technical elements score was only four points lower than Trusova. It will be close and, remember, overnight leader Alena Kostornaia does not have quad jumps in her armoury so it could be very tight between the '3A' first-season seniors.

And the score... a season's best of 162.65 to take the lead in the free skate and overall with 240.92. Kostornaia is on the ice and she's landed her triple Axel!

21:26 Trusova brings the house down

Wow, wow, wow!

One wow for each quad landed in a quite scintillating skate from Alexandra Trusova to music from Game of Thrones.

She started with a superb quad flip - the first ever by a woman in competition - but then doubled what should have been a quad Salchow before getting back on track with a stunning quad Lutz.

Then came a quad toe loop-Euler-triple Salchow combination but then she fell on her fifth attempted quad, another quad toe loop.

She wasn't done then, landing a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination before some dizzying spins to complete a rollercoaster of a routine.

She talked about how risk is part of her gameplan yesterday, and the sheer difficulty of the technical elements in her skate means she is not out of the hunt for gold.

She scores 161.73, five points down on her season's best, for a total of 233.18. Now she waits for her three training partners - all members of Team Tutberidze - to skate with Anna Shcherbakova first to go.

21:18 Kihira falls on quad Salchow, lands two triple Axels

Sixth overnight, Rika Kihira needed something special to get into medal contention.

She landed a quad Salchow in practice but under-rotated it and fell at the start of her free skate.

The 17-year-old bounced straight back, however, landing a triple Axel-double toe loop combination, and another triple Axel in a very fine routine.

A triple loop and a layback spin capped a skate which would have been almost perfect bar the early fall, but she was smiling as she came off the ice.

Her first triple Axel was actually given as under-rotated so she will lose marks for that. But it was a really strong fighting performance from the Japanese who certainly did not lack for support inside the Palavela.

She earned a free skate score of 145.76 for a total of 216.47 and the overall lead.

Next up is Alexandra Trusova who has a deficit of 14 points to make up on leader Alena Kostornaia from the short program. How many quads will she land?

21:10 Tennell rises to the challenge

Bradie Tennell would probably have won a medal at PyeongChang 2018 skating like this. The American has had an excellent couple of days culminating in a beautiful free skate.

She will lose marks for under-rotations on a triple toe loop and a triple flip, but she can feel very proud of what she's achieved here in Turin.

Her score of 139.98 is just down on her season's best of 141.04. And she sets the target with a total of 212.18.

Next up is defending champion Rika Kihira. Can she land the quad Salchow?

21:00 Quads to come...

Here's the order in which they will skate in this ladies' free skate. And there have been plenty of quads landed in the warm-up which has just finished:

Bradie Tennell (USA), Rika Kihira (JPN), Alexandra Trusova (RUS), Anna Shcherbakova (RUS), Alena Kostornaia (RUS), Alina Zagitova (RUS).

20:55 Ladies' free skate about to start

The six women are waiting to go on the ice for the warm-up. Can Alena Kostornaia hold onto her lead? How many quads will Alexandra Trusova attempt, and land? And what about Olympic champion Alina Zagitova.

Before we get stuck into what should be an incredible competition, we grabbed a quick word with Junior Grand Prix Final runner-up Alysa Liu earlier. Have a watch.

20:37 Cizeron proud after title, Papadakis can't wait to eat

So another victory for Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron and maximum points for Papadakis who answers the first question in the post-competition interview in Italian, much to the delight of the crowd.

Cizeron said, "We felt amazing tonight. Seeing so many people cheering for us in this historic rink felt really special. We had an amazing feeling. Everything went really smoothly and we're just really proud of us and really proud of our team. Our team from Gadbois did the 1-2-3 so it's a pretty special final for us."

As for what now, Papadakis said, "The main thing is eat. That's what I've been thinking all week because I'm in Italy and the food is so good and I've been thinking, 'I can't wait for this competition to be over so I can eat three pizzas in a row or whatever'. I'm pretty obsessed with that right now."

20:30 World champions lead Team Montreal podium sweep

A real key change with the final pair, Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, dancing to music from A Star Is Born.

It's very good but the technical score is someway down on Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron who claim yet another competition victory.

They're going to need a season's best to take silver.

It's a season's best of 125.21 - third place on the day and third place overall behind Madison Chock and Evan Bates.

Meryl Davis was right about Team Montreal sweeping the medals with the three teams all trained by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon and Romain Haguenauer.

20:19 Papadakis and Cizeron superb yet again

It's very different and it's very very good.

The choice of music, by Icelandic artist Olafur Arnalds, is very original - ambient bordering on minimalist and the polar opposite of their 80s-inspired rhythm dance.

But the choreography and the execution was something to behold and the crowd was so rapt that you could almost hear a pin drop inside the Palavela.

The score of 136.02 was just shy of their world record and their total of 219.85 will surely be good enough for gold.

20:12 Chock and Bates take the lead

Everyone enjoyed that Egyptian-themed routine from Madison Chock and Evan Bates. Someone loved it so much they threw a cuddly snake onto the ice afterwards.

It's another fine performance in a high-quality competition.

And it's a season's best of 129.01 for the Americans which guarantees them a medal. Their total of 210.68 puts them six points clear of the field with two duos to come.

The first of those - France's world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron.

20:05 Three pairs to go

Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin were stunned to see their compatriots Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov relegated to third place.

Stepanova said, "Oh my God, they are third, I can’t believe it. We train with different coaches but we are not sure about the scores we and they got."

Americans Madison Chock and Evan Bates are on the ice.

19:59 Sinitsina and Katsalapov slip down

Another fine skate from the second Russian pair, world silver medallists Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov.

Their technical score was the highest so far and there did not appear to be much wrong with the execution. The standard so far has been very high indeed.

The pair look happy in the 'kiss and cry' but the smiles turn to frowns as the score of 121.88 comes up on the board. The judges clearly spotted something we hadn't and there are some whistles of disapproval from the crowd as well.

That's third on the night and their total of 203.39 leaves them down in third place.

19:47 Stepanova and Bukin take lead

These duos are going to have to skate close to their very best to get on the podium.

Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin danced really well with their technical elements score just a point down on Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier.

So it's all about execution and what the judges think.

Their score is 123.74, second on the night, but they go into the lead overall on 204.88.

19:41 Gilles and Poirier just short of best score

The scores are in for Gilles and Poirier - 123.97 for a total of 203.50. They scored 209.01 to take victory at Skate Canada.

Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin are on the ice now skating to Justin Timberlake's 'Cry Me A River'.

And they're going along very nicely right now. Can they go in front?

19:37 What a start from Gilles and Poirier

The Skate Canada winners have brought their 'A' game to Turin and no mistake.

A sensational routine from Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier at the start of what could be an epic ice dance free dance competition.

Superb twizzles early on, smooth transitions, and wonderful emotion in a super skate.

The Canadians started the day in sixth and they will need to get close to their personal best of 126.43 if they are to challenge for a medal.

19:29 First group of ice dancers warming up

Not long now before the start of the ice dance free dance. With just over four points separating the entire field there really is everything to play for.

Here's the order in which they will skate:

Warm-up Group 1

Piper Gilles/Paul Poirier (CAN)

Alexandra Stepanova/Ivan Bukin (RUS)

Victoria Sinitsina/Nikita Katsalapov (RUS)

Warm-up Group 2

Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA)

Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (FRA)

Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue (USA)

19:20 Senior ice dancers coming up next - the Davis verdict

We're coming to the end of three days of superb figure skating action with just the ice dance free dance and the ladies' free skate to come.

In the ice dance, world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron hold a narrow lead over defending Grand Prix Final champions Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue with Madison Chock and Evan Bates in third.

And who better than Sochi 2014 Olympic ice dance gold medallist Meryl Davis to mark your card ahead of tonight's competition?

"I’m excited to watch the senior ice dance tonight. All of the top three or four teams are incredibly close, especially after Gabby and Guillaume had a mistake in the rhythm dance. I haven’t seen their new free dance live yet so I’m really eager to see it. It’s a very different style, it’s a departure from anything they or I think really anyone has done before. I’m excited to see that live and I think it’s going to be a really high quality event.

"I predict one-two-three goes Gabby & Guillaume, Madi & Zach and Madi & Evan. I don’t think the order will change but you never know, they’re all so close following the rhythm dance. But I think it will be a ‘Team Montreal’ podium sweep."

19:06 Georgians take gold. Just.

It was an excellent free dance from Avonley Nguyen and Vadym Kolesnik but, as in the rhythm dance, it was not quite enough.

They were 0.04 behind Maria Kazakova and Georgy Reviya at the start of the day, and they lost out in the free dance by just 0.12 as they scored 106.02.

So the Americans have to settle for silver, missing out on gold by just 0.16.

The Georgians certainly impressed with their expressive free dance which appeared to have more than a little pairs influence to it.

Kazakova said afterwards when they were interviewed in front of the crowd, "It's a new style of ice dance. It's very incredible for me, for our pair."

They become the first Georgians to win a Junior Grand Prix Final gold medal.

18:49 Kazakova and Reviya set the standard

A roar of delight from Maria Kazakova at the end of a stunning free dance which piles the pressure on their American rivals.

That will definitely be a medal for the Georgian pair with Georgy Reviya excelling on the straight line and rotational lifts in a superb routine.

Dramatic music and choreography, great synchronisation and high execution marks throughout mean they will definitely be on the podium. But will it be silver or gold?

The score is 106.14, just shy of their season's best 106.95, but the pair are thrilled. That gives them a total of 174.90 with just Avonley Nguyen and Vadym Kolesnik to go.

18:43 Shanaeva and Naryzhnyy move into lead

That was a daring free dance from Elizaveta Shanaeva and Devid Naryzhnyy who have guaranteed themselves a medal.

There was a roll on the ice from Shanaeva which, if you didn't know it was coming, looked a bit like a fall..

They scored 98.01 to take the lead on the day and their total of 164.22 puts them into the lead with just two pairs left to skate.

18:35 Final group of junior ice dancers warming up

We're halfway through the junior ice dance free dance with the last three duos set to skate for gold.

So far it's gone according to the order of the rhythm dance with Russia's Elizaveta Khudaiberdieva and Andrey Filatov in the lead.

France's Loicia Demougeot and Theo Le Mercier lie second ahead of another Russian duo, Diana Davis and Geb Sholkin.

About to skate are Elizaveta Shanaeva and Devid Naryzhnyy, third in the rhythm dance, with overnight leaders Maria Kazakova and Georgy Reviya of Georgia next.

Rhythm dance runners-up Avonley Nguyen and Vadym Kolesnik of the United States will be be last to perform with just 0.04 to make up on the Georgian pair.

17:30 A break in the action

We've got a bit of a pause before the next action on the ice, the junior ice dance free dance at 18:00.

Then it's the senior equivalent before the ladies' free skate rounds off proceedings in Turin.

Olympic ice dance champion Meryl Davis will be a keen observer this evening, and she spoke to Nathan Chen for Olympic Channel after his Grand Prix Final success.

You can watch that interview tomorrow.

16:50 Enter the panda?

Shun Sato came into the competition as perhaps the lesser known of the two Japanese in the field, but he's certainly made a name for himself here in Turin.

Interviewed in front of the crowd well populated by Japanese fans, he said, "I was a little bit nervous before the free skate, but once I was on the ice I felt very calm and I was able to skate the way I wanted."

When asked who his role model, he replied "Yuzuru Hanyu" attracting plenty of cheers from the crowd.

There were a few Pooh bears thrown down from the crowd after his superb free skate, but his coach was holding a panda tissue box in the 'kiss and cry' and Sato revealed his love of the black and white bears afterwards.

The age of the panda may soon be upon us...

16:39 Mozalev takes silver behind super Sato

It was a good effort from Andrei Mozalev but not enough to displace Shun Sato from the top of the leaderboard.

He landed his opening quad toe loop-double toe loop combination and followed it with a really solid quad toe loop. But he stepped out of a triple toe loop with a fall on a triple Axel costing him any chance of victory.

His score of 159.03 was a season's best and good enough for second on the day with his total of 241.48 earning him the silver medal.

16:32 Sato soars into the lead

Remember the name - Shun Sato.

He opened up with a quad Lutz and then landed a mighty quad toe loop which Nathan Chen would have been proud of. And he's only 15!

What a skate that was. And the Japanese fans, who might have been a little deflated by Yuzuru Hanyu's defeat, have a real star for the future.

There was an excellent triple Axel too in a superb display of jumping which will certainly put him into the lead.

The score is a huge personal best of 177.86 and Sato jumps for joy. That was just one point behind Kevin Aymoz's free skate from earlier!

His total of 255.11 is a formidable one with just short program winner Andrei Mozalev to go.

16:23 Samsonov delivers for 'Team Tutberidze'

Eteri Tutberidze's pupils are having a great week with victory for Kamila Valieva in the ladies' Junior Grand Prix Final and a 1-2-3 in the ladies' short program.

Young Daniil Samsonov looks to be another rising star and he landed a triple Axel and a quad Lutz at the start of his free skate.

But a fall on a second triple Axel, which should have been the first half of a combination, cost him valuable points.

At just 14, he looks to have a huge future and his score of 152.44 was enough for second on the day and the overall lead with 230.19. It's another guaranteed medal for 'Team Tutberidze'.

16:16 Quads, quads, quads... in the juniors!

All six of these juniors have quads in their free skates which just goes to show how the sport has changed in the last couple of years.

Petr Gummenik fell on his opening quad Lutz and a triple Axel later on although he did land a quad Salchow.

He scored 140.46, some way down on his personal best, for a total of 212.62 with Yuma Kagiyama leading on 227.09.

16:09 Grassl struggles in new boots, Kagiyama sets the target

It was all a bit of a grind for Daniel Grassl who was wearing new skating boots having ditched his old pair, which were falling apart, after Thursday's short program.

The Italian national champion fell on his opening quad Lutz and stepped out of a triple Axel before falling on a double Axel late on. The home crowd got behind the 17-year-old, but we'll see much better from him when he's broken those boots in.

His score of 123.71 took his total to 195.66. His lead won't last long with Yuma Kagiyama putting in an excellent skate after his disappointing short program.

The Japanese opened with a quad toe loop-double toe loop combination and jumped superbly apart from a fall on a second quad toe loop which he looked like completing.

The judges awarded him 155.90, five points down on his season's best, as the Japanese set a stiff target of 227.09. Based on what we've seen this season, that may win him a medal but there are still four skaters to come.

15:50 Junior Men warming up for free skate

Almost time for the junior men's free skate with home favourite Daniel Grassl first to go. He put a hand down when trying a quad Lutz in the warm-up. but he hopes to lands a quintuple in the future!

Russia's Andrei Mozalev leads by five points after the short program but it's very close behind. And don't write off Yuma Kagiyama, the runaway winner of the Japanese junior nationals, despite him being in sixth place.

Here's the order in which they will skate:

Daniel Grassl (ITA), Yuma Kagiyama (JPN), Petr Gummenik (RUS), Daniil Samsonov (RUS), Shun Sato (JPN), Andrei Mozalev (RUS).

15:28 Victory for Panfilova and Rylov

Apollinariia Panfilova and Dmitry Rylov take gold despite not being at their best.

The final pair, Kseniia Akhanteva and Valerii Kolesov, both had trouble on their synchronised jumps as they scored 113.04 for their free skate - fourth on the day but just about good enough to take bronze with 179.68 overall.

Diana Mukhametzianova and Ilya Mironov took silver after a big career-best free skate, missing out on gold by 0.86 points.

Iuliia Artemeva and Mikahil Nazarychev were fourth from Alina Pepeleva and Roman Pleshkov with Annika Hoche and Robert Kunkel in sixth.

Interviewed in front of the crowd afterwards, Panfilova said, "Today was not our best but we are definitely happy that we have won the Grand Prix Final. We will work hard to improve our elements."

15:12 Russia guaranteed junior pairs podium sweep

It's going to be the first Russian podium sweep in the junior pairs competition. But who will take gold?

There were five Russian duos in the competition with Germany's Annika Hoche and Robert Kunkel seemingly booked for sixth.

Diana Mukhametzianova and Ilya Mironov led with two pairs to go. They scored a personal best 119.47 in their free skate to post a total of 184.37.

Short program leaders Apollinariia Panfilova and Dmitry Rylov have just skated. It wasn't their best performance with Panfilova falling on a throw triple loop.

Their score of 116.43 was only good enough for second in the free skate, but they lead with a total of 185.23.

The final pairing of Kseniia Akhanteva and Valerii Kolesov is on the ice.

15:05 Chen doesn't think he'll match Hanyu's achievements

This press conference is a bit of a love-in but why not?

Nathan Chen says of Yuzuru Hanyu, "Everything that's he's accomplished already in the sport, to me, I don't think I'll ever be able to accomplish. He's truly this icon that I always look up to.

"Even now he's still completely capable of doing everything that I'm doing and even better so it's truly something that continues to motivate me."

Hanyu said, "Of course I can say I have two Olympic gold medals but these are past things. I want to live in the now. I want to compete more and more with Nathan and the other skaters. I wish with Javi [Fernandez] too (laughs)."

14:50 Hanyu says free skate now "up to 50 percent"

Despite his mistake in the short program and being without jumping coach Ghislain Briand until yesterday, Hanyu insisted the week was "a good experience".

At Skate Canada, he claimed his 'Origin' free skate was only at "20-30 percent". How about now?

Hanyu says, "Because I was able to land the quad Lutz, my free skate is up to 50 percent of perfection."

14:42 Hanyu says Chen is his "motivation for skating"

Nothing but huge mutual respect and admiration between the big two in men's figure skating with Kevin Aymoz delighted at taking bronze.

Before wishing Yuzuru Hanyu a happy birthday, Nathan Chen said, "I'm extremely happy with the score. I was happy that I was finally this season able to lay down two pretty solid relatively clean programs.

"I sort of improvised a triple Salchow instead of the flip I was planning. But beyond that, I was pretty happy with the jumps."

On his big rival, Chen added, "It's an amazing honour to be able to compete against Yuzuru. I've idolised him for years. Even now, he's still truly like a skating god to me. Of course, now Kevin, I've competed with him for a couple of years now and continue to see his improvement. It's amazing to see him now on the podium with us."

Hanyu joked, "Nathan is making it harder and harder in the figure skating. Why does he make it harder? I'm much older than him!

"I really love competing with him because... if I am alone to skate, if I'm the only one getting over 300 for the total score I feel really lonely, I can't find motivation for the skating. So here (gesturing to Chen) is my motivation for skating."

Aymoz said of his coach Silvia Fontana, who represented Italy at the 2006 Olympics held here in Turin, "I think Silvia skated the same program as me outside of the rink. Thank you to Torino and the audience gave me back what I shared. It was a great moment on ice.

"Right now I am a little bit confused because I never imagined to be next to these two guys one day so I am really happy."

14:28 And breathe...

Think we all need a lie down after that. The men's medallists are in a press conference right now and we'll bring you the best of that shortly.

On the ice is the junior pairs free skate which has just got underway.

14:03 World record and victory for Nathan Chen

He's not just beaten the free skate world record, he's obliterated it!

Nathan Chen scores 224.92, eclipsing his previous best set at this year's World Championships by over eight points. And he posts a new total world record of 335.30, beating his mark from Saitama by 12 points.

Quite magnificent from the American who wins this competition by almost 44 points.

Yuzuru Hanyu gave it absolutely everything on his 25th birthday, but it wasn't enough. He has a lot to find on his biggest rival - could we see the quad Axel in Montreal in March?

And well done to Kevin Aymoz who takes bronze in his first Grand Prix Final after the two skates of his life.

13:55 Chen brings it home

Simply magical from Nathan Chen dancing to music from the Elton John biopic Rocketman.

Five quads from the American, all of them were close to perfect, and we could be looking at a new world record. He's certainly done enough to take overall victory after holding a 13-point lead from the short program.

A fist pump at the end and he looks very relaxed in the 'kiss and cry' with coach Rafa Arutunian.

13:52 Just Chen to go

The score's in and it's perhaps not as high as expected. But Hanyu nods in agreement as 194.00 comes up which puts him on the lead on 291.43.

Now it's time for the Rocketman, the double world champion Nathan Chen. He's had a long wait but it doesn't seem to have bothered him at all. This is looking very good for the American.

13:47 Hanyu leaves it all out there

Wow! Yuzuru Hanyu has given everything in that free skate. Absolutely everything.

Five quads - including the return of the quad Lutz - all landed although a couple have gone to review. And the double Olympic champion was exhausted - singling what should have been the first of two triple Axels in combination near the end.

A big hug from Ghislain Briand afterwards and then a brief power failure inside the Palavela which has held things up slightly.

It will be enough for the lead but we're waiting for the score...

13:44 Aymoz wins medal. Now it's Hanyu time!

A scream and then tears of joy for Kevin Aymoz who scores a personal best 178.92 to go into the lead with 275.63.

Yuzuru Hanyu is putting together a quadfest to rival Nathan Chen's at PyeongChang 2018. Will it be enough?

13:40 Aymoz wows the crowd again!

What a start for Kevin Aymoz, landing his quad toe loop-triple toe loop combination really well. It looked like he had completed his second quad toe loop as well but just fell at the end of it.

The Frenchman shrugged that error off soon enough, getting right back into the groove and dancing with the expression and feeling he has become known for.

A sublime triple Axel was the pick of his remaining jumps. Jumping was once his weakness but he's come on leaps and bounds, literally, this season.

A huge ovation at the end of his skate and he can scarcely believe it. Wonderful stuff and his coach Silvia Fontana is almost in tears.

He said he was just glad to be in the Grand Prix Final, but now he looks sure to win a medal. Find out more about the 22-year-old here:

13:34 Samarin goes into the lead

After that strong start, Alexander Samarin had a hand down on his quad flip and then doubled what should have been a quad toe loop.

He's one of the bigger skaters in this competition and you could really see his stamina starting to ebb away later on.

He scored 167.51, 10 points down on his personal best, but that takes him into the lead on 246.83.

Now it's time for the top three from the short program with Kevin Aymoz the first to go.

13:26 Aliev given rousing reception

You can't fault the crowd here in Turin for their desire to see skaters give their best, and they did everything they could to help Dmitri Aliev get to the end of his free skate.

The Russian made a number of jumping errors and even fell on his closing camel spin. He was close to tears as he finished his routine but he'll surely learn from this experience.

He scored 131.26 for his free skate to give him a total of 220.04. Now it's the turn of his compatriot Alexander Samarin to try and break into the medal positions.

And it's a great start for Samarin as he lands his opening quad Lutz-triple toe loop combination.

13:18 Jin sets early target

Jin recovered well from his two early falls, but he won't trouble the podium spots with 160.77 on his free skate for 241.44 overall.

Dmitri Aliev has started with a great quad Lutz but then fell on his next element, a quad toe loop. And it's starting to unravel for the Russian who pops his next jump before falling on his attempted triple flip.

The crowd are doing their best to encourage him but he'll be pleased to get to the end of this routine.

13:09 Time for Jin to shine

Alexander Samarin struggled with his quads in the warm-up with Nathan Chen looking sharp.

The warm-up is over and Jin Boyang is underway.

Not a good start for the Chinese who falls on his opening quad Lutz. His quad toe loop-double toe loop combination was much better, but then he fell again on his second quad toe.

13:05 Hanyu lands quad Lutz in warm-up!

The six men were just introduced to the crowd with, unsurprisingly, Yuzuru Hanyu receiving the biggest cheer. And the atmosphere is electric.

Pleased to report that Jin Boyang is warming up having missed practice this morning.

Plenty of fans in Pooh Bear outfits in the stands and Hanyu has just landed a quad Lutz in the warm-up before going over to speak to his jumping coach Ghislain Briand who missed the short program due to a stolen passport. You can read about Briand's arduous trip to Turin in yesterday's blog.

12:55 Not long now...

An early start to the senior action here in Turin with Nathan Chen taking a 13-point lead over birthday boy Yuzuru Hanyu into the men's free skate which starts in less than 10 minutes.

After missing a combination in Thursday's short program, double Olympic champion Hanyu has as many as five quads planned for his free program, although he did not land his newly-reintroduced quad Lutz in practice this morning.

The order is:

Jin Boyang (CHN), Dmitri Aliev (RUS), Alexander Samarin (RUS), Kevin Aymoz (FRA), Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN), Nathan Chen (USA).

12:40 - Valieva in the holiday spirit

We've been chatting to ladies' Junior Grand Prix Final champion Kamila Valieva of Russia. Stay tuned for her holiday message...

12:20 - Fierce competition

If you weren't excited for the senior ladies free skate before that session, you might be now.

While Rika looks to be going for the quad Sal, it appears Trusova is indeed planning five quads in her free skate, while third-placed Shcherbakova has three.

Kostornaia and Zagitova, sitting first and second respectively after the short program, and fourth-placed Bradie Tennell all skated clean run throughs with the Russian leader landing two triple Axels.

The competition tonight promises to be fierce...

12:07 - Quad sal for Rika

It looks like Japan's Rika Kihira is ready to come back fighting in the free skate. The 17-year-old landed a quad Salchow in practice after marking it in her run-through. She's never landed the jump in competition. Will we see it happen tonight?

11:31 - The ladies are up

Here we go then, final practice session of the competition, and it's a full house of senior ladies on the ice.

All eyes will be on Alexandra Trusova, who fell in her short program on a triple Axel attempt and sits fifth in the standings, but could bring as many as FIVE quads to her free skate.

Current leader Alena Kostornaia, Olympic champion Alina Zagitova and quad-jumping youngster Anna Shcherbakova - all team-mates of Trusova under coach Eteri Tutberidze - are also in the medal hunt.

Fourth-placed Bradie Tennell of the USA and last year's winner, Rika Kihira of Japan, sitting last after a disappointing short program, round out the group.

10:57 - Sinitsina takes a fall

Group one have just finished practice in the senior ice dance. Russian Victoria Sinitsina took a hard fall after a lift during the run through, but she and partner Nikita Katsalapov finished the session.

Now on the ice - group two, including world champs Papadakis and Cizeron.

10:27 - Ice dance practice time

Next up on the rink for final practice it's the senior ice dancers. French world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron lead after the rhythm dance but only by a narrow margin after Papadakis slipped during the step sequence last night.

Last year's Grand Prix Final champions, Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue, are close behind in second, while compatriots Madison Chock and Evan Bates round out the leading three.

It's set to be an exciting finale with just five points between the top six.

09:43 - Love for the Olympic champions

Plenty of fan banners around the Palavela arena today for reigning Olympic champions Alina Zagitova and Yuzuru Hanyu.

08:58 - Last practice for junior men

The junior men are on the ice, with Russian Andrei Mozalev leading after the short program. The Eteri Tutberidze-trained Daniil Samsonov, also of Russia, is second and Japan's Shun Sato third.

First up for the run through is Daniel Grassl, the sole Italian competitor at the competition. We had a chat with Grassl earlier this week and he told us he's keen to become the first skater to land a five-rotation quintuple jump!

08:26 - Happy Birthday to Hanyu!

The double Olympic champion turns 25 today and the dedicated fans here at the Grand Prix Final in Turin, many decked out in Winnie the Pooh gear, had a message for their hero.

Will he crown the big day with success in the free skate in a few hours?

07:45 - Solid run-throughs

Hanyu chose not to go for the quad Lutz in the run-through of his free skate, 'Origin', marking the jump, but landed four other quads and also included the impressive new triple Axel, triple Axel, sequence to finish.

Skating last, leader Nathan Chen also looked strong in the run through of his 'Rocket Man' free skate, landing five quads.

A few tries but no quad Lutz landed in practice for Hanyu, and no quad Axel attempts today after the Japanese skater made a surprise go at the jump in yesterday's session.

07:05 - Ghislain makes it to Turin

Hanyu had been without a coach so far at the Grand Prix Final after Ghislain Briand was delayed due to a stolen passport.

The jumping coach is at the boards this morning and received a warm cheer from the crowd when he appeared.

The men are on the ice but just five of the six skaters in the final group are in this session, with China's Jin Boyang not present.

06:57 - Early start

It's an early start at the Palavela this morning for 07:00 practice but that hasn't stopped hordes of fans braving the cold and coming to see their idol Hanyu on his 25th birthday today, with queues outside the arena ahead of kick-off.

06:55 - Welcome back!

Welcome to day three of our live blog from the 2019 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Turin.

The first competition of the day will be something to savour with Nathan Chen and Yuzuru Hanyu going head-to-head in the men's free skate at 13:00.

Chen leads by almost 13 points after Thursday's short program, but double Olympic champion Hanyu could jump as many as five quads in the free skate, including the newly-reintroduced quad Lutz.

The juniors then take centre stage at the Palavela before ice dance world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron bid to stay in front in the free dance at 19:25.

And the action draws to a close with the ladies' free skate at 20:55, with Alena Kostornaia leading the way after her world record short program score.

Reigning world and Olympic champion Alina Zagitova is second from Anna Shcherbakova, but can Alexandra Trusova move up from fifth place with what promises to be a quad-packed program?

Last year's winner Rika Kihira and Bradie Tennell of the USA complete the line-up.

Recap of day 2 at the 2019 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final

When is the Grand Prix final?

Saturday 7 December

13:00 Men Free Skate

14:20 Junior Pairs Free Skate

15:45 Junior Men Free Skate

18:00 Junior Ice Dance Free Dance

19:25 Ice Dance Free Dance

20:55 Ladies Free Skate