Latest news with #WashingtonFigureSkatingClub
The Star
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Seize the moment
TWO months ago, after easily winning his third consecutive US Figure Skating national title, Ilia Malinin showed up at his rink to train for the world championships, yet he could not bring himself to skate for even a second. Malinin, the overwhelming favourite to win the gold medal in next year's Winter Olympics in Italy, had laced up his skates, looked around and felt an emptiness that stopped him. That week, 28 people involved in skating had died when an Army helicopter collided with a passenger jet over the Potomac River, killing all 67 passengers. Among them were young skaters, including three from the Washington Figure Skating Club, which is Malinin's club, and others who at times would use the rink in Reston, Virginia, where he trains. A coach, a skater and his father, and a whole family – two young sisters and their parents – from that club died, and Malinin, who is 20, was so brokenhearted in the weeks afterward that he could not even bear to say their names, he said. 'Skating usually helps me handle hard things going on in my life, but it was just too emotional to be there,' Malinin said in an interview with The New York Times the first week of March. 'I tried to have a productive day of skating. But I just couldn't take my mind to another place. I just couldn't.' When he returned to the rink several days later, he said, he redoubled his efforts to be the best men's singles skater in the world, one bound for stardom at the Winter Games nearly 10 months from now. He said he focused on fine-tuning his programmes and immersed himself in them, determined to dedicate his performances in Boston at the World Figure Skating Championships to the people who died. The result was a pair of spectacular programmes that brought Malinin his second consecutive world championship, which he won by about 31 points, a colossal edge in a sport in which margins of victory are often measured in single digits, or even tenths. Ilia Malinin competes in his short programme at the world championships in Boston on March 27. — NYT The capacity crowd at TD Garden for the free skate was on its feet long before his performance was done, and for good reasons: Malinin, from Vienna, Virginia, is a dynamic skater who is single-handedly lifting the sport into another stratosphere with his technical skills and his ability to connect with a new, younger audience. He landed a breathtaking six quadruple jumps, including a quad axel, which requires a mind-boggling 4½ rotations in the air. No one else in the world has done it in international competition. No one else has landed six quads in one programme, either. For years, the top skaters in the world could only dream of landing the quad axel, a jump made harder by its forward-facing entry. But Malinin, now a student at George Mason University, first landed it when he was 17. He said performing those quads at worlds meant a lot to him because he did it in front of a crowd in his home country, although he couldn't hide his disappointment that he hadn't executed the seven that he had planned. As a teenager, Malinin – a hoodie-and-jeans kind of guy – started calling himself 'Quad God' for his ability to execute quad jumps. But now his unique performances are just as memorable. With his flowing movements and unique body shapes, his routines could double as modern dances. For the long programme, he marched into the rink, taking each step with determination, as if heading for a street fight. His song was 'I'm Not a Vampire (Revamped)' by the rock band Falling in Reverse, and his outfit matched the theme of the music. It was a blinged out version of what looked like Dracula's tuxedo, and under the lights the array of sequins and rhinestones on it made him look sprinkled with glitter. He moved masterfully, in synchronicity with the song's every note, and he even shouted along with a few of the more aggressive vocals. Malinin logged 110.41 points in the short programme, one of the highest short programme scores ever at an international competition, beating Japan's Yuma Kagiyama by 3.32 points. After that programme, Kagiyama, the Olympic silver medallist at the 2022 Beijing Games, said he was in awe of Malinin's transformation from a skater largely known for the strength, speed and timing required to land impeccable quads to one with artistry nearly as untouchable. 'I'm starting to think he's invincible,' Kagiyama said. Malinin said his practices before worlds were easy. The jumps. The spins. The movements to the music. It all felt so right, he said. Yet at the rink, there were times when he thought about the skaters who died, he admitted, forcing him to pause. His parents – Tatyana Malinina and Roman Skornyakov, who skated for Uzbekistan at past Olympics – coach him and helped him regroup, he said. Those skaters he knew were not there anymore, gliding by or standing back, wide-eyed, to watch him and learn from him, or to train next to him, and that 'really upsets me,' Malinin said. — NYT
New York Times
29-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Ilia Malinin Is Poised to Fly. But First He Had to Get Back on His Feet.
Two months ago, after easily winning his third straight U.S. Figure Skating national title, Ilia Malinin showed up at his rink to train for the world championships, yet could not bring himself to skate for even a second. Malinin, the overwhelming gold medal favorite for next year's Olympics in Italy, had laced up his skates, looked around, and felt an emptiness that stopped him. That week, 28 people involved in skating had died when an Army helicopter collided with a passenger jet over the Potomac River, killing all 67 passengers. Among them were young skaters, including three from the Washington Figure Skating Club, Malinin's club, and others who at times would use the rink in Reston, Va., where he trains. A coach, a skater and his father, and a whole family — two young sisters and their parents — from that club died, and Malinin, who is 20, was so brokenhearted in the weeks afterward that he could not even bear to say their names, he said. 'Skating usually helps me handle hard things going on in my life, but it was just too emotional to be there,' Malinin said in an interview with The New York Times the first week of March. 'I tried to have a productive day of skating. But I just couldn't take my mind to another place. I just couldn't.' When he returned to the rink several days later, he said, he redoubled his efforts to be the best men's singles skater in the world, one bound for stardom at the Olympics nearly 10 months from now. He said he focused on fine-tuning his programs and immersed himself in them, determined to dedicate his performances at the World Figure Skating Championships this week to the people who died. His performances should be worthy of their memory, he said. The result was most likely Malinin's best performance ever, one by a dynamic skater who is single-handedly lifting the sport into another stratosphere with his technical skills and his ability to connect with a new, younger audience. As a teenager, Malinin — a hoodie and jeans kind of guy — started calling himself 'Quad God' for his ability to execute quadruple jumps, the hardest in skating. But now his unique performances are just as memorable: With his flowing movements and unique body shapes, his routines could double as modern dances. The music he often chooses for them is the opposite of the long-used classical pieces the sport has been known for. He performs to music he likes to listen to, he said. On Thursday, in his short program at the world championships in Boston, that music was the song 'Running' by the rapper NF. He sang along to it as if he were alone in his car, and the crowd could feel the emotion as he moved masterfully, in synchronicity with the song's every note. His thick, tousled blond hair became a golden blur as he shunned gravity and went airborne to perform jump after jump, including two quads. The design of his long-sleeved outfit, indigo patterned with thick gray diagonal stripes, made it look as if the top fabric had been torn away to reveal another color. From afar, it appeared ripped at one shoulder — the clothes of someone who has survived a fight. Along with the conventional jumps, Malinin included a move he calls the Raspberry Twist, which is a twisting version of a butterfly jump during which he is nearly parallel to the ice. He christened the move for his last name: In Russian, 'malina' means raspberry. When he landed it in the middle of his step sequence, after all of his jumps had been done, the crowd erupted in a loud, sustained roar, long before his program ended, surprising him. 'Once the music started playing and I got into my starting position, I almost fell into the, you know, flow state, and it really just took me from there,' Malinin said after logging 110.41 points, one of the highest short program scores ever at an international competition, and beating Japan's Yuma Kagiyama by 3.32 points. Now Malinin, from Vienna, Va., is the overwhelming favorite to win Saturday's free skate and his second consecutive world championship. Kagiyama, the Olympic silver medalist at the 2022 Beijing Games, said he is in awe of Malinin's transformation from a skater largely known for the strength, speed and timing required to land impeccable quads to one with artistry nearly as untouchable. 'I'm starting to think he's invincible,' Kagiyama said. Adam Rippon, a bronze medalist at the 2018 Olympics, said that Malinin's athleticism, especially his quad jumps, tends to overshadow his natural talent as a performer, and that's a shame. 'It's really hard to be unafraid and expose your emotions like that, but I think he does that really well, and he does that unabashedly, almost to the point where he's reckless,' Rippon said. 'I think the quads are amazing, but what I really like about his skating is that he pushes himself to the absolute ends in his brilliant, brilliant programs.' Spectators can expect more of that brilliance during Malinin's free skate on Saturday. A bonus is that he might try to perform seven quads — a record, if he lands them — if he's feeling good in warm-ups, he said. And maybe even a backflip. His song will be 'I'm Not a Vampire (Revamped)' by the rock band Falling in Reverse. On paper, he has already won. Like Simone Biles in gymnastics, the base scores of his technical elements are so high that it would be hard for anyone to surpass him. Malinin showed that at nationals in January, when he won by nearly 47 points, a colossal win in a sport in which margins of victory are often measured in single digits, or even tenths. He landed six quads, which each require a mind-boggling four-and-a-half revolutions. No other skaters have landed as many in one program. For years, the top skaters in the world could only dream of landing a quad axel, a jump made harder by its forward-facing entry. Malinin, now a student at George Mason University, landed it at an international event when he was 17. 'At his age and especially at his level of purity of technique and everything else he brings, not only do I think no one can beat him, but I don't think that there's a way to understand what his ceiling is,' Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist and television skating analyst, said. 'What more could Ilia do?' Hamilton added. 'Anything he wants. Nothing is impossible for a skater with that kind of natural talent.' Malinin said his practices before worlds were easy. The jumps. The spins. The movements to the music. It all felt so right, he said. Yet at the rink, there were times when he thought about the skaters who died, he admitted, forcing him to pause. His parents — Tatyana Malinina and Roman Skornyakov, who skated for Uzbekistan at past Olympics — coach him and helped him regroup, he said. Those skaters he knew were not there anymore, gliding by or standing back, wide-eyed, to watch him and learn from him, or to train next to him, and that 'really upsets me,' Malinin said. Honoring them through his performances has helped him move forward. 'I'm also really glad that I was able to get through this,' he said, 'and really just have this mind-set of, you know, skating for them now.'
The Independent
23-03-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Figure skating's world championships are headed to Boston, another chance to heal after DC crash
It has been nearly two months since American Airlines Flight 5342 lifted off from a wintry runway in southeast Kansas, destined for Washington, D.C., with dozens of members of the tight-knit figure skating community aboard it. They were just kids, accompanied by parents and coaches, who had been attending a development camp that followed the U.S. championships in Wichita. Many had posted on social media what they had learned — those jumps and spins and techniques that form the foundation of their sport — and how eager they were to share their newfound knowledge back home. They never got that chance. On that January night, their regional jet was on approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it collided with an Army helicopter, killing all 67 people aboard the two aircraft. 'I'll always have them in my head and my heart,' said world champion Ilia Malinin, the 20-year-old American wunderkind, who will be defending his title in Boston this week. Some of his fellow members of the Washington Figure Skating Club were aboard Flight 5342, and many of them had cheered him to victory at the U.S. championships. 'Still some days I have some of those thoughts, kind of thinking about it. It does upset me a little bit that some days I won't see them on the ice, training with me and looking up to me,' Malinin continued. 'This worlds, I really want to dedicate to everyone on that flight, and give my all to the performance, and really make it special for them.' When the world championships begin Wednesday at TD Bank Garden, home of the Bruins and Celtics, they will be hosted by the renowned Skating Club of Boston, which produced such Olympic icons as Tenley Albright, Dick Button and Nancy Kerrigan. The club was rocked on Jan. 29 when it learned that three of its own young skaters — Jinna Han, Spencer Lane and Olivia Ter — and coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were killed in the crash. The next morning, flowers accumulated in the club's lobby in nearby Norwood, and a single white rose was placed on a table for each member who died. Kerrigan and Albright were among those who showed up at the club so they wouldn't have to grieve alone. 'You don't have to know everybody to feel that connection,' Kerrigan said. 'We've been through the same thing — that training, that rigorous schedule of falling over and over and somehow picking yourself up, which is the main lesson learned in skating: You get back up, keep on trying. And even when it's hard, you get back up.' Time has begun to heal some of the wounds. Others, no doubt, will never fully recover. The healing was aided in part by a gala celebration earlier this month in Washington that included performances by Malinin, U.S. champion Amber Glenn, and former Olympic champions such as Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano and Kristi Yamaguchi. It was broadcast locally and streamed on Peacock, and NBC will be airing an encore performance next Sunday. During the 2-plus hour event, 13-year-old Isabella Aparicio skated in memory of her brother, Franco, and father, Luciano, who were on the flight. Maxim Naumov, who lost his parents in the crash, performed in their honor. The tears were flowing from the best figure skaters of past and present, and more than $1.2 million was raised for the families of those affected. Now, the world championships provide another chance for the skating community to heal. International Skating Union president Jae Youl Kim made a tearful announcement during the European championships in Estonia that those killed in the crash would be honored in Boston. The highlight comes Wednesday, on the opening night of competition, when a tribute and remembrance will take place between the women's and pairs short programs. 'This is almost part of a process of recovery, of dealing with the grief and supporting the families, and then it's still focusing on competition as a way of dealing with all that,' said Sam Auxier, the interim CEO of U.S. Figure Skating. 'Boston will be a bit of a peak of all that energy we're seeing now around this tragedy, and how it could become something very positive.' In that respect, the skating community is rising en masse for the world championships this week. Malinin called it a coincidence — 'an unfortunate coincidence,' he said — that worlds would be taking place on American soil after the crash. Unfortunate that the crash occurred. Fortuitous that it can provide another chance to honor and remember. 'Boston is a great host,' said Evan Bates, who along with his American partner and wife, Madison Chock, will be chasing their third consecutive ice dance world title. "The Skating Club of Boston, it's steeped in history with U.S. Figure Skating. We have so much respect for the community. And we know the community has been through some hard times. 'We're looking forward to a great event,' Bates said. 'I think everybody is looking forward to something to cheer for.' ___ AP Sports Writers Stephen Whyno in Washington and Jimmy Golen in Boston contributed to this report. ___
USA Today
01-03-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
What to know about the figure skating tribute show for plane crash victims
What to know about the figure skating tribute show for plane crash victims Show Caption Hide Caption A timeline of the fatal DC plane crash This is how events unfolded before the fatal plane crash at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. A little more than a month after a passenger plane collided with a military helicopter near Reagan Washington National Airport, dozens of past and present stars of U.S. Figure Skating will host a two-hour exhibition Sunday to pay tribute to those who died in the crash. The tribute show, titled "Legacy on Ice," will feature dozens of the most well-known faces in American figure skating, from 1968 Olympic champion Peggy Fleming to 2022 Olympic champion Nathan Chen. All proceeds from the exhibition, which runs from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET, will benefit the families of the victims who died in the Jan. 29 mid-air collision and the first responders who worked on the scene. Here's everything you need to know about Sunday's show: The purpose behind the 'Legacy on Ice' tribute show U.S. Figure Skating announced earlier this month that it would be hosting "Legacy on Ice" at Capital One Arena in Washington, just a few miles from the site of the Jan. 29 crash over a portion of the Potomac River. The passenger plane involved in the incident had been returning from Wichita, Kansas, where much of the U.S. figure skating community had recently gathered for the 2025 national championships − and some of the top young figure skaters in the country then remained for a national development camp. Of the 60 passengers on the plane, U.S. Figure Skating later revealed, nearly half were figure skaters, coaches or family members returning home from the camp. In total, all 67 people aboard the two aircrafts died in the collision, authorities said. The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the cause of the incident. U.S. Figure Skating and Monumental Sports, which operates Capital One Arena, have portrayed "Legacy on Ice" as both a chance for the figure skating community to collectively mourn those lost in the crash as well as try to financially support their families through ticket sales and donations. The clubs, families impacted by the Jan. 29 crash According to U.S. Figure Skating, 28 members of the figure skating community died in the mid-air collision on Jan. 29 − including 11 skaters, all between the ages of 11 and 16. The victims include: Franco Aparicio, 14 (Washington Figure Skating Club) Brielle Beyer, 12 (Skating Club of Northern Virginia) Jinna Han, 13 (Skating Club of Boston) Cory Haynos, 15 (Skating Club of Northern Virginia) Sean Kay, 11 (University of Delaware Figure Skating Club) Spencer Lane, 16 (Skating Club of Boston) Alydia Livingston, 11 (Washington Figure Skating Club) Everly Livingston, 14 (Washington Figure Skating Club) Olivia Eve Ter, 12 (Ion Figure Skating Club, Leesburg, Virginia) Angela Yang, 11 (University of Delaware Figure Skating Club) Edward Zhou, 16 (Skating Club of Northern Virginia) Four coaches were also on board the fatal flight, including married couple Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, who won the 1994 pairs world championship with Russia. The skaters and their families represented a handful of figure skating clubs along the East Coast, specifically in the Washington area, Boston and Delaware. Olympic stars slated to perform at 'Legacy on Ice' Sunday's exhibition will be co-hosted by 1988 Olympic gold medalist Brian Boitano and 1992 Olympic champion Kristi Yamaguchi. It will also feature performances, or appearances, by some of the most recognizable names in the history of the sport, including: Kitty and Peter Carruthers, 1984 Olympic Pairs Silver Medalists Nathan Chen, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Peggy Fleming, 1968 Olympic Champion Scott Hamilton, 1984 Olympic Champion Nancy Kerrigan, 1994 Olympic Silver Medalist Ilia Malinin, 2024 World Champion U.S. figure skater Maxim Naumov, the son of Naumov and Shishkova, was also added to the list of participants earlier this week. He had been scheduled to compete in the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships after finishing fourth at nationals but withdrew following the Jan. 29 crash. What time is the 'Legacy on Ice' figure skating tribute show? The exhibition will run from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET on Sunday at Capital One Arena in downtown Washington. How to watch 'Legacy on Ice' An encore showing of the exhibition will air on NBC at 1 p.m. ET on March 30. How to stream 'Legacy on Ice' "Legacy on Ice" will be broadcast live on NBC's streaming service, Peacock. Contact Tom Schad at tschad@ or on social media @
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
What to know about the figure skating tribute show for plane crash victims
A little more than a month after a passenger plane collided with a military helicopter near Reagan Washington National Airport, dozens of past and present stars of U.S. Figure Skating will host a two-hour exhibition Sunday to pay tribute to those who died in the crash. The tribute show, titled "Legacy on Ice," will feature dozens of the most well-known faces in American figure skating, from 1968 Olympic champion Peggy Fleming to 2022 Olympic champion Nathan Chen. All proceeds from the exhibition, which runs from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET, will benefit the families of the victims who died in the Jan. 29 mid-air collision and the first responders who worked on the scene. Here's everything you need to know about Sunday's show: U.S. Figure Skating announced earlier this month that it would be hosting "Legacy on Ice" at Capital One Arena in Washington, just a few miles from the site of the Jan. 29 crash over a portion of the Potomac River. The passenger plane involved in the incident had been returning from Wichita, Kansas, where much of the U.S. figure skating community had recently gathered for the 2025 national championships − and some of the top young figure skaters in the country then remained for a national development camp. Of the 60 passengers on the plane, U.S. Figure Skating later revealed, nearly half were figure skaters, coaches or family members returning home from the camp. In total, all 67 people aboard the two aircrafts died in the collision, authorities said. The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the cause of the incident. U.S. Figure Skating and Monumental Sports, which operates Capital One Arena, have portrayed "Legacy on Ice" as both a chance for the figure skating community to collectively mourn those lost in the crash as well as try to financially support their families through ticket sales and donations. According to U.S. Figure Skating, 28 members of the figure skating community died in the mid-air collision on Jan. 29 − including 11 skaters, all between the ages of 11 and 16. The victims include: Franco Aparicio, 14 (Washington Figure Skating Club) Brielle Beyer, 12 (Skating Club of Northern Virginia) Jinna Han, 13 (Skating Club of Boston) Cory Haynos, 15 (Skating Club of Northern Virginia) Sean Kay, 11 (University of Delaware Figure Skating Club) Spencer Lane, 16 (Skating Club of Boston) Alydia Livingston, 11 (Washington Figure Skating Club) Everly Livingston, 14 (Washington Figure Skating Club) Olivia Eve Ter, 12 (Ion Figure Skating Club, Leesburg, Virginia) Angela Yang, 11 (University of Delaware Figure Skating Club) Edward Zhou, 16 (Skating Club of Northern Virginia) Four coaches were also on board the fatal flight, including married couple Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, who won the 1994 pairs world championship with Russia. The skaters and their families represented a handful of figure skating clubs along the East Coast, specifically in the Washington area, Boston and Delaware. Sunday's exhibition will be co-hosted by 1988 Olympic gold medalist Brian Boitano and 1992 Olympic champion Kristi Yamaguchi. It will also feature performances, or appearances, by some of the most recognizable names in the history of the sport, including: Kitty and Peter Carruthers, 1984 Olympic Pairs Silver Medalists Nathan Chen, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Peggy Fleming, 1968 Olympic Champion Scott Hamilton, 1984 Olympic Champion Nancy Kerrigan, 1994 Olympic Silver Medalist Ilia Malinin, 2024 World Champion U.S. figure skater Maxim Naumov, the son of Naumov and Shishkova, was also added to the list of participants earlier this week. He had been scheduled to compete in the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships after finishing fourth at nationals but withdrew following the Jan. 29 crash. The exhibition will run from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET on Sunday at Capital One Arena in downtown Washington. An encore showing of the exhibition will air on NBC at 1 p.m. ET on March 30. "Legacy on Ice" will be broadcast live on NBC's streaming service, article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Figure skating tribute for plane crash victims: How to watch
