2021 Gran Premio d'Italia

The 2021 Gran Premio d'Italia was a figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU), organized and hosted by the Italian Ice Sports Federation (Italian: Federazione Italiana Sport del Ghiaccio), and the third event of the 2021–22 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. It was held at the Torino Palavela in Turin, Italy, from 5 to 7 November 2021. Medals were awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. Skaters earned points based on their results, and the top skaters or teams in each discipline at the end of the season were then invited to then compete at the 2021–22 Grand Prix Final in Osaka, Japan. Yuma Kagiyama of Japan won the men's event, Anna Shcherbakova of Russia won the women's event, Sui Wenjing and Han Cong of China won the pairs event, and Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France won the ice dance event.

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating is a series of seven events sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU) and held during the autumn: six qualifying events and the Grand Prix Final. This allows skaters to perfect their programs earlier in the season, as well as compete against the skaters with whom they will later compete at the World Championships. This series also provides the viewing public with additional televised skating, which was in high demand. Skaters earn points based on their results in their respective competitions and the top skaters or teams in each discipline are invited to compete at the Grand Prix Final.^[1]

The 2021 Cup of China, originally scheduled to be held in Chongqing, was cancelled due to travel and quarantine restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[2] In an attempt to preserve the Grand Prix series, the ISU asked other interested ISU members to apply as hosts. The Gran Premio d'Italia was announced as its replacement.^[3] In addition to the successful bid from the Italian federation, the ISU also received applications from the Hungarian Skating Federation and U.S. Figure Skating.^[3]

The International Skating Union (ISU) announced the preliminary list of entrants on 29 June 2021.^[4] The Gran Premio d'Italia assignments were updated on 10 September; China's host spots were re-allocated to Italy. Subsequent withdrawals by Chinese skaters were also replaced by Italian skaters.

Men and women competing in single skating first performed their short programs on Friday, 5 November.^[11] Lasting no more than 2 minutes 40 seconds,^[12] the short program had to include the following elements:

For men: one double or triple Axel; one triple or quadruple jump; one jump combination consisting of a double jump and a triple jump, two triple jumps, or a quadruple jump and a double jump or triple jump; one flying spin; one camel spin or sit spin with a change of foot; one spin combination with a change of foot; and a step sequence using the full ice surface.^[13]

For women: one double or triple Axel; one triple jump; one jump combination consisting of a double jump and a triple jump, or two triple jumps; one flying spin; one layback spin, sideways leaning spin, camel spin, or sit spin without a change of foot; one spin combination with a change of foot; and one step sequence using the full ice surface.^[13]

Men and women then performed their free skates on Saturday, 6 November.^[11] The free skate for both men and women could last no more than 4 minutes,^[12] and had to include the following: seven jump elements, of which one had to be an Axel-type jump; three spins, of which one had to be a spin combination, one had to be a flying spin, and one had to be a spin with only one position; a step sequence; and a choreographic sequence.^[14]

Couples competing in pair skating performed their short programs on Friday, 5 November.^[11] Lasting no more than 2 minutes 40 seconds,^[15] it had to include the following elements: one pair lift, one twist lift, one double or triple throw jump, one double or triple solo jump, one solo spin combination with a change of foot, one death spiral, and a step sequence using the full ice surface.^[16]

Couples performed their free skates on Saturday, 6 November.^[11] The free skate could last no more than 4 minutes,^[12] and had to include the following: three pair lifts, of which one had to be a twist lift; two different throw jumps; one solo jump; one jump combination or sequence; one pair spin combination; one death spiral; and a choreographic sequence.^[17]

Couples competing in ice dance performed their rhythm dances on Friday, 5 November.^[11] Lasting no more than 2 minutes 50 seconds,^[12] the theme of the rhythm dance this season was "street dance rhythms". Examples of applicable dance styles included, but were not limited, to: hip-hop, disco, swing, krump, popping, funk, jazz, reggae (reggaeton), and blues. The required pattern dance element was the Midnight Blues.^[18] The rhythm dance had to include the following elements: the pattern dance, the pattern dance step sequence, one dance lift, one set of sequential twizzles, and one step sequence.^[19]

Couples performed their free dances on Saturday, 6 November.^[11] The free dance performance could last no longer than 4 minutes,^[12] and had to include the following: three dance lifts, one dance spin, one set of synchronized twizzles, one step sequence in hold, one step sequence while on one skate and not touching, and three choreographic elements, of which one had to be a choreographic character step sequence.^[20]

For the 2021–2022 season, all of the technical elements in any figure skating performance – such as jumps, spins, and lifts – were assigned a predetermined base point value and were then scored by a panel of nine judges on a scale from -5 to 5 based on their quality of execution.^[21] The judging panel's Grade of Execution (GOE) was determined by calculating the trimmed mean (that is, an average after deleting the highest and lowest scores), and this GOE was added to the base value to come up with the final score for each element. The panel's scores for all elements were added together to generate a total element score.^[22] At the same time, judges evaluated each performance based on five program components – skating skills, transitions, performance, composition, and interpretation of the music – and assigned a score from .25 to 10 in .25 point increments. The judging panel's final score for each program component was also determined by calculating the trimmed mean. Those scores were then multiplied by the factor shown on the following chart; the results were added together to generate a total program component score.^[23]

Deductions were applied for certain violations like time infractions, stops and restarts, or falls.^[25] The total element score and total program component score were added together, minus any deductions, to generate a final performance score for each skater or team.^[26]

• "Special Regulations & Technical Rules – Single & Pair Skating and Ice Dance 2021". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 4 April 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.

• Gran Premio d'Italia at the International Skating Union
• 2021 Gran Premio d'Italia at Skating Scores