The 2008–09 figure skating season began on July 1, 2008, and ended on June 30, 2009. During this season, elite skaters competed on the Championship level at the 2009 European, Four Continents, World Junior, and World Championships. They also competed in elite competitions such as the Grand Prix and Junior Grand Prix series.
Season notes As this was a pre-Olympic season, skaters qualified entries to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games at the 2009 World Championships.
Age eligibility Skaters competing on the junior level were required to be at least 13 but not 19 – or 21 for male pair skaters and ice dancers – before July 1, 2008. Those who had turned 14 were eligible for the senior Grand Prix series and senior B internationals. Those who turned 15 before July 1, 2008 were also eligible for the senior World, European, and Four Continents Championships.
Date of birth Eligibility Born before July 1, 1995 Eligible for Junior Grand Prix Born before July 1, 1994 Eligible for senior Grand Prix series, senior B internationals Born before July 1, 1993 Eligible for senior Worlds, Europeans, Four Continents Born before July 1, 1989 Not eligible for junior events (except male pair skaters and ice dancers) Born before July 1, 1987 Male pair skaters and ice dancers not eligible for junior events Rules may not apply to non-ISU events such as national championships
Music
Competitions Key ISU Champ.Grand PrixOther int.National
Date Event Type Level Disc. Location 2008 August 28–30 JGP Courchevel Grand Prix Junior M/L/D Courchevel, France Details September 4–6 JGP Merano Grand Prix Junior M/L/D Merano, Italy Details September 11–13 JGP Mexico Cup Grand Prix Junior All Mexico City, Mexico Details September 18–20 JGP Czech Skate Grand Prix Junior All Ostrava, Czech Republic Details September 25–27 Nebelhorn Trophy Other int. Senior All Oberstdorf, Germany Details September 25–28 JGP Madrid Cup Grand Prix Junior M/L/D Madrid, Spain Details October 2–4 JGP Golden Lynx Grand Prix Junior All Gomel, Belarus Details October 2–4 Master's de Patinage Other nat. Sen.–Jun. All Orléans, France Details October 3–5 Merano Cup Other int. Sen.–Nov. M/L Merano, Italy October 9–11 JGP Skate Safari Grand Prix Junior M/L/D Cape Town, South Africa Details October 10–12 Finlandia Trophy Other int. Senior M/L/D Vantaa, Finland Details October 14–17 Coupe de Nice Other int. Sen.–Nov. M/L/P Nice, France Details October 14–17 Karl Schäfer Memorial Other int. Senior M/L/D Vienna, Austria Details October 15–19 Coupe de Nice Other int. Sen.–Nov. M/L/P Nice, France Details October 16–18 JGP John Curry Memorial Grand Prix Junior All Sheffield, England Details October 24–26 Skate America Grand Prix Senior All Everett, WA, U.S.A. Details Oct. 31 – Nov. 2 NRW Trophy Other int. Sen.–PN. D Dortmund, Germany Oct. 31 – Nov. 2 Skate Canada Grand Prix Senior All Ottawa, Canada Details November 6–8 Cup of China Grand Prix Senior All Beijing, China Details November 8–9 Skate Celje Other int. Jun.–Nov. M/L Celje, Slovenia Details November 13–15 Crystal Skate of Romania Other int. Senior M/L Galați, Romania November 14–16 Warsaw Cup Other int. Jun.–Nov. M/L/P Warsaw, Poland Details November 14–15 Trophée Eric Bompard Grand Prix Senior All Paris, France Details November 14–16 Golden Spin of Zagreb Other int. Senior All Zagreb, Croatia November 14–16 Pavel Roman Memorial Other int. Sen.–Jun. D Olomouc, Czech Republic November 21–23 Cup of Russia Grand Prix Senior All Moscow, Russia Details November 22–23 Ondrej Nepela Memorial Other int. Senior M/L/D Bratislava, Slovakia November 23–24 Japan Junior Champ. Nats. Junior M/L/D Nagoya, Japan Details November 28–30 NHK Trophy Grand Prix Senior All Tokyo, Japan Details December 4–6 Three Nationals Championships (Czech, Slovak, Polish) Nats. Sen.–Nov. All Třinec, Czech Republic December 4–7 NRW Trophy Other int. Sen.–Nov. M/L/P Dortmund, Germany December 11–13 Grand Prix Final Grand Prix Sen.–Jun. All Goyang, South Korea Details December 17–21 German Championships Nats. Sen.–Nov. All Oberstdorf, Germany Details December 19–20 French Championships Nats. Senior All Colmar, France Details December 24–28 Russian Championships Nats. Senior All Kazan, Russia December 25–27 Japan Championships Nats. Senior All Nagano, Japan Details 2009 January 7–10 Chinese Championships Nats. Senior All Beijing, China January 14–18 Canadian Championships Nats. Sen.–Jun. All Saskatoon, Canada January 18–25 U.S. Championships Nats. Sen.–Nov. All Cleveland, U.S. Details January 20–24 European Championships ISU Champ. Senior All Helsinki, Finland Details January 28–31 Russian Junior Championships Nats. Junior All Saransk, Russia February 4–7 Four Continents Championships ISU Champ. Senior All Vancouver, Canada Details February 5–8 International Challenge Cup Other int. Sen.–PN. M/L/P The Hague, Netherlands Details February 6–8 Nordic Championships Other int. Sen.–Nov. M/L Malmö, Sweden February 16–20 Euro. Youth Olympic Festival Other int. Junior M/L/D Cieszyn, Poland Details February 21–24 Winter Universiade Other int. Senior All Harbin, China Details February 24–28 World Junior Championships ISU Champ. Junior All Sofia, Bulgaria Details March 24–28 World Championships ISU Champ. Senior All Los Angeles, U.S. Details April 2–4 Triglav Trophy Other int. Sen.–Nov. M/L Jesenice, Slovenia April 16–18 World Team Trophy Other int. Senior All Tokyo, Japan Details Type: ISU Champ. = ISU Championships; Other int. = International events except ISU Championships and Grand Prix; Nats. = National championships; Other nat. = Other national events Levels: Sen. = Senior; Jun. = Junior; Nov. = Novice; PN. = Pre-novice Disciplines: M = Men's singles; L = Ladies' singles; P = Pair skating; D = Ice dance; All = All four disciplines
Records During the season, the following world records were set:
Discipline Segment Skater Score Event Date Ladies Total overall Kim Yuna 207.71 2009 World Figure Skating Championships 28.03.2009 Ladies Short program Kim Yuna 76.12 2009 World Figure Skating Championships 27.03.2009 Ladies Short program Kim Yuna 72.24 2009 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 04.02.2009
ISU Champions During the season, the following skaters won ISU Championships.
Discipline World Championships European Championships Four Continents Championships World Junior Championship Men Evan Lysacek Brian Joubert Patrick Chan Adam Rippon Ladies Kim Yuna Laura Lepistö Kim Yuna Alena Leonova Pair skating Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy Pang Qing / Tong Jian Lubov Iliushechkina / Nodari Maisuradze Ice Dance Oksana Domnina / Maxim Shabalin Jana Khokhlova / Sergei Novitski Meryl Davis / Charlie White Madison Chock / Greg Zuerlein
Season's best scores The following are all the season's best scores set over the season.
Men Men's season's best scores on April 18, 2009.