ST. LOUIS— The final U.S. Figure Skating Championships before the 2026 Milan Olympics will take place in St. Louis, officials announced Monday.

Enterprise Center will host the 2026 nationals from Jan. 5-11, 2026, with the results determining the makeup of the 2026 squad, including men, women, pairs and ice dancing. 

The last time St. Louis hosted the event was in 2006, when it launched Sasha Cohen, Johnny Weir, Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto to the Torino Games. Cohen won a silver in the women’s competition while Belbin and Agosto took silver in ice dancing.

“This is one of those events that hits on all we look for when we strategically ask what do we want to bring to our community. We’ll have thousands of visitors generating significant economic impact, we’ll have extensive national coverage on NBC and Peacock, showcasing St. Louis in a wonderful light,” said Marc Schreiber, St. Louis Sports Commission president.

“We’ll have that unique chance to see the most talented athletes from the most popular winter olympic sport compete right in front of us.”

The commission credits the public sector funds that have gone into renovations at Enterprise Center to make upgrades to keep the building competitive, as one of the reasons the city landed the event, along with last year’s NCAA wrestling championships. 

A state tax credit for amateur sporting events helped, along with a new program from the St. Louis Development Corporation that provides up to $500,000 for budget shortfalls in events lured by the Sports Commission.

“St. Louis is ready to take the next step as the new global city for sports entertainment,” SLDC President Neal Richardson said.

Local organizers are pitching the idea of using the Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights as a potential practice venue for the event. 

That facility will host National High-Performance Development Team Camp for three days immediately after the championships.

Tickets for the U.S. Championships go on sale next month.