Figure Skater Ko Na-yeon Wins Women's Singles at Junior Grand Prix Selection Event

Ko Na-yeon has won the women's singles event at the 2026 International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix selection competition.
Ko scored 127.36 points in the women's singles free skate held at the Eoullim Nuri Ice Maru in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.
With a short program score of 67.48, she finished with a total score of 194.84, defeating runner-up Jang Ha-rin (174.70 points) and third-place finisher Heo Ji-yu (172.86 points) to take the top spot.
Ko successfully executed her triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination jump, triple loop, and triple Lutz in the first half of her program.
However, she received an attention (edge usage warning) call for her triple flip-double Axel-double Axel sequence and her triple flip, both of which were placed in the second half.
She performed her final jump, a triple Salchow, perfectly.
In non-jumping elements, she earned high marks by performing her flying camel spin and change-foot combination spin at level 4, the highest difficulty level.
In the men's singles free skate, Choi Ha-bin, who included three quadruple jumps in his program, scored 160.05 points to finish with a total of 239.08, beating Lee Jae-geun (229.81 points) and Yoo Dong-han (201.51 points) to win the title.
In ice dance, where two teams competed, the duo of Yu Reina and Chan Henrick took first place with a total score of 134.96, while Park In-kyung and Song Andrew finished second with 117.49 points.
Based on the results of this competition, the Korea Skating Union plans to hold a performance improvement committee meeting to select the athletes who will represent the country at the upcoming ISU Junior Grand Prix series.
Meanwhile, this competition was held in accordance with the new ISU regulations effective from the new season.
To enhance the artistic aspect of figure skating, the ISU reduced the number of jumps in the men's and women's singles free skate from seven to six and decreased the number of allowed combination jumps from three to two.
Additionally, the base value for the single Euler, used to connect combination jumps, has been abolished, and it is no longer counted toward the total number of jumps.
As a result, athletes are now able to construct four-jump sequences including the Euler.
Furthermore, a new element called the choreo spin, which involves rotating while moving to the music, has been introduced.
Unlike the choreo sequence, this element is not assigned a level but is evaluated solely on the Grade of Execution (GOE), designed to place greater emphasis on expressiveness and artistry.
(Photo: ISU social media capture, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.