Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara from Japan secured the second position in the pairs event at the Grand Prix Final for figure skating on Friday, falling short of the championship title they claimed two years prior. After finishing second in Thursday’s short program, Miura and Kihara took third place in the free skate with a […]
Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara from Japan secured the second position in the pairs event at the Grand Prix Final for figure skating on Friday, falling short of the championship title they claimed two years prior.
After finishing second in Thursday’s short program, Miura and Kihara took third place in the free skate with a score of 130.44, bringing their overall total to 206.71. Germany’s Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin dominated both segments to clinch victory for the second consecutive year, achieving a total of 218.10 in Grenoble, France.
Riku Miura (L) and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan compete in the pairs free skate during the Grand Prix Final figure skating event on Dec. 6, 2024, in Grenoble, France. (Kyodo)
Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava from Georgia finished third with a total of 205.78 points.
“To be honest, we were not up to a level worth discussing,” Kihara remarked, after they encountered three jumping errors and ended up nearly 14 points away from their best score in the free skate.
Japan’s Riku Miura (L) and Ryuichi Kihara take photos after achieving second place in the pairs category at the Grand Prix Final figure skating competition on Dec. 6, 2024, in Grenoble, France. (Kyodo)
In the men’s short program, Yuma Kagiyama from Japan was in second place after posting a score of 93.49, behind American leader Ilia Malinin who scored 105.43.
Kagiyama, who placed third at last year’s event, stumbled on his opening quadruple salchow but performed flawlessly for the remainder of his routine.
Yuma Kagiyama of Japan showcases his skills during the men’s short program at the Grand Prix Final figure skating competition on Dec. 6, 2024, in Grenoble, France. (Kyodo)
“I lost my balance with the quad salchow (after the landing),” he explained. “It’s frustrating, but I gave it my all.”
Mikhail Shaidorov from Kazakhstan ranked third with a score of 91.26, while Japan’s Shun Sato came in fourth with 86.28 among the six competitors.
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