ST. LOUIS — It has been 20 years since an American woman has won an Olympic figure skating medal, but if the stellar performances in the women’s short program Wednesday night at the U.S. championships are any indication of what’s to come at the 2026 Winter Olympics, that drought is about to end.
If you haven’t been following figure skating, get to know these three names: Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito. One after another, those three — the top three women’s skaters in the nation — turned in consecutive flawless programs, finishing with a majestic skate by Glenn, the two-time defending national champion.
Glenn, who at the advanced skating age of 26 is trying to qualify for her first Olympic team, landed one of the most scintillating triple axels ever by a woman on her way to a new U.S. short-program record score, 83.05 points.
How good was the skating on the opening night of the national championships? Glenn broke the previous record of 81.11 points — set all of 10 minutes earlier by Liu, 20, the reigning world champion.
Between the two was another strong performance, this one by Isabeau Levito, 18, who finished third with 75.72 points.
