Blackwell Leads Team Representing the United States at Junior Grand Prix Azerbaijan

Reigning U.S. junior bronze medalist Patrick Blackwell leads a rising U.S. delegation this week at the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series event in Baku, Azerbaijan, the fifth of seven Junior Grand Prix competitions.

The U.S. Junior National Team will send two entries each in the women's, men's and ice dance events. Competition runs Sept. 23-26 at the Heydar Aliyev Sports & Concert Complex.

Blackwell arrives in Azerbaijan on the heels of his silver-medal winning performance at the JGP event in Thailand, where he claimed his second career JGP silver medal.
 
He is joined by newcomer Caleb Farrington, making his first JGP appearance. Farrington made his international debut at the 2024 Tayside Trophy, finishing fifth, while most recently competing at the Cranberry Cup International in August 2025, where he recorded a seventh-place finish.  
 
2024 U.S. novice bronze medalists, Anaelle Kouevi and Yann Homawoo, will attempt to earn their first Junior Grand Prix ice dance medal this week. They most recently finished eighth at this season's JGP in Turkey.
 
Also taking the ice for U.S. Figure Skating in ice dance are new partners Jane Calhoun and Mark Zheltyshev, who began skating together in June 2025. This will be the second international event for the Colorado Springs pair, who finished fifth in their debut at the 2025 Lake Placid Ice Dance International.
 
Jiaying Ellyse Johnson and Hannah Kim will both be making their JGP debuts, looking to build their résumés in Azerbaijan in the women's competition.

Johnson has twice competed at the U.S. Championships as a junior, finishing sixth and seventh. She previously represented the U.S. at 2024 Tayside Trophy, where she earned a silver medal, and twice at the Cranberry Cup International, capturing fifth and sixth-place finishes.  

Kim will be representing the red, white and blue for the first time in international competition. She most recently finished ninth at the 2025 U.S. Junior Championships.

Competition commences Wednesday with the men's and women's short program. The rhythm dance and men's free skate take place Thursday. The free dance and women's free skate wrap things up Friday.

Fans can watch all the action from Junior Grand Prix Azerbaijan, as well as the entire Junior Grand Prix Series, live on the ISU YouTube channel.

The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series, which started in 1997, consists of seven international events in a cumulative point-scoring format. Each athlete is eligible to score points in two of the seven scheduled events (pairs can compete in two of four designated events). The top six point-earners in each discipline qualify for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final 2025, taking place Dec. 4-7 in Nagoya, Japan.

For more information on the Junior Grand Prix Series, including full results, news and more, visit the Junior Grand Prix Competition Central on the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.