A trio of Olympic figure skating medalists from Russia return to major competition at Cup of China, live from Friday through Sunday on Peacock.

Cup of China, the third of six Grand Prix regular season events, includes four entries of individual neutral athletes from Russia, whose skaters return to the Grand Prix this season for the first time since the war in Ukraine began in February 2022.

In June, the International Skating Union (ISU) announced that skaters from Russia and Belarus can compete internationally in a neutral capacity if they have not supported the war in Ukraine.

“Skaters should not be held responsible for the actions of their governments,” the ISU posted at the time. “Safety remains the guiding consideration for any further easing. The ISU will continue to monitor conditions at ISU events and will relax restrictions further only when satisfied that no safety or integrity issues arise, and reserves the right to reintroduce or increase restrictive measures should such issues emerge.”

2026 Cup of China Broadcast Schedule

In the 2025-26 season, one men’s and women’s singles skater each from Russia and Belarus were cleared to return as neutrals for a qualifying competition for the 2026 Olympics and, for the ones who qualified, at the 2026 Milan Cortina Games.

At Cup of China this week, Aleksandra Ignatova (née Trusova) — who wasn’t one of the singles skaters who competed internationally last season — and pairs’ skaters Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov compete on the sport’s highest level for the first time since winning medals at the 2022 Olympics.

Ignatova, the 2022 Olympic silver medalist, is back this season after having son Mikhail in summer 2025. She already ranks second in the world this season by best total score from a lower-level competition last month, trailing only four-time world junior champion Mao Shimada of Japan.

She faces a field this week that includes two-time world medalist Mone Chiba of Japan.

In pairs, Mishina and Galliamov, the 2022 Olympic bronze medalists, are expected to challenge 2026 Olympic silver medalists Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava of Georgia.

Metelkina and Berulava already beat Mishina and Galliamov at a lower-level event in Georgia last month. Then they defeated another top pair from Russia — Aleksandra Boikova Dmitriy Kozlovskiy — to win the opening Grand Prix in France two weeks ago.

Metelkina and Berulava are the only pair to score higher than Mishina and Galliamov this season across all competitions.

The men’s event at Cup of China is headlined by 2026 Olympic gold medalist Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan, who looks to rebound from a 10th-place finish at the opening Grand Prix in France.

Two more neutral skaters from Russia are entered in that event. Vladislav Dikidzhi and Yevgeny Semenenko rank Nos. 1 and 2 in the world this season by best total score.

Dikidzhi, 22, makes his Grand Prix debut after landing six quadruple jumps between two programs at each of his two lower-level international wins to start the season.

Semenenko, who was eighth at the 2022 Olympics, also landed six quads to win his most recent international event in September.

The Cup of China ice dance field is led by Brits Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson, who go for consecutive Grand Prix wins — and a spot in December’s Grand Prix Final field of six — after taking Skate Canada last week.