Tkacheva 28th At Dragon Trophy

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Sophia Tkacheva has concluded competing at the Dragon Trophy in Ljubljana, Slovenia (1-2 February) with a 28th place finish in the Advanced Novice category.

On the first day of competition, Tkacheva performed her short programme. She attempted a single Axel, a double Lutz-double toe loop combination and a double loop. Both of her spins were graded Level 3. She received a score of 22.94 which left her in 26th place.

The following day saw the Gorey, County Wexford native appear in the free skating. She tried six jumping passes, including a triple Salchow attempt. A flying sit spin was awarded a Level 3 by the technical panel. She scored 34.52 which gave her an overall total of 57.46.

Full detailed results for the Dragon Trophy can be found here.

Tkacheva Takes On Dragon Trophy

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This weekend sees Sophia Tkacheva participate in the Dragon Trophy in Ljubljana, Slovenia (1-2 February).

The figure skater from Gorey, County Wexford will compete in the Advanced Novice category and she will perform her short programme on Saturday, 1 February with the free skating taking place on Sunday, 2 February at the Hala Tivoli ice rink.

You can follow Tkacheva’s progress via the event live stream or the results page.

Ryan First Irish Female Short Track Skater To Compete At World Juniors

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This weekend Ava Ryan (18) becomes the first female skater from Ireland to compete at the ISU (International Skating Union) World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Bormio, Italy (31 January – 2 February).

Ryan will be lining up among 190 skaters from 37 countries who will be vying for top honours in the Italian alpine resort. The competition will begin with the qualifying rounds for the 500, 1000 and 1500 metre distances on Friday, 31 January. The subsequent rounds will take place on Saturday, 1 February and Sunday, 2 February.

Ryan’s father hails from Cork and she trains under Simon Cho, 2010 Olympic medallist, at the Potomac Speed Skating Club in Maryland, United States of America.

“I am very excited for the opportunity to race here in Bormio and represent Ireland,” Ryan said. “My goals for this weekend are to skate my best races and set personal bests. I’ve already hit personal bests in practice and hope those will continue during the races.”

You can follow the ISU World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships on the ISU YouTube Channel and by using the #ShortTrackSkating hashtag on social media. Competition results will be updated here.

McAnuff Brothers Wrap Up Short Track Euros

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Ryan McAnuff (25) and Sean McAnuff (22) raced this weekend at the ISU (International Skating Union) European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Debrecen, Hungary to an overall classification of 34th and 35th respectively.

The brothers competed over the course of three days in the 500, 1000 and 1500 metre distances. The first day of the event saw them begin with the quarterfinals of the 1500 where Sean finished fourth in Heat 1 and Ryan fifth in Heat 4. They then participated in the 500 heats where Ryan placed fifth in Heat 1 and Sean fourth in Heat 3. They ended their opening day of action with 1000 heats where Ryan came third in Heat 1 and Sean fifth in Heat 3.

On the second day of competition, the McAnuffs took part in the ranking finals for the 1500 and 500. Ryan was a close second in Heat 1 of the 1500 to finish overall in 35th place. Sean took to the ice in Heat 3 and placed fourth which gave him an overall classification of 25th, his best ever at an individual distance at an ISU Championships. The 500 ranking finals followed and the brothers faced each other in Heat 2 with Sean placing third and Ryan fourth. They were classified as 33rd and 34th respectively for the distance.

The final day saw them conclude their racing with the 1000 metre ranking finals. Sean won Heat 1 and Ryan came fourth in Heat 4. Ryan stood 24th in the overall classification for the distance which was his best at an ISU Championship. Sean placed 35th. The overall championships classification saw Ryan finish 34th and Sean 35th.

“Ryan and I are both very happy with our individual races and the progres we made even throughout the competition,” Sean McAnuff said. “We both got our best individual finishes ever in a distance and we both got our best combined points for the three distances for any European Championships we have competed in!”

Ryan And Sean McAnuff Ready For Short Track Europeans

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Ryan and Sean McAnuff will be flying the flag for Ireland at the ISU (International Skating Union) European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Debrecen, Hungary (24-26 January).

For the second year in a row at the European Championships, Ireland will have two representatives in the men’s category as the McAnuffs secured the spots with their overall placement at last year’s Europeans in Dordrecht, Netherlands.

The brothers will be lining up among 141 skaters from 23 countries who will be vying for top honours in Debrecen. The competition will begin with the qualifying rounds for the 500, 1000 and 1500 metre distances on Friday, 24 January. The subsequent rounds will take place on Saturday, 25 January and Sunday, 26 January.

Ryan is now in the second year of his degree in medicine at the University of Limerick and has been continuing his studies with training. Sean has already participated in two World Cups in Salt Lake City, United States of America and Montreal, Canada.

“I am excited to be racing and representing Ireland once again,” Ryan McAnuff said. “I find it very rewarding balancing full-time medical school as well as training for international competition.”

“This weekend is going to be lots of fun,” Sean McAnuff said. “I will focus on improving each race and implementing the specifics I have been working on in training. I’m very excited to see how it goes.”

You can follow the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships on the ISU YouTube Channel and by using the #EuroShortTrack #UpAgain and #ShortTrackSkating hashtags on social media. Competition results will be updated here.

Conor Stakelum 34th At Europeans

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Conor Stakelum (26) competed this afternoon in the short programme men’s event at the ISU (International Skating Union) European Figure Skating Championships in Graz, Austria where he placed 34th.

Stakelum skated 16th out of the 35 competitors and began his programme to “Nightshade” by The Lumineers with an attempted triple loop and followed it with a triple toe loop-triple toe loop jump combination which unfortunately resulted in a fall. However, he steadied himself as the routine progressed and his final four elements all received a positive grade of execution from the judging panel. He was awarded a score of 48.28.

As only the top 24 skaters advance to tomorrow’s free skating, the five-time senior champion has concluded his third successive participation at the European Championships today.

“I’m disappointed, but these things happen,” Stakelum said. “I’m going to go home and work on putting more difficult elements into my programmes.”

 

Conor Stakelum Skates For Ireland At European Figure Skating Championships

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Conor Stakelum (26) competes at the ISU (International Skating Union) European Figure Skating Championships this week in Graz, Austria (22-26 January). This is the five-time Irish champion’s third consecutive participation at the event following his debut two years ago in Moscow, Russia where he became the first Irish male figure skater to compete in the history of the championships since they began in 1891.

Stakelum will first take part in the short programme which will be held on the morning of Wednesday, 22 January from 11:30am local time (10:30am Irish time). The day prior to the competition a draw will be held to determine his starting order of the 35 men entered. He will perform seven required elements and if his scores place him in the top 24 skaters he will advance to the free skating on Thursday, 23 January.

“I am proud to be representing Ireland at Europeans again,” Stakelum said. “I am looking forward to building on my previous two championship experiences this week in Graz.”

You will be able to follow Stakelum’s progress in Graz live on the ISU YouTube channel, the competition event page and on social media using the #EuroFigure and #FigureSkating hashtags.

The European Figure Skating Championships are being held in Graz for the first time ever, but Austria has hosted on 11 previous occasions. Stakelum will be one of 165 skaters from 33 countries who will participate in the event. Skaters have had to obtain a minimum total technical score in the short programme and free skating in an ISU competition in order to compete at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships.

Emerald Skate Test Session January 2020

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All test applicants for the Emerald Skate Test Session on the morning of 18 January 2020 at South Dublin On Ice should have received an email showing their test group and time. There will be three test starting times (08:10/08:45/09:10). Each test group will also be posted in the ice rink on the morning of the test session.

If you have not received an email regarding the test session, please check your email junk/spam folder in the first instance. If you still have not received an email, please contact info@isai.ie for further assistance.

2019 Review: Another Exciting Year For Irish Ice Skating

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The year kicked off with Ryan and Sean McAnuff becoming the first skaters from Ireland to participate in the same International Skating Union (ISU) Championships in January when they competed at the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Dordrecht, Netherlands. They retained two spots for Ireland for 2020.

At the end of January, Conor Stakelum took part in the European Figure Skating Championships in Minsk, Belarus. The Dubliner posted an ISU personal best in the short programme to place 33rd.

In February, Tara Donoghue became the first Irish skater to race at the World Junior Speed Skating Championships which were held in Balsega di Pine, Italy. Her 23rd place in the 3000 metres was the highest finish yet by an Irish competitor at an ISU Championships.

The month also saw an introductory seminar for short track speed skating officials held in Dublin.

March saw Tara Donoghue  conclude her season by setting national records over the 1000 and 1500 metres at the Viking Race in Heerenveen, Netherlands. Sean McAnuff also closed out his season with a 38th place at the World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

In July, a figure skating technical specialist seminar took place in Dublin.

In her second season competing on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit, Elizabeth Golding set Irish junior records for free skating and total scores in October at her second assignment in Egna, Italy.

Tara Donoghue competed in the ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating event in Enschede, Netherlands and earned a spot for Ireland at the 2020 Youth Olympics becoming the first Irish skater to accomplish this feat.

At the Canadian International Invitational in Montreal, Canada in December, Ava Ryan booked her place at the 2020 World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships. She will be the first female short track speed skater from Ireland to participate at an ISU Championships.

Irish Figure And Short Track Teams Selected For 2020 Europeans

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The Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI) has selected the skaters who will represent Ireland at the 2020 European Figure Skating Championships in Graz, Austria (20-26 January) and the 2020 European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Debrecen, Hungary (24-26 January).

Conor Stakelum will compete in the men’s singles category at the European Figure Skating Championships alongside the cream of European skating talent. 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.

This is the third consecutive year that the Dundee-based athlete will make an appearance at the European Championships. In January 2018, he became the first Irish male skater to participate in the prestigious championships which were first held in 1891.

“I am very happy to have been selected for my third European Championships and I hope to build on my experience from the previous two championships in Austria,” Stakelum said.

Ryan and Sean McAnuff will also be flying the flag for Ireland later on the same week at the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Hungary. The brothers were the first Irish speed skaters to compete internationally. At the last edition of Europeans in Dordrecht, Netherlands, two spots for Ireland were secured for the second consecutive year. Ryan is currently a medical student at the University of Limerick, while Sean is based in Canada.

“I am extremely excited to be representing Ireland alongside my brother at another European Championships,” Ryan said. “I can’t wait to take on some of the top skaters in the world!”

“This season I have been working a lot on making the most out of each race, each competition and each practice I do,” Sean said. “I have been trying out new strategies and working on and improving my technique a lot. I am really looking forward to applying all these lessons I have learned at the European Championships in January.”