Mishina and Galliamov lead pairs after short program at Grand Prix China

Anastasia Mishina and Alexander Galliamov have made a strong start in Shenzhen. The Russian pair won the short program at the ISU Grand Prix stage in China, scoring 74.69 points.

What happened?

Mishina and Galliamov now lead the pairs event. Their 74.69 points put them well ahead of the rest.

Anastasia Metelkina and Luka Berulava sit second with 67.06. That is a gap of roughly seven and a half points.

Third place belongs to an Armenian duo, Karina Akopova and Nikita Rakhmanin, who scored 66.34. They are just 0.72 behind the second-placed pair, so the podium fight is tight.

What about the other events?

The men's short program also had a Russian flavour. Olympic champion Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan scored 94.87 and is fifth, behind Russians Evgeny Semenenko and Vladislav Dikidzhi. Japan's Kao Miura and Shun Sato lead.

Shaidorov welcomed the tough field. He said he is very glad there is such high competition, and that it motivates not only him but, probably, everyone.

There was also a story off the ice. Russian skater Alexandra Trusova asked the organisers not to announce her under two surnames. She married skater Makar Ignatov in August 2024 and took his name.

Trusova, now Ignatova, is third after the short program in Shenzhen.

What came before?

The Shenzhen event has already had its share of headlines. Japan's Mone Chiba, who took women's silver at the 2026 World Championships in March, sprained her right ankle in July. She still leads the China Cup short program despite those worries.

What's next?

The skaters perform their free programs on Saturday, 7 November. The Grand Prix in Shenzhen runs from 6 to 8 November.

Mishina and Galliamov go into it as leaders, but a gap of seven points is not unbeatable in a free skate.