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World Junior Figure Skating Championships
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The World Junior Figure Skating Championships are an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU). Medals are awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. The first World Junior Championships were held in 1976 in Megève, France.
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Currently, skaters competing at the junior level must be at least 13 years old, but not yet 19 (for singles skaters), 21 (for women competing in ice dance or pair skating), or 23 (for men competing in ice dance or pair skating), as of the previous July 1.
Adam Rippon of the United States currently holds the record for the most World Junior Championships won in men's singles (with two), while Mao Shimada of Japan holds the record in women's singles (with three). Natalia Krestianinova and Alexei Torchinski of the Soviet Union, and Sui Wenjing and Han Cong of China, are tied for the most championships won in pair skating (with three each), while Luka Berulava of Georgia has also won three championships in pair skating, but with different partners. Elena Krykanova and Evgeni Platov of the Soviet Union hold the record in ice dance (with three).
The 2026 World Junior Championships are scheduled to take place March 2–8 in Tallinn, Estonia.[1]
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History
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The ISU adopted legislation in 1975 establishing the Junior Figure Skating Championships. The championships were established on a two-year trial basis with the understanding that if they were successful, they would be renamed the World Junior Figure Skating Championships. The inaugural World Junior Championships took place in Megève, France, in 1976. No skaters were permitted to compete who had previously competed at the European Championships, World Championships, or the Winter Olympics, nor could they have previously won a medal at any international senior-level competition. Those prohibitions were removed in 1980.[2] Mark Cockerell of the United States won the inaugural men's event, while Suzie Brasher of the United States won the inaugural women's event. Sherri Baier and Robin Cowan of Canada won the inaugural pairs event, and Kathryn Winter and Nicholas Slater of Great Britain won the inaugural ice dance event.[2]
Controversy arose at the 1977 World Junior Championships when South Africa entered skaters in the competition. The Soviet Union filed a written protest with the ISU demanding that South African skaters be barred from competing in response to South Africa's apartheid policies. When the ISU refused, the Soviet Union and members of the Warsaw Pact (Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania) boycotted the competition.[2] In response, the ISU placed a "temporary restriction of not taking part in ISU championships" on skaters from South Africa, although South Africa was not expelled from the ISU.[2]
The competition was elevated to World status beginning in 1978, and the first official World Junior Championships were again held in Magève.[2]
The 2021 World Junior Championships were originally scheduled to be held in Harbin, China.[3] On November 24, 2020, the ISU announced the cancellation of the event, citing "the pandemic developments and related impact on the organizers and participants."[4] The World Junior Championships were the second ISU Championship event to be cancelled during the 2020–21 season, following the cancellation of the 2021 Four Continents Championships on October 16, 2020.[5] The 2020–21 ISU Junior Grand Prix series had also been cancelled earlier in the season, on July 20.[6] With the cancellation of the World Junior Championships, there was effectively no season for junior-level skaters during the 2020–21 season.[7]
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Qualifying
Skaters may compete at the World Junior Championships if they represent a member nation of the International Skating Union and are selected by their federation. Member nations select their entries according to their own criteria. Some countries rely on the results of their national championships while others have more varied criteria, which may include success at certain international events or specific technical requirements. All of the selected skaters must have earned the minimum total element scores, which is determined and published each season by the ISU during the current or immediately previous season. The number of competitors eligible to compete from ISU member nations is determined by the accumulation of points "equal to the sum of placements of their Competitors who were entered in this preceding season's Championships".[8]
Currently, skaters competing at the junior level must be at least 13 years old, but not yet 19 (for singles skaters), 21 (for women competing in ice dance or pair skating), or 23 (for men competing in ice dance or pair skating) as of the previous July 1.[9]
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Medalists
From left to right: Rio Nakata of Japan, the reigning World Junior champion in men's singles; Mao Shimada of Japan, the reigning World Junior champion in women's singles; and Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava of Georgia, the reigning World Junior champions in pair skating
Men's singles
Women's singles
Pairs
Ice dance
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Records
From left to right: Adam Rippon of the United States holds the record for the most World Junior championship titles in men's singles (two); Mao Shimada of Japan holds the record for the most World Junior championship titles in women's singles (three); Sui Wenjing and Han Cong of China are one of two teams who hold the record in pair skating (three); and Luka Berulava of Georgia also holds the record in pair skating (three; two of which were won with Anastasiia Metelkina).
- Luka Berulava won one championship title in pair skating while partnered with Karina Safina (2022) and two with Anastasiia Metelkina (2024–25).
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Cumulative medal count
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See also
References
Works cited
External links
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