Winter Olympics 2018 schedule: When is figure skating?
Here’s the complete schedule for team, pairs and men’s and women’s individual events at the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics.
Are you ready to get far too into figure skating for 16 days and then forget about it for four years? Are you a skating fan who follows the sport, year in, year out — sighing deeply when the Olympics writers arrive editorializing about costumes and classical music? Whatever drives you to find out when figure skating occurs during the Olympics, we’re here with the answers, i.e., the schedule.
But first, some Pyeongchang time change housekeeping. Korea Time, the time zone in which the 2018 Olympics take place, is 14 hours ahead of Eastern Time. NBC, in their infinite wisdom, has decided they will air all the games live, without a tape delay. However, this can make reading the schedule somewhat confusing.
For example, a figure skating event that takes place at 10 a.m. on Saturday in Pyeongchang will air at 8 p.m. EST on Friday, the night before. Morning events become evening events, primetime events become crack-of-dawn events and afternoon events, well, they become middle of the night viewing.
What makes the figure skating schedule in particular somewhat unique — or confusing, depending on how familiar you are with Olympic sports — is the team event. Men’s, women’s and pairs figure skaters compete in events during the first week of the Olympics that look exactly like the events they compete in during the second week. For example, you see the men’s free skate at 10 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 12 and then again at 10 a.m. on February 17. Only, the first week is for the team score and team medals and the second week is individual. (You may remember such a structure from gymnastics at the summer Olympics.) And into this the potential for there to be re-runs on TV (remember: no tape delay this time around!) and you’d be forgiven for getting confused as to what event will lock in Nathan Chen’s gold medal.
Essentially all this really means is that there’s double the figure skating to watch. Huzzah.
The schedule below lists the official Korea dates and times and then their U.S. eastern standard time translations. Times are pulled from the NBC Olympics schedule for start times and the official Pyeongchang 2018 schedule for event times.
Team events
Friday, Feb. 9: 10 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 11:30 p.m. ET Thursday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Thursday)
- Men’s single short program
- Pairs short program
Sunday, Feb. 11: 10 a.m. – 2:40 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 12:40 a.m. ET Saturday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Saturday)
- Ice dance short dance
- Women’s single short program
- Pairs free skating
Monday, Feb. 12: 10 a.m. – 1:25 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 11:25 p.m. ET Sunday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Sunday)
- Men’s single free skate
- Women’s single free skate
- Ice dance free dance
Team event medals are awarded after the free skate events.
Pairs figure skating
Wednesday, Feb. 14: 10:30 a.m. – 1:35 p.m. KT (8:30 p.m. – 11:35 p.m. ET Tuesday)
NBC broadcast begins at 10 a.m. KT (8 p.m. ET Tuesday)
- Pairs short program
Thursday, Feb. 15: 10:30 a.m. – 1:55 p.m. KT (8:30 p.m. – 11:55 p.m. ET Wednesday)
NBC broadcast begins at 10 a.m. KT (8 p.m. ET Wednesday)
- Pairs free skating
Pairs medals are awarded after the free skate.
Men’s figure skating
Friday, Feb. 16: 10 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 12:30 a.m. ET Thursday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Thursday)
- Men’s single short program
Saturday, Feb. 17: 10 a.m. – 2:25 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 12:25 a.m. ET Friday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Friday)
- Men’s single free skating
Men’s medals are awarded after the free skate.
Ice dance
Monday, Feb. 19: 10 a.m. – 1:45 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 11:45 p.m. ET Sunday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Sunday)
- Ice dance short dance
Tuesday, Feb. 20: 10 a.m. – 1:45 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 11:45 p.m. ET Monday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Monday)
- Ice dance free dance
Ice dance medals are awarded after the free dance.
Next: The greatest Olympic athlete from every U.S. state
Women’s figure skating
Wednesday, Feb. 21: 10 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 12:30 a.m. ET Tuesday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Tuesday)
- Women’s single short program
Friday, Feb. 23: 10 a.m. – 2:15 p.m. KT (8 p.m. – 12:15 a.m. ET Thursday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. KT (7:30 p.m. ET Thursday)
- Women’s single free skating
Women’s medals are awarded after the free skate.
Gala Exhibition
Sunday, Feb. 25: 9:30 a.m. – 12 p.m. KT (7:30 p.m. – 10 p.m. ET Saturday)
NBC broadcast begins at 9 a.m. KT (7 p.m. ET Friday)
- Figure Skating Gala Exhibition