Joshua Farris

Joshua Farris (born January 6, 1995) is a retired American competitive figure skater. He is the 2015 Four Continents silver medalist, the 2013 World Junior Championship gold medalist, a two-time Junior Grand Prix Final medalist (silver in 2012, bronze in 2011), and the 2010 U.S. Championship junior silver medalist.

Personal life
Joshua Farris was born in Renton, Washington. At the age of eight, he was diagnosed with dyslexia, which may be connected with a concussion he sustained as a child.

Early years
Farris began skating at age five after his mother took him skating for his birthday. He moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado, in mid-2007 to train with Tom Zakrajsek and Becky Calvin.

Farris won his third national title when he won the novice gold medal at the 2009 U.S. Championships. He then competed at the 2009 International Challenge Cup in the Netherlands, where he won the silver medal at the junior level.

He made his ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) debut the following season. He was assigned to the JGP events in the United States and Turkey, where he placed fourth and fifth, respectively. At the 2010 U.S. Championships, he won the silver medal at the junior level.

2010–11 season
During the 2010–11 season, Farris was assigned to the JGP events in Romania and Great Britain, where he won the silver medal and the gold medal, respectively. This qualified him for the 2010-11 Junior Grand Prix Final, where he finished in sixth place.

Farris then decided to move up to the senior level nationally. At the 2011 U.S. Championships, Farris fell hard on his left hip while training during the second day of practice. The fall resulted in a torn abductor muscle, but he decided to compete despite the pain. He placed thirteenth after a shaky short program. On the day between the short program and the free skate, Farris went to a restaurant and suffered anaphylactic shock due to an allergic reaction. He was taken to the emergency room, where he stayed until 3 a.m. He decided to compete in the free skate, where he had several shaky landings and three falls. He finished in twenty-first place. He later learned that he had broken his fibula and sprained a tendon when he fell on his second triple Axel attempt. Following this competition, Farris decided to switch coaches to Christy Krall, with whom he had already worked, and Damon Allen.

2011–12 season
During the 2011–12 season, Farris was assigned to the 2011 JGP Poland, which he won. He then won the gold medal at his second event, the 2011 JGP Estonia, and qualified for the Junior Grand Prix Final, where he won the bronze medal. He finished sixteenth at the 2012 U.S. Championships. At the 2012 World Junior Championships, Farris won the short program and the silver medal. He also won the Youth Excellence in Sports award from The Denver Post in March 2012.

2012–13 season
During the 2012–13 season, Farris was assigned to JGP events in the United States and Slovenia. He won gold medals at both events and qualified for the 2012–13 Grand Prix Final in Sochi, Russia. There, he finished first in the short program and second in the free skate, winning the silver medal.

At the 2013 U.S. Championships, Farris placed third in the short program. He fell on his planned quadruple toe loop in the free skate, but managed to secure fourth place. He then won the gold medal at the 2013 World Junior Championships with an overall score of 228.32 points. Farris' score was a new record set for men competing at the junior level.

2013–14 season
During the 2013–14 season, Farris made his senior Grand Prix debut at the 2013 Skate Canada, where he finished in fifth place. He then withdrew from his next assignment, the 2013 Cup of Russia.

At the 2014 U.S. Championships, Farris again finished in fourth place.

2014–15 season
During the 2014–15 season, Farris was assigned to the 2014 Cup of China and the 2014 NHK Trophy. However, he had to withdraw from the Cup of China due to a recurring right ankle injury, which had been a problem since 2011. At the NHK Trophy, he finished in eleventh place.

At the 2015 U.S. Championships, Farris won the bronze medal. In his free skate, he executed a double toe loop three times, losing credit for one of his jump combinations. Still, his placement was an improvement from the previous year. At the 2015 Four Continents Championships, he set new personal best scores in both the short program and the free skate, and won the silver medal. This was his first medal in a prominent senior-level international competition. At the 2015 WorldChampionships, he finished in eleventh place.

2015–16 season
Farris' Grand Prix assignments were the 2015 Skate Canada International and the 2015 NHK Trophy. However, he had to withdraw from both events after sustaining three concussions in three weeks. The first occurred when he fell while practicing a quadruple toe loop jump. Since a scan indicated nothing, he resumed training, but then sustained a second concussion, followed soon after by a third when he hit his head while entering a car. He did not compete during the season.

Hiatus
Farris announced his retirement from competitive skating on July 1, 2016, after struggling with the aftereffects of the concussions and depression. He resumed skating in early November 2016, after his health had improved, and announced in February 2017 that he hoped to return to competition in the 2017–18 season. He trained at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, coached by Christy Krall and Damon Allen. However, the side effects from his brain injury did not go away, and he had to stop training again.

Choreographing career
Following his competitive career, Farris began working as a figure skating choreographer at the Broadmoor Skating Club.

Farris' past clients have included:
 * Camden Pulkinen
 * Jimmy Ma
 * Vincent Zhou
 * Lee Si-hyeong

Competitive highlights

 * GP – Event of the ISU Grand Prix Series
 * JGP – Event of the ISU Junior Grand Prix Series
 * At national events in the United States, pewter medals are awarded for fourth place.

Senior level

 * Small medals for the short program and free skating are only awarded at ISU Championships.
 * At national events in the United States, pewter medals are awarded for fourth place.

Junior level

 * Small medals for the short program and free skating are only awarded at ISU Championships.