2011–12 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating


The 2011–12 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating was a series of senior international figure skating competitions in the 2011–12 season. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies singles, pair skating, and ice dancing at six invitational competitions in the fall of 2011. Skaters earned points based on their placement at each event and the skaters who finished in the top six in each discipline qualified to compete at the Grand Prix Final, held in Quebec City, Canada.
The Grand Prix series set the stage for the 2012 European, Four Continents, and World Championships, as well as each country's national championships. The Grand Prix series began on 21 October 2011 and ended on 11 December 2011.
The Grand Prix was organized by the International Skating Union. Skaters competed for prize money and for a chance to compete in the Grand Prix Final. The corresponding series for junior-level skaters was the 2011–12 ISU Junior Grand Prix.

Schedule

Changes

The maximum number of entries at each event was reduced from twelve to ten in singles and from ten to eight in ice dancing. This reduced by twelve the number of available spots in each discipline. The number of spots for pairs had already been reduced to eight and remained at that level.
The number of possible events was increased to three for the top six in each discipline at the 2011 World Championships. This had been allowed in the early years of the Grand Prix series but reduced to two later. If all of the skaters accepted, it would reduce by six the number of available spots for other skaters, which combined with the reduction of entries, would result in 18 fewer spots available to other skaters in each discipline, compared to the previous season. The top six were offered a US $10,000 bonus to compete at three events but face a fine if they later withdraw, even for valid medical reasons. About 29% of the 24 skaters/teams opted for three events.
A minimum score requirement was introduced to the Grand Prix series for the first time.

General requirements

Skaters who reach the age of 14 by 1 July 2011 were eligible to compete on the senior Grand Prix circuit.
Minimum score requirements were added to the Grand Prix series and were set at three-fifths of the top scores at the 2011 World Championships. Prior to competing in a Grand Prix event, skaters were required to earn the following scores:
The International Skating Union decided that the minimums do not apply to "host picks", i.e. Canadians Adriana DeSanctis and Elladj Balde were allowed to compete at their home country's event, 2011 Skate Canada International, despite failing to reach the minimums at the 2011 Nebelhorn Trophy.

Assignments

The top six skaters/teams from the 2011 World Championships were seeded and assigned to two events. They also had the option of competing at a third event, receiving a US$10,000 bonus if they chose to do so, with their best two results counting toward qualifying for the Grand Prix Final. There were no substitutions of the seeded positions.
Skaters who placed 7–12 at 2011 Worlds were guaranteed two assignments. The remaining spots could be given to skaters who placed in the top 24 on the season's best score or world ranking lists. However, these skaters were not guaranteed any events, even if they had a higher Season's Best score than skaters in the top 12 at Worlds but did not compete at the event due to the three-per-country restriction.
The host country was allowed to assign three skaters/teams of their choosing from their country in each discipline.
Skaters who missed one or more seasons but had placed in the top six at any previous World Championships had the option of getting assignments to the Grand Prix under the "Come-back skaters" clause. They were obliged to commit to two events and could take advantage of this clause only once.
The following skaters have received assignments for one or more Grand Prix events:

Men

Ladies

Pairs

Ice dance

Replacements

A list of alternates was used to call up replacements, in the following order:
  1. Come-back skaters
  2. Skaters from split teams which had placed in the top 12 at a previous World Championships
  3. Skaters from the top 24 on the season's best list
  4. Skaters from the top 24 SB who have only one event
  5. All other skaters in the top 75 SB
  6. Winners of selected international competitions
Skaters from split teams which placed in the top 12 at the 2010 or 2011 World Championships and earned the minimum score in that period were not required to earn a new minimum with the new partner.

Medal summary

EventDisciplineGoldSilverBronze
Skate CanadaMen Patrick Chan Javier Fernández Daisuke Takahashi
Skate CanadaLadies Elizaveta Tuktamysheva Akiko Suzuki Ashley Wagner
Skate CanadaPairs Tatiana Volosozhar / Maxim Trankov Wenjing Sui / Cong Han Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford
Skate CanadaIce dancing Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje Anna Cappellini / Luca Lanotte

EventDisciplineGoldSilverBronze
Cup of ChinaMen Jeremy Abbott Nobunari Oda Song Nan
Cup of ChinaLadies Carolina Kostner Mirai Nagasu Adelina Sotnikova
Cup of ChinaPairs Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov Dan Zhang / Hao Zhang Kirsten Moore-Towers / Dylan Moscovitch
Cup of ChinaIce dancing Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev Maia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani Pernelle Carron / Lloyd Jones

EventDisciplineGoldSilverBronze
NHK TrophyMen Daisuke Takahashi Takahiko Kozuka Ross Miner
NHK TrophyLadies Akiko Suzuki Mao Asada Alena Leonova
NHK TrophyPairs Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov Narumi Takahashi / Mervin Tran Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy
NHK TrophyIce dancing Maia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje Elena Ilinykh / Nikita Katsalapov

EventDisciplineGoldSilverBronze
Trophée Eric BompardMen Patrick Chan Song Nan Michal Březina
Trophée Eric BompardLadies Elizaveta Tuktamysheva Carolina Kostner Alissa Czisny
Trophée Eric BompardPairs Tatiana Volosozhar / Maxim Trankov Vera Bazarova / Yuri Larionov Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford
Trophée Eric BompardIce dancing Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir Nathalie Péchalat / Fabian Bourzat Anna Cappellini / Luca Lanotte

EventDisciplineGoldSilverBronze
Rostelecom CupMen Yuzuru Hanyu Javier Fernández Jeremy Abbott
Rostelecom CupLadies Mao Asada Alena Leonova Adelina Sotnikova
Rostelecom CupPairs Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov Stefania Berton / Ondřej Hotárek
Rostelecom CupIce dancing Meryl Davis / Charlie White Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev

EventDisciplineGoldSilverBronze
Grand Prix FinalMen Patrick Chan Daisuke Takahashi Javier Fernández
Grand Prix FinalLadies Carolina Kostner Akiko Suzuki Alena Leonova
Grand Prix FinalPairs Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy Tatiana Volosozhar / Maxim Trankov Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov
Grand Prix FinalIce dancing Meryl Davis / Charlie White Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir Nathalie Péchalat / Fabian Bourzat

Top Grand Prix scores

Skaters ranked according to total score. The short and free columns break down the total score of a skater's best overall event into the short program and free skating.

Men

Top senior Grand Prix scores after six events: Skate America, Skate Canada International, Cup of China, NHK Trophy, Trophée Eric Bompard, Rostelecom Cup, and Grand Prix Final.
RankNameCountryTotalShortFreeEventDate
1Patrick Chan260.3086.63173.67Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
2Daisuke Takahashi259.7590.43169.32NHK Trophy2011-11-13
3Javier Fernández250.3384.71165.62Skate Canada2011-10-29
4Yuzuru Hanyu245.8279.33166.49Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
5Jeremy Abbott238.8282.66156.16Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
6Takahiko Kozuka235.0279.77155.25NHK Trophy2011-11-13
7Nobunari Oda227.1177.65149.46Cup of China2011-11-05
8Song Nan226.7572.72154.03Cup of China2011-11-05
9Michal Březina226.3579.01147.34Rostelecom Cup2011-11-26
10Artur Gachinski222.5481.64140.90Cup of China2011-11-05

Ladies

Top senior Grand Prix scores after six events: Skate America, Skate Canada International, Cup of China, NHK Trophy, Trophée Eric Bompard, Rostelecom Cup, and Grand Prix Final.
RankNameCountryTotalShortFreeEventDate
1Carolina Kostner187.4866.43121.05Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
2Akiko Suzuki185.9866.55119.43NHK Trophy2011-11-12
3Mao Asada184.1958.42125.77NHK Trophy2011-11-12
4Elizaveta Tuktamysheva182.8962.04120.85Trophée Bompard2011-11-19
5Alena Leonova180.4563.91116.54Rostelecom Cup2011-11-26
6Alissa Czisny179.1557.25121.90Trophée Bompard2011-11-19
7Mirai Nagasu173.2260.96112.26Cup of China2011-11-05
8Adelina Sotnikova169.7557.79111.96Rostelecom Cup2011-11-26
9Sofia Biryukova166.0756.30109.77Rostelecom Cup2011-11-26
10Ashley Wagner165.6555.88109.77NHK Trophy2011-11-12

Pairs

Top senior Grand Prix scores after six events: Skate America, Skate Canada International, Cup of China, NHK Trophy, Trophée Eric Bompard, Rostelecom Cup, and Grand Prix Final.
RankNameCountryTotalShortFreeEventDate
1Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy212.2669.82142.44Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
2Tatiana Volosozhar / Maxim Trankov212.0871.57140.51Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
3Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov197.8465.17132.67Rostelecom Cup2011-11-26
4Vera Bazarova / Yuri Larionov184.9159.06125.85Trophée Bompard2011-11-19
5Zhang Dan / Zhang Hao182.5463.43119.11Grand Prix Final2011-12-10
6Wenjing Sui / Cong Han180.8259.23121.59Skate Canada2011-10-29
7Kirsten Moore-Towers / Dylan Moscovitch177.4359.60117.83Skate America2011-10-23
8Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford176.6261.06115.56Trophée Bompard2011-11-19
9Caydee Denney / John Coughlin175.4059.62115.78Skate America2011-10-23
10Narumi Takahashi / Mervin Tran172.0957.89114.20NHK Trophy2011-11-12

Ice dancing

Top senior Grand Prix scores after six events: Skate America, Skate Canada International, Cup of China, NHK Trophy, Trophée Eric Bompard, Rostelecom Cup, and Grand Prix Final.
RankNameCountryTotalShortFreeEventDate
1Meryl Davis / Charlie White188.5576.17112.38Grand Prix Final2011-12-11
2Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir183.8471.01112.83Grand Prix Final2011-12-11
3Nathalie Péchalat / Fabian Bourzat169.6968.68101.01Grand Prix Final2011-12-11
4Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje166.0766.2499.83Grand Prix Final2011-12-11
5Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev163.5265.7397.79Cup of China2011-11-05
6Maia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani160.5565.5395.02Grand Prix Final2011-12-11
6Anna Cappellini / Luca Lanotte154.8761.9292.95Skate Canada2011-10-30
8Elena Ilinykh / Nikita Katsalapov149.4861.8387.65NHK Trophy2011-11-12
9Nelli Zhiganshina / Alexander Gazsi136.1255.6980.43NHK Trophy2011-11-12
10Madison Chock / Evan Bates135.1051.2484.67Skate Canada2011-10-30

Prize money and Grand Prix Final qualification points

The top finishers earned prize money, as well as points toward qualifying for the Grand Prix Final, according to the chart below.
After the last event, the 2011 Cup of Russia, the six skaters/teams with the most points advanced to the Grand Prix Final. If a skater or team competed at three events, their two best results counted toward the standings. There were seven tie-breakers:
  1. Highest placement at an event. If a skater placed 1st and 3rd, the tiebreaker was the 1st place, and that beats a skater who placed 2nd in both events.
  2. Highest combined total scores in both events. If a skater earned 200 points at one event and 250 at a second, that skater would win in the second tie-break over a skater who earned 200 points at one event and 150 at another.
  3. Participated in two events.
  4. Highest combined scores in the free skating/free dancing portion of both events.
  5. Highest individual score in the free skating/free dancing portion from one event.
  6. Highest combined scores in the short program/original dance of both events.
  7. Highest number of total participants at the events.
If a tie remained, it was considered unbreakable and the tied skaters all qualified for the Grand Prix Final.

Qualification standings

Bold denotes Grand Prix Final qualification.
PointsMenLadiesPairsIce dance
30 Patrick Chan Elizaveta Tuktamisheva Tatiana Volosozhar / Maxim Trankov
Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy
Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov
Meryl Davis / Charlie White
Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir
28 Mao Asada
Carolina Kostner
Akiko Suzuki
Maia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani
26 Daisuke Takahashi
Jeremy Abbott
Michal Březina
Javier Fernández
Alissa Czisny Zhang Dan / Zhang Hao Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev
Nathalie Pechalat / Fabian Bourzat
Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje
24 Yuzuru Hanyu
Song Nan
Takahiko Kozuka
Alena Leonova
22 Adelina Sotnikova Narumi Takahashi / Mervin Tran
Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford
Kirsten Moore-Towers / Dylan Moscovitch
Anna Cappellini / Luca Lanotte
20 Mirai Nagasu
Ashley Wagner
Vera Bazarova / Yuri Larionov
Sui Wenjing / Han Cong
Stefania Berton / Ondrej Hotarek
Elena Ilinykh / Nikita Katsalapov
19
18 Adam Rippon Viktoria Helgesson Amanda Evora / Mark Ladwig Isabella Tobias / Deividas Stagniūnas
Nelli Zhiganshina / Alexander Gazsi
17 Nobunari Oda
16 Kevin van der Perren
Ross Miner
Caydee Denney / John Coughlin Pernelle Carron / Lloyd Jones
Madison Chock / Evan Bates
Ekaterina Riazanova / Ilia Tkachenko
15
14 Richard Dornbush
Artur Gachinski
Denis Ten
Kanako Murakami
Haruka Imai
13
12 Samuel Contesti Kiira Korpi Lubov Iliushechkina / Nodari Maisuradze
Jessica Dubé / Sébastien Wolfe
Huang Xintong / Zheng Xun
11 Elene Gedevanishvili
Ksenia Makarova
10
9 Andrei Rogozine Sofia Biryukova
Zhang Kexin
Maé-Bérénice Méité
Ksenia Stolbova / Fedor Klimov Penny Coomes / Nicholas Buckland
8 Konstantin Menshov Amelie Lacoste
7 Florent Amodio
Tomáš Verner
Christina Gao
Agnes Zawadzki
Katarina Gerboldt / Alexander Enbert Lorenza Alessandrini / Simone Vaturi
Kharis Ralph / Asher Hill
6
5 Alexander Majorov
Daisuke Murakami
Caroline Zhang Yu Xiaoyu / Jin Yang
Tiffany Vise / Don Baldwin
Dong Huibo / Wu Yiming
Ashley Cain / Joshua Reagan
Ekaterina Pushkash / Jonathan Guerreiro
Madison Hubbell / Zachary Donohue
Lynn Kriengkrairut/ Logan Giulietti-Schmitt
Yu Xiaoyang / Wang Chen
4 Kevin Reynolds
Sergei Voronov
Tatsuki Machida
Douglas Razzano
Cynthia Phaneuf
Sonia Lafuente
3 Armin Mahbanoozadeh
Wu Jialiang
Romain Ponsart
Geng Bingwa
Joelle Forte
Yretha Silete
Sarah Hecken

Medal standings