There are skaters at 2021 Internationaux de France who have something riding on their performances here. Now that we are firmly into the Olympic season, and national championships are only four to six weeks away, every competition and every performance lends greater meaning to how Olympic spots will line up. And in particular, in the women’s event, there are few skaters who many expect will be vying for those Olympic spots but are not yet the odds-on favorites. Good results here can certainly help their trajectory.
2021 Internationaux de France predictions
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GOLD Anna Shcherbakova RUS - Gold at Gran Premio d’Italia, Shcherbakova looks to be rounding back in form with just about a month away from Russian Nationals, where she will be looking to win her fourth title in a row. Key to her victory in Italy was that quad flip, which has not been consistent for her so far this season. And she will need that again this week if she is to make it two wins in a row.
SILVER Alena Kostornaia RUS - How has some of the behind-the-scenes drama between Kostornaia and her coaching team affected her preparation for this event? She comes in with two bronze medals - one at Skate Canada and one at Finlandia Trophy. And both times, she took bronze behind two of her Russian teammates. How she places relative to Shcherbakova and how consistent she is this week will be crucial to her chances at making the Olympic team. Unlike past years, she’s somewhat on the outside looking in, but she can change that narrative with strong skates in France.
BRONZE Wakaba Higuchi JPN - Higuchi’s secret weapon - and perhaps the key to her Olympic spot - this season is that triple axel, which has become more real and consistent than ever. She is now three for four in triple axel attempts this season, including a clean on in her short program last week at Cup of Austria. But the second half of her free skate has been something of a minefield, as she’s now multiple times left valuable points on the table with issues with her last couple of combos. She will be looking to clean that up and avoid the subpar free skate that she had last week at Cup of Austria, where an almost 80-point short program helped keep her in the gold medal position.
4. Kseniia Sinitsyna RUS - Fifth at Skate America, Sinitsyna put together a very solid Grand Prix debut there and will hope to deliver similarly this week. Though she’s got a solid technical foundation, she’s not considered one of the favorites for a Russian Olympic spot. But she can surprise, as she did two years ago with a fifth-place finish at Russian Nationals.
5. Karen Chen USA - As the skater with the second highest international score among Olympic age-eligible women this season, Chen wants to keep that status going as the season continues. But after a strong Finlandia Trophy, where she broke 200 points, she had a less successful Skate Canada, where she finished tenth. Which Karen Chen are we going to get in France this week?
6. Yeonjeong Park KOR - Silver at Cup of Austria last week, Park is also going back-to-back that Higuchi is doing. She had a brilliant start to her season at US Classic, skating two of the programs of her career there to break the 210-point mark. If she can replicate those performances here, she’s got an outside shot at the podium.
7. Haein Lee KOR - Seventh at Skate Canada three weeks ago, Lee comes into her second Grand Prix of the season looking to gain momentum heading into the Olympic qualification time for the South Korean skaters. She and Park are both trying to get themselves in prime position, and these international standings will make a difference to both their confidence and their place among the deep field of Korean women.
8. Mariah Bell USA - It’s been three months since we’ve seen Bell at an international event, and she comes into France this week with a lot of question marks. She brings two different programs than what she started with earlier this season, and there’s a lot riding on how her consistency looks this week. The last year or so has had signs of brilliance but also been filled with inconsistency. At her best, she’s a podium contender here - but we just aren’t sure where she is in her preparation.
9. Ekaterina Ryabova AZE - Ryabova is a very steady skater, often delivering consistent performances in her competitions. But her basics as compared to the rest of this field will keep her from being competitive for the top half of the field. She took silver at Denis Ten Memorial late last month.
10. Yuhana Yokoi JPN - Skate America was up and down for Yokoi, who was inconsistent in practice but had some strong moments in her free skate. She ended up 11th there but can certainly be higher if she can put together what she’s capable of.
11. Starr Andrews USA - Andrews was also at Cup of Austria last week, where she took fifth. She will have to summon some of the skating that she had at Skate America to really make a splash in France this week.
12. Lea Serna FRA - After her two teammates withdrew from the event, Serna is the lone French entry in the women’s event at her home Grand Prix. She was tenth at Lombardia and 14th at Nebelhorn earlier this season.