PAIRS 2022 U.S. OLYMPIC FIGURE SKATING TEAM NOMINATED

U.S. Figure Skating announced today the pairs teams who will compete at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 as part of the U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team.

The pairs team are Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDu, and Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazie (alphabetical order).

Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDu are the 2022 and 2019 U.S. champions. They also earned the U.S. bronze medal in 2017 and '21, and the 2018 Four Continents silver medal. Their ninth-place finishes at the 2019 and 2021 World Championship helped secure two Olympic entries for the U.S. in pairs. This season, the Dallas-based team claimed the bronze medal at Skate Canada International and placed fourth at NHK Trophy. They are making their first Olympic appearance. Additionally, LeDuc will become the first openly non-binary athlete to compete at an Olympic Winter Games.

Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazie are the 2021 U.S. champions. In their debut season, the duo won the title at 2020 Skate America and the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships and placed seventh at the 2021 World Championships, helping earn two Olympic entries for Team USA. This fall, the Irvine-based team finished fourth at Skate America® and earned bronze at Internationaux de France. Knierim is also a 2018 Olympian and finished 15th in PyeongChang, South Korea, with husband and former partner Chris Knierim. This is Frazier's first Olympic appearance.

Alternates for the 2018 Olympic Team have been named as Jessica Calalang and Brian Johnso (first alternate), Audrey Lu and Misha Mitrofano (second alternate), and Emily Chan and Spencer How (third alternate).

The pairs teams join previously nominated athletes Mariah Bel, Karen Che and Alysa Liu on the 2022 U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team.

U.S. Figure Skating also confirmed that each member of the U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team is eligible to compete in the Olympic team event. U.S. Figure Skating will work with athletes and their coaches to determine if the athlete will participate in the event. 

Each team in the event will consist of one woman, one man, one pairs team and one ice dance team to be selected from athletes who have qualified in their individual disciplines. Each team, however, will be allowed to make up to two exchanges after the short program/rhythm dance. The team event will consist of the 10 best national teams from NOCs/ISU members. The five teams with the highest number of points after the short program/rhythm dance will qualify for the free skate/dance. In the team event, athletes will receive points based on their finishes in each segment of competition.

The 2022 Olympic Winter Games will take place Feb. 4-20, in Beijing, China.

U.S. Figure Skating will announce its ice dance and men's athletes selected to compete at the Olympic Winter Games, along with the United States' World and Four Continents team on Sunday, Jan. 9. Women and men will be named to the 2022 U.S. World Junior Team following the conclusion of the World Junior Singles Camp, Jan. 31-Feb. 1 in Norwood, Massachusetts.

All U.S. Olympic Team nominations are subject to approval by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC).