In 2015, they placed ninth in the juvenile
division. “We’ve had a lot more experience with the
competitions,” Eisenach said. “We’ve grown a lot together as not only a pairs team but as friends. We’ve learned how to communicate with each oth- er immensely, so it’s been great the past season.” “We definitely worked a lot on off-ice and
our coaches have been amazing,” Secunda add- ed. “Tey don’t let us give anything less than our best every day, which has helped us grow and we learned to train better.” In Saint Paul, the high school sophomores
performed to music from the James Bond movie Skyfall. Tey demonstrated strong lifts, throws, footwork, jumps and a combination spin. Enjoying some hometown hospitality,
bronze medalists Berit Cummings and Jabe Rob- erts made Minnesota proud. Performing to “Sev- enty-six Trombones,” a march from Te Music Man, they produced an entertaining program that generated 97.23 points. “It’s amazing. I never thought I’d ever be
here,” Cummings (Lake Minnetonka FSC) said. “We started skating together just five months ago. I have so many friends here today. It’s amazing to have nationals right here in my hometown.” Roberts (Atlanta FSC) relocated to try pairs
for the first time. “After a lot of hard work, they should be very
proud to say that they are the 2016 intermediate pairs bronze medalists,” coach Trudy Oltmanns wrote on her Facebook page. Isabelle Goldstein and Keyton Bearinger
(Detroit SC) earned the pewter medal with 89.52 points.
ICE DANCE By Mimi McKinnis Elizabeth Tkachenko and Alexei Kiliakov
had a lot to live up to when the free dance be- gan at the Bloomington Ice Garden. Tey were leading after the pattern dances by more than four points. And they train at the Wheaton Ice Skating Academy alongside teams such as Caroline and Gordon Green, who won consecutive U.S. titles at the juvenile, intermediate and novice levels, in- cluding their second-straight novice title just one day later in Saint Paul. With a final score of 98.09, nearly sev- en points higher than their closest competitor, Tkachenko and Kiliakov proved they’re following in the footsteps of their training mates, winning the intermediate title just one year after being crowned U.S. juvenile champs. “It feels exciting,” Kiliakov said. “It took a lot of practice and effort on all of our sessions.” In addition to training in a successful hub of ice dance teams, Tkachenko and Kiliakov (Washington FSC) are taught by a team of proven coaches, including Elena Novak, Dmytri Ilin and Kiliakov’s father, Alexei Kiliakov. In all, the camp, based in Rockville and Wheaton, Maryland, trains 16 ice dance teams, 11 of which competed at the 2016 U.S. Championships. “It’s hard work for everyone — for the skat- ers, the coaches and the parents,” the senior Kilia-
Elizabeth Tkachenko/Alexei Kiliakov
kov said. “We work as a team for our teams. For Elizabeth and Alexei, it’s better that we have a lot of coaches. He’s not their son, so I can watch from the sidelines a bit more. Today I am very proud of them as a parent, but as a coach, I know this is just the beginning. Tere’s a lot of work, success and maybe failure ahead of them, but they’re definite- ly off to a great start.” Fourth after the pattern dances, the new
team of Avonley Nguyen and Maxwell Gart turned in a solid free dance to win the second segment and leave Saint Paul with the silver med- al. After teaming up last April, the duo stood on the podium in their first season together, earning 91.25 points. “Our personalities match really well,” Gart
(Washington FSC) said. “I was looking for someone with a sense
of humor,” Nguyen (Charter Oak FSC) added. “Tis is my first year ever skating with a partner, so I wanted to skate with someone I was comfort- able with. We get along really well.”
Bronze medalists Isabella Amoia and Cory
Fraiman also teamed up less than a year before the 2016 Championships, never thinking they would finish the season as U.S. medalists with 90.46 points. Amoia (SC of Novi) competed in the 2015 qualifying season with Cole Yolman, but the team failed to qualify for the U.S. Champion- ships after placing fifth at the Eastern Sectional Championships. Fraiman (Philadelphia SC & HS) spent his time on the ice playing hockey. “I was taking lessons from a couple of fig-
ure skating coaches to improve my skating skills,” Fraiman said. “Tey kept on watching me skate and telling my dad, ‘He’d make a great ice dancer.’ At first I was like ‘No way!’ But then I tried it and I fell in love. It’s a lot of fun.” Tkachenko and Kiliakov’s training mates,
Jordan Lin and Morgan Sletten (Washington FSC), won the pewter medal with 85.98 points. Te duo repeated as pewter medalists, after plac- ing fourth in the juvenile ranks at last year’s U.S. Championships.
SKATING 59
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