3-time US champ Chen begins season at Skate America
Three-time U.S. champion Nathan Chen will begin his 2019-20 figure skating season at Skate America in Las Vegas.
Chen, who has won the last two world titles, will be joined by defending national champion ice dancers Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue and pairs Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDuc for the event that opens the Grand Prix season on Oct. 18-20.
Bradie Tennell, the 2018 U.S. champ, will headline the American women's contingent for the event.
Chen, a full-time student at Yale, also will participate in the Internationaux de France, the third of six competitions leading to the Grand Prix Final, which will be staged in Turin, Italy, from Dec. 5-8. Chen took the gold medal at the 2018 final, as did Hubbell/Donohue.
Top foreign entries in Las Vegas will include China's Boyang Jin and Michal Brezina of the Czech Republic in the men's field; Kaori Sakamoto and Mako Yamashita of Japan and Russia's Elizaveta Tuktamysheva in the women's event; China's Cheng Peng and Yang Jin in pairs; and Russia's Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin in ice dance.
Two-time Olympic gold medalist Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan will make his season debut at Skate Canada. 2018 women's Olympic champ Alina Zagitova begins her season at Internationaux de France.
The top six finishers in overall points in each discipline qualify for the final. Each competitor can accrue points from only two events.