Katarina Wolfkostin

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Katarina Wolfkostin
Wolfkostin/Chen at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics
Full nameKatarina Patricia Wolfkostin
Born (2004-10-09) October 9, 2004 (age 19)
Ann Arbor, Michigan
HometownAnn Arbor, Michigan
Height1.64 m (5 ft 4+1⁄2 in)
Figure skating career
Country United States
PartnerDimitry Tsarevski
CoachCharlie White
Greg Zuerlein
Tanith Belbin White
Skating clubPeninsula FSC
Began skating2009
Medal record
Representing  United States
Figure skating: Ice dance
Winter Youth Olympics
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Lausanne Ice dance

Katarina Wolfkostin (born October 9, 2004) is an American ice dancer, who competes with Dimitry Tsarevski since July 2023.

Wolfkostin and her former partner Jeffrey Chen were the 2021 U.S. junior national champions, the 2021 French JGP champions, the 2021 JGP Slovenia silver medalists, the 2020 U.S. junior national silver medalists, and the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics bronze medalists. Prior to this, Wolfkostin was the national champion at both the 2018 U.S. Novice Championship and the 2017 U.S. Intermediate Championship, with Howard Zhao.

Personal life[edit]

Katarina Wolfkostin was born on October 9, 2004, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She likes art, music, and drawing animals and fantasy creatures. She has three cats, a corn snake, and two pet cockatiels named Chika and Shirley.[1]

Career[edit]

Early career[edit]

Wolfkostin began ice skating in 2009 when she was five.[2] She started ice dancing with a partner when she was nine, training in Canton, Michigan, with Marina Zoueva. Wolfkostin and her first partner, John Carlson, placed eighth at the 2016 U.S. Championships in the intermediate division.[3][4] She teamed up with Howard Zhao in the 2016–17 season. Coached by Anjelika Krylova and Pasquale Camerlengo, Wolfkostin/Zhao were the 2017 U.S. national intermediate champions, and the 2018 U.S. national novice champions, in ice dance.[5] Wolfkostin/Zhao placed fourth in the advanced novice division at the 2018 Mentor Toruń Cup.[6]

2018–2019 season[edit]

Wolfkostin/Zhao placed tenth at their first-ever Junior Grand Prix event, 2018 JGP Czech Republic. They won the bronze medal at the 2018–19 Pacific Coast Sectionals to advance to the 2019 U.S. Championships, where they finished ninth. Wolfkostin/Zhao split following the end of the season.

2019–2020 season[edit]

Wolfkostin began skating with Jeffrey Chen in 2019, and he moved to train with her coaches, Igor Shpilband and Pasquale Camerlengo, in Novi, Michigan.[1] They placed fifth in their international debut at 2019 JGP France. Wolfkostin/Chen improved to fourth at 2019 JGP Russia after placing second in the free dance. They won the inaugural U.S. Ice Dance Final to qualify for the 2020 U.S. Championships.[1] Wolfkostin/Chen won their first international medal at the 2019 Golden Spin of Zagreb, earning the silver medal behind Ushakova/Nekrasov of Russia.

Wolfkostin/Chen were named as the sole ice dance entrant on the U.S. team for the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics.[7] They were fifth after the rhythm dance, before placing third in the free dance, to win the bronze medal overall behind Russian dancers Khavronina/Cirisano and Tyutyunina/Shustitsky.[8] Their medal was the first won by Team USA at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics.[9][10] Wolfkostin/Chen were drawn as part of Team Determination for the team event, alongside singles skaters Cha Young-hyun of South Korea and Nella Pelkonen of Finland and pairs skaters Brooke McIntosh / Brandon Toste of Canada. They placed fourth in the free dance segment to help Team Determination finish fourth after losing the tie-breaker.

Wolfkostin/Chen placed fourth in the rhythm dance and second in the free dance to win the silver medal at the 2020 U.S. Championships, behind Nguyen/Kolesnik.[11] Assigned to compete at their first World Junior Championships, they placed seventh.[12]

2020–2021 season[edit]

The season was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with domestic competitions initially changed to a virtual format, leading up to the 2021 U.S. Championships. Wolfkostin/Chen placed first in the rhythm dance and first in the free dance in both rounds of the 2020 Virtual ISP Points Challenge,[13][14] and second in the free dance at the 2020 Virtual U.S. Championship Series.[15] Wolfkostin/Chen then competed at the 2021 U.S. Championships, after Chen was medically cleared to skate after a second opinion was obtained following a knee injury, originally thought to be an incapacitating ACL tear. Despite the injury, they placed first in both the rhythm and free dance, earning them the gold medal for the national title.[16][17][18]

2021–2022 season[edit]

Returning to international competition for the first time in over a year, Wolfkostin/Chen began on the Junior Grand Prix by competing at the first French JGP of 2021, in Courchevel. They placed first in both segments, easily winning the gold medal.[19] At their second event, 2021 JGP Slovenia, they placed third in the rhythm dance but made up ground in the free dance, placing second in that segment and placed second overall.[20] Assigned to their first senior event just a few weeks later, Wolfkostin/Chen placed ninth at the 2021 CS Cup of Austria.[21] Their JGP results had qualified them for the 2021–22 Junior Grand Prix Final, but it was subsequently canceled as a result of travel restrictions prompted by the COVID-19 Omicron variant.[22]

Rather than seeking to defend their national junior title, Wolfkostin/Chen opted to compete as seniors at the 2022 U.S. Championships. They finished in sixth place overall, notably beating former national pewter medalists Carreira/Ponomarenko.[23] When the U.S. team was announced for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Wolfkostin/Chen were named as alternates.[24]

Due to the pandemic, the 2022 World Junior Championships could not be held as scheduled in Sofia in early March and, as a result, were rescheduled for Tallinn in mid-April.[25] Due to Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, the International Skating Union banned all Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating, which had a significant impact on the field of figure skating and ice dance.[26][27] Wolfkostin/Chen were considered frontrunners for the title, however, following a fall at the beginning of the rhythm dance, they placed ninth in that segment, 6.40 points behind third place Bashynska/Beaumont of Canada.[28] Wolfkostin/Chen mounted a comeback in the free dance, placing second in that segment with a score within 0.04 points of their personal best, which raised them to fourth place overall. They finished 0.37 points back of bronze medalists Bashynska/Beaumont.[29]

2022–2023 season[edit]

Despite their disappointing result at the World Junior Championships, it did not alter Wolfkostin and Chen's plans to move up to the senior level for the following season. Chen would later explain their reasoning that "we had already competed a bit in seniors last year, and we were excited to move into seniors. We feel that it's inspiring and helps us grow faster. It also relieves a bit of pressure; being the ones who chase after people, instead of being targeted."[30] In addition, Wolfkostin and Chen announced in May that they would be leaving coach Igor Shpilband to train at the new Michigan Ice Dance Academy in Canton, Michigan, under coaches Greg Zuerlein, Tanith Belbin White, and Olympic champion Charlie White.[31] This also aligned with their mutual decision to attend the nearby University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.[30]

The team debuted new senior programs at the 2022 Lake Placid Ice Dance International, where they won the bronze medal. Shortly afterward, they appeared on the Challenger series at the 2022 CS U.S. Classic, finishing sixth.[32] At their second Challenger, the 2022 CS Budapest Trophy, Wolfkostin/Chen won the bronze medal, setting three new personal bests in the process.[33] In November, they were invited to make their senior Grand Prix debut, finishing in eighth place at the 2022 Grand Prix de France.[34] They were tenth at the 2022 NHK Trophy, struggling with level issues on several elements.[35] Chen later said that illness and a training injury had hindered them during the Grand Prix.[30] At the 2023 U.S. Championships, they placed tenth in the rhythm dance and fifth in the free dance, resulting in a seventh place finish overall.[21]

On February 8, 2023, Wolfkostin and Chen announced the end of their partnership, with Wolfkostin stating that she would look for a new partner. She said that "last year had many ups and downs and I'm still trying to figure everything out."[36] Months later, she would add that "we had different goals in mind, and just a couple things that weren't going to work out."[37]

2023–2024 season[edit]

On May 16, 2023, Wolfkostin announced a new ice dance partnership with Dimitry Tsarevski.[38] After successful summer domestic competitions, where they placed first in all events at the senior level, they were given their first international assignment, the 2023 CS Autumn Classic International. [37] They placed fifth overall. They again placed fifth at the 2023 CS Budapest Trophy.[39][40] The following month, they placed first in both segments at the 2024 U.S. Ice Dance Final,[41] easily winning the gold and qualifying them for the 2024 U.S. Championships. There, they placed eighth in the rhythm dance, seventh in the free dance, and ninth overall, finishing 1.35 points behind sibling team Brown/Brown.

Programs[edit]

With Tsarevski[edit]

Season Rhythm dance Free dance
2023–2024
[42]

With Chen[edit]

Season Rhythm dance Free dance
2022–2023
[43]
2021–2022
[44]
  • Rain, In Your Black Eyes
    by Ezio Bosso
    choreo. by Igor Shpilband and Pasquale Camerlengo
2020–2021
2019–2020
[2]

With Zhao[edit]

Season Rhythm dance Free dance
2018–2019
[45]
2017–2018
2016–2017

Competitive highlights[edit]

JGP: Junior Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; GP: Grand Prix. Pewter medals (4th place) awarded only at U.S. national, sectional, and regional events.

With Tsarevski[edit]

International[39]
Event 2023–24
CS Budapest 5th
CS Autumn Classic 5th
National[39]
U.S. Champ 9th
U.S. Ice Dance Final 1st
TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

With Chen[edit]

Wolfkostin/Chen (right) on the podium at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics
International[21]
Event 19–20 20–21 21–22 22–23
GP France 8th
GP NHK Trophy 10th
CS Budapest 3rd
CS Cup of Austria 9th
CS U.S. Classic 6th
Lake Placid IDI 3rd
International: Junior
Junior Worlds 7th 4th
Youth Olympics 3rd
JGP Final C
JGP France 5th 1st
JGP Russia 4th
JGP Slovenia 2nd
Golden Spin 2nd
National[21]
U.S. Champ. 2nd J 1st J 6th 7th
U.S. Ice Dance Final 1st J
Championship Series 2nd J
ISP Points Challenge 1st J
Team events
Youth Olympics 4th T
4th P
TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew; C = Canceled event
Levels: J = Junior

With Zhao[edit]

International: Junior[46]
Event 18–19
JGP Czech Republic 10th
National[6]
U.S. Championships 9th J

Detailed results[edit]

Current personal best scores are highlighted in bold.

With Tsarevski[edit]

2023–24 season
Date Event RD FD Total
January 22–28, 2024 2024 U.S. Championships 8
70.40 		7
107.65 		9
178.05
November 14–19, 2023 2024 U.S. Ice Dance Final 1
73.71 		1
111.83 		1
185.54
October 13-15, 2023 2023 CS Budapest Trophy 5
68.92 		5
103.96 		5
172.88
September 14–17, 2023 2023 CS Autumn Classic International 5
66.43 		4
96.91 		5
163.34

With Chen[edit]

Senior results[edit]

2022–23 season
Date Event RD FD Total
January 21–29, 2023 2023 U.S. Championships 10
69.05 		5
114.00 		7
183.05
November 18–20, 2022 2022 NHK Trophy 10
64.94 		10
83.07 		10
148.01
November 4–6, 2022 2022 Grand Prix de France 7
64.18 		8
100.71 		8
164.89
October 14–16, 2022 2022 CS Budapest Trophy 3
72.37 		3
108.09 		3
180.46
September 13–16, 2022 2022 CS U.S. Classic 6
60.69 		6
103.38 		6
164.07
July 26–29, 2022 2022 Lake Placid Ice Dance International 1
71.92 		4
103.50 		3
175.42
2021–22 season
Date Event RD FD Total
January 2–9, 2022 2022 U.S. Championships 7
75.28 		6
111.99 		6
187.27
November 11–14, 2021 2021 CS Cup of Austria 10
63.04 		7
101.29 		9
164.33

Junior results[edit]

2021–22 season
Date Event RD FD Total
April 13–17, 2022 2022 World Junior Championships 9
57.05 		2
100.22 		4
157.27
September 22–25, 2021 2021 JGP Slovenia 3
62.99 		2
100.26 		2
163.25
August 18–21, 2021 2021 JGP France I 1
64.75 		1
100.26 		1
165.01
2020–21 season
Date Event RD FD Total
January 11–21, 2021 2021 U.S. Championships 1
68.81 		1
98.41 		1
167.22
2019–20 season
Date Event RD FD Total
March 2–8, 2020 2020 World Junior Championships 7
64.77 		7
94.43 		7
159.20
January 20–26, 2020 2020 U.S. Championships 4
60.93 		2
100.46 		2
161.39
January 10–15, 2020 2020 Winter Youth Olympics – Team – 4
90.41 		4T/4P
January 10–15, 2020 2020 Winter Youth Olympics 5
57.02 		3
95.41 		3
152.43
December 4–7, 2019 2019 Golden Spin of Zagreb 1
66.52 		2
97.29 		2
163.81
November 12–16, 2019 2020 U.S. Ice Dance Final 1
66.23 		2
94.68 		1
160.91
September 11–14, 2019 2019 JGP Russia 6
54.91 		2
93.90 		4
148.81
August 21–24, 2019 2019 JGP France 4
58.90 		5
89.03 		5
147.93

With Zhao[edit]

Junior results[edit]

2018–19 season
Date Event RD FD Total
January 18–27, 2019 2019 U.S. Championships 9
50.07 		8
77.56 		9
127.63
September 26–29, 2018 2018 JGP Czech Republic 10
50.80 		10
76.78 		10
127.58

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Katarina Wolfkostin and Jeffrey Chen". U.S. Figure Skating.
  2. ^ a b "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Jeffrey CHEN: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 4, 2020.
  3. ^ "Interview: Katarina Wolfkostin and Jeffrey Chen". In the Loop. August 21, 2019.
  4. ^ "Katarina Wolfkostin & John Carlson". Stats on Ice.
  5. ^ "Local teens named National Novice Ice Dance Champions". The Oakland Press. January 27, 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Katarina Wolfkostin & Howard Zhao". Stats on Ice.
  7. ^ Edmonds, Jamie (January 7, 2020). "Meet this Metro Detroit ice dancing duo with big dreams that are starting to come true". WDIV-TV.
  8. ^ "The future of figure skating is now". International Olympic Committee. January 17, 2020.
  9. ^ Truby, Olivia (January 13, 2020). "Katarina Wolfkostin and Jeffrey Chen skate to bronze for Team USA's first medal at Youth Olympic Games". United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on January 13, 2020.
  10. ^ Wickliffe, Greg (January 13, 2020). "Ann Arbor-based ice skaters earn Team USA's first medal of 2020 Youth Winter Olympics". Michigan Live.
  11. ^ "First Junior Champions Crowned at U.S. Championships". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. January 22, 2020.
  12. ^ Slater, Paula (March 7, 2020). "Nguyen and Kolesnik dance to Junior World title". Golden Skate.
  13. ^ "International Selection Pool (ISP) Points Challenge Competition Central". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. September 8, 2020.
  14. ^ "Wolfkostin and Chen Strive for Continued Success in Second Season Together". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. September 17, 2020.
  15. ^ "2021 U.S. Championship Series Presented by Toyota Competition Central". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. December 18, 2020.
  16. ^ "Junior Champions Crowned as the 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships Conclude". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. January 21, 2021.
  17. ^ Ellis, Drew (February 15, 2021). "Chen and Wolfkostin Building Off of Junior Figure Skating Championship". The Oakland Press.
  18. ^ Gay, Colin (February 18, 2021). "Katarina Wolfkostin Jeffrey Chen Win 2020 U.S. Figure Skating Title". Hometown Life.
  19. ^ "American Juniors Golden in Courchevel". International Figure Skating. August 23, 2021.
  20. ^ "Russia sweeps gold medals at ISU Junior Grand Prix in Ljubljana (SLO)". International Skating Union. September 27, 2021.
  21. ^ a b c d "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Jeffrey CHEN: Competition Results". International Skating Union.
  22. ^ "Figure skating Grand Prix Final cancelled over travel rules". CBC Sports. December 2, 2021.
  23. ^ Slater, Paula (January 9, 2022). "Chock and Bates edge out teammates for U.S. title". Golden Skate.
  24. ^ "2022 U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team Nominated". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. January 8, 2022.
  25. ^ "ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2022 allotted to Tallinn (EST)". International Skating Union. March 4, 2022.
  26. ^ "ISU Statement on the Ukrainian crisis – Participation in international competitions of Skaters and Officials from Russia and Belarus". International Skating Union. March 1, 2022.
  27. ^ "2022 World Junior Championships". International Figure Skating.
  28. ^ Slater, Paula (April 15, 2022). "Siblings Brown and Brown dance to lead at 2022 Junior Worlds". Golden Skate.
  29. ^ Slater, Paula (April 17, 2022). "USA's Oona Brown and Gage Brown 'overjoyed' with Junior World title". Golden Skate.
  30. ^ a b c Cloutier, Claire (December 26, 2022). "Wolfkostin and Chen Finding Their Niche in the Senior Ranks". U.S. Figure Skating.
  31. ^ Wolfkostin, Katarina (May 9, 2022). "We want to share the news with everybody that we left Novi. There's so much I could say but I'll just say I'm so thankful for all that I learned!" (Instagram).
  32. ^ Sausa, Christie (September 15, 2022). "Pate and Bye, McNamara and Spiridonov Capture Silver and Bronze in Lake Placid". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
  33. ^ Sausa, Christie (October 16, 2022). "Ziegler wins gold, Wolfkostin and Chen earn bronze at the 2022 Budapest Trophy". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
  34. ^ "Team USA Earns Two Top Five Finishes to Close the Grand Prix de France". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. November 5, 2022.
  35. ^ Lutz, Rachel (November 19, 2022). "U.S. Earns Two Ice Dance Medals, One Pairs Medal at NHK Trophy with Spots at the Grand Prix Final on the Line". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
  36. ^ Wolfkostin, Katarina (February 8, 2023). "I want to announce that Jeffrey and I have parted ways. We have achieved a lot in the last four years, and I have many great memories, but it is time for us to move in different directions. I don't really know what else to say other than a sincere thank you for the past years, be healthy, and good luck" (Instagram). Archived from the original on February 8, 2023.
  37. ^ a b Cloutier, Claire (September 13, 2023). "Wolfkostin and Tsarevski: Off to a Fast Start". U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  38. ^ Wickliffe, Greg (May 17, 2023). "Ann Arbor's Katarina Wolfkostin announces new ice-skating partnership". Michigan Live. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  39. ^ a b c "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Dimitry TSAREVSKI: Competition Results". International Skating Union.
  40. ^ "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Dimitry TSAREVSKI: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on September 22, 2023.
  41. ^ "2024 Midwestern Sectional Singles and U.S. Ice Dance Final". U.S. Figure Skating.
  42. ^ "2023–24 Figure Skating Roster: Katarina Wolfkostin and Dimitry Tsarevski". U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  43. ^ "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Jeffrey CHEN: 2022/2023". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 1 November 2022.
  44. ^ "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Jeffrey CHEN: 2021/2022". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 17, 2021.
  45. ^ "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Howard ZHAO". International Skating Union.
  46. ^ "Katarina WOLFKOSTIN / Howard ZHAO: Competition Results". International Skating Union.

External links[edit]

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