Archive for category: Figure Skating

The selection of the Irish Figure Skating National Team for the 2018-2019 season has been made by the Board of Directors of the Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI).

The following ISAI members have been chosen to represent Ireland on the international stage at International Skating Union (ISU) events:

Senior Men – Sam McAllister

Senior Men – Conor Stakelum

Junior Ladies – Elizabeth Golding

Conor Stakelum is a five-time Senior National champion. A native of Dublin, he trains in Dundee, Scotland with Simon and Debi Briggs. In January 2018, he became the first male skater to represent Ireland at the European Figure Skating Championships in Moscow, Russia

Sam McAllister is moving up to the senior ranks this season. From Ballymoney, Northern Ireland, he is coached by Margaret O’Neill in Nottingham and Sheffield, England. In March 2018, he competed at the 2018 World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, the first Irish skater to participate in the event since 2010.

Elizabeth Golding picked up her third Advanced Novice title at the Irish Figure Skating Championships in March 2018 and from this season will compete at the junior level internationally. In January 2018, she won the Advanced Novice event at the FBMA Trophy in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

National team members Elizabeth Golding and Sam McAllister will this weekend close out a very successful season for Irish figure skating at the Egna Spring Trophy in Egna, Italy.

Golding will compete in the Advanced Novice Girls event in a field of 27 skaters from 12 countries. This year already the Irish champion has won gold at the FBMA Trophy in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and retained her national title last month at the Irish Figure Skating Championships.

McAllister bagged the Denkova-Staviski Trophy title in Sofia, Bulgaria last November and he was back in the same city last month where he became the first Irish skater in eight years to participate in the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. He finished in 44th place. At the Irish Championships, he moved up to the senior level and he will be competing as a senior again in Italy this weekend.

You can follow the progress of Golding and McAllister via the competition results page and live stream.

The 2018 Irish Figure Skating Championships were held at Lee Valley Ice Centre and featured skaters competing in three different categories.

Conor Stakelum took his fifth Senior Men’s title. His short programme included a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination, a triple loop and a double Axel. He was also awarded a Level 4 for a flying sit spin and received a segment score of 56.95. In the free skating, he attempted four triple jumps and had two spins graded Level 4 to earn 100.02 points. He clinched gold with a combined total of 156.97.

Fresh from his debut at the ISU Junior World Figure Skating Championships, Sam McAllister took on his first senior championships. In the short, he went for a triple Lutz, a triple flip-double toe combination and a double Axel. Two spins were graded Level 4 by the technical panel. For the free, he managed to attempt four triple jumps and was given a score of 84.16. A total of 136.38 gave him the silver medal.

Elizabeth Golding picked up her third Advanced Novice Ladies title. She scored 25.66 for her short and 41.23 for her free to finish the competition with a total of 66.89.

Aoibhe Hennigan won her first Basic Novice A Ladies gold. Laura Hegarty also took her first medal in this category by coming second.

Full results for the 2018 Irish Figure Skating Championships are available here.

Sam McAllister will next week become the first skater to represent Ireland at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships since 2010.

The two-time Irish junior champion will be one of 49 skaters from 39 countries competing in the men’s singles category at the event which takes place in Sofia, Bulgaria from 5-11 March 2018. In order to qualify for the championships, each competitor had to obtain a set of minimum technical scores at International Skating Union (ISU) international competitions during the previous and/or current seasons. Skaters who have appeared at the event in the past have gone on to represent their countries at European, World and Olympic level.

The Ballymoney, Northern Ireland native is the second skater from Ireland to make an appearance at the World Junior Championships. Viv Parnell-Murphy participated at the event in 2010 when it was held in The Hague, Netherlands.

“My main goal for this season was to make it to Junior Worlds and I am so excited to finally go to Bulgaria and compete for Ireland,” McAllister said. “I am ready to skate my best and make everyone who has supported me proud.”

McAllister will begin his competition in the men’s short programme on 8 March.

Irish figure skater Conor Stakelum has finished in 36th place at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Moscow, Russia.

Stakelum was the second competitor of the event to take to the ice for his short programme which he skated to “The Red Violin” by John Corigliano. He began positively with a triple toe loop/triple toe loop jump combination that was evaluated positively by the judging panel. However, he then only made a single rotation on his planned triple loop jump and received no score for the element. He recovered with a double Axel jump and continued with a Level 3 flying sit spin. Unfortunately, he went off balance on a change foot camel spin and the element did not count. His step sequence was graded Level 2 by the technical panel and he was awarded Level 4 for his closing change foot combination spin.

The Dubliner scored 43.07 points and, as he did not finish in the Top 24 in the short programme, was not able to advance to Friday’s free skating.

“I am disappointed that I was not able to skate my best today,” Stakelum said. “On the other hand, I am extremely honoured to have represented Ireland on such a big stage and I am going to work even harder to perform better next time.”

Stakelum was the first male skater from Ireland to participate in an ISU European Figure Skating Championships.