While the 2019-20 season ended abruptly with the cancellation of the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2020 in Montreal last week, there are still plenty of memorable moments from the season that none of us will soon forget.
From
Nathan Chen's four-peat at the 2020 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships to
Gracie Gold's return to the sport's spotlight, we've chosen 11 moments in time that we won't soon forget from the season past – and we're pretty sure you won't forget them, either.
Chen-pion Once Again: Nathan Chen Delivers Four-peat
Not since Brian Boitano in 1985-88 has an American man won four U.S. titles in a row. While we're used to Chen creating his own history each year, the 20-year-old did something no one had in 32 years, with Boitano watching from center-ice seats at the Greensboro Coliseum.
Chen had another season to remember, with golds at Skate America and Internationux de France during the Grand Prix Series, and then his third consecutive Grand Prix Final title, this one with a win over Yuzuru Hanyu. Chen has won every single competition since the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang.
"I'm proud of my season. I'm happy with the results," Chen told reporters after Worlds was canceled. "I learned a lot from the season and I want to use that to my advantage in the future."
Back (to Back) for More: Alysa Liu Repeats
While it was four titles in a row for Chen, it was two-for-two for 14-year-old
Alysa Liu, the jumping wunderkind who defended her title with three triple Axels across two programs and a demonstrated maturity 12 months on from her debut win.
In August, Liu also became the first U.S. woman to land a quadruple jump in competition while at the Junior Grand Prix stop in Lake Placid, New York. She'd finish her season with a bronze medal at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2020 in Tallinn, Estonia.
And for a second season in a row, Liu created an iconic moment at the medal podium, asking for help up to the top spot from
Mariah Bell and
Bradie Tennell. "(They said), 'We can help you up again. And I was like, 'OK!' We just kind of recreated that moment from last year."
The Knierims' Big Rebound – and Chris Says Goodbye
After the 2019 U.S. Championships in which wife-husband pairs team
Alexa Knierim and Chris Knierim finished a career-low seventh place, the duo turned in a more consistent fall Grand Prix season, settling into new digs in Southern California as they readied for January.
What they found there was brilliance: They took a nearly seven-point lead after the short program, then held off training mates
Jessica Calalang and Brian Johnson in the free for their third career U.S. pairs title, and first since 2018.
While Alexa jumped for joy for the title, it was a bittersweet feeling for Chris. A few weeks later, he would announce his retirement, saying it was time for him to step away. As Alexa plans to keep skating, the Knierims' partnership – in skating, that is – ends on a high note: another U.S. title in Greensboro.
"I think we brought a different kind of connection than any other teams. We had big, explosive elements," Chris told me on the Ice Talk podcast. "I hope I can inspire some younger skaters to push through adversity… and follow their dreams."
Chock and Bates Have a Lucky Charm: Greensboro
It was a dreamy season for
Madison Chock and Evan Bates, who won their second U.S. title five years after their first, but in the same exact arena in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Their "Egyptian Snake" free dance became a web favorite, with 1.8 million views on their performance from U.S. Championships alone. With the season finishing unexpectedly at Four Continents, Chock and Bates won their second consecutive Four Continents title in Seoul.
Head-to-head, they went 3-0 against training mates and compatriots
Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, setting up what could be an electric next couple of seasons in U.S. ice dance in the lead-up to 2022.
Mariah Bell's Magnificent Free Skate — and Season
"Looking back at this season it was by far the best one of my career," Bell said the day Worlds was canceled.
You had to look no further than Bell's free skate at U.S. Championships, arguably the singular most electric moment of the week (year?!), as Bell crafted a chilling, stirring, complete performance from front to back, a standing ovation erupting inside the arena and Bell breaking down into tears as Adam Rippon, her choreographer, cheered rink side.
Bell would finish second at U.S. Championships, while also garnering two bronzes on the Grand Prix circuit.
"I will look back at this season with a lot of great memories and good feelings about it," she said. "It gave me a lot of motivation and excitement looking forward to next season."
Calalang and Johnson Make Their Move
If there was an award handed out for "breakout stars" in American figure skating this season, it would no doubt go to Calalang and Johnson, who were competing together for just a second year, but who grew from competition to competition as the season went on.
Perhaps no moment was as big as their free skate at U.S. Championships, which was skated sans any major mistakes and received positive grades of execution across the board. A standing ovation was buoyed by their seven-point differential over the Knierims, who placed second in the free.
They'd go on to place fourth at Four Continents, winning the small bronze medal for their free skate, and were selected for Worlds after the Knierims' withdrawal. Are they the U.S. team to beat next year? Sure looks like it.
Jason Knows How: Wows at U.S. Champs Once Again
Since his breakout performance at the U.S. Championships in 2014,
Jason Brown has been a mainstay in U.S. men's skating, his artistry-meets-athleticism style captivating audiences around the world.
But as the Chicago native made his journey up north to work with Brian Orser and Tracy Wilson in Toronto, he went through ebbs and flows in his skating, openly talking about the fundamental changes he was trying to make – and still chasing that illusive quad.
He brought all of that and more to the ice in Greensboro, skating to his chilling rendition of "Schindler's List" and captivating our eyes – once again. His silver medal would be his best finish at U.S. Championships since winning the title in the same arena five years prior. He went on to capture the silver medal at Four Continents in Seoul, delivering two near perfect skates.
Perhaps the most emblematic? Brown stood up on a downgraded quad toe in the free in Greensboro. And while the jump wasn't exactly what he wanted, he had achieved something big in staying upright on it, and, in turn, turned in a performance for the ages. (Again.)
Jason, what would we do without you?
Bradie Tennell Bounces Back for Four Continents Medal
While many "moments" trace back to Greensboro, it was actually a few weeks later that Tennell can point to, when the American won her first medal at an ISU Championships event by capturing bronze at Four Continents.
Tennell has turned herself into an international mainstay after just three seasons at the senior Grand Prix level: This year she made the Grand Prix Final, was second at Skate America, and – along with Liu and Bell – is part of a trio of American ladies looking to push each other to the top of the sport.
Vincent Zhou Leaves School, Returns to Glory
While every skater has their own journey, Zhou's is another that fans have followed closely, as the 2019 World bronze medalist started college this fall, attending Brown University. After finishing third at U.S. International Figure Skating Classic in September, Zhou pressed pause on his skating to focus on academic pursuits. He announced in early January, however, that he would be leaving school and moving to Toronto, where he would work with Lee Barkell, Lori Nichol and Mie Hamada.
With unknown expectations after two months completely off the ice, Zhou was lights out at U.S. Championships. He skated a clean short program and then an inspiring free, met with a roaring reception, good enough for fourth place.
"If I learned anything from this past weekend, it's that I'm highly resilient and capable of more than I know," Zhou wrote on Instagram.
How true is that?
Denney and Frazier Have Standout Grand Prix Series
There was no fairy tale finish for
Haven Denney and Brandon Frazier at the U.S. Championships, where the 2017 U.S. champions finished fifth.
Yet no American pair had as dreamy of a Grand Prix season as Denney and Frazier, the team skating to bronze-medal finishes at both Skate America and Internationaux de France, finishing just two spots off the Grand Prix Final list.
The "moment" for them was no doubt their free skate to "Lion King," revamped from the 2014-15 season and with a chilling, how-do-they-do that finish, incorporating a series of lifts that would be deemed difficult even if performed in the opening seconds. They did it in the closing seconds. An ode – and reminder – of their staying power.
Gracie Gold's Perfectly Imperfect Comeback
Gold's journey is one we've all followed the past few years, as the 2014 Olympic Team Event bronze medalist and two-time U.S. champion worked her way back after battling through issues stemming from anxiety and depression.
But no one knew what kind of skate Gold, 24, would be able to deliver when she began her free skate inside the Greensboro Coliseum. What we got? An imperfect, yet inspired and emotional showing from an athlete who left her heart on the ice, skating to "She Used to Be Mine" and proving – to herself more than anyone else – that she could indeed, make her way back.
"I've never experienced the whole arena, pulling for my existence, on the ice," Gold said of the reception she got. "We started the car… and now we shift from first to second gear. All the way up to sixth."
Your Turn
You can relive all of the big moments from the season with the
Figure Skating Pass on NBC Sports Gold.
And most importantly, stay safe and healthy!
