COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — San Jose’s SAP Center was selected as host for the 2018 Prudential U.S. Figure Skating Championships, which will be held Dec. 29, 2017 to Jan. 7, 2018.
The 2018 U.S. Championships will serve as the final qualifying event prior to selecting and announcing the U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team that will represent Team USA at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
Competition and practice will be held at SAP Center at San Jose and Sharks Ice at San Jose.
“U.S. Figure Skating is excited to return to San Jose for the 2018 Prudential U.S. Figure Skating Championships,” U.S. Figure Skating President Sam Auxier said. “The Bay Area is steeped in figure skating tradition with some of the sport’s legends calling the area home. I’m confident that with their support and that of the community, the excitement of the 2018 U.S. Championships will create a dynamic environment, especially for those competing to earn a spot on the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team.”
Held since 1914, the annual event is the nation’s most prestigious figure skating event, with past champions including Michelle Kwan, Kristi Yamaguchi, Brian Boitano and Scott Hamilton.
“This is a wonderful day for the City of San Jose. We are very excited to be selected as host for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, one of the country’s most high-profile sporting events,” said San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. “Our region has a strong history of producing some of America’s top skaters and a legacy of competitive excellence. I am personally honored and excited to share San Jose with the nation in hosting this prestigious event.”
The U.S. Championships annually attract more than 1,500 athletes, coaches and officials, as well as families, friends and figure skating fans from around the world to the host community. The 2012 U.S. Championships generated more than $23 million in economic impact.
U.S. Figure Skating will work with the San Jose Sports Authority, SAP Center, Sharks Ice at San Jose and local figure skating clubs to plan the event with support from the City of San Jose and its Office of Economic Development, San Jose Hotels, Inc. and Team San Jose.
“What an honor to be selected to host the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in the Olympic year,” said Patricia Ernstrom, executive director of the San Jose Sports Authority. “With the continued support of our key community partners, including the City and its Office of Economic Development, San Jose Hotels Inc., and Team San Jose, San Jose has proven itself as a premiere destination for successful world-class sporting events.”
Champions will be crowned in 20 events in ladies, men’s, pairs and ice dance at the championship, junior, novice, intermediate and juvenile levels of the U.S. Figure Skating competitive structure. Championship-level competition will be Jan. 4-7, while juvenile-junior athletes will compete Dec. 30-Jan. 4.
The U.S. Championships return to California for the 12th time and to San Jose for the third (1996, 2012). Northern California is and was home to several figure skating greats including Olympic champions Boitano, Yamaguchi and Peggy Fleming, 1986 World champion Debi Thomas and 1996 U.S. champ Rudy Galindo, who won the U.S. title in his hometown the first time San Jose hosted this event. 2014 Olympian and three-time U.S. medalist Polina Edmunds lives and trains in San Jose and will begin classes at Santa Clara University next month.
Boitano, Fleming, Galindo and Yamaguchi will serve as honorary co-chairs for the 2018 U.S. Championships.
The 2018 U.S. Championships will be broadcast live on NBC and streamed live online on icenetwork. Recent U.S. Championships were held in Boston (2014), Greensboro, North Carolina (2015) and Saint Paul, Minnesota (2016). The 2017 Prudential U.S. Figure Skating Championships are set for Jan. 15-22, 2017, in Kansas City, Missouri.
Tickets to the 2018 U.S. Championships will go on sale later this fall. For more information and to sign up for ticket alerts visit www.skatesanjose2018.com.
