On Wednesday night, a tragic accident occurred when an American Airlines jet crashed into the Potomac River. Among the passengers were two renowned ice skaters, Yevgeniya Shishkova, 52, and Vadim Naumov, 55. The couple, both champions from Russia, were not only partners on the ice but also in marriage.
The Skating Club of Boston shared the news on social media the next day. Yevgeniya and Vadim were involved in a collision between their plane and a military helicopter as it neared Ronald Reagan National Airport. Sadly, everyone on board lost their lives.
Yevgeniya and Vadim began their journey in pair figure skating while representing Russia. They got married in St. Petersburg in 1995 and moved to the United States in 1998. Throughout the 1990s, they reached impressive heights in their skating careers. They won a gold medal at the World Championships in Japan in 1994 and competed in the Winter Olympics in both 1992 and 1994.
After the 1994 Olympics, they did not qualify for the 1998 Games and chose to retire from competitive skating. They then transitioned into coaching, moving to America during a difficult economic period in Russia following the Soviet Union’s collapse. They settled in Simsbury, Connecticut, and joined the International Skating Center of Connecticut, where they continued to share their passion for the sport.
Coaching presented its challenges. Vadim Naumov once described the competitive atmosphere in the U.S. as intense. He explained how parents’ expectations influence young skaters, leading to pressure for immediate results. In Russia, he noted, training was typically government-supported, allowing athletes to focus on their development without the same level of competition pressure at a young age.
On his profile with the Skating Club of Boston, Vadim emphasized his goal to create a fun and hardworking environment for his students. Both he and Yevgeniya deeply invested their lives into coaching, impacting many young athletes in the figure skating community.
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Figure Skating,Russian-Americans,Coaches and Managers,Shishkova, Yevgeniya (1972-2025),Naumov, Vadim (1969-2025),Skating Club of Boston,Washington (DC),Russia
