How to Watch Figure Skating on TV or Online
How to Watch Figure Skating on TV or Online
This guide is only a general overview of how to watch figure skating. We will post more specific information before each competition. Make sure you check out our blog to keep up with our weekly info posts!
Note: This post is based on past experience in watching skating online; however, information provided here is not a guarantee of broadcast/streaming status in the future.
See also: Overview of Skating Competitions, Figure Skating Event Calendar, more skating intro guides
LAST UPDATED: Jan 29, 2022
JUNIOR GRAND PRIX SERIES
All Junior Grand Prix competitions are livestreamed for free on the official ISU JGP Youtube channel. Individual performances, as well as full event videos, are uploaded to the channel during/after each competition.
CHALLENGER SERIES AND B COMPETITIONS
Challenger Series and B competitions are not usually aired on TV, but several of them provide online streams via the host federation or competition organizers. Some streams are free of charge, some require a fee. Since these are small competitions, the quality of the streams may vary.
General info on watching CS/B events; please note that this can change:
Lombardia Trophy: In recent years, free streaming has been provided on Youtube.
Autumn Classic International: Free streaming is usually provided on Skate Canada's Dailymotion channel.
Ondrej Nepela Trophy: In recent years, free streaming has been provided on Youtube.
Nebelhorn Trophy: Free streaming is usually provided by the German skating federation.
Finlandia Trophy: Streaming is usually provided by the Finnish Skating Association; a fee is sometimes required.
Japan Open: The competition is usually aired in Japan by TV Tokyo and may be available on Japanese streaming services.
Other competitions: Streams come and go. Follow us to get the most up-to-date info on how to watch!
On demand: Streams from CS/B competitions are not always archived. However, skating fans usually record and upload videos to Youtube. See our List of Skating Youtube Channels for some channels to keep an eye on, or just search skaters' names on Youtube.
MAJOR COMPETITIONS: GRAND PRIX SERIES, ISU CHAMPIONSHIPS, OLYMPICS
Major competitions such as the Grand Prix Series, Four Continents Championships, European Championships, World Championships, and Winter Olympics are aired on various TV channels around the world. Online streaming is available through both official and unofficial means. We will provide links to streams that we can find on the internet, but please be aware that free streaming sites may have ads/popups and streams may be of poor quality.
Most official streaming options require a fee and are blocked outside of their respective countries. The official Skating ISU Youtube livestreams several major competitions for free, but streams are only available in countries that have not purchased broadcasting rights to a competition. If you wish to access a stream, consider using a VPN (Virtual Private Network).
Here are a few common ways to watch major skating events around the world:
USA: NBC owns the rights to all major skating competitions. Competitions are often aired live on the Olympic Channel and sometimes on other NBC channels. Short, non-live recaps are aired on NBC proper. Subscribers to Peacock Premium can stream most major skating competition, as well as some US domestic events. Peacock Premium is only available in the USA.
Canada: CBC owns the rights to major international events. Competitions can be streamed live for free on the CBC website; the streams are usually blocked outside of Canada. CBC may also air recaps of competitions on TV.
Russia: Channel 1 (1tv) livestreams both international and domestic skating events on their website and airs some events on TV. Livestreams on the website are usually blocked outside of Russia. The Channel 1 Youtube channel also livestreams many competitions, some are geoblocked and some are not.
Italy: RaiSport airs some skating competitions, not always live.
Spain: Teledeporte airs some skating competitions, not always live.
Europe: Eurosport will sometimes air skating competitions, not always live.
Japan: Japanese broadcasting rights for skating events are spread throughout several TV channels.
NHK Trophy: NHK and related channels
ISU Championships: Fuji TV and related channels
Grand Prix Series (besides NHK Trophy): TV Asahi and related channels
World Team Trophy: TV Asahi and related channels
Olympics: NHK and related channels
China: CCTV 5/5+ and Tencent Sports sometimes air skating competitions, not always live.
South Korea: International competitions are usually aired on SBS Sports.
On demand: The Skating ISU Youtube archives their livestreams, but videos may be geoblocked. Videos from TV broadcasts are also uploaded to Youtube by fans. See our List of Skating Youtube Channels for some channels to keep an eye on, or just search for skaters' names.
There are other options for watching skating competitions in other countries; we have listed some of the most common ways to watch. The ISU will publish the broadcasters that hold the rights to a competition before the event takes place. Keep an eye on their Twitter/website for news.
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Japan: Fuji TV owns the rights to the Japanese National Championships. Fuji TV streams are not always available online, but videos from Japanese Nationals are often uploaded to Youtube by fans.
Russia: The Russian National Championships are livestreamed and aired on Channel 1 (1tv). Streams on the 1tv Youtube are usually available outside of Russia.
USA: The senior US National Championships are aired on NBC and related channels. Subscribers in the USA with Peacock Premium can livestream the junior and senior competitions.
Canada: The Canadian National Championships are usually streamed on Skate Canada's Dailymotion channel and sometimes by CBC.
South Korea: The Korean Skating Union has archived videos of some national championships and other domestic competitions on their Naver blog.
Other: Other national championships may be aired on TV, streamed by the federation, or have no footage at all besides fancams. Keep an eye on our blog or Twitter for more information on how to watch.
FANCAMS
Fans are allowed to take videos at most skating events, and you can find many fancams on Youtube. However, fancams and fan photos are not allowed in Japan. Videos and photos from Japanese skating events can only come from official sources.