2010–11 figure skating season


The 2010–11 figure skating season began on July 1, 2010, and ended on June 30, 2011. During this season, elite skaters competed on the ISU Championship level at the 2011 European, Four Continents, World Junior, and World Championships. They also competed in elite competitions such as the Grand Prix series and Junior Grand Prix series, culminating in the Grand Prix Final.

Season notes

This was the first season in which the short dance was contested in ice dance, having replaced the compulsory dance and original dance. The season's required pattern dance was the Golden Waltz or Viennese Waltz, and the other portion of the dance could be a waltz, foxtrot, quickstep, or tango.
Beginning in the 2010–11 season, a rule change allowed men to do two quads in the short program, if they were different jumps. In October 2010, Kevin Reynolds became the first skater to land two quads in a short program. He landed a quad salchow-triple toe loop combo and later a solo quadruple toe-loop at the 2010 Skate Canada International.
In December 2010, there was a tie for a medal at the Junior Grand Prix Final. In the ladies' event, China's Li Zijun and Japan's Risa Shoji were tied for third with an identical total score of 149.82. Li was awarded the medal on the tiebreaker.
The season also saw the coldest temperatures in many years at a major event. In January 2011 at the European Championships, temperatures at the Swiss venue dipped to as low as minus-3 Celsius, resulting in complaints and a promise for more vigilance in the future.
During the 2010–2011 season, controversy over age falsification reached the sport of figure skating, after previously being discussed in gymnastics and other sports. On February 14, 2011, questions emerged surrounding nine Chinese skaters. The Associated Press found that birthdates listed on the Chinese skating association's website suggested five female skaters, Sui Wenjing, Zhang Dan, Yu Xiaoyu, Geng Bingwa, and Xu Binshu, were younger than their stated ages, and four male skaters, Han Cong, Zhang Hao, Jin Yang, and Gao Yu, were older. The dates disappeared from the website by February 15. On February 17, the ISU said there were no discrepancies for Zhang Dan, Zhang Hao, and Xu Binshu between the birthdates listed on their passports, ISU registration forms and the Chinese Olympic Committee's website.
On March 14, 2011, the 2011 World Championships, scheduled to begin on March 21, were postponed due to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and its aftermath, and later reassigned to Moscow, Russia. It was the first disaster affecting the World Championships in 50 years. In 1961, the entire United States team was killed in a plane crash, resulting in its cancellation. The last time a World Championships was moved was in 2000, due to an alleged broadcasting dispute, and the new host, France, had seven months to prepare, with the event held in the traditional month of March. However, the 2011 event had to be pushed back to April 24 – May 1, with only a month to prepare.
There were several slashing accidents. In September 2010, Evan Bates suffered a complete laceration of his Achilles tendon after Emily Samuelson hit him with her skate blade as she came down from a lift. In February 2011, Caydee Denney accidentally sliced Jeremy Barrett's right calf while practicing side-by-side jumps, requiring 42 stitches. In April 2011, Brian Joubert sliced his own hand while competing at the World Championships. There were two collisions during practice at international events. Canadian Patrick Chan and American Adam Rippon collided at 2010 Skate Canada International, while Japanese skaters Takahiko Kozuka and Daisuke Takahashi collided at the Grand Prix Final. Canadian pair skater Meagan Duhamel collided with her partner Eric Radford during competition at the World Championships, breaking his nose with her elbow. No skaters withdrew as a result of the accidents.
One skater was arrested – In May 2011, Israeli pair skater Evgeni Krasnapolski was charged with alleged desertion from the army. The Israeli skating federation stated, "We've asked for clarifications , and if we would have gotten them immediately Evgeni would have returned. The decision to let him stay abroad for training was a professional call made by the federation. The soldier got the impression that we are handling the matter with the IDF and that he could trust the federation". In June 2011, U.S. Figure Skating reprimanded and fined Rachael Flatt, who competed at the World Championships with an undisclosed stress fracture but could have been replaced by an alternate, for not informing them of her injury.
In April 2011, the International Olympic Committee officially confirmed the introduction of a figure skating team event at the 2014 Winter Olympics. Each team will be composed of a men's and ladies single skater, a pair, and an ice dance team; ten teams may compete, with five eliminated after the short program. On June 12, 2011, it was announced that the ISU had reinstated Evgeni Plushenko by a unanimous vote.

Age eligibility

Skaters competing on the junior level were required to be at least 13 but not 19 – or 21 for male pair skaters and ice dancers – before July 1, 2010. Those who had turned 14 were eligible for the senior Grand Prix series and senior B internationals. Those who turned 15 before July 1, 2010 were also eligible for the senior World, European, and Four Continents Championships.

Minimum scores

It was the first season in which skaters were required to have achieved minimum technical elements scores prior to competing at the European, Four Continents, or World Championships. The minimum TES for each discipline and segment were:

Music

Partnership changes

A number of skaters announced the end of their partnership or the formation of a new one. Listed are changes involving a partnership with at least one partner who competed at the Worlds, Europeans, Four Continents, Junior Worlds or the senior Grand Prix, or who medaled on the Junior Grand Prix circuit.

Coaching changes

Retirements

A number of elite skaters announced their retirement from competition.

Competitions

;Key

International medalists

Men

Ladies

Pairs

Ice dance

Season's best scores

Top scores attained in international competitions as of April 30, 2011

Men

Men's season's best scores.
RankNameCountryPointsEventDate
1Patrick ChanCanada280.982011 World Championships2011-04-28
2Takahiko KozukaJapan258.412011 World Championships2011-04-28
3Daisuke TakahashiJapan244.002011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-19
4Nobunari OdaJapan242.812010–2011 Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
5Artur GachinskiRussia241.862011 World Championships2011-04-28
6Michal BřezinaCzech Republic233.612011 World Championships2011-04-28
7Adam RipponUnited States233.042010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
8Tomáš VernerCzech Republic230.312010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
9Florent AmodioFrance229.682011 World Championships2011-04-28
10Yuzuru HanyuJapan228.012011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-19
11Brian JoubertFrance227.672011 World Championships2011-04-28
12Jeremy AbbottUnited States225.712011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-19
13Richard DornbushUnited States222.422011 World Championships2011-04-28
14Kevin ReynoldsCanada218.652010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
15Javier FernandezSpain218.262011 World Championships2011-04-28
16Ross MinerUnited States217.932011 World Championships2011-04-28
17Brandon MrozUnited States216.802010 Cup of China2010-11-06
18Kevin Van Der PerrenBelgium216.592011 European Championships2011-01-29
19Ryan BradleyUnited States212.712011 World Championships2011-04-28
20Armin MahbanoozadehUnited States211.172010 Skate America2010-11-13
21Denis TenKazakhstan209.992011 World Championships2011-04-28
22Alban PréaubertFrance209.052010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
23Samuel ContestiItaly207.302010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
21Peter LiebersGermany205.592011 World Championships2011-04-28
25Daisuke MurakamiJapan203.002010 Skate America2010-11-13
26Konstantin MenshovRussia202.622011 European Championships2011-01-29
27Guan JinlinPeople's Republic of China201.982011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-19
28Anton KovalevskiUkraine201.642011 World Championships2011-04-28
29Tatsuki MachidaJapan200.952010 Cup of China2010-11-06
30Andrei RogozineCanada200.132011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
31Wu JialiangPeople's Republic of China199.782011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-19
32Keiji TanakaJapan196.982011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
33Alexander MajorovSweden195.712011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
34Song NanPeople's Republic of China195.132011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-19
35Keegan MessingUnited States195.072011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
36Max AaronUnited States193.922011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
37Shawn SawyerCanada193.802010 NHK Trophy2010-10-24
38Yan HanPeople's Republic of China193.622010 JGP Czech Skate2010-10-16
39Jeremy TenCanada191.862010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
40Takahito MuraJapan191.852010 NHK Trophy2010-10-24
41Ivan TretiakovRussia189.852010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
42Yasuharu NanriJapan188.962010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
43Jorik HendrickxBelgium188.242011 World Championships2011-04-28
44Adrian SchultheissSweden188.202010 Skate America2010-11-13
45Joshua FarrisUnited States187.742010 JGP J. Curry Memorial2010-10-02
46Gordei GorshkovRussia185.842010 JGP Pokal der Blauen Schwerter2010-10-09
47Artur Dmitriev JrRussia185.732010 JGP Czech Skate2010-10-16
48Chafik BesseghierFrance185.692010 Trophée Eric Bompard2010-11-27
49Jason BrownUnited States185.442011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
50Stephen CarriereUnited States184.202010 Skate America2010-11-13

Ladies

Ladies' season's best scores.
RankNameCountryPointsEventDate
1Miki AndoJapan201.342011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-20
2Mao AsadaJapan196.302011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-20
3Kim Yuna194.502011 World Championships2011-04-30
4Mirai NagasuUnited States189.462011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-20
5Carolina KostnerItaly184.682011 World Championships2011-04-30
6Alena LeonovaRussia183.922011 World Championships2011-04-30
7Alissa CzisnyUnited States182.252011 World Championships2011-04-30
8Rachael FlattUnited States180.312011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-20
9Adelina SotnikovaRussia178.972010 JGP Cup of Austria2010-09-18
10Kanako MurakamiJapan178.592010–2011 Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
11Akiko SuzukiJapan173.722010–2011 Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
12Elizaveta TuktamyshevaRussia172.782010 JGP Pokal der Blauen Schwerter2010-10-08
13Sarah MeierSwitzerland170.602011 European Championships2011-01-29
14Kiira KorpiFinland169.742010 Trophée Eric Bompard2010-11-27
15Ksenia MakarovaRussia167.222011 World Championships2011-04-30
16Christina GaoUnited States167.142010 JGP Cup of Austria2010-09-18
17Ashley WagnerUnited States167.022010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
18Cynthia PhaneufCanada163.142011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-20
19Yasmin SirajUnited States161.752010 JGP J. Curry Memorial2010-10-01
20Agnes ZawadzkiUnited States161.072011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05
21Amélie LacosteCanada157.262010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
22Vanessa LamUnited States156.412010 JGP Czech Skate2010-11-20
23Elene GedevanishviliGeorgia156.242011 World Championships2011-04-30
24Sarah HeckenGermany155.832011 World Championships2011-04-30
25Risa ShojiJapan155.232010 JGP Czech Skate2010-11-20
26Haruka ImaiJapan154.542010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
27Valentina MarcheiItaly153.712010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
28Sofia BiryukovaRussia153.052010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
29Polina ShelepenRussia152.922010 JGP Czech Skate2010-11-20
30Myriane SamsonCanada152.052010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
31Viktoria HelgessonSweden151.662011 European Championships2011-01-29
32Courtney HicksUnited States150.922011 World Junior Championships2011-03-05

Pairs

Pairs season's best scores.
RankNameCountryPointsEventDate
1Aliona Savchenko / Robin SzolkowyGermany217.852011 World Championships2011-04-28
2Tatiana Volosozhar / Maxim TrankovRussia210.732011 World Championships2011-04-28
3Qing Pang / Jian TongPeople's Republic of China204.122011 World Championships2011-04-28
4Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander SmirnovRussia203.612011 European Championships2011-01-27
5Vera Bazarova / Yuri LarionovRussia188.242011 European Championships2011-01-27
6Meagan Duhamel / Eric RadfordCanada181.792011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-18
7Wenjing Sui / Cong HanPeople's Republic of China179.042010–2011 Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
8Lubov Iliushechkina / Nodari MaisuradzeRussia177.442010–2011 Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
9Caitlin Yankowskas / John CoughlinUnited States175.942011 World Championships2011-04-28
10Kirsten Moore-Towers / Dylan MoscovitchCanada175.482010 Skate America2010-11-13
11Paige Lawrence / Rudi SwiegersCanada171.732011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-18
12Katarina Gerboldt / Alexander EnbertRussia169.952011 European Championships2011-01-27
13Caydee Denney / Jeremy BarrettUnited States166.422010 Skate America2010-11-13
14Narumi Takahashi / Mervin TranJapan165.472010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
15Stefania Berton / Ondrej HotarekItaly164.832011 European Championships2011-01-27
16Amanda Evora / Mark LadwigUnited States162.852010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
17Marissa Castelli / Simon ShnapirUnited States159.852010 Skate Canada International2010-10-30
18Ksenia Stolbova / Fedor KlimovRussia159.792010 JGP Cup of Austria2010-09-17
19Maylin Hausch / Daniel WendeGermany157.422010 Trophée Eric Bompard2010-11-27
20Mylène Brodeur / John MattatallCanada151.972010 NHK Trophy2010-10-23
21Yue Zhang / Lei WangPeople's Republic of China147.382011 World Championships2011-04-28
22Britney Simpson / Nathan MillerUnited States145.782010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
23Nicole Della Monica / Yannick KoconItaly145.212010 Cup of China2010-11-06
24Mary Beth Marley / Rockne BrubakerUnited States144.462011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-18
25Xiaoyu Yu / Yang JinPeople's Republic of China140.582010–2011 Junior Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
26Klára Kadlecová / Petr BidařCzech Republic139.942011 European Championships2011-01-27
27Huibo Dong / Yiming WuPeople's Republic of China137.752011 World Championships2011-04-28
28Tatiana Novik / Mikhail KuznetsovRussia136.852010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
29Ashley Cain / Joshua ReaganUnited States135.402011 World Junior Championships2011-03-03
30Taylor Steele / Robert SchultzCanada133.082010–2011 Junior Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
31Natasha Purich / Raymond SchultzCanada131.772010 JGP Czech Skate2010-10-15
32Brittany Jones / Kurtis GaskellCanada131.042010–2011 Junior Grand Prix Final2010-12-11
33Anna Silaeva / Artur MinchukRussia131.032010 JGP Pokal der Blauen Schwerter2010-10-08
34Stacey Kemp / David KingUnited Kingdom128.042011 European Championships2011-01-27
35Felicia Zhang / Taylor TothUnited States127.482010 Trophée Eric Bompard2010-11-27
36Natalja Zabijako / Sergei KulbachEstonia126.562011 World Championships2011-04-28
37Ekaterina Petaikina / Maxim KurduykovRussia125.392010 JGP Czech Skate2010-10-15
38Adeline Canac / Yannick BonheurFrance125.342011 European Championships2011-01-27
39Kylie Duarte / Colin GraftonUnited States123.452010 JGP J. Curry Memorial2010-10-01
40Tatiana Danilova / Andrei NovoselovRussia121.132010 JGP Cup of Austria2010-09-17

Ice dance

Ice dance season's best scores.
RankNameCountryPointsEventDate
1Meryl Davis / Charlie WhiteUnited States185.272011 World Championships2011-04-30
2Tessa Virtue / Scott MoirCanada181.792011 World Championships2011-04-30
3Nathalie Péchalat / Fabian BourzatFrance167.402011 European Championships2011-01-28
4Maia Shibutani / Alex ShibutaniUnited States163.792011 World Championships2011-04-30
5Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri SolovievRussia161.142011 European Championships2011-01-28
6Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew PojeCanada160.322011 World Championships2011-04-30
7Sinead Kerr / John KerrUnited Kingdom157.492011 European Championships2011-01-28
8Ksenia Monko / Kirill KhaliavinRussia155.042010 JGP J. Curry Memorial2010-10-02
9Elena Ilinykh / Nikita KatsalapovRussia154.502011 World Championships2011-04-30
10Vanessa Crone / Paul PoirierCanada154.422010 Skate Canada International2010-10-31
11Anna Cappellini / Luca LanotteItaly153.772011 World Championships2011-04-30
12Madison Chock / Greg ZuerleinUnited States151.862011 World Championships2011-04-30
13Ekaterina Riazanova / Ilia TkachenkoRussia146.792010 Trophée Eric Bompard2010-11-27
14Federica Faiella / Massimo ScaliItaly145.922011 European Championships2011-01-28
15Nóra Hoffman / Maxim ZavozinHungary142.092010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
16Nelli Zhiganshina / Alexander GazsiGermany140.952011 World Championships2011-04-30
17Pernelle Carron / Lloyd JonesFrance140.862011 World Championships2011-04-30
18Alexandra Paul / Mitchell IslamCanada138.162010 Skate Canada International2010-10-31
19Ekaterina Pushkash / Jonathan GuerreiroRussia136.802010 JGP Czech Skate2010-10-16
20Lucie Myslivečková / Matěj NovákCzech Republic135.352011 European Championships2011-01-28
21Victoria Sinitsina / Ruslan ZhiganshinRussia134.622010–2011 Junior Grand Prix Final2010-12-10
22Charlotte Lichtman / Dean CopelyUnited States133.362011 World Junior Championships2011-03-04
23Cathy Reed / Chris ReedJapan133.332011 World Championships2011-04-30
24Isabella Tobias / Deividas StagniunasLithuania131.012011 World Championships2011-04-30
25Lynn Kriengkrairut / Logan Giulietti-SchmittUnited States130.722010 Skate America2010-11-14
26Xintong Huang / Xun ZhengPeople's Republic of China130.292011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-18
27Alexandra Stepanova / Ivan BukinRussia130.082010 JGP SBC Cup2010-09-26
28Siobhan Heekin-Canedy / Alexander ShakalovUkraine128.702011 World Championships2011-04-30
29Tiffany Zahorski / Alexis MiartFrance128.162011 World Junior Championships2011-03-04
30Kristina Gorshkova / Vitali ButikovRussia127.472010 Cup of Russia2010-11-20
31Evgenia Kosigina / Nikolai MoroshkinRussia126.922010 Pokal der Blauen Schwerter2010-10-09
32Penny Coomes / Nicholas BucklandUnited Kingdom126.292011 World Championships2011-04-30
33Nikola Visnova / Lukas CsolleySlovakia126.072011 World Junior Championships2011-03-04
34Xiaoyang Yu / Chen WangPeople's Republic of China125.752011 Four Continents Championships2011-02-18
35Anastasia Galyeta / Alexei ShumskiUkraine124.652010 JGP Brasov Cup2010-09-11
36Marina Antipova / Artem KudashevRussia123.832010 JGP Czech Skate2010-10-16
37Geraldine Bott / Neil BrownFrance123.652010 JGP SBC Cup2010-09-26
38Anastasia Cannuscio / Colin McManusUnited States122.902011 World Junior Championships2011-03-04
39Nicole Orford / Thomas WilliamsCanada122.222011 World Junior Championships2011-03-04
40Kharis Ralph / Asher HillCanada121.392010 Trophée Eric Bompard2010-11-27

Standings and ranking

Season-end standings (top 30)

Men's singles

Ladies' singles

Pairs

Ice dance

Season's ranking (top 30)

Men's singles

Ladies' singles

Pairs

Ice dance