Figure Skating National Team 2017-2018

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The selection of the Irish Figure Skating National Team for the 2017-2018 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 – Conor Stakelum

Junior Men – Sam McAllister

Advanced Novice Ladies – Elizabeth Golding

 

Conor Stakelum is a four-time Senior National champion. A native of Dublin, he trains in Dundee, Scotland with Simon and Debi Briggs.

Sam McAllister claimed his second Junior title this year at the Irish Figure Skating Championships. From Ballymoney, Northern Ireland, he is coached by Margaret O’Neill in Nottingham and Sheffield, England.

Elizabeth Golding has taken the Advanced Novice title at the Irish Figure Skating Championships for the past two years. This is the first time that she has been selected for the National Team.

Odhrán Allen Becomes ISU International Judge

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Following his participation in the International Skating Union (ISU) Global Seminar and Examinations in Frankfurt, Germany, Odhrán Allen has been certified as an International Judge for Singles and Pairs.

Allen has served as a judge at domestic and international club competitions over the past number of seasons. This was the first time that Allen participated in the ISU seminar making his achievement all the more remarkable.

ISAI President Karen O’Sullivan said, “Congratulations to Odhrán who has worked very hard to achieve this qualification. I have heard that the standard of candidate judges this year in Frankfurt was one of the highest ever and I am delighted to see this evidence of the ISAI judging programme’s development.”

Sean McAnuff Receives ISU Scholarship

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Irish short track speed skater Sean McAnuff has been awarded an International Skating Union (ISU) Development Programme Junior Scholarship.

The scholarship is given to young skaters of outstanding talent from developing members federations. Athletes are deemed eligible to be considered for the scholarship based on their participation and results at the most recent Junior World Championships. Individual skaters are awarded scholarships worth US$6,000. The number of scholarships awarded each year is limited.

McAnuff has recently moved to the Netherlands with his brother Ryan to train under Dutch coach and former Olympian Dave Versteeg for the upcoming season.

“I am very happy to have been chosen to receive this scholarship,” McAnuff said. “Training facilities in the Netherlands are first class and the scholarship will help me enormously with training camp and competition travel expenses.

“The scholarship is also very motivating for me to continue pursuing my skating dreams and to develop the sport further in Ireland,” McAnuff added.

This is the first time an Irish skater has been awarded an ISU Junior Scholarship.

ISAI Member Workshop

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A workshop regarding rule and regulation changes will be held for all Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI) members at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown on 22 July from 10am.

Following a comprehensive review of the ISAI Rules and Regulations, a series of changes will become effective at the start of the 2017/2018 season. The rationale behind the changes is to ensure our Rules and Regulations conform to international rules as directed by the International Skating Union (ISU) and provide flexibility to be fit for purpose in Ireland.

The purpose of the workshop will be to summarise the changes. In due course, the revised sections (identifying the changes) will be circulated to  all members by email in advance of the workshop.  This is a great opportunity, if you have not already done so, to get your membership up to date to ensure that you receive your copy of the revised sections and are fully informed when the season begins.

The workshop is open to all members and their parents, and should be of particular interest to all coaches working with ISAI members to ensure that they are working with the correct test information and rules of the ISAI.

ISAI Members Participate In OMS Trophy

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A large contingent of Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI) members participated this Easter weekend at the OMS Trophy international club competition in Paris, France.

The three Irish entrants in the Jeunes Adultes Argent Dames – Free Skating event all took home medals. Faye Donohoe finished first with a score of 16.65. Aoife Malone came second on 14.24 and Meg Elwood was third with 11.35.

Aoibhe Hennigan also medalled in the R2 Minimes Dames – Free Skating category when she came third with a score of 23.97.

In the R1 Minimes Dames – Free Skating, Laura Hegarty placed 14th and scored a total of 19.38.

There were medals for Fineas Nedelea and Alex James in the R3 Juniors/Seniors Messieurs – Free Skating event when they finished second (14.11) and third (10.74) respectively.

Rebekah Spiller came sixth in the R3 Novices Dames – Free Skating category with a score of 14.11. Andrea Fitzsimons placed behind her in seventh on 10.37.

Kevin Hegarty scored 20.32 to come second in the R3 Novices Messieurs event.

Detailed results for the competition can be found here.

Junior Figure Skaters Compete At Triglav Trophy

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Irish Junior figure skating national champions Ciara Hoey and Sam McAllister closed out their international season this weekend when they competed at Triglav Trophy in Jesenice, Slovenia.

McAllister was the first in action in the Junior Men’s short programme. He attempted a triple Lutz combination and also cleanly landed a double Axel, as well as receiving a Level 4 for his change foot sit spin from the technical panel. He extended his own Irish junior record to 40.62 points which put him second place.

In the free skating, McAllister landed a triple Lutz at the start of his “Sherlock Holmes” routine and executed a double Axel and a triple Salchow in succession before attempting a second triple Lutz. He posted another new personal best of 76.17 and won the silver medal with a total of 116.79.

Following her fourth consecutive title at the Irish Figure Skating Championships last month, Hoey skated in the Junior Ladies short. Among the elements she attempted in her programme, there was a double flip-double toe loop combination and double loop. She was also awarded a Level 3 for her change foot combination spin. She scored 21.36 points which put her in 18th place after the short.

Skating to Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Scheherazade”, Hoey included seven jumping passes in her free routine. She also performed a flying camel spin, a sit spin, a step sequence and rounded things off with another Level 3 change foot combination spin. She earned a score of 42.91 which saw her move up to 16th overall with a total of 64.27.

2017 Irish Figure Skating National Champions Crowned

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The Irish Figure Skating Championships were held over the course of two days at the Lee Valley Ice Arena in London with champions decided in seven categories.

Conor Stakelum began his journey to a fourth Senior Men’s national title with a final outing of his “East of Eden” short programme. He landed a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination, a triple Salchow and a double Axel to earn a best ever score in competition of 52.02 points.

In the free skating, he executed triple Salchow-double toe and triple toe-double toe combinations, as well as a triple toe and two double Axels. He closed out his “Chasing Cars” routine with a Level 4 change foot combination spin and received a free score 87.71 for an overall total of 139.73.

Sam McAllister took home the Junior Men’s title for the second year in a row. In the short, he attempted a triple Lutz combination and performed one Level 4 and two Level 3 spins to “The Mask” soundtrack. He received 43.73 points.

His free routine to the “Sherlock Holmes” soundtrack included attempts at a triple Lutz, two triple Salchows and two double Axels. The technical panel also graded his flying change foot sit spin Level 4. He netted 75.12 points for his free which left him with a total of 118.85.

Ciara Hoey added a fourth Junior Ladies national title at the championships. In her short, she attempted a double flip-double toe, a double Axel and a double loop. Two of her spins merited Level 3 and she scored 22.44 points.

Skating to “Samson and Delilah” for her free, Hoey went for two jumps combinations and a double Axel out of her seven jumping passes. She closed out with a strong Level 3 change foot combination spin to wind up with a score of 43.32 for a total of 65.76.

Elizabeth Golding reclaimed her Advanced Novice Ladies title. In her short, she inserted a single Axel, a double Lutz-double toe combination and a double flip and was also awarded Level 2 for a layback spin. She posted a score of 20.25.

For her free routine to “Carmen”, Golding opened with a double flip and double Salchow. She also went for a double Axel in the course of her programme and finished up with a Level 3 flying camel spin. She scored 40.48 which gave her a total of 60.73.

The Basic Novice Ladies gold went to Sophia Tkacheva for the third year in a row. She scored 28.53 points. Grace Hegarty finished in second place with a score of 10.81.

The closest competition of the day was the National Gold Girls event. Aoibhe Hennigan emerged the winner scoring 17.36 points with Laura Hegarty taking silver just narrowly behind on 16.64.

Kevin Hegarty took the National Silver Boys title with a score of 11.29 for his free.

Ryan McAnuff Bags First International Short Track Title For Ireland

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Just a week after his debut at the World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Ryan McAnuff was back racing along with his brother Sean McAnuff at the ST AmCup 3 in Midland, Michigan.

Both McAnuffs raced four distances this Saint Patrick’s weekend – twice at 500 metres and once each at 1000 metres and 1500 metres. Ryan stormed to victory in both 500 metre races, came second in the 1000 metres and sixth in the 1500 metres. A combined score 1505 points gave him and Ireland an historic first ever victory at a speed skating event.

Sean also acquitted himself well with a highlight being a ninth place finish in Race 1 of the 500 metres. He earned a total score of 217.5 for 13th place overall.

Ryan McAnuff 36th In Worlds Debut

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Ryan McAnuff flew the flag for Ireland for the first time at the KPN ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands this weekend.

McAnuff began on the opening day of racing with fifth place in a time of 2:19.022 in Heat 2 of the 1500m heats. He was in Heat 2 again for the 500m preliminaries and finished in third with a time of 42.688 to advance to the heats that followed immediately. Racing in Heat 1, he ended up fifth in a time of 42.945. He concluded Day 1 with the 1000m preliminaries where he came fourth in a time of 1:31.594.

On Day 2, McAnuff took part in the two ranking finals. First up was the 1500m where he clocked a time of 2:29.616 to finish fourth in Heat 4. He won Heat 6 of the 500m in a time of 43.406 to end the day on a high note.

The final day of racing saw McAnuff race in the 1000m ranking final. He wound up 3rd in Heat 3 with a time of 1:33.472.

McAnuff completed his debut at the World Short Track Speed Skating Championships with an overall classification ranking of 36th.

Irish Speed Skating Steps On To World Stage

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In another first for Irish speed skating, Ryan McAnuff will make his and Ireland’s debut at the KPN ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands this weekend.

The racing for McAnuff begins tomorrow at the Ahoy Arena in the Dutch city. The gruelling preliminary rounds tomorrow will initially see him compete over 500, 1,000 and 1,500 metre distances against skaters from across the globe. The competition continues until Sunday.

“I am thrilled to be representing Ireland again at the pinnacle of our sport,” McAnuff said. “I am honoured to be putting our country on the speed skating map.”

You can follow McAnuff’s progress on the official results page.