Yamamoto Sota sneaks ahead of favourite Cha Junhwan to lead after Skate Canada short

The Japanese skater used a strong program to out-perform the reigning world silver medallist, leading Cha by three points into the free skate. Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps are first in pairs. 

5 minBy Nick McCarvel
Yamamoto Sota is chasing a first Grand Prix gold
(2022 Getty Images - Photo by Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images)

Last year on the figure skating Grand Prix Series, it was three events and three silver medals for Japan's Yamamoto Sota.

The 23-year-old looks to change that this weekend (27 & 28 October) at Skate Canada International, where he has the lead after the men's short program.

Reigning world silver medallist Cha Jun-hwan skated last on Friday night in Vancouver, but fell on his second jump, a quadruple toe-loop, giving Yamamoto the lead, 89.56 points to 86.18.

Yamamoto's teammate Tomono Kazuki sits third at 81.63.

Skate Canada is the second of six Grand Prix stops in the Series, which will culminate with December’s Grand Prix Final in Beijing, People's Republic of China.

Yamamoto had silvers at both Grand Prix of France and NHK Trophy in Japan before nabbing the same medal at the Final in Turin. He then was 15th in his debut at the World Championships in March.

Japan's Miura Kao (80.80) and Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan (79.18) round out the men's top five.

In pairs, Canadians Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps, the favourites coming in, delivered on their short program, scoring a 72.25 to garner a seven-point advantage heading into the free skate.

Olympic Membership | Free Live Stream Sports & Original Series - click to join now!

Yamamoto Sota: 'I want to show people the 'new' me'

Yamamoto's "Chameleon" short program was chosen by renowned choreographer David Wilson, and the Japanese skater set out to show Wilson and skating fans a "new" Sota, he said.

"I would give myself a passing grade for the first Grand Prix performance of the season," he said via an interpreter.

Yamamoto opened with a quad toe triple toe combination, then a quad Salchow and triple Axel; the Salchow he dug deep to save on the landing. Though he was docked on points for that save, he was otherwise solid, giving a look a determined satisfaction as he finished centre ice.

"During my practice, my body felt a little bit heavy this morning," Yamamoto explained. "I tried to psyche myself up and was able to get a good performance out of myself."

Cha said he was "not very happy about my performance today," but chalked up his struggles to it being the first Grand Prix of the season. He said he was committed to keeping two quads in his short, having done a quad Salchow double toe combo to open.

"There will be more fighting tomorrow," he said of the free skate.

Over the summer, the world runner-up split with longtime coach Brian Orser, the 1988 Olympic silver medallist, after some nine years together. "I was working with Brian for such a long time," he said, adding: "But since Covid I've been three-fourths in Korea... and I have university [there], too. I'm trying my best with the position I'm in. I'm working really hard."

All three top skaters expressed respect and admiration for one another during the short program press conference, with Yamamoto and Tomono having trained together since they were kids.

Along with Miura, the top four men are separated by less than 10 points, making Saturday's (28 October) free skate that much more intriguing.

Pairs short: Canadians warming up to 'favourite' status

Skating to an "Oxygene" medley - an ode to Maxime's hometown of Montreal - Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps performed as the last pair, having finished fourth at Worlds earlier this year.

They were sterling from element to element, earning positive GOEs (Grades of Execution) across their score sheet, including for a massive triple twist to open - and then later for a throw triple loop.

The pair is settling more and more into its 'favoured' role after a strong showing last season.

"It's new for us to be expected to win," Stellato-Dudek said. "Last year anything we won it was like, 'Oh! That's a surprise.' Because it wasn't expected. This year, we walked into a new experience. But if you want to be good. you have to learn how to deal with the pressure. Hopefully this will add up and help us in the future."

"We go there to improve ourselves, to beat ourselves," added Deschamps. "We are alone on the ice. We skate first, last, we just want to improve."

Italians Lucrezia Beccari and Matteo Guarise are second with a 65.83, while Anastasia Golubeva and Hektor Giotopoulos Moore of Australia sit third at 62.80.

Italy has seen a strong surge among its pairs teams since the Beijing 2022 Winter Games, with Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii winning bronze at Worlds a year ago. Guarise said the teams all drive one another, training in the same venue in Bergamo, Italy.

"I have to say thank you to the other Italians, especially Sara and Niccolo," said Guarise, who previously skated with Nicole Della Monica. "We are pushing a lot, [but] we joke a lot, too. For me it's very important... now I'm working like never before. I hope people can see that. It's very exciting for me."

Skate Canada 2023: Schedule

All times listed in local Vancouver time, Pacific Daylight Time. (GMT -7)

Saturday, 28 October
13:15 – Women's free skate
15:25 – Ice dance free dance
18:00 – Pairs free skate
19:37 – Men's free skate

Sunday, 29 October
14:00 – Exhibition gala

You can see the full official schedule here.

Skate Canada 2023: How to tune in

American fans can catch the action via livestream on Peacock throughout the weekend. NBC will host a recap show at noon ET the following weekend, on Saturday (4 November).

See the full U.S. broadcast schedule here. Canadians can watch on CBC and its subsequent platforms. 

For international fans, the ISU provides a "where to watch" page here. Some regions may be geo-restricted when it comes to availability.

More from