Tkacheva 14th At Tirnavia Ice Cup

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Irish figure skater Sophia Tkacheva (15) has finished 14th at the Tirnavia Ice Cup in Trnava, Slovakia.

Tkacheva began her competition with the short programme. She attempted a double Axel and landed a double Lutz-double toe loop combination  at the start of her routine. Both a flying sit spin and a change foot combination spin were graded Level 4. She earned a new personal best of 34.15 and stood in 11th place at the halfway point of the event.

The following day in the free skating segment she tried a triple Salchow to open her programme and later on attempted a double Axel. She also included two jump combinations and three other double jumps on their own. All three of her spins received Level 3. Her free score of 56.54 was another personal best and gave her a total of 90.69 points.

Golding 11th At Autumn Talents Cup

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Elizabeth Golding (17) has finished in 11th place at the Autumn Talents Cup (27-30 October) in Kyiv, Ukraine.

On the first day of the competition, Golding took to the ice in the Junior Women’s Short Programme. She attempted a triple toe loop-double toe loop combination, a double flip and a double Axel. Her layback spin was graded Level 4 by the technical panel and she received a segment score of 32.43 to put herself in 10th place overnight.

Golding returned the following day for the free skating. At the beginning of her programme, she went for a triple Salchow twice and shortly after a triple toe loop-Euler-double Salchow sequence. A change foot combination spin garnered her Level 4 and she earned 59.65 points for her to give her a total score of 92.08.

 

McAllister 11th At Budapest Trophy

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Sam McAllister (23) has marked his return to competition with an 11th finish at the Budapest Trophy in Budapest, Hungary today.

McAllister began with the short programme yesterday where he performed to “Good News” by Apashe. He opened with a triple flip before attempting a triple Lutz jump combination. In the second half of his routine, he landed a double Axel and executed a Level 4 flying sit spin. He scored 51.63 points to put himself in 11th overnight.

In the free skating McAllister commenced with a triple Lutz-Euler-double flip jump sequence. Skating to the “Pirates of the Caribbean” film soundtrack, he also included a double Axel-triple toe loop combination as well three other triple jumps. All three of his spins were graded Level 4 by the technical panel. He earned a free score of 101.58 to give him a total of 153.21 and remained in 11th place.

“Overall, I’m super happy with how I performed,” McAllister said. “Even though they were not my best skates, it was such a great feeling being back out competing again. I achieved my goal of getting three Level 4 spins which I am really happy about as it’s something I have never done before.”

McAllister Returns To The Ice At Budapest Trophy

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A mere 598 days since his last competition Sam McAllister (23) is back on competition ice this week at the Budapest Trophy (14-17 October) in Hungary.

McAllister’s last competitive appearance was at the Irish Figure Skating Championships in 2020 when he won his second Senior title and he is relishing the opportunity of performing again.

“I am looking forward to going out to Hungary and enjoying  my first competition back after no competitions for 18 months.”

While he has not been able to compete, McAllister has been using the time to work hard on improvements to the technical aspect of his skating.

“I have recently got three Level 4 Spins and I would be really happy if I could do them in either of my performances that would be a great achievement for me.”

McAllister will skate in the short programme tomorrow afternoon (14 October) and in the free skating on Friday afternoon (15 October). The Budapest Trophy will be streamed live on the Hungarian National Skating Federation’s YouTube channel.

Golding and Judge Round Out Junior Grand Prix Campaign

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Irish skaters Elizabeth Golding and Dillon Judge have finished 33rd and 22nd in their respective events at the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Cup of Austria in Linz, Austria this weekend.

Judge was the first of the two Irish competitiors to take to the ice inside the Linz AG Eisarena. In the men’s short programme on Day One, he attempted a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination, a double Axel and a double flip and received a score of 32.75 for his routine.

The following evening Judge was back for the free skating. He began with a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination, a double Axel and a Level 3 flying sit spin. He also included solo triple Salchow and second double Axel attempts as well as two other jump combinations in his routine to a medley of songs by Jamie Callum. He scored 59.73 points for the free to give him an overall total of 92.48.

“It was only my second international competition in two years,” Judge said. “Physically I am getting stronger and it is great to be competing with some of the best in the world. I have learned a lot from my performances and watching those around me. It will help me and my coach plan for next year and the requirements to improve my scores and what my new routines will need.

“I thoroughly enjoyed my Junior Grand Prix experiences and the environment with being immersed in an event with people focused on showing the best skating has to offer.

“For the rest of the season I will be working on increasing my strength and stamina. I will also be working also on my jumps and spins.”

Two years had elapsed since the last time Golding competed at a Junior Grand Prix when she stepped on to the ice in Linz for the women’s short. She attempted a triple Salchow combination, a triple flip and a double Axel in her “Hip Hip Chin Chin” programme which she closed out with a Level 4 change foot combination spin. She earned a score of 25.16 points which had her sitting in 34th midway through the event.

In the free, Golding opened with triple Salchow-double toe loop combination, solo triple Salchow and triple toe loop attempts. She had both her change foot combination and layback spins graded Level 4 by the technical panel. A free score of 52.58 points gave her a final total of 77.74 and she moved up to finish in 33rd overall.

“My two performances this week were far from my best and I am nowhere near happy with them,” Golding said. “Coming out of a back injury I was healing from this summer was hard and I wasn’t able to train to my full capacity, but I never thought it would be this tough. It was a great experience and life lesson for me. I am learning to take the negatives out of situations and turning them into positives that I can work on.

“I am working on getting my jumps back to their normal state without hurting my back and overall working on being able to execute the jumps that I can do confidently in training under a stressful competition environment.”

Performance Videos

Elizabeth Golding Short Programme

Elizabeth Golding Free Skating

Dillon Judge Short Programme

Dillon Judge Free Skating

Golding And Judge Set For Final Junior Grand Prix

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Elizabeth Golding (17) and Dillon Judge (17) represent Ireland this week at the final ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating for this season in Linz, Austria (7-9 October).

This is Golding’s third season on the Junior Grand Prix circuit and Linz is where she made her JGP debut back in 2018. She will take to the ice this Friday, 8 October just before noon Irish time in the Women’s Short Programme and again in the afternoon of Saturday, 9 October in the Women’s Free Skating.

“My goals for the JGP this year are to perform cleanly (with regard to spins, step sequences and transitions) and to show good attempts of the new triple jumps I have learnt this year, as well as get the minimum scores for Worlds,” Golding said.

Judge made his JGP debut last month in Kosice, Slovakia where he finished in 21st place. He performs tomorrow evening Thursday, 7 October in the Men’s Short Programme and will be back the following evening Friday, 8 October for the Men’s Free Skating.

“I lost some significant points due to small errors at the JGP in Slovakia,” Judge said. “Using the feedback received from the judges, my coach Margaret (O’Neill) and I have used this to help improve for my performance this week in Austria.”

The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series features skaters aged 13 to 19 (21 for male Ice Dance and Pair Skating partners) from all over the world. The 2021/2022 season marks the 24th edition of the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating that was introduced in 1997. This season more than 300 skaters from over 50 different nations have competed in the series.

This week’s Junior Grand Prix in Linz, Austria will be broadcast live on the ISU’s dedicated YouTube channel. Direct links for each of the segments are as follows:

Men’s Short Programme (7 September)

Women’s Short Programme (8 September)

Men’s Free Skating (8 September)

Women’s Free Skating (9 September)

The conversation about the series can also be followed by using the #JGPFigure hashtag on social media.

Stakelum 29th At Nebelhorn Trophy

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Earlier today Conor Stakelum (28) concluded the second of two consecutive days of competition at the Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany, the final qualifying event for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, finishing in 29th outside of a quota place.

Stakelum skated in the first warm-up group of the short programme yesterday morning where he debuted his new routine to “Soulseeker” by Thomas Bergersen. This season he is including the triple flip jump which he successfully landed as well as a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination. After an uncharacteristic mistake on a double Axel, he rallied to to execute a Level 4 flying sit spin and a Level 3 step sequence to earn 53.01 points for the segment.

For the free skating this season, Stakelum has chosen to perform to music from “Riverdance” by Bill Whelan. After a cautious start, he delivered a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination, a triple Salchow on its own followed by a Level 4 flying sit spin and a triple toe loop-double toe loop combination. He closed out the programme with a Level 4 change foot combination spin. He scored 87.66 for a combined total of 140.67 points.

“I am happy to have competed again after such a long time off,” Stakelum said. “This was the first free programme I have done in competition since November 2019, so 21 months!

“All the same I am disappointed that I couldn’t perform as well as I have been training. I was glad to get a triple flip out in the short which is new for me.

“I am looking forward to showing what I can do at more competitions this season.”

Seven skaters from the United States, France, Russia, South Korea, Azerbaijan, Australia and Canada claimed the remaining quota places available for the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

Stakelum Seeks Beijing Olympic Berth At Nebelhorn Trophy

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Conor Stakelum (28) is Ireland’s sole representative at the Nebelhorn Trophy 2021 this week in Oberstdorf, Germany which serves as the final qualifying competition in figure skating for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Stakelum joins athletes from 25 other nations who will be seeking to pick up one of the remaining seven places available in the men’s singles event next February in China. Twenty-three places were already allocated at the World Figure Skating Championships in March of this year.

The five-time Irish senior champion and native Dubliner, who trains in Dundee, Scotland under the tutelage of Olympic coach Simon Briggs, will compete in Germany over the course of two days in short programme and free skating segments.

The Nebelhorn Trophy begins tomorrow 23 September and runs until 25 September. Stakelum will compete initially tomorrow morning (Thursday, 23 September) and again in the afternoon of Friday 24 September.

This will be Stakelum’s first competition since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Rink closures and travel restrictions have hampered his ability to train and compete over the past 16 months.

“I have worked very hard in the absence of competitions over the last year to improve my skating, increase the difficulty of my programmes and to be ready to compete when the chance came,” Stakelum said.

During the pandemic, the Dubliner put his degree in microbiology to good use when he signed up to the HSE Be On Call for Ireland recruitment drive in 2020 and was assigned to work as a laboratory assistant at a Dublin hospital. He is currently employed by the NHS in Scotland.

Stakelum will debut two new programmes in Germany. He will perform in the free skating to “Riverdance” by Bill Whelan.

“Obviously, this is a very well-known piece of music which many people enjoy,” Stakelum said. “I have always wanted to do a programme with an Irish theme so I am glad to be doing so this season.”

Stakelum’s progress in Germany can be followed via live stream (links below) and the Ice Skating Association of Ireland’s social media accounts.

Nebelhorn Trophy Live Stream

Day 1 (23 September)

Day 2 (24 September)

Conor Stakelum International Skating Union Bio

Judge and Tkacheva Make Most Of Maiden Junior Grand Prix

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Irish skaters Dillon Judge and Sophia Tkacheva have concluded their ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating debuts finishing 21st and 25th in their respective categories in Kosice, Slovakia.

Judge took to the ice at the Steel Arena on Day One of the event in the Men’s Short Programme. Skating to “Mack the Knife” performed by Bobby Darin, he attempted a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination, a double Axel and a triple flip. Despite a mishap on a flying sit spin, he managed to earn a new personal best score of 34.52 points leaving him in 22nd place overnight.

The following day, Judge was back to skate in the Free Skating segment of the competition. He opened with a triple Salchow-double toe loop combination, a double Axel and this time round successfully completed a flying sit spin. He also included solo triple Salchow and second double Axel attempts as well as two other jump combinations in his routine to a medley of songs by Jamie Callum. He scored another personal best of 62.99 points for the free to give him a total of 97.51 points to move up one spot in the overall standings.

“It was great being surrounded by some of the best Junior skaters in the world,” Judge said. “It gave me the opportunity to see how they perform close up and take away some ideas which will help me improve. It was great being in an environment where everyone was passionate about ice skating.

“I have learnt from this performance that I need to work harder on elements. I lost some significant points due to small errors. Using the feedback received from the judges, my coach Margaret and I will use this to help improve for my next performance.”

Tkacheva made her Junior Grand Prix debut in the Women’s Short Programme on the evening of Day One. She began her programme with a double Axel and a double Lutz-double toe loop jump combination. Both a flying sit spin and a change foot combination spin were graded Level 4 by the technical panel. She received a new personal best score of 32.00 points which saw her in 25th place at the midway stage of the competition.

After a day’s break between the short and free, Tkacheva returned to the ice on Day Three. Performing to “Voila” by Barbara Pravi, she attempted three jump combinations in her routine as well as a double Axel. She once again secured Level 4 for a change foot combination spin and posted another personal best score of 49.07 points for the free. She finished with a total of 81.07 points.

“My experience at my first JGP was unforgettable,” Tkacheva said. “I made some mistakes which gives me something to work on for the rest of the season. The atmosphere of the Grand Prix was incredible and being able to participate in a competition where people come from all over the world is something I will always remember.

“I’ve learned that no matter what happens to go for every element and to learn from any mistakes. It’s also very important to enjoy the experience of being at a competition like the JGP.”

Performance Videos

Dillon Judge Short Programme

Dillon Judge Free Skating

Sophia Tkacheva Short Programme

Sophia Tkacheva Free Skating

Stakelum Selected For Beijing Olympics Figure Skating Qualifier

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Conor Stakelum (28) has been selected by the Board of Directors of the Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI) to represent Ireland at this season’s Nebelhorn Trophy (22-25 September) in Oberstdorf, Germany, the final qualifying competition in figure skating for the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games.

Stakelum last competed internationally at the European Figure Skating Championships held pre-pandemic in January 2020 and is relishing the opportunity to get back out onto the ice.

“I am very happy to have been selected to compete at the Nebelhorn Trophy,” he said. “I have worked very hard in the absence of competitions over the last year to improve my skating, increase the difficulty of my programmes and to be ready to compete when the chance came. I’m glad that the ISAI board have recognised this and I’m excited to have to opportunity to compete again!”

This will be the Dubliner’s third attempt at Olympic qualification. His two previous tries in 2013 and 2017 provided him with invaluable experience that he hopes to put to good use this time round.

“I learn from every competition I have competed in,” Stakelum said. “The most important thing I remind myself of at these types of events is to focus on my own performances which is all I can control and to enjoy the opportunity.”

The five-time Irish national champion will also be debuting two new programmes in Germany, one of which will have a particularly Irish flavour.

“My short programme is set to a piece of music called ‘Soulseeker’ by Thomas Bergersen. It is a powerful cinematic piece of music which I think suits my style of skating well.

“My free programme is to ‘Riverdance’. Obviously, this is a very well-known piece of music which many people enjoy. I have always wanted to do a programme with an Irish theme so I am glad to be doing so this season.”

Beyond the Olympic qualifier, Stakelum is looking to a more normal season ahead and breaking new ground in terms of his own skating.

“My goals for the season are to enjoy every event I get the opportunity to compete in after such a long time with no competitions. I would also like to show the improvements I have made and hopefully score some personal bests.”

Stakelum will be competing in Germany against athletes from 25 other countries to secure one of the seven remaining places in the men’s event at the Beijing Olympics.