Zingas and Kolesnik lead all-American podium at Four Continents
2026 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships: Ice Dance
USA’s Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik won the Ice Dance title on Friday in Beijing, China, leading a U.S. sweep of the podium. Teammates Caroline Green and Michael Parsons and Oona Brown and Gage Brown took the silver and bronze medals, respectively.
Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik
Zingas and Kolesnik placed first (79.97) in the rhythm dance with their sharp and slick routine to “Poison.” They displayed deep edged in their level-three midline steps, while the level-four twizzles were fast. The rotational lift was graded a level four, and the national silver medalists showed good transitions throughout while picking up positive grades of execution (GOE) in all elements.
“We feel pretty good,” said Zingas. “We had a lot of fun skating today. I think every time we performed this rhythm dance it’s gotten a little bit more comfortable and just a little bit more enjoyable. This is our third time at Four Continents. Two of them have been in China and we’ve had success in Asia over the last few seasons. So, hoping it’s our good luck charm moving into the free tomorrow.”
“I think for sure that was a quick turnaround for us coming from one major competition to another,” agreed Kolesnik. “I’m pretty happy with the skate we put out today. The crowd was very supportive; I really appreciate that. I’m just overall happy to be able to compete here. In the free dance, we want just to go out there, have fun and try to do our best.”
“It’s been a great season; we had so much fun,” Zingas summed up. “Every competition this season, I think we just tried to forget about the expectation and just skate our absolute best. I’m really grateful that we put in the work in the offseason and we were able to just enjoy our performances and make some big strides. I’m really excited to go to the Olympics!”
The 2025-26 Grand Prix finalists delivered a passionate free dance to Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, placing first with a new personal best score of 122.89. All elements earned high GOEs, particularly the level-four rotational-stationary lift and level three diagonal steps. The dance spin and curve lift were also graded a level four, as were the twizzles. With a total score of 202.86, the team easily dominated the field for first place overall in their third appearance at this event.
“We feel really, really good and we have been looking for an international gold for the last few seasons now,” said Zingas. “To get it at an ISU Championship event, it feels amazing. To have the opportunity to compete here with the rest of the season that we had is unique. I’m really happy that we used the opportunity to the best of our ability and I’m just really excited for what the future holds.”
“I’m going to keep it super real. I am so happy, I’m probably in heaven right now,” said Kolesnik. “This is a dream coming true and I’m speechless. Coming here, that was an honor, and we just wanted to come here try our best and see where we are, but it worked out for us.”
Caroline Green and Michael Parsons
Green and Parsons entertained with their funky rhythm dance to “Groove is in the Heart” and “I’m Too Sexy.” Both the midline and pattern steps received a level three while the twizzles and rotational lift were graded a level four. All elements earned positive GOEs, and the 2022 Four Continents champions placed a close second in this segment with 78.66 points.
“It’s been a very interesting January for us,” said Parsons. “I think we’ve been dealing with a lot of emotions. So, to go out there and just skate the way that we love and to hit that end pose always feels really good. We love this program, we love being here, and we’re going to continue feeling that through tomorrow.”
“This program is just so ‘us,’ and to be able to go skate in front of an audience and have them appreciate it as much as we do, it’s such a great feeling,” Green added. “I think that’s something that we really took away from nationals going into this event. It’s not about the score, the placement, it’s about moments like this, where we’re able to skate for others to enjoy it.”
The three-time Grand Prix medalists put out an evocative free dance to “Escalate” and “Son of Nyx,” placing third in with a season’s best of 116.06. Parsons had a small bobble on the one-foot steps which were graded a level two. The twizzles were slightly out of synch which were graded a level four and only reflected in the GOE. Still, the team displayed strong level four lifts and showed deep edges throughout. The diagonal steps were graded a level two while the dance spin was a level four. With a total score of 194.72, they maintained second place overall.
“Today was definitely not our best performance of the season, but I think this is the best we can do today,” said Parsons. “We are really happy with that. We are honored to be competing in China; this is our first time in Beijing, and we are happy to see the crowd here. It’s great to be here with our teammates.”
Green said they were also proud of the risks they’ve taken creatively this season.
“I think there is a lot of ourselves in the free dance in particular, and to be involved in that creative process is something that we hold really close to our hearts,” she said. “So, to be able to deliver the skates like we wanted to at this event means so much to us.”
“Every year, every season that we have is different in many ways, and we’ve had some ups and downs since the last Olympic Games,” Parsons summed up. “To be in a very similar position where we’re alternates with the Games and successful at Four Continents, is bittersweet. It’s a huge honor, and it’s a mixture of pride for the work that we’ve done and pride for the team that we have here, and pride for the team that’s going to represent our country in the Olympics. It also hurts a little bit to not be part of the team, but it’s fuel. And so, we’re going to keep fighting and keep working.”
Oona Brown and Gage Brown
USA’s Oona Brown and Gage Brown placed the third with a new personal best of 74.24 points after their entertaining rhythm dance. The twizzles were graded a level four and two as Gage didn’t grab his blade during one set, and the midline steps were only graded a level one and three. Still, the rotational lift was rewarded a level four, and they receive positive GOEs throughout.
“We feel good about how we skated, but we can always improve upon ourselves,” said Gage. “We’re ready to make a big step tomorrow and put out a really good skate. We’re always excited to perform our free dance to The Godfather. With speed, with emotions and the overall quality of the skate, we know that we’re capable of putting out a really good free dance and we’re ready to do that for tomorrow.”
“We felt like we put out a strong performance and we were very happy with the scores that we got, the season’s best,” added Oona.
The two-time Challenger Series silver medalists earned a new season’s best of 116.54 for second place with their free dance to The Godfather. Their intriguing routine featured level-four twizzles, lifts, and dance spin while showing good speed and ice coverage throughout. The serpentine steps were graded a level two and three while the one-foot steps garnered a level three. With a total score of 190.78, they placed third overall in their debut at this event.
“We felt very happy and very relieved,” said Gage of their free dance. “We felt pretty nervous today, but we pushed those nerves aside. We performed pretty well and we are happy with that. We skated and the score we put out is the season’s best internationally for us, and a personal best. For our career, we’re really happy. For next season, we want to get very creative with both of our programs. We’ve already started to look for music for free dance, and we want to come up with something unique as we always try to do.”
“We were very happy for our first Four Continents to have a place on the podium and we’re really proud of the two programs that we put out,” added Oona. “Going into the free dance we were a little nervous, but we fought through that and so we’re super happy with the result.”
Alicia Fabbri and Paul Ayer
Alicia Fabbri and Paul Ayer produced a fun and energetic rhythm dance to “Bombastic,” “Oh Carolina,” and “Rock this Party,” placing fourth with a new season’s best of 73.20 points. The twizzles and rotation lift earned a level four, while the midline steps were graded a three and two. The pattern steps received a level three.
“We’re really happy to get the new season’s best,” said Fabbri. “We didn’t have that much time between Nationals and here. We had four days of training at home, so it was very quick. We’re really happy with how we skated. We just felt super calm and grounded. In tomorrow’s free dance, I think just coming in like we were today, just very calm, stay connected, and then bring the performance that we know we can bring.”
“We put in so much work into peaking at our national championships,” added Ayer. “A week and a half in between the two, we knew that we were ready to go, even though we were still pretty tired and not fully recovered. But I think with today, we did better in some instances than our previous competition, which is all we’ve always been wanting to do. Better than last time.”
The two-time national bronze medalists delivered a captivating free dance to “Leave a Light On,” earning a new personal best of 110.29 for fifth place in this segment. All three lifts, twizzles and the dance spin were graded a level four in their smooth routine. The midline steps received a three and two, while the one-foot steps were graded a level three. They maintained fourth place overall with a total score of 183.49.
“We felt pretty good, the free dance is always more tiring, but the whole day has felt really calm,” said Ayer. “And we’re really into the ice together. I think we portrayed that. We’re going to keep training as the first alternate, and we’re really happy we get two days to visit Beijing.”
The team didn’t have a lot of time for preparation after coming off nationals a week and half ago.
“We had four days of training at home, but we were ready, because we got ready for nationals,” said Fabbri. “Our goal here was just to come and get our season’s best, and that’s what we did, and we’re really happy of how we skated.”
Holly Harris and Jason Chan
Australia’s Holly Harris and Jason Chan had an error in the rhythm dance when Harris put her foot down on a twizzle, which were graded a level three and four. The midline steps received a level one and three, but the rotational was awarded a level four with positive GOEs. They placed fifth (68.33) in this segment going into the free dance.
“A little bit disappointed because I made a mistake,” said Harris of the twizzle. “So, I feel a little bad about that. But the rest of the program felt pretty strong. And what we’ve been doing in training, I think it was an improvement from our last competition.”
The two-time national champions produced an innovative free dance choreographed by Jean-Luc Baker which included strands from Clair de lune. Harris had a bobble on a twizzle which received a three and four, but all three lifts and the dance spin were graded a level four. The one-foot steps were graded a level three while the diagonal steps were a three and two. The placed sixth in this segment but maintained fifth place overall (108.75 / 177.08).
“I’m not fully satisfied with the performance, but I think it was a good steppingstone for us,” said Harris. “A lot of improvement on different elements, but still room to grow. We will prepare like we have for any other competition and just go back to training and really just work on a couple of little details and improving some GOE. We want to put out two good performances and show off our hard work for the season and bring it all together at the Olympics. And to qualify for the free dance.”
“We’ll just go back home and then rest,” said Chan. “We have a week until we leave for Milan. We will use that week to fix those little things. Historically, we’re just so proud.”
Hannah Lim and Ye Quan
South Korea’s Hannah Lim and Ye Quan placed seventh (66.05) in the rhythm dance after Quan made a costly mistake in the second set of twizzles which he received only a base value for. The rest of the routine was strong, with the pattern and midline steps receiving a level two, while the rotational lift was a level four.
“We focus a lot on the technical levels usually, but this competition we wanted to bring back more the performance,” said Quan. “I do think in terms of performance, we managed to stay in it. But obviously, with my mistake in the twizzle, we didn’t achieve the goal of getting our personal best. So obviously we were disappointed with that.”
The 2023 World Junior silver medalists gave a heartfelt free dance to “Adagio for Strings” and “Adagio” that was highlighted by three level-four lifts and dance spin. Quan struggled again on the twizzles, which were graded a level four and three. The one-foot steps received a level four and three, while the diagonal steps were graded a level three. However, the connection in their story-telling routine was very good, and they placed fourth in this segment, rising to sixth place overall (110.92 / 176.97).
“We felt really good,” said Lim. “I think I was a little nervous today, but we kept the story and the connection. We know that we made a little bit of mistakes, so we can work hard to do a better score and better performance at the Olympics.”
“We felt a little bit unstable,” agreed Quan of the free dance. “But we were concentrating on telling our story. My twizzles were unstable, so this one is a bit disappointing. We will go back to continue training.”
Utana Yoshida and Masaya Morita of Japan placed seventh (170.66) overall, followed by Lily Hensen and Nathan Lickers of Canada (164.56) and Shiyue Wang and Xinyu Liu of China (164.34).
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