According to officials, the American Eagle flight that collided in midair with a U.S. Army Black Hawk chopper and plunged into the Potomac River on Wednesday may have contained a dozen or more professional figure skaters.
According to Doug Zeghibe, CEO of the Skating Club of Boston, those athletes had been taking part in a development camp in Wichita, Kansas, which was aimed at young skaters with promise.
Zeghibe told reporters in Norwood, Massachusetts, “As far as we know, 14 skaters who were going home… were lost in the plane crash.” Our skating community has suffered a significant loss.
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According to Zeghibe, two coaches, two skaters, two mothers, and six other victims of Wednesday’s tragedy were connected to the Skating Club of Boston.
According to officials, those two coaches were Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, past Russian world champions.
According to a statement from U.S. Figure Skating, the sports American governing organization, these competitors, coaches, and family members were on their way home from the National Development Camp, which was conducted in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
We have deep sympathy for the families of the victims and are heartbroken by this unimaginable catastrophe.”
The number of American skaters on board American Eagle Flight 5342, which was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, was not immediately known, according to American Airlines, the airline’s parent company.
The National Development Camp immediately followed the conclusion of the 2025 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championship, the last qualifying event for the U.S. World and Junior Championship teams, in Wichita on Sunday.
Athletes competing for a position on Team USA in future world championships, including elite figure skaters, use the camp as a springboard.
According to U.S. Figure Skating, athletes take part in a three-day educational training session to increase their exposure to Team USA and High Performance Programs.
At the end of the camp, athletes can also be chosen for high performance programs and contests, including advanced novice and junior international tournaments.
Russian state news outlets TassandRia Novosti initially stated and Zeghibe subsequently confirmed that the passengers included married couple Shishkova and Naumov, the Russian world pairs figure skating champions.
According to Tass, Shishkova, 52, and Naumov, 55, had been residing in the United States since 1998 after retiring from competitive skating and winning the couples figure skating event at the 1994 World Championship. The Russian national team was among the skaters they were coaching.
Although he did not say whether Shishkova and Naumov were on the airplane, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Russian citizens were on board.
During his daily press conference, Peskov informed reporters that there was bad news from Washington today. We offer our condolences and condolences to the relatives and family of our countrymen who lost loved ones in this terrible disaster.
He said, “Sad news is being confirmed.”