Getty Alysa Liu
The 2021 U.S. Figure Skating Championships will kick off on Thursday at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas and take place through Sunday.
Television coverage of the pairs, dance, ladies and men’s competitions will be split between NBC Sports Network and NBC. But if you don’t have cable, here’s how you can watch a live stream of the 2021 US Figure Skating Championships online for free:
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FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of NBC (live in most markets), NBC Sports Network and 100-plus other TV channels on FuboTV, which you can use for free with a seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch the 2021 US Figure Skating Championships live on the FuboTV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the FuboTV website.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV also comes with cloud DVR space, as well as a 72-hour look-back feature, which allows you to watch most events on-demand within three days of their conclusion, even if you don’t record them.
Sling TV
You can watch a live stream of NBC (live in select markets), NBC Sports Network and 35-plus other TV channels via Sling TV’s “Sling Blue” bundle. It’s the cheapest streaming service with these channels, plus you can get $10 off your first month, and get Showtime, Starz, and Epix included for free:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch the 2021 US Figure Skating Championships live on the Sling TV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, airTV Mini, Oculus, Portal, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Sling TV website.
If you can’t watch live, Sling TV comes included with 10 hours of cloud DVR.
Hulu With Live TV
You can watch a live stream of NBC (live in most markets), NBC Sports Network and 65+ other TV channels via Hulu With Live TV, which you can try out for free with a seven-day trial:
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch the 2021 US Figure Skating Championships live on the Hulu app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Hulu website.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu with Live TV also comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials).
US Figure Skating Championships 2021 Preview
All eyes will be on Nathan Chen, who could snag his fifth national title in a row with a win here. If he takes home the hardware for a fifth time, he’ll be the first American since Dick Button in 1946 to win five straight. Button had a seven-year reign, and Chen told the Los Angeles Times that it would mean a great deal to him if he joined such elite company.
“Dick has been a name that’s been around forever and definitely a big source of inspiration growing up as a kid. It would be amazing. I think that would be something I could cherish dearly for the rest of my life if that is able to happen,” the 21-year-old said, adding: “But as of now, as I always say, it’s difficult to predict results. Just as long as I can train as best I can, prepare myself as best as I can and go to the competition and do everything I can, I’ll be satisfied with the results.”
Olympians Vincent Zhou and Jason Brown will be the primary competition for Chen, who hasn’t lost since placing fifth at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Then, there’s 15-year-old Alysa Liu, who is a two-time champ, but the talented teen has grown at least three inches since winning her last medal, and she has also been dealing with a hip injury that has severely limited her range, along with her ability to practice triple jumps.
“I don’t necessarily care about my placement anymore,” Liu said. “Obviously, you want to win, but the most important thing will be to skate my best. You can win and skate bad, and you don’t feel so good about yourself. I would rather skate very well and not focus on placement.”
2018 Olympian Bradie Tennell and Skate America winner Mariah Bell are among the favorites to be some of the top performers in the ladies’ event.
In other events, defending champs Madison Chock and Evan Bates will battle it out with Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue in the ice dance category, while Alexa Knierim will skate with new partner Brandon Frazier in pairs. Both Knierim and Frazier have had storied careers with other partners, and this will be the first major national competition for them.
“Our tryout got cut short, because of the [COVID-19] lockdowns,” Frazier said, per NBC Sports. “But we didn’t need the whole normal, traditional tryout to make the decision. I mean, we grabbed each other’s hand on the ice and did a lap of crossovers. And I just was like, ‘Yeah, it’s going to work.’”
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, no fans will be in the stands for the championships this year.