Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Amber Glenn edges Alysa Liu for U.S. figure skating title by second-closest margin

Amber Glenn repeated as U.S. figure skating champion, overtaking Alysa Liu by the second-closest margin under a two-decade-old scoring system.

Glenn totaled 216.79 points between Thursday’s short program and Friday’s free skate in Wichita, Kansas. She turned a 5.45-point deficit to Liu after the short to a victory over Liu by 1.46 points.

“There was a lot of fight this week; I have not been feeling great the last couple weeks coming into here,” Glenn, who dealt with sickness after winning December’s Grand Prix Final, said on NBC Sports. “But I’ve been training so hard, and I wanted to make myself proud today.”

Only Kimmie Meissner’s win by .82 over Emily Hughes in 2007 was closer since the 6.0 system was replaced after 2005.

U.S. CHAMPIONSHIPS: Results | Broadcast Schedule

Glenn prevailed on the strength of the start of her free skate, which included the only triple Axel of the night. She held on despite falling on her last jump.

Liu, who ended a two-year retirement to compete this season, lost points by under-rotating her last jump combination and then slipping out of her last spin. The 2022 World bronze medalist was bidding for a third U.S. title at age 19.

Glenn, 25, extended her 2024 breakout. Last January, she won her first senior U.S. title in her ninth try. Then this past fall, she won all four of her international competitions, the first four international titles of her career. Her victory at December’s Grand Prix Final — over the rest of the world’s best skaters — was the most prestigious for a U.S. women’s singles skater in 14 years.

Glenn and Liu will likely lead the three-woman U.S. team for March’s worlds in Boston. The U.S. has a chance to put multiple women on the podium for the first time since 2006.

They could be joined on the world team by U.S. bronze medalist Sarah Everhardt, who would be making her senior worlds debut.

Amber Glenn won her second straight national title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Friday in Wichita, KS. Glenn and others on the podium share their thoughts on the competition.

Usually, the world team is made up of the top U.S. Championships finishers. But Isabeau Levito, the 2023 national champ and 2024 World silver medalist, could still be put on the team despite missing nationals due to a foot injury.

A U.S. Figure Skating committee picks the roster, which is expected to be announced Saturday.

Earlier Friday, Madison Chock and Evan Bates topped the rhythm dance, moving closer to a record-tying sixth U.S. ice dance title.

They tallied 92.16 points, taking a massive 9.3-point lead over Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko into Saturday’s free dance (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC and Peacock). That despite Chock not feeling 100%.

“Experiences like today really help us a lot,” Bates said on NBC Sports. “I mean, it’s not fun to skate when you’re not feeling your best, but knowing we can still go out and perform well under any circumstances is such a confidence boost.”

Chock and Bates are going for a fourth consecutive national title — 10 years after their first of five crowns.

They can tie the U.S. ice dance titles record of six held by 2014 Olympic gold medalists Meryl Davis and Charlie White.

Chock and Bates partnered in 2011 after Chock’s previous partner, Greg Zuerlein (not the kicker), retired, and then Bates and his 2010 Olympic partner, Emily Samuelson, dissolved their team. More on the beginnings of Chock and Bates here.

Chock and Bates have since competed at three Olympics with a best ice dance finish of fourth, plus earned a team event gold medal in 2022. They got married last June.

In March, they can become the first ice dancers to win three consecutive world titles in 28 years. Next year, they can join Davis and White as the only Americans to win Olympic ice dance gold.

Amber Glenn reflected on long-ago memories of Jason Brown and Ashley Wagner, plus recent ones with a local school class.