British figure skaters Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson won the rhythm dance at the third stage of the International Skating Union Grand Prix in Shenzhen, China.
The British pair took the lead in the opening segment of the China Grand Prix competition with a score of 80 points, according to Sovetsky Sport.
Diana Davis and Gleb Smolkin, who skate for Georgia, finished second in the rhythm dance. They earned 79.31 points to sit less than a point behind the leaders.
Natalie Taschlerova and Filip Taschler of the Czech Republic placed third after the opening segment with a score of 73.10 points.
Skaters at the China Grand Prix
Fear and Gibson are Great Britain's leading ice dance team and multiple time national champions. The duo have won medals at the European Figure Skating Championships and have competed regularly at the World Championships and the Grand Prix Final.
Davis and Smolkin previously competed internationally for Russia, including at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, before switching their sporting allegiance to Georgia in 2023. Davis is the daughter of Russian figure skating coach Eteri Tutberidze.
Taschlerova and Taschler are a sibling ice dance team from the Czech Republic and multiple time Czech national champions. Shenzhen, a major city in southern China's Guangdong province, is hosting the Chinese stage of the series.
ISU Grand Prix format and free dance
The International Skating Union Grand Prix of Figure Skating is an annual senior international circuit featuring six stages across North America, Europe and Asia. Skaters earn points based on their placements at each event to qualify for the Grand Prix Final.
Competitive ice dance consists of two segments: the rhythm dance and the free dance. In the rhythm dance, couples perform to a seasonal musical theme and complete required pattern elements, while the free dance gives skaters broader freedom to choose their music and choreography.
Under the International Skating Union judging system, each performance receives a technical elements score, covering moves such as lifts, twizzles and step sequences, along with a program components score for skating skills and presentation. Points from both segments are added together to produce the final total.
Final positions in the Shenzhen ice dance competition will be determined after the free dance program. The narrow gap of less than a point between first and second place leaves Davis and Smolkin with a strong chance to challenge Fear and Gibson for victory at the stage.
