News
2014
WORLD JUNIOR
FIGURE SKATING
CHAMPIONSHIPS
Sofia/BULGARIA
®
SOFIA,
BULGARIA
MARCH 10-16, 2014
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Injury stopped champion Elena Radionova from coming to Sofia
04.02.2014
World Junior champion Elena Radionova is injured and is not in the main Russian team for this year’s ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships which will be held in Sofia in March, announced fsrussia.ru. The Russian squad is already clear. Radionova is a reserve. This season she performed great in the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, won two medals and ranked fourth in the finals.
However on the ice in the Winter Palace the public will see world junior champions in Ice dancing Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin. Ivan’s father Andrei is 1988 Olympic Champion, 1984 Olympic silver medalist and four-time World champion in ice dance with Natalia Bestemianova.
RUSSIAN TEAM:
Junior Men: Adian Pitkeev, Alexander Petrov.
Substitutes: Moris Kvitelashvili, Alexander Samarin.
Junior Ladies: Serafima Sakhanovich, Maria Sotskova, Alexandra Proklova.
Substitutes: Elena Radionova, Evgenia Medvedeva
Junior Pairs: Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov, Maria Vigalova/Egor Zakroev, Vasilisa Davankova/Andrei Deputat
Substitutes: Kamilla Gainetdinova/Ivan Bich, Lina Fedorova/Maxim Miroshkin
Junior Ice Dance: Alexandra Stepanova/Ivan Bukin, Anna Yanovskaya/Sergei Mozgov, Betina Popova/Yuri Vlasenko.
Substitutes: Evgeniya Kosygina/Nikolai Moroshkin, Alla Loboda/Pavel Drozd.
Top U.S. Ice Dance couples are coming to Sofia
06.02.2014
The top U.S. Junior Ice Dance couples are coming in Sofia to start at the 2014 ISIU Worlds Junior Figure Skating Championships: Kaitlyn Hawayek/Jean-Luc Baker from Detroit - silver medalists at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final in Fukuoka (Japan)/ Lorraine McNamara/ Quinn Carpenter, who won the bronze in their ISU JGP Final debut. Both U.S. couples were overtaken in Fukuoka by the Russians Anna Yanovskaya/Sergey Mozgov. So, very soon in Sofia they will resume their great rivalry. The crowd here will really enjoy closed Ice Dance competition with the confirming presence as well of the reigning world junior champions Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin from Russia.
Rachel Parsons and Michael Parsons, in top 6 this season, are also in the main roster of the U.S. Ice Dance team.
Nathan Chen, the bronze medalist is leading the men squad of USA. The last year’s world bronze medalist Shotaro Omori is also part of the team.
U.S. TEAM
Junior Ladies: Karen Chen, Amber Glenn,Tyler Pierce
Alternate No. 1 - Hannah Miller
Alternate No. 2 - Leah Keiser
Alternate No. 3 - Ashley Cain
Junior Men: Nathan Chen, Jordan Moeller, Shotaro Omori
Alternate No. 1 - Jimmy Ma
Alternate No. 2 - Chase Belmontes
Alternate No. 3 - Nicholas Vrdoljak
Junior Pairs: Madeline Aaron /Max Settlage , Kaitlin Budd/Nikita Cheban, Chelsea Liu / Devin Perini
Alternate No. 1 - Aya Takai/Brian Johnson
Junior Ice Dance: Kaitlin Hawayek / Jean-Luc Baker, Lorraine McNamara/ Quinn Carpenter, Rachel Parsons and Michael Parsons.
Alternate No. 1 - Holly Moore/Daniel Klaber
Alternate No. 2 - Elliana Pogrebinsky/ Ross Gudis
Alternate No. 3 - Chloe Lewis / Logan Bye
Ingo Steuer’s student coming to Sofia
06.02.2014
Germany is the third country that announced its squad for 2014 ISU Worlds Junior Figure Skating Championships in Sofia next month. Interesting is the presence of Lutricia Bock. 14-years old skater is working with Ingo Steuer - former world champion in pairs and the person behind Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy’s success.
It’s interesting that Steuer and Mandy Wotzel won silver medal at 1996 European Figure Skating Championships that was held in Sofia.
GERMANY TEAM:
Junior Ladies: Lutricia Bock, Maria-Katharina Herceg
Junior Men: Alexander Bjelde
Ice Dance: Florence Clarke / Tim Dieck, Ria Schiffner / Julian Salatzki
Pairs: Julia Linckh / Konrad Hocker-Scholler
Adian Pitkeev: My goal in Sofia is to overcome myself
07.02.2014
The already announced Russian Team for the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Sofia makes clear that two main rivals from the last National Russian Juniors Event - Adian Pitkeev and Alexander Petrov , will fight also here, on the Ice of the Winter Sports Hall. Pitkeev, the silver medalist from the ISU JGP Final in Fukuoka, Japan, overcame Petrov with the marge of 1,88 points only for the juniors men title of Russia. The 3rd place won Moris Kvitelashvili, who is substitute in Sofia. By the way, the 18-year-old Kvitelashvili impressed with the three quadruples in his Free in Saransk.
„I managed to regain shape after New Year, because I have cumulated some tiredness during the second half of the season - Pitkeev saids. - I try to prepare well for the Junior Worlds in Sofia. My only aim is to skate at my best and gain a victory over myself. That’s when I could be happy.”
As we know, Boyang Jin from China made an extraordinary jump from fifth to first place in the Junior Men’s event at the ISU JGP Final in Fukuoka. Thanks to his Free with three quadruples, he deprived Pitkeev from the gold, leaving the silver to the Russian and the bronze to Nathan Chen (USA).
Pitkeev, who is 15-year-old, trains in Moscow in the same group as the 2014 European Champion Julia Lipnitskaya - 2012 world junior champion in 2012 and silver medalist from the 2013 Junior Worlds in Milan. The European vice champion from Budapest Sergei Voronov is in the same company, coached by Eteri Tutberidze.
While waiting their Olympics, Hawayek and Baker are welcome to Sofia
07.02.2014
The Olympic Winter Games in Sochi raise the young athlete’s hopes to be one day part of majestic show. U.S. ice dance couple Kaitlyn Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker have the same dream.
"I know the potential that both Kaitlin and I have as skaters, and we definitely have the potential to be Olympians in 2018," Baker said.
"We're really pushing for that. We're still taking it one season at a time, but in the long term we both want to be Olympians."
Since they are not yet Olympians, Baker and Hawayek are training hard for the ISU World Junior Championships in Sofia. They have won the United States national championship in junior ice dance. This title came for Kaitlyn and Jean-Luc after have being runner-up a year ago. They won two JGP competitions this season (Mexico City and Gdansk) and a silver medal at the Junior Grand Prix Final Fukuoka in December. The U.S. ice dance tandem of Meryl Davis and Charlie White, considered the favorites for gold in Sochi, had similar results as juniors back in the mid-2000s.
The day after his high school graduation in June 2012, Baker , who grew up in Edmonds, moved to Bloomfield Hills, Mich., to begin training with Hawayek at the Detroit Skating Club, an elite’s figure skating center, where trains also four-time U.S. national champion and 2014 Olympic contender Jeremy Abbott.
Baker and Hawayek work with five coaches, all of them former Olympians - Angelika Krylova (Russia), Pasquale Camerlengo (Italy), Massimo Scali (Italy), Natalia Deller (Russia) and Liz Punsalan Swallow (U.S.)
Stepanova and Bukin come back to the juniors for defend their world title
08.02.2014
Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin will defend their Ice dance title at the Junior Worlds in Sofia after a half season at the seniors.
“They are really the favourites, but have to perform on a high level for prove themselves. There will be very strong couples in Sofia, so Anna and Ivan must be on guard”, their coach Irina Zhuk says.
The champions already reminded of their great abilities after coming back to the juniors at the National Championships of Russia. They have competed with the seniors the first half of this season. Stepanova and Bukin decisively overcame the ISU JGP Final gold medalists Anna Yanovskaya/Sergei Mozgov for the national title.
“They accumulated precious experience at the seniors, but we realized that for fall among the Olympians, they need more time. And it’s very important to look after the rate and their image all the time” coaches tandem Alexander Svinin and Irina Zhuk considers.
Stepanova and Bukin tried the vigour of youth at the senior’s ISU GP Skate Canada, where finished at 8th place.
Stepanova names the two-time World Champions Albena Denkova/Maxim Staviski from Bulgaria as her idols. As to Ivan, beyond any doubt, he has the example of his father Andrei Bukin, 1988 Olympic Champion, 1984 Olympic silver medalist and four-time World champion in ice dance with Natalia Bestemianova. But the son has also unenviable fate to escape the permanent comparison with the legend.


Happy Birthday, Serafima!
09.02.2014
The young Russian figure skater Serafima Sakhanovich is 14 years old right today, February 9. Happy Birthday, Serafima! If the results in her career are coming as quickly as in 2013/14 season, the future for the infant prodigy from Sankt Petersburg should be incredible. Still in her thirteen year, at her debut in the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, she grabs the Junior Ladies wins in Tallin and Riga. She is also silver medalist from the ISU JGP Final in Fukuoka, reached by top 6 skaters only in the race standings.
Serafima in addition comes to her first ever World Championships here in Sofia as Russian Junior Ladies Champion. She got the better of not just anybody, but the gold medalist from Fukuoka, the 2 months older Maria Sotskova. Alexandra Proklova took the third place. In the same order they are on the roster for the Worlds in Sofia. The world junior champion Elena Radionova missed the National Russian Championships due to injury and is substitute in the team of Russia.
The total domination of the Young Russians the last season had its peak with their perfect triumph on Junior Ladies podium at the ISU JGP Final, having also 4 skaters in the top 6. Then Maria Sotskova was the best, ahead of Serafima Sakhanovich and Evgenia Medvedeva. Alexandra Proklova finised fifth.
Whatever will be the classification in Sofia, obviously the Russians are the big favourites for the new world title here.
"My aim is to be first at the forthcoming Junior Worlds. It will be enough to execute well my both programs, Sakhanovich means. - I am not nervous at all. The ISU JGP Final was as well such an important event, but I managed to stay calm. I think, now also, I have not to worry.”
In Sofia it might be easier, Tarasova and Morozov thrust
10.02.2014
“I don’t think the Junior Worlds in Sofia will be so thrilling for us like the last’s years”, Evgenia Tarasova said after earning the gold with her partner Vladimir Morozov in Junior Pairs at the Russian National Championships. - A year ago we made our debut in such an important competition, but now we have already an idea and we are familiar with. Moreover this season we qualified for the ISU JGP Final, where the rivalry and the tough contest are similar. The excitement, of course, will be inevitable, but I hope this time it might be easier. And we have already knowledge of our opponents. If judging by the National Championships results, the clean skating will decide. We have done very well our Short and even my fall in the Free didn’t spoil the general impression. Anyway we have to be more focused and try to cut small mistakes.”
Tarasova and Morozov , who were fifth in the world last year, are very happy with the first gold medal in their career from Russian National Championships. They managed to leave Maria Vigalova/Egor Zakroev and Vasilisa Davankova/Andrei Deputat behind them. Actually the three pairs are in the team of Russia for the Junior Worlds in Sofia.
And there were five Russian pairs in total among the top 6 at the ISU JGP in Fukuoka, where however the Chinese Xiaoyu Yu/Yang Jin won the gold. Tarasova and Morozov finished fourth behind their fellow-countrymen Vitalova/Zakroev and the world bronze medalists Lina Fedorova/Maxim Miroshkin. Before earn the national junior title, Taraova and Morozov took part in the seniors Championships in Sochi in December. Then they scared the audience on Evgenia’s failing during a lift. But three days later the pair was back on the ice and the bad incident, due to the end season’s tiredness and technical error, was forgotten.








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