Emily Hughes

For the soap opera character, see Emily Stewart.

Emily Hughes
Emily Hughes in 2006
Personal information
Full name	Emily Anne Hughes
Country represented	United States
Born	January 26, 1989 (1989-01-26) Great Neck, Long Island
Residence	Cambridge, Massachusetts
Height	1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Coach	Bonni Retzkin
Former coach	Mark Mitchell Peter Johansson
Choreographer	David Wilson
Former choreographer	Mark Mitchell
Skating club	SC of New York
ISU personal best scores
Combined total	166.60 2007 Four Continents
Short program	60.88 2007 Worlds
Free skate	111.26 2007 Four Continents
Medal record Competitor for United States Ladies' singles Figure skating Four Continents Championships Silver 2007 Colorado Springs Ladies' singles World Junior Championships Bronze 2005 Kitchener Ladies' singles

Emily Anne Hughes (born January 26, 1989) is an American figure skater. She is the 2007 U.S. National silver medalist and was a member of the 2006 Olympic team. She is a younger sister of Sarah Hughes, the 2002 Olympic champion.

Personal life

Emily Hughes was born in Great Neck, New York. Her father, John Hughes, is a Canadian of Irish descent, and was the captain of the NCAA champion 1969–70 Cornell University ice hockey team. Her mother, Amy Pastarnack, is Jewish and is a breast cancer survivor. Hughes has supported a variety of causes for breast cancer research and awareness, including Skating for Life, a television special that she promoted on NBC's Today show.

Hughes has five siblings. One of her older sisters, Sarah, is the 2002 Olympic champion.

She graduated from Great Neck North High School in June 2007, and announced on April 26, 2007 that she would attend Harvard University starting in Fall 2007. After moving to Harvard, she switched from long-time coach Bonni Retzkin to train under Mark Mitchell and Peter Johansson at the Skating Club of Boston. Hughes has a concentration in sociology with a minor in government. She was set to graduate from Harvard University in May 2011 but time spent away from school (and in pursuit of the Olympics) meant she fell behind the majority of her class, failed to graduate on time and would have to return for at least one more semester. She is currently on track to graduate in December 2011, seven months after her original commencement date.

In 2002, she co-wrote a book in Random House's Young Dreamers series, I Am a Skater. On December 18, 2005, Hughes was the subject of a cover story in the Sunday New York Times Magazine.

Career

Hughes qualified for her first U.S. Figure Skating Championships in the 2001–2002 season and placed 11th at the Junior level. She repeated that placement the following season. She placed 5th at the junior level at the 2003–2004 Eastern Sectional Championships and so did not qualify for the 2004 U.S. Championships.

Hughes moved up to the senior level nationally in the 2004–2005 season. She won her regional championship and placed second at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for the 2005 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. She placed 6th and was named to the team to the 2005 World Junior Figure Skating Championships. It was her first international competition and she won the bronze medal.

In early August 2005, she spent nearly a week in hospital due to viral meningitis. In the 2005–2006 season, Hughes competed for the first time on the Grand Prix, placing fifth in both events. She won the bronze medal at the 2006 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Hughes was named as first alternate to the 2006 Winter Olympics. After Michelle Kwan withdrew from the Olympics, Hughes was named to the team. She flew to Torino and placed 7th. After the Olympics, Hughes went to the 2006 World Figure Skating Championships, where she placed 8th.

Hughes performs a Camel spin at the 2005 World Juniors.

In the 2006–2007 season, Hughes won her first medal on the Grand Prix circuit, then moved up a place at Nationals, winning the silver medal. She competed at the 2007 World Figure Skating Championships and placed ninth.

In the 2007–2008 season, Hughes placed fourth at both her Grand Prix events. On January 15, 2008, it was announced that Hughes would not compete in the 2008 U.S. Figure Skating Championships due to a hip injury that prevented her from training and competing.

Hughes began the 2008–2009 season at the North Atlantic Regional Championships, where she placed 3rd. She qualified for the Eastern Sectional Figure Skating Championships but received a bye to the 2009 United States Figure Skating Championships due to her Grand Prix assignment. Hughes competed at the 2008 Trophée Eric Bompard Grand Prix event during the 2008–2009 season, finishing ninth.

On January 19, 2009, Hughes announced her withdrawal from the 2009 United States Figure Skating Championships due to an ankle injury. Later that year, Hughes announced she would temporarily withdraw from Harvard in an attempt to qualify for the 2010 Winter Olympics.^{[citation needed]} She specifically noted she wanted to qualify for the 2010 games so she could experience the Opening Ceremony [1], something she missed in 2006 since she was a late replacement to the team. In January 2010, she placed a disappointing 9th at the 2010 US Championships and failed to qualify for the USA 2010 Winter Olympics team, which only had spots for two skaters.

Programs

Hughes performs a Biellmann spin during her Proud Mary exhibition at the 2006 Skate America.

Season	Short program	Free skating	Exhibition
2009–10	Caprice Bohemien by Sergei Rachmaninov	Gone with the Wind soundtrack by Max Steiner
2008–09	I Got Rhythm by George Gershwin	Gone with the Wind soundtrack by Max Steiner
2007–08	I Got Rhythm by George Gershwin	Carmina Burana suite by Carl Orff
2006–07	Carmen by Georges Bizet	Selections from the ballet, Sylvia by Léo Delibes	Proud Mary by John Fogerty, performed by Tina Turner
2005–06	Concerto in F Major for Piano & Orchestra (Allegro) by George Gershwin	The Seasons by Alexander Glazunov
2004–05	Concerto in F Major for Piano & Orchestra (Allegro) by George Gershwin	The Sleeping Beauty by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Competitive highlights

Event	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	2009–10
Winter Olympic Games						7th
World Championships						8th	9th
Four Continents Championships							2nd
World Junior Championships					3rd
U.S. Championships		11th J.	11th J.		6th	3rd	2nd			9th
Skate America						5th	5th	4th		7th
Trophée Eric Bompard									9th
Skate Canada International								4th
Cup of China							3rd
Cup of Russia						5th
Eastern Sectionals	8th N.	4th J.	2nd J.	5th J.	2nd
North Atlantic Regionals	4th N.	3rd J.	1st J.	1st J.	1st				3rd	2nd

• N = Novice level; J = Junior level

See also

• List of select Jewish figure skaters

References

• Emily Hughes at the United States Figure Skating Association
• Emily Hughes at the International Skating Union

External links

• Official Site
• Emily Hughes at the Internet Movie Database