Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were a Russian figure skating pair who competed in multiple Olympic Games and medaled in multiple world championships.
The Kremlin said Thursday the figure skating stars were among those aboard an American Airlines flight that collided with a U.S. Army helicopter near Reagan International Airport on Wednesday night.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Shishkova and Naumov were on the plane.
“Unfortunately, we see that this sad information is being confirmed. There were other fellow citizens there. Bad news today from Washington. We are sorry and send condolences to the families and friends who lost those of our fellow citizens who died in the plane crash,” he said.
It was Naumov’s coach who introduced the pair in 1985, wanting them to work together despite Naumov rebuffing the idea at first. They began to work together in 1987 and competed and won bronze in the 1991 European Championships while representing the former Soviet Union. The pair would go on to win two more bronze and silver medals in the event.
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Later Thursday, Skating Club of Boston CEO Doug Zeghibe identified the couple as those who were lost in the crash.
“Our sport and this Club have suffered a horrible loss with this tragedy,” Zeghibe said in a statement posted to social media. “Skating is a tight-knit community where parents and kids come together 6 of 7 days a week to train and work together. Everyone is like family. Of the skaters, coaches and parents on the plane, we believe six were from The Skating Club of Boston. We are devastated and completely at a loss for words.
“These athletes, coaches, parents were returning from U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Camp, following last week’s U.S. Championships in Wichita. This camp is for young competitive skaters of tomorrow with the promise to be a champion of tomorrow. The club sent 18 athletes to compete at the U.S. Championships. It sent 12 athletes to the National Development Camp.”
Shishkova and Naumov earned accolades on the world stage as well. At the 1993 World Championships, the two earned a bronze medal. The following year in Chiba, Japan, the two picked up their first gold medal. They finished with a silver in 1995 in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
The pair competed in the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France, and the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. They finished in fifth in 1992 and fourth in 1994.
Shishkova and Naumov married in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in 1995, and they moved to Connecticut. They had a son, Maxim, who competed in men’s singles in the U.S.
The Russian pair were listed as professional pairs coaches on the Skating Club of Boston’s website.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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