Rotterdam's first LA28 team places, Sölden's season opener and Angers' Grand Prix: Team USA watch, Oct. 19–25
A planning brief for Oct. 19–25, 2026: the gymnastics team finals in Rotterdam that award the first LA28 team places, alpine skiing's season opener in Sölden and figure skating's Grand Prix opener in Angers — with the Team USA names to watch and what each event is worth toward Los Angeles.
This issue covers Oct. 19–25, 2026. Rotterdam decides the first LA28 gymnastics team places, Sölden opens the alpine World Cup, and Angers opens figure skating's Grand Prix. 123
One event this week can send Americans straight to the Los Angeles Games. The top three men's teams and the top three women's teams at the gymnastics world championships each take a five-athlete team place. 1 The American men qualified fifth for Tuesday's team final. The American women hold the best score of women's qualifying so far.
The other three events this week carry less Olympic weight. Sölden pays World Cup points and gives the season its first form check. 3 Angers pays Grand Prix points toward December's Final in Chongqing. 4 Cairo closes a 300m rifle world championship. 5
What changed since last week
The American men made the team final in fifth. They scored 245.961 across six apparatus in Saturday's fourth subdivision. Japan led at 254.529, Britain was second at 251.460 and Russia third at 249.162. 6
China took the last place above the United States. China scored 247.493, and the U.S. total of 245.961 came next. Switzerland, the Netherlands and Colombia filled the last three final places, and Italy missed by 0.232 of a point. 6
The floor carried the American total. The U.S. men posted the best floor score in the field, 41.766, and the third-best high bar total, 41.433. Parallel bars were the weak set at 40.065, ranked 16th of the 24 teams. 6
Two Americans posted all-around scores on Saturday. Frederick Richard sat ninth at 82.098 and Danila Leykin 15th at 78.998 when the first four subdivisions were done, and the top 24 advance after the two-per-country rule. 7 Patrick Hoopes was third on pommel horse at 14.666 at the same stage. 7
The women lead qualifying, with seven subdivisions still to come. The U.S. women scored 164.529 in Sunday's first subdivision: 42.133 on vault, 41.965 on bars, 40.499 on beam and 39.932 on floor. 8 Japan is second at 161.630 and Germany third at 158.661. Dulcy Caylor, the travelling replacement, went 13.300 on beam. 8
Seven teams still have to qualify. France, the Netherlands, Britain, Canada, Switzerland, Brazil and China compete across Monday's seven subdivisions, and that is when the eight-team final lineup is set. 2
Cairo's 300m championship reached its closing days. The 300m rifle world championship runs through Tuesday at the Egyptian International Olympic City range, with the men's three-position and prone titles and the standard rifle event decided from Saturday to Monday. 5
This week's watch list
| Event and governing body | Dates, place and sessions | Tier | Team USA watch | What is at stake | U.S. viewing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships — FIG and USA Gymnastics 2 | Oct. 17–25, Rotterdam Ahoy, Netherlands. Team and all-around finals start at 7:30 p.m. local; apparatus finals start at 2 p.m. local on Oct. 24 and 25. 9 | FIG World Championships, the first of the LA28 cycle 1 | Men: Patrick Hoopes, Danila Leykin, Kameron Nelson, Frederick Richard and Shane Wiskus, with Yul Moldauer travelling as replacement. Women: Skye Blakely, Charleigh Bullock, Reese Esponda, Claire Pease and Hezly Rivera, with Dulcy Caylor travelling. 2 | Five-athlete LA28 team places for the top three men's teams and top three women's teams in the finals. 1 | Peacock and NBCSN carry the team and all-around finals at 1:30 p.m. ET. The apparatus finals stream at 8 a.m. ET Saturday and 9 a.m. ET Sunday, and NBC re-airs the women's team final Sunday at noon. 2 |
| Audi FIS Ski World Cup opener — FIS and U.S. Ski & Snowboard 3 | Oct. 24 women's giant slalom, Oct. 25 men's, on the Rettenbach glacier above Sölden, Austria. Both days run at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. local, and the women's bib draw is Friday at 6:30 p.m. local. 10 | Audi FIS World Cup, the opening weekend of the season 3 | Mikaela Shiffrin, Paula Moltzan, AJ Hurt, Katie Hensien and Nina O'Brien are on the women's roster; River Radamus, Tommy Ford and Ryan Cochran-Siegle lead the men's. The start list is drawn Friday. 11 | World Cup points and the season's first read on form. | Peacock streams both runs, with the women's first run at 4 a.m. ET Saturday. 12 |
| ISU Grand Prix de France — ISU 4 | Oct. 23–25, Angers IceParc, Angers, France. The first of six Grand Prix events, with fields of 12 men, 12 women, eight pairs and 10 ice dance couples. 4 | ISU Grand Prix 13 | Sarah Everhardt in women's singles; Jimmy Ma and Jacob Sanchez in men's; Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko, Leah Neset and Artem Markelov, and Eva Pate and Logan Bye in ice dance. No American pair is entered. 14 | Grand Prix points toward the Final in Chongqing on Dec. 10–13. 4 | The ISU Skating Channel on YouTube. 4 |
The Rotterdam arithmetic
Three men's teams and three women's teams leave Rotterdam with five-athlete LA28 places, and the team finals decide which three. 1 Tuesday's men's final is scored separately from qualifying, so Saturday's totals carry no points into it.
The American men need to finish ahead of two of Japan, Britain, Russia and China. They trailed China by 1.432 in qualifying and Russia by 3.199. 6 Floor and high bar are where that gap can close, since the U.S. ranked first and third on those two sets.
The women's qualification is still open. Their 164.529 is the highest score posted, and Japan sits closest at 161.630. 8 The U.S. women are done, and France, the Netherlands, Britain, Canada, Switzerland, Brazil and China have not started.
The LA28 read
Rotterdam is the week's only direct route to a Games place. The five-athlete places at stake in the team finals are the first artistic gymnastics quotas awarded for Los Angeles. 1 The men's final runs Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. local, the women's Wednesday at the same hour. 9
Sölden opens the alpine season with a different American lead. Mikaela Shiffrin, the reigning World Cup overall champion, plans to race more giant slalom and super-G this season and less slalom. 11 That shift puts Saturday's opener among her target races.
The Rettenbach course drops onto the glacier above Sölden, and the finish arena sits at the base of the glacier beneath the gantry and grandstand. Photo: Sölden.
Angers opens a Grand Prix whose points decide a December Final. The six-event series ends in Chongqing on Dec. 10–13, where the top six in each discipline after two Grand Prix apiece compete. 4 The American entries in Angers are thinner than at Skate America next month, where Alysa Liu and Ilia Malinin headline the home event. 14
The 2025 Grand Prix Final in Nagoya drew the six best skaters or couples in each discipline. Angers is the first of the six events that decide who reaches December's Final in Chongqing. Photo: ISU.
Calendar order
All times are Eastern, converted from the organizers' local schedules.
- Monday, Oct. 19 — Rotterdam: women's qualification runs through subdivisions 4 to 10, from 3:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET, with France, the Netherlands, Britain, Canada, Switzerland, Brazil and China competing. 9
- Tuesday, Oct. 20 — Rotterdam: the men's team final starts at 7:30 p.m. local, 1:30 p.m. ET. 2
- Wednesday, Oct. 21 — Rotterdam: the women's team final, 1:30 p.m. ET. 2
- Thursday, Oct. 22 — Rotterdam: the men's all-around final, 1:30 p.m. ET. 2
- Friday, Oct. 23 — Rotterdam and Angers: the women's all-around final at 1:30 p.m. ET, and the figure skating Grand Prix opens in Angers. In Sölden the women's bib draw runs at 6:30 p.m. local, 12:30 p.m. ET. 210
- Saturday, Oct. 24 — Rotterdam and Sölden: apparatus finals in Rotterdam at 8 a.m. ET, and the women's giant slalom in Sölden at 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. ET. 212
- Sunday, Oct. 25 — Rotterdam and Sölden: apparatus finals in Rotterdam at 9 a.m. ET, and the men's giant slalom at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. local. Europe's clocks go back that morning, so both men's runs land an hour later in Eastern time than Saturday's. 210
References
- 1
- 2
- 3Soelden (AUT) event details
fis-ski.com
- 4
- 5ISSF World Championship 300m Rifle, Cairo
issf-sports.org
- 6Men's team qualification, 54th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships
live.gymnastics.sport
- 7
- 8Women's team qualification standings
live.gymnastics.sport
- 9Competition schedule, 54th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships
live.gymnastics.sport
- 10
- 11
- 12Broadcast and streaming schedule
usskiandsnowboard.org
- 13ISU Grand Prix de France 2026
isu-skating.com
- 14U.S. National Team 2026 Grand Prix assignments announced
usfigureskating.org
- 15IWF calendar 2026
iwf.sport
- 16Road to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games
usaweightlifting.org
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