Britain's Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson secured 4th at last weekend's ISU Grand Prix Final 2023 in Beijing, continuing the momentum of what has already been a fantastic season for the senior ice dance couple.
In a series of eventful weeks, Fear and Gibson battled for a hard-won Gold medal at the NHK Trophy Grand Prix in Japan before heading back to the UK for the 2023 British Championships. Having successfully secured their position as British Champions for the fifth year in a row, they were straight back on the road - this time to Beijing and the ISU Grand Prix Final.
Fighting Fit
After a strong second-place finish in the NHK Trophy rhythm dance - only narrowly missing out on the top spot to Italy's Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri - Fear/Gibson fought back with their 'Rocky'-inspired Eye Of The Tiger free dance to take the Gold. This was followed up by a personal best performance at the British Championships, defending their senior ice dance title to once again take to the podium as Champions.
With less than a week between their Championship win and their Grand Prix Final performances, however, there was sadly little time for celebrating, and the athletes were immediately back on a plane, ready for their third weekend competing in a row!
Best of the Best
The ISU's Figure Skating Grand Prix Final sees the top contenders from the season's six Grand Prix events go head to head, making it a highly competitive event for the world's leading international ice dance couples.
On the day, twizzle issues seemed to be in the air for the Rhythm Dance, with a number of couples including Lilah and Lewis facing dropping points on twizzle elements. They nevertheless brought the same electric energy and enthusiasm to their performances that they always do, delivering a powerful free dance and finishing in a fantastic fourth place. USA's Madison Chock and Evan Bates secured first place, followed by Guignard/Fabbri and Canda's Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier.
While we hope they can enjoy at least a short break now, we also cannot wait to see what the rest of the season will bring for these exciting skaters!
Fear/Gibson's 2023-24 so far:
Competition | Rhythm Dance | Free Dance | Total |
August Qualifier (Sheffield) | 83.50 (1st) | 126.84 (1st) | 210.34 (1st) |
Nebelhorn Trophy 2023 | 82.42 (1st) | 125.42Â (1st) | 207.84Â (1st) |
Ondrej Nepela Trophy | 81.69Â (1st) | 118.77Â (1st) | 200.46Â (1st) |
Skate Canada | 83.51 (2nd) | 126.04Â (2nd) | 209.55 (2nd) |
NHK Trophy | 84.63 (2nd) | 130.26Â (1st) | 215.19Â (1st) |
British Championships | 92.22Â (1st) | 136.56Â (1st) | 228.78Â (1st) |
Grand Prix Final | 76.24 (4th) | 126.03 (4th) | 202.27 (4th) |
Published 13/12/23