Junior Grand Prix Final - American Lucas Broussard, Japan's Shimada Mao skate into lead after short program
It was high-quality skating on Thursday (8 December) afternoon in Turin, Italy, with the junior short programs kicking off the Grand Prix Final weekend.
Figure Skating
American Lucas Broussard and Shimada Mao of Japan picked up right where they left off.
Both figure skaters had won their two Junior Grand Prix appearances this season and they carried that momentum into Thursday (8 December) in their respective short programs at the Junior Grand Prix Final in Turin, Italy.
Broussard, a 16-year-old based in Seattle, kicked off proceedings at the Torino Palavela, which is hosting both the junior and senior events. It's the first staging of the Grand Prix Final since 2019, with the event being cancelled the last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Broussard lofted his arms over his head as his 81.11 score came through, which put him ahead of Italy's Nikolaj Memola at 79.84. Nakamura Shunsuke of Japan is in third (74.81).
Shimada, just 14, was also the final skater in the junior women's event and was pure across the ice, scoring a 69.66 to edge the Republic of Korea's Shina Ji-a, who notched a 69.11. Kim Chaeyeon (KOR) sits third with a 66.71.
Junior men: 'Proud' Lucas Broussard into first place
After strong skates from Nakamura and Memola before him, Broussard hit a triple Axel to open in his "Adios Nonino" short, then a triple Lutz-triple toe-loop combination before a triple loop to close. He received the highest scores across both the Technical and Program Components.
Broussard won Junior Grand Prix events in Poland and Italy, the only man to win two events this season.
"I'm proud of myself that I was able to come into a big competition where there are a lot of people and I was able to skate well," Broussard told reporters. "I completed my goals - I thought the jumps were good.
He added: "My expectations weren't exceedingly high... I took a week off for a hip thing and I wasn't all together put together. My goal for the free is to keep it together. I know that endurance-wise I'm OK."
Junior women: Shimada Mao holds off Shin
Like Broussard, Shimada was the last to skate on Thursday afternoon. Earlier this season she won JGP events in Czechia and Poland, and she carried that same confidence into Turin.
Skating to Hans Zimmer's Lion King medley, an energetic Shimada landed a triple loop to open, then a double Axel (she opted not to do her triple) and then a triple Lutz-triple toe-loop combo, though she was called for a quarter under-rotated on the Lutz.
She and Shin, the reigining world junior silver medallist, were virtually tied for their technical marks, but it was Shimada who was stronger in the Program Components.
Shimada is named for Japanese skating legend Asada Mao, the Vancouver 2010 silver medallist and a three-time world champion. Find out more about Shimada here.
Said Shimada via an interpreter: "I was feeling nervous, but my coach told me I should enjoy as I'm a challenger. Since I was able to compete at this stage, I told myself to enjoy this."
She added: "I didn't expect that I can start at the top, so I am very surprised."
In the junior pairs short program, the American duo of Sophia Baram and Daniel Tioumentsev lead by some three points, scoring a 63.62.