US Figure Skating Championships 2016: Tuesday Results and Updated Schedule

Tuesday marked the fourth day of the 2016 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota, as skaters competed in four events: novice-free dance and the junior ladies, men's and pairs short programs.

Let's take a look at the gold, silver and bronze placers of the four events:

Novice Dance—Free Dance	Competitors	Tuesday Score	Total Score
Junior Ladies—Short Program	Competitors	Tuesday Score	Total Score
Junior Men—Short Program	Competitors	Tuesday Score	Total Score
Junior Pairs—Short Program	Competitors	Tuesday Score	Total Score
Gold	Caroline Green, Gordon Green	82.07	144.37
Silver	Emma Gunter, Caleb Wein	72.03	122.10
Bronze	Sophia Elder, Christopher Elder	51.77	99.21
First	Emily Chan	66.74	66.74
Second	Vivian Le	57.02	57.02
Third	Carly Berrios	53.02	53.02
First	Tomoki Hiwatashi	65.90	65.90
Second	Tony Lu	62.50	62.50
Third	Kevin Shum	62.28	62.28
First	Lindsay Weinstein, Jacob Simon	49.54	49.54
Second	Joy Weinberg, Maximiliano Fernandez	48.80	48.80
Third	Kay Bergdolt, Miles Addison	46.29	46.29

The action began Tuesday morning with the novice free dance that Caroline and Gordon Green dominated. The Washington FSC siblings were more than excited after their gold medal, per Lynn Rutherford of IceNetwork.com:

The Greens dominated the performance from start to finish, per Rutherford:

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The Rockville, Maryland, skaters should be happy: Their winning score of 144.37 is 33 points more than they earned at the 2015 U.S. Championships. The total sets a new standard for the U.S. novice ice dance ranks, crushing the previous record by nearly 16 points.

Some 82.47 of those points came from the siblings' effervescent free dance to the overture to The Barber of Seville. Neither one put a foot wrong, gaining Level 4 for four elements, including the two lifts, spin and three-part twizzle sequence.

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Caroline was glad their effort was rewarded, according to Rutherford. "For the amount of work we've put in, it's just really great to get this kind of result," she said.

In the junior ladies short program, Emily Chan ran away from the competition with a top score of 66.74 ahead of Thursday's free skate. She performed to the late Whitney Houston's, "I Will Always Love You," despite the fact it wasn't her first choice, per Rutherford.

"As soon as I heard it, I knew I had to skate to it," Chan said. "I just felt the emotions with Whitney Houston, and The Bodyguard is an amazing movie. I feel I can perform this program the way it should be performed—to touch people."

Chan won over the crowd with a strong showing, per Rutherford:

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Chan's performance certainly touched fans at the 2016 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, as she was given a standing ovation when she finished. The Texas skater, who won the novice crown last season, skated with supreme ease, flowing effortlessly through a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination and triple flip as well as a pristine Level 4 step sequence. Her 66.74 points gave her a near 10-point lead over training partner Vivian Le.

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Count Amber Lewis of IceMusings.com as another viewer impressed with Chan:

According to Rutherford, Vivian Le, the favorite heading in, fell to second after struggling early in her routine, but was happy with how she bounced back.

"I think I just rushed into the first jump," the 14-year-old said. "I'm very happy with the rest of my performance. I just forgot about what happened and moved on."

Speaking of forgetting, the junior men's competition was not a memorable one, as Tomoki Hiwatashi took first place in what Rutherford called a "flawed junior men's field":

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During the six-minute warmup Tuesday night, Tomoki Hiwatashi landed a handful of beautiful triple axels. But when it counted, the three-time U.S. champion fell on the element, setting the tone for a mistake-ridden junior men's short program at the 2016 U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

Following the fall on his opening jump, Hiwatashi went on to successfully execute a triple lutz-triple toe combination and a triple flip in his James Brown-themed short. The Illinois-based skater totaled 65.90 points and leads the field by 3.4 heading into Wednesday's free skate.

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Hiwatashi fractured his ankle in 2013 and is just now getting back to form, per Rutherford. "It's been really hard to fight my way back," Hiwatashi said. "I'm just trying to do my best right now and come back little by little."

In the final event of the night, Jacob Simon and Lindsay Weinstein sit atop the leader board of the junior pairs with a short-program score of 49.54. Weinstein was obviously happy with the performance, replying to a congratulatory tweet from Golden Skate:

With Tuesday night in the books, let's take a look at an updated schedule for the remainder of the event:

Wednesday, Jan. 20	Time (ET)
Thursday, Jan. 21	Time (ET)
Friday, Jan. 22	Time (ET)
Saturday, Jan. 23	Time (ET)
Sunday, Jan. 24	Time (ET)
Junior Dance—Short Dance	12:20 p.m.
Junior Pairs—Free Skate	2:20 p.m.
Junior Men—Free Skate	8 p.m.
Junior Ladies—Free Skate	10 p.m.
Championship Pairs—Short Program	3:45 p.m.
Championship Ladies—Short Program	9 p.m.
Junior Dance—Free Dance	10 a.m.
Championship Dance—Short Dance	3:30 p.m.
Championship Men—Short Program	8:30 p.m.
Championship Pairs—Free Skate (Groups 1-2)	10 a.m.
Championship Dance—Free Dance (Group 1)	11:45 a.m.
Championship Pairs—Free Skate (Groups 3-4)	2:30 p.m.
Championship Dance—Free Dance (Groups 2-3)	4:25 p.m.
Championship Ladies—Free Skate	7 p.m.
Championship Men—Free Skate	2 p.m.

The championships resume Wednesday at 12:20 p.m. with the junior dance—short dance followed by the free skates for the junior pairs, men and ladies.