Just like that, figure skating is back.
Only a month after Ilia Malinin finished his final skate at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Games, figure skating returns to the major international stage.
The 2026 ISU Figure Skating World Championships begin on Wednesday, March 25, in Prague, Czechia, and will feature many of the top skaters who dazzled worldwide viewers in Milan-Cortina.
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Just as the event features multiple Olympic medalists, it also features a handful of skaters who left Milan-Cortina heartbroken.
Olympic Champions Out, Redemptive Skaters In
In the women’s singles event, the 2026 Olympic champion Alysa Liu announced her withdrawal from the competition in early March, citing recovery from the Olympic Games and professional opportunities.
Though the defending Olympic gold medalist and reigning world champion is out of the equation, the women’s event remains fiercely competitive.
After earning a disappointing silver medal behind Liu in Milan-Cortina, Japanese skater Kaori Sakamoto looks to redeem her Olympic performance and return to the top of the world stage. The Prague competition marks her final appearance at a world championship for the 25-year-old veteran skater.
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Carrying on from Milan-Cortina, Japan’s arsenal is arguably the deepest, with Olympic bronze medalist Ami Nakai and Olympic fourth-place finisher Mone Chiba taking the ice again in Prague.
Japan’s Ami Nakai competes in the figure skating women’s single free skating final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 19, 2026. (Photo by Gabriel BOUYS / AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
For the American women, Olympic team gold medalist Amber Glenn is the United States’ best hope for a medal. Glenn rocketed from 13th to fifth place during the Olympic singles competition and has the potential to strike gold this week.
2026 Olympian Isabeau Levito and 2025 Four Continents bronze medalist Sarah Everehardt round out the American contingent.
On the men’s end, defending world champion Ilia Malinin seeks redemption from his heartbreaking singles performance in Milan-Cortina. Like Liu, newly-crowned Olympic champion Mikhail Shaidorov opted to skip the event, leaving Malinin as the heavy favorite.
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However, the current Olympic silver and bronze medalists, Yuma Kagiyama and Shun Sato of Japan, are ready to fight for the title in Prague. Kagiyama owns three world silver medals and seeks his first gold.
Ice Dance is the only event whose entries include the reigning Olympic champions. Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier-Beaudry (France) clinched controversial gold in Milan-Cortina and seek their first world title as a pair.
Notably, Olympic silver medalists and reigning world champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates opted to skip this year’s championship. Instead, rising stars Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik will lead the U.S. contingent. Even without the reigning world champions, the competition will be stiff.
Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier won hearts – and Olympic bronze – in Milan-Cortina, and seek an elusive world title. The duo has won four world medals (two silver, two bronze), and hopes to upgrade in Prague.
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In Pairs skating, reigning Olympic and world champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara (Japan) will also miss this year’s championship.
In their absence, Olympic silver medalists Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava (Georgia) and bronze medalists Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin (Germany) will battle for the world title.
Though the discipline was the United States’ weakest in Milan-Cortina, U.S. champions Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov are expected to contend for the first U.S. pairs medal since 2002.
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The pair was ineligible for the 2026 Olympics because Efimova did not have U.S. citizenship, but is eligible to compete in other international competitions.
The most glaring omission in Prague is the presence of the Russians. While authorized neutral athletes (AIN) were permitted to compete individually at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Russian athletes remain banned from ISU-sanctioned events due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
2026 ISU World Championships Schedule
Competition begins Wednesday, March 25, with the short programs in the Women’s and Pairs’ disciplines, and concludes Saturday with the Men’s Free Skate and Ice Dance Free Dance.
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All events will air live on Peacock, with USA Network providing supplemental coverage of the medal rounds. International viewers can stream the competition on the ISU YouTube Channel.
Wednesday, March 25
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6:30 a.m. ET: Women’s Short Program | Peacock
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1:45 p.m. ET: Pairs’ Short Program | Peacock
Thursday, March 26
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6:30 a.m. ET: Men’s Short Program | Peacock
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1:15 p.m. ET: Pairs’ Free Skating | Peacock/USA Network (3 p.m.)
Friday, March 27
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6:30 a.m. ET: Ice Dance Rhythm Dance | Peacock
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1:00 p.m. ET: Women’s Free Skate | Peacock/USA Network (3 p.m.)
Saturday, March 28
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7:30 a.m. ET: Men’s Free Skate | Peacock
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1:30 p.m. ET: Ice Dance Free Dance | Peacock/USA Network (3 p.m.)
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