By
Rachel Treisman
Amber Glenn performs during the Women's short program during the 2026 ISU World Figure Skating Championships on Wednesday. Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Has the end of the Winter Olympics left a rink-sized void in your heart? If so, good news: the ISU Figure Skating World Championships are now underway.
This year's competition, held in Prague, began on Wednesday and ends on Saturday. Much like the Olympics, it features two days of competition in each of the four disciplines: women's, men's, pairs and ice dance.
2026 Milan Cortina Olympics U.S. figure skater Alysa Liu said she didn't care if she medaled. She won gold It's the last major event of the 2025-2026 figure skating season, offering athletes one more shot at a title and, in some cases, post-Olympics redemption.
Many Olympians, including American gold medalist Alysa Liu, and reigning ice dance world champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates, withdrew from worlds after medaling in Milan, which is not unusual. But other fan-favorites, like Amber Glenn and Ilia Malinin, are aiming to make this podium after missing out in Italy.
Competition kicked off with the women's short program, where Glenn, performing her "Like a Prayer" routine, successfully landed the triple jump that likely cost her an Olympic medal. She is in third place heading into Friday's women's free skate, which will determine who wins a medal (gold, silver and bronze, just like the Olympics)l.
"It's great being able to go into the free skate not feeling like I'm clawing my way up through the ranks for once," Glenn told U.S. Figure Skating, adding that competing so soon after the Olympics helps. "Even though it's been a month, it feels like it was yesterday."
2026 Milan Cortina Olympics Ilia Malinin, U.S. figure skater favored for gold, finishes 8th Malinin, who finished in eighth place in Milan after a series of uncharacteristic stumbles, has his eye on a third straight world title. He earned an international personal best score in his short program on Thursday, topping the leaderboard by more than nine points ahead of Saturday's men's free skate.
Malinin said that he approached worlds with a goal of proving to himself that his Olympic slip-up "was a one-time thing."
"But now I've realized that there's much more than just skating," he said. "It's being able to go out there, enjoy everything and just have fun. So, coming here, I had no real expectations but to finish the season."
Ilia Malinin performs during the men's short program on Thursday. Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Many familiar faces are taking the ice, including French ice dance champions Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron, who paired up last year due to controversies involving their former partners. Reigning world silver medalist Kaori Sakamoto of Japan, fresh off Olympic silver, is looking to close out her career with a different color medal.
It's also a chance to see skating stars who didn't compete in Italy. They include U.S. pairs skaters Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov, who won their second national title in January but missed out on the Olympics because Finnish-born Efimova, who has a green card, didn't get citizenship in time.
The first winners of the championship were crowned on Thursday, in pairs: Germany's Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin earned their first world title after winning bronze in Milan. Georgia's Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava took silver, as they did at the Olympics, and Canada's Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud won bronze.
Here's what else to know in the final half of worlds.
Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron of France, pictured at the Olympic exhibition gala, are the only Olympic gold medalists to take the ice at World Championships. Joosep Martinson/Getty Images hide caption
Here's the overall schedule, in eastern time:
The Indicator from Planet Money What it costs to be an elite figure skater like the 'Quad God' In the U.S., all events are streaming live on Peacock and available for replays for 72 hours. NBC and USA Network will also broadcast the competition, and you can view the TV schedule here.
Isabeau Levito performs during the women's short program on Wednesday, where she moved into fourth place. Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Women (Friday):
2026 Milan Cortina Olympics U.S. women's figure skaters could've been rivals. Instead, they're the 'Blade Angels' Men (Saturday):
American ice dancers Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik placed fifth in their Olympic debut last month. Elsa/Getty Images Europe hide caption
Ice dance (Friday, Saturday):
Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik are looking to build on the momentum of their breakout season, at which they finished fifth at the Olympics. They are seen as the heirs apparent to reigning world champions Chock and Bates, who have competed in the event for the last 12 years. Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko are also competing fresh off their Olympic debut, where they finished in 11th place. Caroline Green and Michael Parsons, the fourth-place finishers at U.S. nationals, are competing in their third worlds together. They finished sixth and ninth in 2023 and 2025.
Pairs (finished):
Women (Friday):
Japan's Kaori Sakamoto performs during the Women's short program in Prague, her last competition before retirement. Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Men (Saturday):
France's Adam Siao Him Fa, pictured during his short program on Thursday. Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Ice dance:
Olympic bronze medalists Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Canada are hoping to win their fifth worlds medal. Gregory Shamus/Getty Images hide caption
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