Very much looking forward to seeing what happens in ice dancing. The US is fielding some interesting competitors that could play spoilers, although the top three teams (CAN, CZE, KOR) are strong, well-prepared, and all with fantastic free dances.
The battle for bronze is huge, because of this junior worlds being the determining competition for the Youth Olympic Games next January in Korea. For the US, in 2012 Parsons/Parsons were 4th; in 2016 Lewis/Bye earned a YOG silver medal; in 2020, Wolfkostin/Chen earned a bronze medal. Only 12 teams compete in the ice dance portion of each YOG, and the US has sent one team each time. In 2012, Russia sent two teams. In 2016, both Russia and Ukraine sent two teams. In 2020, both Russia and Canada sent two teams.
The interesting thing is that none of the top competitors (from CAN, CZE, KOR, USA) can compete in the upcoming games due to the age restrictions (must be between 15 and 18 years of age by 31 December 2024, even though the games take place at the beginning of the year in January). So, IMHO, a very high-stakes week for federations in terms of YOG placements.
The battle for bronze is huge, because of this junior worlds being the determining competition for the Youth Olympic Games next January in Korea. For the US, in 2012 Parsons/Parsons were 4th; in 2016 Lewis/Bye earned a YOG silver medal; in 2020, Wolfkostin/Chen earned a bronze medal. Only 12 teams compete in the ice dance portion of each YOG, and the US has sent one team each time. In 2012, Russia sent two teams. In 2016, both Russia and Ukraine sent two teams. In 2020, both Russia and Canada sent two teams.
The interesting thing is that none of the top competitors (from CAN, CZE, KOR, USA) can compete in the upcoming games due to the age restrictions (must be between 15 and 18 years of age by 31 December 2024, even though the games take place at the beginning of the year in January). So, IMHO, a very high-stakes week for federations in terms of YOG placements.