Read the full story on SportsLook - [ICE TIME] Two-Time World Champions Uno, Sakamoto Headline Grand Prix Series
The start of the new skating season became official with the release of the Grand Prix Series assignments by the International Skating Union on Wednesday, June 28.
This campaign will be marked by the addition of some new names, subtraction of old names, return of others and the absence again of Russian skaters.
For the second year in a row, Beijing Olympic champion Nathan Chen will skip the GP season while focusing on his studies at Yale University. Vincent Zhou, the 2021 world bronze medalist, will also bypass the circuit again to do the same at Brown University.
The 2023 season will see the return of the Cup of China for the first time since 2020. Meanwhile, Grand Prix Espoo in Finland replaces the Cup of Russia for the second straight year.
Two-time world champion Shoma Uno will be skating close to home after being assigned to the Cup of China (November 10-12) and NHK Trophy (November 24-26). Uno will enter both events as the prohibitive favorite. He will be joined by compatriots Kazuki Tomono and Sota Yamamoto in Chongqing, where European champion Adam Siao Him Fa of France is also set to compete.
In Osaka, Uno will see fellow Beijing Olympic medalist Yuma Kagiyama in the lineup, along with Italy's Daniel Grassl and American Camden Pulkinen.
Kihira and Watanabe to Join Sakamoto at Skate Canada
Double world champion Kaori Sakamoto will start her GP campaign at Skate Canada (October 27-29) and then skate at Grand Prix Espoo (November 17-19). Two-time Japan titlist Rika Kihira and last season's Skate Canada winner Rinka Watanabe are also entered in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The 2022 season's GP Final winner Mai Mihara has drawn the Cup of China and the NHK Trophy. Mihara will be challenged in China by a lineup that includes Watanabe and Hana Yoshida, along with South Korea's Yelim Kim and American Bradie Tennell.
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Author: Jack Gallagher
The author is a veteran sports journalist and one of the world's foremost figure skating experts. Find articles and podcasts by Jack on his author page, and find him on Twitter @sportsjapan.
