The U.S. Novice and Junior Challenge Skate continued on Friday with the novice ladies and men's free skates at the Skating Club of Boston's facility in Norwood, Massachusetts. The competition is in its second day of action and continues to run alongside the 2021 U.S. International Figure Skating Classic.
Novice Ladies Free Skate
Phattaratida Kaneshige won the gold medal, as the Broadmoor Skating Club athlete scored 100.38 points for her free skate to tally 145.34 overall. She completed a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination to open her performance and completed two Level 3 spins. The 12-year-old rallied back from a seventh-place short program to win the event.
"This was my first time skating in front of an international panel," Kaneshige said. "I think it was really fun to look at my scores in a new way. It was good to get a sense of where I am in my skating and where I can go."
The silver medal went to Elyce Lin-Gracey, who was less than a point behind Kaneshige. Lin-Gracey (Pasadena Figure Skating Club) totaled 145.22 points and notched 92.49 in her free skate, which included a triple Lutz-double toe loop and a triple Salchow-double toe loop.
Columbus Figure Skating Club's Lilah Gibson earned the bronze medal with a total score of 137.50 points and a free skate score of 90.98. During her program, she opened with a double Axel-double toe loop combination and immediately followed with a triple loop-double toe loop combination.
Novice Men's Free Skate
In the men's field, Aleksandr Fegan topped the podium with a total score of 142.12 points and a free skate score of 94.04. The Skating Club of New York athlete impressed the crowd with a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination and triple toe loop-double toe loop combination during his performance.
"I'm very proud to have won the competition and that I'm the youngest one here," Fegan said. "It's really fun when I am the youngest person."
From Warwick Figure Skaters, Patrick Blackwell claimed the silver medal with a total score of 132.31. He landed a triple toe loop-double toe loop combination and a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination to start his program, which earned 88.05 points.
With a total score of 121.08, Lucius Kazanecki earned the bronze medal. The North Jersey Figure Skating Club's 83.82-point free skate was highlighted by a successful double Axel-triple toe loop combination.
Tomorrow's events begin with the novice pattern dance, which is followed by the junior rhythm dance, the junior ladies short program and concludes with the junior men's short program.
Full results from the ladies and men's novice free skate programs are available here. Check out all of the weekend's Challenge Skate action live and on-demand on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
