Team USA Earns Two Medals in Japan

Team USA had another successful weekend at the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series in Osaka, Japan, with Leah Neset and Artem Markelov winning gold and Daniel Martynov taking home bronze.

With their second Junior Grand Prix gold, Neset and Markelov secured their spot in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final.

The two-time U.S. junior champions in ice dance, Neset and Markelov's earned 67.37 points in the rhythm dance to top the leaderboard. They concluded their program with their two strongest elements, a set of Level 4 sequential twizzles and a midline step sequence, contributing a combined 20.26 points to their final score.

In the free dance, the team opened with a set of Level 4 sequential twizzles and a circular step sequence. To conclude their program, Neset and Markelov impressed the judges yet again with their combination lift, which earned a Level 4 distinction and more than 13 points. Their skate to "Anytime Anywhere" by Sarah Brightman and "Cry" by Thomas Bergerson was awarded an international personal best 100.14 points and the duo remained undefeated on the season with a total score of 167.51.

Siblings Caroline Mullen and Brendan Mullen finished in fifth with a total score of 144.18.

In the men's event, Daniel Martynov clinched his first Junior Grand Prix medal, a bronze, thanks to international personal bests in the free skate and total score.

Performing to "Dawn of Faith" by Eternal Eclipse, Martynov came out strong in his short program, successfully executing a triple Axel, which received over 10 points. He went on to tally a score of 70.75.

To lock up a spot on the podium, Martynov earned international personal bests for his free skate and overall score with 137.23 and 207.98 points, respectively. He claimed positive grades of execution on his first seven elements, highlighted by a triple Lutz-double Axel-double toe loop sequence in the second half of his program that scored over 12 points.

Also representing Team USA was Michael Xie, who finished just off the podium in fourth with a total score of 204.13. Xie finished ninth after the short program but made a tremendous comeback, finishing third in the free skate thanks to three well-executed jump combinations. His free skate score of 140.51, as well as his total score, are both new international personal bests.

Competing for Team USA in the women's event was Mia Kalin. Kalin earned an overall score of 159.93, placing eighth.

For complete results, visit the U.S. Figure Skating Junior Grand Prix Competition Central.