x
Breaking News
More () »

Arizona skater, partner finishes first day of Winter Olympics team competition with personal best

Valley native Brandon Frazier and his partner, Alexa Knierim, capped their first day of competition with a personal-best short program.

BEIJING, China — Editor's note: The above video aired during a previous broadcast.

An Arizona native is already making waves at the Winter Olympics in Beijing after he and his skating partner got their personal best during the first day of team competition.

Brandon Frazier, who was born in Phoenix but grew up in Colorado Springs, and his partner, Alexa Knierim, had a personal-best short program with a score of 75.00.

RELATED: Brandon Frazier & Alexa Knierim: Everything you need to know about the pairs skaters

The score landed them the third spot behind China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong and Russians Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov.

They made everything look easy just weeks after Frazier's positive COVID-19 test forced the pair to miss nationals. Performance highlights were their opening triple twist lift to their often troublesome triple toe loop.

Frazier started skating when he was 11 years old after roller skating for six years. But before his career on ice began, he was learning to play poker at just 6.

He began competitively skating with his first partner from 2009-2011 and won the novice bronze medal at the 2010 U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

See Frazier and Knierim's full performance here:

RELATED: 

Your Winter Olympics in Beijing station

The Beijing Winter Olympics are here! Watch the stories of athletes with an Arizona connection right here on our 12 News YouTube playlist.

Before You Leave, Check This Out