Canada's Gabrielle Daleman in Four Continents medal mix after skating to 4th in short program
2-time national bronze medallists Alicia Fabbri, Paul Ayer 4th in rhythm dance
Gabrielle Daleman is in the hunt for a medal at the Four Continents Championships in Beijing.
The two-time Olympic figure skater from Newmarket, Ont., landed three triple jumps to score 67.69 points in a clean short program Thursday, placing fourth heading into Friday's free skate.
Japanese skaters occupied the top three positions. Ami Nakai led the field with 73.83 points, followed by Yuna Aoki (71.41) and Mone Chiba (68.07). Each of them will compete in February at the Milan-Cortina Olympics.
Daleman is competing in just her second international competition since missing the 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons with a back injury and two ankle surgeries.
The 28-year-old returned this season with hopes of becoming the first Canadian woman to reach three Olympics in singles, but Madeline Schizas earned Canada's lone spot for February's Milan-Cortina Winter Games.
Schizas won her fourth national title at the Canadian championships in Gatineau, Que., on Jan. 11, while Daleman claimed a silver medal. Several Olympic-bound skaters, including Schizas, are not competing at Four Continents because of its close timing with the Games.
Elsewhere, two-time national ice dance bronze medallists Alicia Fabbri and Paul Ayer sat fourth following the rhythm dance.
Olympic ice dancers Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik led an American sweep.
The recently-crowned U.S. silver medallists, Zingas and Kolesnik scored 79.97 points for their rhythm dance to edge Caroline Parsons and Michael Brown, who scored 78.66 points. Oona Brown and Gage Brown were third with 74.24 points.
Typically, very few figure skaters heading to the Winter Games will compete at Four Continents in an Olympic year. But Zingas and Kolesnik are trying to take advantage of one last opportunity on an international stage to sort out the details of their two programs before the Milan Cortina Games begin in just under two weeks.
Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Ethier, who are three-time reigning Canadian pairs bronze medallists, were fifth after their short program.
Two-time reigning U.S. champions Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov were third after the short program at the National Indoor Stadium, the site of ice hockey games at the Beijing Olympics four years ago. Efimova and Mitrofanov were hoping that she would gain American citizenship in time to compete in Milan, but the Finnish skater's passport did not come through in time.
Olympic rules state that athletes must be citizens of the nations they represent in order to compete.
The Chinese team of Sui Wenjing and Han Cong, who are favoured to defend their Olympic pairs gold medal, led after their short program at Four Continents with 76.02 points. Yuna Nagaoka and Sumitada Moriguchi of Japan were second with 71.95 points, and Efimova and Mitrofanov were right behind with 71.85.
Four Continents continues Friday with the free dance and the women's free skate. The men's short program and pairs free skate are Saturday before the competition concludes Sunday with the men's free skate.
With files from Dave Skretta, Associated Press
