On the evening of August 26, U.S. Figure Skating hosted a special season-opening event unique in its history. Styling 2027 celebrated the inspirational role that fashion and costume design play in the sport of figure skating, which combines beauty and athleticism in a way no other sport can match.
The event was held at View Boston, a stunning two-story oberservatory space atop the Prudential Center in Boston. It was the perfect setting to see some of the sport’s famous stars and their iconic costumes. U.S. Figure Skating’s newest Olympic champion, Alysa Liu, was the headliner for the event. Fittingly, America’s first Olympic champion, Tenley Albright, was also in attendance.
The red carpet
The evening began downstairs with red carpet (or, in this case, pink carpet) appearances by some of the top U.S. skating stars. The skaters posed for pictures, did social media for U.S. Figure Skating and other outlets, and took questions from journalists.
Alysa Liu said she was excited to be at Styling 2027. “I’m just happy to be with other skaters,” she said. Liu wore a sporty ensemble from Nike, one of the companies she has partnered with since winning the 2026 Milan Olympics in February.
“This is full Nike,” Liu said of her look. “I’ve got two Nike shirts on; they’re stacked on top of each other. And I’ve got these Nike shorts, Nike shoes. They’re Skims, I believe, and so are the shorts.”
The day before Styling 2027, Liu surprised the skating world with the announcement that she will not compete during the 2026-27 season. She said she has not followed online reaction since the announcement.
Liu named her Olympic “MacArthur Park” free skate dress as her favorite costume so far. She contributes to the design of her costumes by making a vision board and selecting certain colors, based on the music. She doesn’t have too many specific preferences for her costumes, but said she does prefer longer skirts. “As long as we can make them,” she said. “Of course, there are dynamics of your jumps and rotation. It definitely limits it a bit, but I try to make it work.”
Lisa McKinnon, the designer of Liu’s costumes, also appeared at the event and spoke about her creative collaboration with the Olympic champion.
“It’s really wonderful, because she does have a quite a strong sense of her own self and what she wants,” McKinnon said of Liu. “So, what I need to do is to take all her ideas … and then actually make it reality and doable. Or, if it’s like 10 ideas, then we need to put them together and make one that will really shine and work. So it’s a lot of components actually going into the final costume.”
Two-time Olympian Johnny Weir hosted the event. Always known for his dramatic style sense (both on and off the ice), Weir feels that costumes play a significant role in drawing fans into the sport.
“It’s the glitter that makes people sit and stay and marvel at it,” Weir said. “The costumes really do become a part of your journey as an athlete, and they’re iconic and memorable.”
Weir said his 2006 Olympic short program Swan costume (exhibited in the event) is his favorite. “For me, it’s super-memorable. And, it got made fun of in a Will Ferrell movie, Blades of Glory,” he noted with a smile.
Olympian and U.S. champion Isabeau Levito appeared in a black gown gifted to her by teammate Amber Glenn.
“I’m wearing a dress that Amber let me take from her. I wore it for something that I didn’t have a dress for, and I loved it so much, and she was like, ‘You can keep it,'” Levito shared.
Levito said that her programs for this season are done, but her costumes are still “under construction.” She named Madison Chock as one of her personal style inspirations. “I think she’s always so well put together.” She also said that 2018 Olympic medalist Evgenia Medvedeva is one of her main inspirations as a skater.
Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik, reigning World bronze medalists, said they’re “very excited” to start their season soon. Unfortunately, Kolesnik recently sustained a minor injury and will not be able to perform in today’s season kickoff Summer Sizzler show at Skating Club of Boston.
“We just had a little unfortunate accident, and he has to take off a week or so off.,” said Zingas. “It was really unfortunate [that it] happened this week. He’ll be okay to start the season fairly soon.” The duo said they plan to skate in a Challenger Series event before their first Grand Prix.
Meanwhile, Zingas will perform in today’s Summer Sizzler show on her own.
“I’ll be doing a jump, so we’ll see which one that will be,” the former singles skater teased.
Zingas said she loves going to gala events such as Styling 2027, while Kolesnik is slightly less keen.
“I think the most fun part for me is just dressing up and doing my hair and makeup. I love that,” said Zingas.
“I’m still getting used to it. I’m not used to things like that. Sometimes I might be a little nervous and act a little bit different. But I’m learning,” Kolesnik said with a smile.
One of Zingas’s favorite costumes from other skaters is an Amber Glenn dress that she borrowed to wear in an exhibition.
“She looked really good in it,” Kolesnik said of the dress.
“He really wanted me to have this dress forever,” Zingas confirmed. Her free dance costume this season is inspired, in part, by one of Michelle Kwan’s costumes.
Olympic team members Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko stunned on the pink carpet, with Carreira in an ice-white gown with black accessories.
The duo promised a “very classic” look for their waltz rhythm dance this season. “You might see a tux,” Ponomarenko said. As they have done the past two seasons, they will premiere a slightly modified version of their rhythm dance at today’s Summer Sizzler show.
Carreira said her favorite costume is her black Carmen free dance dress from the 2025-26 season, but she also loved both of her Olympic costumes last season.
Carreira and Ponomarenko toured with Stars on Ice this spring and enjoyed the freedom of performing for audiences without the pressure of competition and scores.
“We would go tan and swim in the morning. We’d ride roller coasters before skating, and [then] we came in and did our job. So it kind of took away the pressure,” Carreira said. “I’m really superstitious, so my my routine before I skate has to be the exact same. That kind of took away that pressure and made skating just, like, add to my day, and I got to have more fun.”
Ponomarenko revealed that he recently got a new pet–a nine-week-old bearded dragon named Kevin. (It remains to be seen how Kevin will get along with his cat Lucy!)
Two-time U.S. pairs champions Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov named their 2025-26 Love Story free skate costumes as their favorites.
“There is such a deep story behind it. So that program, and those costumes, mean a lot to us,” Efimova said.
Efimova and Mitrofanov currently expect to start their season in October. They will not participate in the John Nicks Challenger Series competition in Boston because they want more time to polish and prepare their programs. The couple said their triumphant free skate at 2025 Worlds in Boston (where they finished 6th) is their favorite career memory so far.
Sarah Everhardt, U.S. medalist, said she’s excited for her new programs and costumes this season. “Madison Chock is designing my short program costume, and Lisa McKinnon is designing my free program costume,” she said. Everhardt shared the story and inspiration for her short program with Chock, then followed Chock’s vision from there. Her favorite costume to date is her Firebird dress, created by McKinnon.
World team member Jacob Sanchez was excited to be at Styling 2027, noting how important costumes are to the overall package that skaters present on the ice.
“I always have a fun time making new programs. Especially this year, I was very, very involved in the creation process of both programs,” Sanchez shared. “I was very fortunate to collaborate with Misha Ge on my short program. And I was able to continue my collaborations with Adam Blake on my free skate.”
The hosts of the popular Runthrough podcast–Ashley Wagner, Adam Rippon, and Sarah Hughes–were also on hand.
“Give me a view and an open bar and some people to talk to, and I’m ready to come,” joked Hughes. “We’re excited. I think the costumes are really cool.”
Upstairs at View Boston
After the red carpet, the action moved up 50 floors to View Boston at the top of the Prudential tower. This recently redesigned space, with floor-to-ceiling glass, offers stunning views of the city and harbor of Boston. The sun shone bright and the vibes were high as guests circulated around the observation deck. Current and former U.S. skating stars joined the crowd.
The setting formed a lovely backdrop for a display of some of the best-known, and most iconic, costumes in U.S. figure skating history. Immediately on entering the space stood an exhibit of 1998 Olympic champion Tara Lipiniski’s dresses from Nagano. Adam Rippon and Ashley Wagner both said this was a personal highlight for them. (“That really made me feel starstruck to see that kind of polyester in front of my face, but it’s great,” Rippon remarked in typical irreverent style.)
A bit further into the event, viewers were treated to some 1950s and 1960s costumes from Tenley Albrigth and Carol Heiss Jenkins. A Vera Wang section included the famous designer’s costumes for Evan Lysacek’s 2010 Scheherazade Olympic-winning free skate and Gracie Gold’s famous Firebird program.
Undoubtedly the highlight of the event, however, was the corner reserved for Lisa McKinnon Fashion. Displayed here were all of the beautiful dresses worn this season by the “Blade Angels”–Liu, Levito, and Glenn–the much-decorated trio of U.S. women’s champions who went to the Milan Olympics this winter. A crowd congregated around this corner all evening, excited to see these costumes up close and personal.
U.S. men’s skaters were well-represented at the event, with 2025 Four Continents medalist Jimmy Ma in attendance, as well as 2025 JGP Final medalist Lucius Kazanecki and 2026 Olympians Maxim Naumov and Andrew Torgashev (the latter of whom opted for sportswear rather than a jacket).
Caroline Green and Michael Parsons, 2026 Four Continents silver medalists, said they had a good off-season and “made a lot of changes in their off-ice and on-ice,” according to Parsons. Green said they’re very happy to have a pattern back in the rhythm dance. Their rhythm dance music is still under wraps, but expect something with both classic and modern touches.
Oona and Gage Brown, 2026 Four Continents bronze medalists, toured with Ice Dance International this spring, for the second year in a row. They love the experience of pushing their creativity in new directions with the IDI troupe, skating with different people in the show, and generally having a great time. They’ll reveal their rhythm dance music–which has a connection to their New York roots–in a few weeks.
Katie McBeath and Balazs Nagy said they’re excited about their new pairs partnership. They will be back in Boston in a few weeks to make their competitive debut at the John Nicks Challenger series event (Sept. 11-12) at the Skating Club of Boston.
2026 Olympic pairs skater Emily Chan attended with boyfriend Aleksandr Selevko, the 2026 Europeans medalist, who trains in Boston. Chan said she enjoyed seeing all the gorgeous costumes at the event. An interest in fashion and design runs in her family; her mother Mary Chan designs figure skating costumes for both Chan and other skaters, while Chan has a small jewelry line.
As the sun began to set, many guests drifted down to the wooden promenade deck of the View Boston to enjoy drinks and more stunning views. With the moon gleaming over Boston Harbor and the city’s lights shining below, it was a lovely end to a celebratory night for American skating and its stars.
More photos to come soon on our Instagram page of both this event and Summer Sizzler!
