Skate America headed back to Las Vegas in October

LAS VEGAS — Skate America, traditionally the first event in the Grand Prix figure skating series, is headed back to the Orleans Arena.

The competition will be held Oct. 22-24 as the first significant event of the Olympic season. It also was staged at the venue in 2019, then again last fall but without fans. The national championships were held at the arena in January, also minus fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

U.S. Figure Skating indicated the public will be able to attend the upcoming Skate America when it announced the venue on Tuesday.

“The Orleans Arena was such a great partner for this competition in 2020, so we are excited to bring Skate America back to Las Vegas in 2021,” U.S. Figure Skating President Anne Cammett said. “We’re looking forward to having fans in attendance as athletes from the United States and abroad continue on their journey towards the Olympic Winter Games.”

The complete list of athletes who will compete at Skate America and all other ISU Grand Prix competitions will be announced in June. Typically, the defending U.S. champions appear at Skate America.

Beijing will host the Winter Olympics in February.