Golding Breaks Records At Italian Junior Grand Prix

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Elizabeth Golding (15) completed her second International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix assignment of the season today in Egna, Italy.

On the first day of competition, Golding skated her “Masquerade Waltz” short programme. She included double Axel, triple Salchow-double toe loop and double loop attempts in her routine which also featured a Level 4 combination spin. She scored 31.06 points which put her in 26th place halfway through the event.

The following day, the Irish Junior champion took to the ice at Wurth Arena for the free skating. She attempted two double Axels and a triple Salchow in the programme to a selection of music by Two Steps from Hell. She earned a score of 60.70 for the segment which gave her a total of 91.76. Both marks represent new Irish Junior records and moved her up to a 24th place finish.

Detailed Results

Short Programme (YouTube)

Free Skating (YouTube)

Golding Lines Up For Second Junior Grand Prix

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Elizabeth Golding (15) participates in her second competition of the season at the International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Egna/Neumarkt in Egna, Italy (2-5 October).

This is the second year the Irish Junior champion takes her place on the circuit which features up and coming global figure skating talent and provides young skaters aged 13 to 19 with the opportunity to compete at a high international level.

2019 marks the 11th anniversary of Ireland’s first participation in the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating. The series started in 1997 and includes seven events which serve as qualifiers for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in December.

Golding will compete on Friday 4 October in the short programme and Saturday 5 October in the free skating. Her performances will be broadcast live on the ISU’s YouTube channel. The event can also be followed by using the #JGPFigure and #FigureSkating hashtags across various social media platforms.

Event Page: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1920/jgpita2019/

McAllister 14th, Stakelum 15th At Nebelhorn Trophy

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Over the course of the past two days, Sam McAllister (20) and Conor Stakelum (26) competed at the 51st edition of the Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany.

McAllister opened the competition with his short programme to “Take Five” by Dave Brubeck. He attempted a triple Lutz, a triple flip-double toe loop combination and a double Axel with two of his spins graded Level 4. He received 51.98 points to put himself in 14th place.

Towards the end of the same warmup group, Stakelum performed his short to “Nightshade” by The Lumineers. He went for a triple loop and then continued with a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination and a double Axel. A flying sit spin was graded Level 4 and he placed 13th in the short with 52.75 points.

The Irish skaters followed each other in the free skating the next day. McAllister inserted four triples and two Level 4 spins into his “Pirates of the Caribbean” routine and was rewarded with a free score of 100.74 points which gave him a total of 152.72 and 14th place overall. Both marks represent new International Skating Union (ISU) personal bests.

“It was a good result here in Oberstdorf,” McAllister said. “I now have the minimum technical scores for the European Championships which was a season’s goal of mine.”

Stakelum took to the ice for his “The Sound of Silence” by Disturbed and opened with a triple loop jump. He went on to attempt four more triples and closed with a Level 4 combination spin. He scored 94.03 points for the free which amounted to a total of 146.78 and left him in 15th place.

“I had a challenging free tonight,” Stakelum said. “I am going to away and come back to deliver a better performance of this programme that I know is in me.”

Full details results for the 2019 Nebelhorn Trophy can be found here.

McAllister and Stakelum Take On Nebelhorn Trophy

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The season steps up another gear this week as Irish figure skaters Sam McAllister (20) and Conor Stakelum (26) compete in the men’s event at the prestigious Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany (26-28 September).

This will be the second foray onto the international stage for both men this season. Last month, Stakelum and McAllister skated at the Tayside, Trophy in Dundee, United Kingdom where they placed fourth and fifth respectively. The Nebelhorn Trophy will be their first International Skating Union (ISU) Challenger Series event of the season and represents an increased level of competition. They will face off against skaters from 13 other nations in the short programme (Thursday, 26 September) and the free skating (Friday, 27 September).

The two Irish skaters have been drawn in the first warm-up group for tomorrow’s short (10.00hrs Irish time) with McAllister opening the event and Stakelum skating fifth out of the 18 skaters.

You can follow all the action on the live stream and the event results page.

Golding 35th At Riga Cup

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In her first competition of the season, Elizabeth Golding participated in the International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Riga Cup in Riga, Latvia.

Golding began with the short programme. Skating to “Masquerade Waltz” by Aram Khachaturian, she attempted a double Axel, a triple Salchow combination and a double loop. She earned 22.72 points to put her in 36th place halfway through the event.

The following day the Irish junior champion returned to the ice to perform in the free skating. She went for two double Axels and a triple Salchow at the opening of her routine to a selection of music by Two Steps From Hell. She also achieved a Level 4 for her layback spin later on in her programme. She placed 34th in the free with a score of 48.74 which gave her a total of 71.46 and 35th overall.

Full detailed results for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Riga Cup can be found here.

Golding Takes To The Stage At Riga Cup

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Elizabeth Golding (14) returns to the ice this week when she makes her season debut at the International Skating Union (ISU) Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating’s Riga Cup in Riga Latvia (4-7 September).

This is the second year the Irish Junior champion takes her place on the circuit which features up and coming global figure skating talent and provides young skaters aged 13 to 19 with the opportunity to compete at a high international level.

2019 marks the 11th anniversary of Ireland’s first participation in the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating. The series started in 1997 and includes seven events which serve as qualifiers for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in December.

Golding will compete on Thursday 5 September in the short programme and Friday 6 September in the free skating. Her performances will be broadcast live on the ISU’s YouTube channel. The event can also be followed by using the #JGPFigure and #FigureSkating hashtags across various social media platforms.

Event Page: http://www.isuresults.com/events/fsevent03111897.htm

 

2019-2020 Irish Speed Skating Team Announced

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The selection of the Irish National Speed Skating Team Team for the 2019-2020 season has been made by the Board of Directors of the Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI).

The ISAI has selected the following members to compete in International Skating Union (ISU) speed skating events for the 2019-2020 season:

Speed Skating

Tara Donoghue

Short Track Speed Skating

Ava Fradlin-Ryan
Ryan McAnuff
Sean McAnuff
Liam O’Brien

Tara Donoghue continued to make history last season by becoming the first Irish speed skater to participate in the World Junior Speed Skating Championships. She also set a number of new Irish records and personal bests over the course of her competitive assignments.

Ava Fradlin-Ryan is the first female short track speed skater to be named to an Irish national team. She trains under Simon Cho, 2010 Olympic medallist, at the Potomac Speed Skating Club in Maryland, United States of America.

Ryan McAnuff started a degree in medicine at the University of Limerick last year and balanced his studies with training and competition. At the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Dordrecht, Netherlands, he smashed his 1500 metres national record by four seconds.

Sean McAnuff joined his brother Ryan at those Europeans and they became the first Irish ice skaters to compete in the same category at an International Skating Union (ISU) Championships. Sean capped off his season by making his World Short Track Speed Skating Championship debut in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Liam O’Brien is selected for the Irish national team for the first time. He currently trains at the Canterbury Olympic Ice Rink in Sydney, Australia with coaches Scott Weekes and Maggie Holland.

You can find out more about our national team members here.

2019-2020 Figure Skating Test Passing Scores

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The Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI) figure skating test passing scores for the 2019-2020 season can be viewed here and will be effective as of 1 September 2019.

ISAI AGM 2019

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The Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI) Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place on 18 September 2019.

Current members will have received an e-mail with further details on this year’s AGM. Please check your junk mail or spam folders if the e-mail does not appear in your inbox. If you still cannot retrieve the e-mail, please contact us at info@isai.ie to request it to be sent again.

Stakelum Fourth, McAllister Fifth At Tayside Trophy

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The past two days saw Irish figure skaters Sam McAllister and Conor Stakelum compete at the Tayside Trophy in Dundee, United Kingdom.

Stakelum was the first to take to the ice for the Senior Men’s short programme on Day One of the competition in the Scottish city. Skating to “Nightshade” by The Lumineers, he included a triple loop, triple toe loop/triple toe loop combination and a double Axel in his routine. He also executed three Level 4 spins and a Level 4 step sequence to rack up a new Irish record score of 61.54 to put himself in third place.

McAllister skated immediately after Stakelum and performed to “Take Five” by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. He landed a triple Lutz/double toe loop combination, a triple flip and a double Axel. He had two of his spins graded Level 4 and notched up a new personal best of 59.49 to put himself in fourth place.

The following day the competitors turned up for the free skating. Stakelum debuted another new programme, this time to “The Sound of Silence” by Disturbed. He attempted five triple jumps during his four-minute free and received Level 4 for all three of his spins. He was awarded a score of 100.12 to give him a final total of 161.66 and fourth place.

McAllister also unveiled a new routine to the “Pirates of the Caribbean” film soundtrack. He tried five triple jumps as well as two double Axels. He earned 95.33 points for the free which gave him an overall score of 154.82 and fifth place.

You can see detailed results for the Tayside Trophy here.