Ye Quan

Ye Quan
Lim/Quan during their exhibition program at the 2023 Grand Prix de France
Born (2001-10-15) October 15, 2001 (age 23)
Reykjavík, Iceland
HometownMontreal, Quebec, Canada
Height1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Figure skating career
Country South Korea (since 2021)
 Canada (until 2021)
DisciplineIce dance
PartnerHannah Lim (since 2019)
CoachMarie-France Dubreuil
Patrice Lauzon
Romain Haguenauer
Benjamin Brisebois
Pascal Denis
Josée Piché
Skating clubCPA Ahuntsic
Medal record
Representing  South Korea
South Korean Championships
Gold medal – first place 2024 Uijeongbu Ice dance
World Team Trophy
Silver medal – second place 2023 Tokyo Team
World Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place 2023 Calgary Ice dance
Junior Grand Prix Final
Silver medal – second place 2022–23 Turin Ice dance

Ye Quan (Korean: 콴예; Chinese:全晔 ;born October 15, 2001) is a Canadian ice dancer who represents South Korea. With his skating partner, Hannah Lim, he is the 2023 CS Autumn Classic bronze medalist and 2024 South Korean champion.

At the junior level, Lim/Quan are the 2023 World Junior silver medalists, the 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final silver medalists, three-time ISU Junior Grand Prix medalists, and two-time South Korean Junior champions.

Lim and Quan are the first South Korean ice dancers to win an ISU Grand Prix medal at either the senior or junior level.[1]

Personal life

Quan was born on October 15, 2001, in Reykjavík, Iceland. He moved to China at the age of two and moved again to Montreal, Canada at the age of three. Both of his parents now live in Canada.[2][3]

In December 2023, the Korea Skating Union and Korean Sport & Olympic Committee made the case to the Ministry of Justice that Quan was in the process of trying to achieve South Korean naturalization for the chance to compete with Hannah Lim at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina, saying that Quan was not only diligently learning the Korean language but also the country's culture. In response, the Ministry of Justice stated that they planned to hold a meeting in the future to further review Quan's case.[4] He received South Korean citizenship on December 6, 2024.[5]

Career

Early years

Quan began learning how to skate at around age five, first training in singles and later switching to ice dance.

Quan first partnered with Maïka Abgrall-Chouinard and competed at the pre-novice level for two years. He teamed up with Rosalie Groulx in 2017 and competed at the novice level, placing 14th at the 2018 Canadian Championships and 11th at the 2019 Canadian Championships.[6]

In the summer of 2019, Quan partnered with Hannah Lim. They were admitted to the Ice Academy of Montreal, a prestigious training school headed by Canadian coaches Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon and Frenchman Romain Haguenauer.[3] The team competed domestically in Canada for two seasons, before opting to switch to represent South Korea internationally. Lim called the move "a 'thank you' gift" to her parents for their support of her skating career, while Quan said "I was happy to represent South Korea with her."[2]

2021–22 season: International junior debut

Lim and Quan made their Junior Grand Prix debut for South Korea at the 2021 JGP France I, the first of two Junior Grand Prix events held in Courchevel, France in August. The team placed fourth in the rhythm dance but overtook Czechs Mrázková/Mrázek in the free dance to finish third overall, standing on the podium with American gold medalists Wolfkostin/Chen and their former Canadian domestic rivals Makita/Gunara. Lim and Quan's bronze medal was the first medal for an ice dance team representing South Korea at an ISU Grand Prix series event at either the junior or senior levels.[7][1] At their second assignment, the 2021 JGP Russia, Lim and Quan placed fifth in the rhythm dance and sixth in the free dance to finish sixth overall.[8]

The team next competed at the 2022 South Korean Junior Championships in January, where they won the junior national title by a 52-point margin over Kim/Lee. As a result of their placement, they were named to the South Korean team for the 2022 World Junior Championships in Tallinn.[9]

At the World Junior Championships, Lim and Quan were seventh in the rhythm dance but rose to fourth in the free dance to improve their overall standing to sixth place. Their finish matched Kim/Minov's placement in 2014 as the highest finish for a South Korean ice dance team at a World Junior Championships.[10]

2022–23 season: JGP Final and Junior World silver

Lim and Quan on the podium at the 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final

Lim and Quan opened the Junior Grand Prix series at a Courchevel-held French JGP for the second year in a row. They placed first in both the rhythm dance and the free dance, as well as setting new personal bests in both segments of the competition, to win the gold medal with a new personal best overall. Their win marked the first Junior Grand Prix event title for any South Korean or Asian ice dance team.[11][2] A month and a half later they competed at their second event, the 2022 JGP Italy in Egna. They finished fourth in the rhythm dance after scoring poorly on their step sequence and part of the Argentine tango pattern dance, but recovered with a second-place free dance and won the silver medal behind Mrázková/Mrázek, the Czech dance team they had beaten for their first JGP medal a year earlier. These results qualified them for the 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final, another first for a Korean dance team.[12]

At the Final in Turin, Lim and Quan finished third in the rhythm dance with a score of 64.21. They were only 0.37 points behind Britons Bekker/Hernandez in second place, but also only 0.13 ahead of fourth-place Mrázková/Mrázek, who had been the pre-event favourites before having a double-fall in the segment.[13] In the free dance they rose to second, aided again by a double-fall from the Czechs, who finished 0.99 points behind them overall. Their silver was the first Final medal for a Korean dance team."[14][15]

Lim and Quan won their second consecutive South Korean junior title at the 2023 Junior National Championships, again by a wide margin.[16] They were assigned to finish the season at the 2023 World Junior Championships in Calgary, entering as podium favourites. They finished second in the rhythm dance with a new personal best score of 71.08, only 0.11 behind segment leaders Mrázková/Mrázek and more than two points clear of Bekker/Hernandez in third.[17][18] They set a new personal best in the free dance as well with 103.31, clearing the 100-point threshold for the first time, and won the silver medal. This was the first Junior World medal for a South Korean team. Lim said she was "really glad that we were able to get a first medal for Korea."[19][20]

Based on the total results of skaters in the 2022–23 season, South Korea qualified for the World Team Trophy for the first time, with the 2023 edition being held in Tokyo.[21] With South Korea not having any dance teams already competing at the senior level that season, Lim/Quan were assigned to make their senior debut, which meant replacing their rhythm dance immediately after the World Junior Championships. They created a new program to "Don't Go Yet" and "Havana" by Camila Cabello.[22][23] They finished sixth of six teams in the rhythm dance.[22] Quan lost a twizzle level in the free dance, but they set new personal bests in that segment and overall. Lim enthused about performing in front of a senior event audience in Japan.[24] Team South Korea won the silver medal, becoming the fifth country to reach the podium in the history of the World Team Trophy.[21]

2023–24 season: Senior debut

Lim/Quan performing a curve lift during their free dance at the 2023 Grand Prix de France

For their full senior debut, Lim stated their goal was to "be memorable."[25] Lim/Quan received their first Challenger assignment, competing at the 2023 CS Autumn Classic International and winning the bronze medal.[8]

Lim and Quan performing their rhythm dance at the 2024 World Championships

They made their Grand Prix debut at the 2023 Skate America, finishing ninth of ten teams.[26] They improved their ordinals at their second event, the 2023 Grand Prix de France, where they eighth in the rhythm dance and rose to sixth after the free dance.[27] Quan assessed that "the performance level that we wanted to reach was achieved" in France.[25] They then appeared at a second Challenger, winning the silver medal at the 2023 CS Warsaw Cup.[8]

Competing at the domestic senior level for the first time at the 2024 South Korean Championships, Lim/Quan won the senior national title.[8] They went on to make their senior ISU championship debut at the 2024 Four Continents Championships in Shanghai, finishing seventh.[28]

Lim/Quan made their senior World Championship debut at the 2024 edition, held in Montreal, the site of their training base. They finished fourteenth in the rhythm dance, Lim saying afterward she was "really happy" with the result.[29] Twelfth in the free dance, they remained fourteenth overall.[30] Afterward, Lim called the championships "surely one to remember."[31]

Lim & Quan performing their rhythm dance at 2024 Skate Canada International

2024–25 season

Lim and Quan began the season by competing at the 2024 Denis Ten Memorial Challenge, where they finished fifth.[8] Although they were also assigned to compete at the 2024 Budapest Trophy, the team had to withdraw from the event due to a scheduling conflict with a South Korean domestic event.[32]

Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix circuit, they placed seventh at 2024 Skate Canada International and ninth at the 2024 Finlandia Trophy.[8] At the end of November, Lim and Quan won the bronze medal at the 2024 Warsaw Cup before winning gold at the annual South Korean Ranking Competition one week later.[33] Due to the latter result, Lim and Quan were selected to compete at the 2025 Four Continents Championships.[34]

Programs

Ice dance with Hannah Lim

Season Rhythm dance Free dance Exhibition
2024–25
[35]
2023–24
[36][37]
2022–23
[38][23]

2021–22
[39]
2020–21
2019–20

Competitive highlights

Ice dance with Hannah Lim (for South Korea)

Competition placements at senior level [33]
Season 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
World Championships 14th
Four Continents Championships 7th TBD
South Korean Championships 1st
World Team Trophy 2nd
(6th)
GP Finland 9th
GP France 6th
GP Skate America 9th
GP Skate Canada 7th
CS Autumn Classic 3rd
CS Denis Ten Memorial 5th
CS Warsaw Cup 2nd 3rd
Competition placements at junior level [33]
Season 2021–22 2022–23
World Junior Championships 6th 2nd
Junior Grand Prix Final 2nd
South Korean Championships 1st 1st
JGP France 3rd 1st
JGP Italy 2nd
JGP Russia 6th

Ice dance with Hannah Lim (for Canada)

Competition placements at junior level [40]
Season 2019–20 2020–21
Canadian Championships 5th
Skate Canada Challenge 9th 4th

Detailed results

Ice dance with Hannah Lim (for South Korea)

Lim and Quan at the 2023 Warsaw Cup
ISU personal best scores in the +5/-5 GOE System [33]
Segment Type Score Event
Total TSS 187.10 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
Rhythm dance TSS 74.11 2024 CS Warsaw Cup
TES 42.77 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
PCS 31.39 2024 CS Warsaw Cup
Free dance TSS 114.62 2024 World Championships
TES 65.34 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
PCS 49.72 2024 World Championships
  • Small medals for the short program and free skating are only awarded at ISU Championships.
  • Medals at team events are awarded for the team results only. Individual placements at team events are listed in parentheses.

Senior level

Results in the 2022–23 season[33]
Date Event RD FD Total
P Score P Score P Score
Apr 13–16, 2023 Japan 2023 World Team Trophy 6 69.96 6 109.27 2 (6) 179.23
Results in the 2023–24 season[33]
Date Event RD FD Total
P Score P Score P Score
Sep 14–17, 2023 Canada 2023 CS Autumn Classic International 4 68.05 3 102.65 3 170.70
Oct 20–22, 2023 United States 2023 Skate America 9 65.49 8 103.62 9 169.11
Nov 3–5, 2023 France 2023 Grand Prix de France 8 67.14 6 106.71 6 173.85
Nov 15–17, 2023 Poland 2023 CS Warsaw Cup 2 73.76 2 113.34 2 187.10
Jan 4–7, 2024 South Korea 2024 South Korean Championships 1 70.41 1 115.88 1 186.29
Jan 30 – Feb 4, 2024 China 2024 Four Continents Championships 9 68.91 7 113.87 7 182.78
Mar 18–24, 2024 Canada 2024 World Championships 14 71.89 12 114.62 14 186.51
Results in the 2024–25 season[33]
Date Event RD FD Total
P Score P Score P Score
Oct 3–6, 2024 Kazakhstan 2024 CS Denis Ten Memorial Challenge 5 69.91 6 107.38 5 177.29
Oct 25–27, 2024 Canada 2024 Skate Canada International 8 70.64 7 106.45 7 177.09
Nov 15–17, 2024 Finland 2024 Finlandia Trophy 9 69.00 8 106.36 9 175.36
Nov 20–24, 2024 Poland 2024 CS Warsaw Cup 4 74.11 3 111.51 3 185.62

Junior level

Results in the 2021–22 season[33]
Date Event RD FD Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 18–21, 2021 France 2021 JGP France 4 55.22 3 89.05 3 144.27
Sep 15–18, 2021 Russia 2021 JGP Russia 5 59.87 6 93.14 6 153.01
Jan 7–9, 2022 South Korea 2022 South Korean Championships (Junior) 1 64.48 1 91.52 1 156.00
Apr 13–17, 2022 Estonia 2022 World Junior Championships 7 58.82 4 95.62 6 154.44
Results in the 2022–23 season[33]
Date Event RD FD Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 24–27, 2022 France 2022 JGP France 1 62.71 1 99.25 1 161.96
Oct 12–15, 2022 Italy 2022 JGP Italy 4 59.01 2 99.24 2 158.25
Dec 8–11, 2022 Italy 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final 3 64.21 2 98.32 2 162.53
Jan 5–8, 2023 South Korea 2023 South Korean Championships (Junior) 1 67.12 1 102.33 1 169.45
Feb 27 – Mar 5, 2023 Canada 2023 World Junior Championships 2 71.08 2 103.31 2 174.39

References

  1. ^ a b "Ice dance duo brings S. Korea first ISU Grand Prix medal". The Korea Herald. Yonhap News Agency. August 22, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Slater, Paula (September 26, 2022). "South Korea's Lim and Quan 'bring it'". Golden Skate. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Park, So-young (September 10, 2021). ""한국 대표로 올림픽 나갈래요" 캐나다서 온 아이스댄스 짝꿍" ["Would you like to represent Korea in the Olympics?" Ice dance partner from Canada]. JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean).
  4. ^ 정, 필재. "피겨 아이스댄스 취안예, 특별귀화 추진… '환상의 짝꿍' 임해나와 올림픽 출전 기대". Zum. Zum. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  5. ^ "한국 이름 '콴예'로 애국가 부를 준비 끝… 아이스댄스 특별귀화" [Ready to sing the national anthem with the Korean name ‘Quan Ye’… Special naturalization for ice dancing]. 동아일보 (in Korean). 2024-12-07. Retrieved 2024-12-06.
  6. ^ "Profile – Hannah Lim & Ye Quan". ice-dance.com. December 1, 2019.
  7. ^ "USA celebrates gold medal sweep as ISU Junior Grand Prix starts in Courchevel". International Skating Union. August 23, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d e f "Hannah LIM / Ye QUAN: Competition Results". International Skating Union. August 28, 2022.
  9. ^ Lim, Hannah [@h.annahlim] (January 9, 2022). "우리 첫 종합 끝났다! 항상 응원을해주셔서 감사합니다! 주니어 월드에서 보자 🤗" (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 31, 2023 – via Instagram.
  10. ^ "Oona Brown/Gage Brown (USA) dance off with gold in Tallinn". International Skating Union. April 17, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  11. ^ "A first for Korean Ice Dance as Japan returns in style at ISU Junior Grand Prix Courchevel". International Skating Union. August 29, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  12. ^ "Skaters grab last seven tickets for ISU Junior Grand Prix Final at JGP Egna-Neumarkt". International Skating Union. October 17, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  13. ^ "Bashynska/Beaumont (CAN) bring the ballroom to top Junior Rhythm Dance". International Skating Union. December 9, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  14. ^ "Canada Reigns in Ice Dancing with Double Gold at ISU Grand Prix Final". Skate Canada. December 11, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  15. ^ "Bashynska/Beaumont follow legends Virtue/Moir with Canada's first Junior Grand Prix Dance gold since 2006". International Skating Union. December 10, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  16. ^ Lim, Hannah [@h.annahlim] (January 9, 2023). "2023년 총합// 올해 너무 재밌게 경기 했습니다! 친구도 많이 만들고 @teamtriplek_ 한테 너무 감사해요 💖 우리 팬들이 사랑해주셔서 항상 감사합니다 🤧🩷" (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 31, 2023 – via Instagram.
  17. ^ "Mrazkova/Mrazek (CZE) tango to the lead in Junior World Rhythm Dance". International Skating Union. March 4, 2023.
  18. ^ Slater, Paula (March 4, 2023). "Mrazkova and Mrazek take narrow lead in Calgary". Golden Skate.
  19. ^ "Mrazkova/Mrazek claim first ever World Junior Ice Dance title for Czech Republic". International Skating Union. March 4, 2023.
  20. ^ Slater, Paula (March 4, 2023). "Katerina Mrazkova and Daniel Mrazek make history in Calgary". Golden Skate.
  21. ^ a b "Korean figure skaters take silver at World Team Trophy". Korea JoongAng Daily. April 16, 2023.
  22. ^ a b Mitsuoka, Maria-Lauria (April 13, 2023). "Team USA takes lead at World Team Trophy". Golden Skate.
  23. ^ a b "Hannah LIM / Ye QUAN: 2022/2023 (Senior RD)". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 13, 2023.
  24. ^ Mitsuoka, Maria-Lauria (April 14, 2023). "Team USA maintains lead in Tokyo; Korea and Japan follow". Golden Skate.
  25. ^ a b Morelli, Matteo (January 8, 2024). "Lim & Quan strive to be memorable". ice-dance.com. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  26. ^ Slater, Paula (October 23, 2023). "Chock and Bates win fourth Skate America gold". Golden Skate. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  27. ^ Slater, Paula (November 4, 2023). "Guignard and Fabbri defend Grand Prix de France title". Golden Skate. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  28. ^ Slater, Paula (February 4, 2024). "Gilles and Poirier add Four Continents gold to collection". Golden Skate. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  29. ^ Kim, Hyo-kyung (March 23, 2024). "피겨샛별 김채연 세계선수권 동메달" [Figure skating star Kim Chae-yeon wins bronze medal at World Championships]. JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  30. ^ Kim, Hyo-kyung (March 23, 2024). "점프 실수 차준환 세계선수권 10위… 2년 연속 메달 실패" [Cha Jun-hwan ranks 10th at the World Championships... Failure to medal two years in a row]. JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  31. ^ Lim, Hannah [@h.annahlim] (March 27, 2024). "2023-2024시즌 끝 🥺 thank you to everyone who has made this season such a memorable one. World Championships in Montreal were surely one to remember. 제 파트너 한테 정말 감사하고 우리 팬들도 응원을 항상 해줘서 너무 감동이에요 🩷". Archived from the original on March 28, 2024 – via Instagram.
  32. ^ "🇨🇭 Georgii Pavlov, 🇫🇮 Emmi Peltonen, and 🇰🇷 Hannah Lim / Ye Quan (competition conflict - competing domestically) have withdrawn from Budapest Trophy". X. X. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
  33. ^ a b c d e f g h i "KOR–Hannah Lim/Ye Quan". SkatingScores.
  34. ^ "2025 Four Continents Championships team 🇰🇷". X. Skating Korea. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  35. ^ "Hannah LIM / Ye QUAN: 2024/2025". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on September 15, 2024.
  36. ^ "Hannah LIM / Ye QUAN: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on September 17, 2023.
  37. ^ Lim, Hannah. "훈련 브이로그 1(안무&지상훈련)". YouTube. YouTube. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  38. ^ "Hannah LIM / Ye QUAN: 2022/2023 (Junior RD)". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on January 26, 2023.
  39. ^ "Hannah LIM / Ye QUAN: 2021/2022". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on March 14, 2022.
  40. ^ "CAN–Hannah Lim/Ye Quan". SkatingScores.

Media related to Ye Quan (figure skater) at Wikimedia Commons