Zhang Hao

This article is about the pair skater. For other uses, see Zhang Hao (disambiguation).

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Zhang.

Zhang Hao
Peng and Zhang at the 2015-16 Grand Prix Final.
Personal information
Full name	Zhang Hao
Country represented	China
Born	(1984-07-06) July 6, 1984 or (1982-02-06) February 6, 1982 (see also Age controversy below) Harbin, Heilongjiang, China
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Partner	Peng Cheng
Former partner	Zhang Dan Zhang Liyun
Coach	Yao Bin, Hongbo Zhao, Bing Han
Former coach	Huan Bing, Sun Lu, Chen Xiaofei
Choreographer	Lori Nichol
Former choreographer	Marina Zueva, Igor Shpilband, Renée Roca
Skating club	Harbin Skating Club
Began skating	1990
ISU personal best scores
Combined total	201.45 2015 Four Continents
Short program	71.68 2014 Worlds
Free skate	131.64 2015 Four Continents
Medal record Figure skating: Pairs Representing China Olympic Games 2006 Turin Pairs World Championships 2006 Calgary Pairs 2008 Gothenburg Pairs 2009 Los Angeles Pairs 2005 Moscow Pairs Four Continents Championships 2005 Gangneung Pairs 2010 Jeonju Pairs 2004 Hamilton Pairs 2008 Goyang Pairs 2015 Seoul Pairs 2002 Jeonju Pairs 2003 Beijing Pairs 2009 Vancouver Pairs Grand Prix Final 2005–2006 Tokyo Pairs 2007–2008 Turin Pairs 2008–2009 Goyang Pairs 2006–2007 St. Petersburg Pairs World Junior Championships 2001 Sofia Pairs 2003 Ostrava Pairs Junior Grand Prix Final 2000–2001 Ayr Pairs 2001–2002 Bled Pairs

Zhang Hao (simplified Chinese: 张昊; traditional Chinese: 張昊; pinyin: Zhāng Hào; born July 6, 1984) is a Chinese pair skater. He currently competes with Peng Cheng. With former partner Zhang Dan, he is the 2006 Olympic silver medalist, a two-time (2005, 2010) Four Continents champion, and a three-time (2006, 2008–2009) World silver medalist.

Personal life

Zhang married his girlfriend, Ju Chi, in May 2014. On May 8, 2015, the couple welcomed their first child, a son.

Career

Early in his career, Zhang Hao competed with Zhang Liyun.

Partnership with Zhang Dan

Zhang teamed up with Zhang Dan, to whom he is not related, in 1997. In 1998–99 Junior Grand Prix (JGP), the pair competed in one event and won the gold medal. They continued the season with a bronze medal at the 1999 Chinese National Championships. The following season, they competed in two 1999–2000 JGP events, medaling in both. They qualified for the final, where they finished fifth. That year, they were second at nationals and finished fourth at Junior Worlds.

The following three seasons, they were very successful at the junior level. They won all their Junior Grand Prix events, including the 2000–01 JGP Final and the 2001–02 JGP Final. They also competed in the 2001 Junior Worlds and the 2003 Junior Worlds, winning gold both times. At the Chinese National Championships, they placed third in both 2001 and 2002, before winning their first national title in 2003.

Their first senior international was the 2002 Four Continents Championships, where they won the bronze medal. The same season they competed in the 2002 Olympics, placing 11th, and the 2002 Worlds, placing 9th. The following season they competed in their first two senior Grand Prix events, placing fourth at both events. They repeated with a bronze medal at the 2003 Four Continents Championships and improved their placement at the 2003 Worlds, finishing sixth. In the 2003–04 and 2004–05 seasons, they consistently medaled at their Grand Prix events. They won gold at the 2005 Four Continents Championships and bronze at the 2005 Worlds.

Zhang and Zhang went into the 2006 Olympics as medal contenders. During their free skate, Zhang Dan had a bad fall on their attempted throw quadruple salchow, a jump that was not consistent. Zhang Dan suffered a bad injury, but chose to finish the program. Although the delay between the fall and the continuation of the program was longer than the ISU-proscribed 2 minutes, they were not automatically withdrawn because the referee waited before stopping the music and beginning the official 2 minute wait. Zhang regrouped and was able to finish the program. They won the silver medal, placing ahead of defending Olympic medalists Shen Xue and Hongbo Zhao. At Worlds they won the silver, behind Pang Qing and Tong Jian.

In the 2006–07 season, Zhang and Zhang placed first at Skate Canada, second at the NHK Trophy, and would go on to win the bronze medal at the Grand Prix Final. They placed 5th at the 2007 World Championships later that season. In the 2007–08 and the 2008–09 seasons, they won silver medals at both the Grand Prix Final and the World Championships. At the 2010 Winter Olympics, the Zhangs placed 5th. They also finished fifth at 2010 World Championships.

Before the 2010–11 season began, Zhang Hao broke his finger, forcing the team to pull out of their two Grand Prix assignments. He also dealt with some shoulder and cervical vertebra problems. The Zhangs returned to competition during the 2011–12 season, winning silver medals at the 2011 Skate America and the 2011 Cup of China. They finished 4th at the 2011–12 Grand Prix Final. Zhang Dan eventually became the tallest competing female pair skater. Her height proved to be a challenge for the pair, and in May 2012, it was announced that their partnership had ended and she was retiring from competition.

Partnership with Peng Cheng

In May 2012, Zhang Hao confirmed he had formed a new partnership with Peng Cheng. The pair made their international debut at the 2012 Cup of China. They placed 11th at their first World Championships.

In the 2013–14 season, Peng/Zhang won their first Grand Prix medals, bronze at the 2013 Cup of China and silver at the 2013 NHK Trophy, and qualified for the Grand Prix Final, where they came in fourth. They were selected for the 2014 Winter Olympics and finished eighth in Sochi. Ending their season, they placed fifth at the 2014 World Championships in Saitama.

For the 2014–15 Grand Prix season, Peng/Zhang were assigned to Skate America and Cup of China, where they placed 3rd and 1st, respectively, qualifying for the 2015 Grand Prix Final. They finished 4th at that competition after placing 5th in the short program and 3rd in the free skate. They won the silver medal at the 2015 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships. At the 2015 World Figure Skating Championships, they earned personal best scores in the free skate and combined total to finish in 4th place overall.

Age controversy

Zhang and Zhang perform a triple twist

On February 14, 2011, the Zhangs' ages became the subject of controversy. Although his International Skating Union bio lists Zhang Hao as born on July 6, 1984, a Chinese skating association website suggested he was born on February 6, 1982. This would mean he was too old to compete in junior events during the 2002–03 season, such as the 2003 World Junior Championships where they won gold. His partner's age also came under scrutiny. Her ISU bio states that she was born on October 4, 1985 but the Chinese website suggested she was born on that day in 1987, meaning she was 14 and too young to compete in senior events during the 2001–02 season, such as the Four Continents where they won bronze, as well as the Olympics and World Championships. The dates disappeared from the website by February 15. On February 17, the ISU said there were no discrepancies for the Zhangs in terms of the birthdates listed on their passports, ISU registration forms and the Chinese Olympic Committee's website.

Programs

With Peng Cheng

Season	Short program	Free skating	Exhibition
2015–2016	Come Together by The Beatles performed by Göran Söllscher choreo. by Lori Nichol	Je Crois Entendre Encore (from The Pearl Fishers) by Georges Bizet choreo. by Lori Nichol	Bei Jia Er Hu Pan by Li Jian
2014–2015	Arabian Dance (from The Nutcracker) by Peter I. Tchaikovski choreo. by Lori Nichol	Piano Trio No.2 in E Minor op. 67 by Dmitri Shostakovich choreo. by Lori Nichol	Notre Dame de Paris by Richard Cocciante : La Fête Des Fous performed by Bruno Pelletier Danse Mon Esmeralda performed by Garou
2013–2014	The Eternal Vow (from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) by Tan Dun performed by Yo-yo Ma choreo. by Lori Nichol	Yellow River Piano Concerto by Xian Xinghai choreo. by Lori Nichol	La Coronacion by Globus
2012–2013	Live and Let Die by Paul McCartney performed by David Garrett	Poeta En La Mar by Vicente Amigo	La Coronacion by Globus

With Zhang Dan

Season	Short program	Free skating	Exhibition
2011–2012	A Transylvanian Lullaby by John Morris	Adagio Sostenuto from Piano Concerto No. 2 in A Major "Totentanz" by Franz Liszt
2010–2011		Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia by Aram Khatchaturian	Here I Am by 4Men Spanish Caravan, Hello I Love You by The Doors
2009–2010	Piano Fantasy by Maksim Mrvica Selections from Fosse (musical) including Sing, Sing, Sing	Scheherazade by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov	Auf Flügeln des Gesanges by Felix Mendelssohn
2008–2009	Auf Flügeln des Gesanges ("On Wings of Song") by Felix Mendelssohn	Changjiang River Piano Concerto by Hao Weiya
2007–2008	Piano Fantasy by Maksim Mrvica	The Myth (soundtrack)	Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao
2006–2007	Spanish Caravan & I Love You by The Doors	The Offspring of Dragons by Hou De Jian
2005–2006	Kashmir by Led Zeppelin
2004–2005	All Alone by Joe Satriani

Competitive highlights

GP: Grand Prix; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

With Peng Cheng

International
Event	2012–13	2013–14	2014–15	2015–16
Olympics		8th
Worlds	11th	5th	4th
Four Continents	5th		2nd
Grand Prix Final		4th	4th	6th
GP Bompard	4th			C
GP Cup of China	5th	3rd	1st
GP Rostelecom				3rd
GP NHK Trophy		2nd
GP Skate America			3rd
National
Chinese Champ.		1st
Team events
World Team Trophy	5th T (3rd P)
TBD = To be decided; WD = Withdrew T = Team result; P = Personal result; Medals awarded for team result only.

With Zhang Dan

International
Event	99–00	00–01	01–02	02–03	03–04	04–05	05–06	06–07	07–08	08–09	09–10	10–11	11–12
Olympics			11th				2nd				5th
Worlds			9th	6th	5th	3rd	2nd	5th	2nd	2nd	5th
Four Continents			3rd	3rd	2nd	1st			2nd	3rd	1st
Grand Prix Final					6th	5th	2nd	3rd	2nd	2nd	6th		4th
GP Bompard				4th	1st				1st
GP Cup of China						2nd				1st	2nd		2nd
GP Cup of Russia					3rd	1st			1st	1st
GP NHK Trophy							1st	2nd
GP Skate America				4th	3rd	1st	1st				3rd		2nd
GP Skate Canada								1st
Universiade						1st		1st		1st
International: Junior
Junior Worlds	4th	1st		1st
JGP Final	5th	1st	1st
JGP Canada	2nd
JGP China		1st		1st
JGP Italy			1st
JGP Japan	1st
JGP Norway		1st
JGP Sweden			1st
National
Chinese Champ.	2nd	3rd	3rd	1st	2nd				1st				1st
Team events
World Team Trophy										6th T (1st P)
WD = Withdrew T = Team result; P = Personal result; Medals awarded for team result only.

Detailed results

With Peng Cheng

Peng at the 2015–16 Grand Prix Final

Peng at the 2014-15 Grand Prix Final

2015–2016 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
December 10–13, 2015	2015 Grand Prix Final	7 65.60	6 117.44	6 183.04
November 20–22, 2015	2015 Rostelecom Cup	3 68.10	3 124.94	3 193.04
November 13–15, 2015	2015 Trophée Éric Bompard	4 64.10	cancelled
2014–2015 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
March 23–29, 2015	2015 World Championships	5 69.67	4 136.96	4 206.63
February 10–15, 2015	2015 Four Continents Championships	2 69.81	3 131.64	2 201.45
December 11–14, 2014	2014 Grand Prix Final	5 62.46	3 129.33	4 191.79
November 7–9, 2014	2014 Cup of China	1 69.11	1 124.94	1 194.05
October 24–26, 2014	2014 Skate America	2 62.38	3 120.05	3 182.43
2013–2014 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
March 26–27, 2014	2014 World Championships	5 71.68	5 123.15	5 194.83
February 11–12, 2014	2014 Winter Olympics	7 70.59	8 125.13	8 195.72
December 5–8, 2013	2013 Grand Prix Final	5 68.87	4 128.50	4 197.37
November 8–10, 2013	2013 NHK Trophy	3 65.09	2 117.09	2 182.18
November 1–2, 2013	2013 Cup of China	3 64.24	3 122.95	3 187.19
2012–2013 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
April 11–14, 2013	2013 World Team Trophy	4 58.62	3 115.78	3 174.40
March 10–17, 2013	2013 World Championships	10 58.52	11 108.66	11 167.18
February 6–11, 2013	2013 Four Continents Championships	5 52.46	6 112.36	5 164.82
November 16–18, 2012	2012 Trophée Eric Bompard	3 59.92	6 107.84	4 167.76
November 2–4, 2012	2012 ISU Grand Prix Cup of China	4 57.89	5 105.98	5 163.87

• QR = Qualifying round; SP = Short program; FS = Free skating

External links

• Peng / Zhang at the International Skating Union
• Zhang / Zhang at the International Skating Union
• Official website (Chinese)