Figure skating community mourns loss of members aboard DC plane collision

US Figure Skating has confirmed that several members of its community were aboard the American Airlines flight that collided with an Army Blackhawk helicopter near Washington, D.C., on Wednesday evening.

Among the 64 victims on the passenger plane were US Figure Skating athletes, coaches, and family members. They were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas, that took place last week. The organization expressed devastation over the tragedy and extended heartfelt condolences to the victims’ families.

“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts,” US Figure Skating said in a statement. “We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available.”

At press time, only 28 bodies had been found and there are not believed to be any survivors. Emergency authorities have transitioned from rescue to recovery operations, according to news outlets on the scene. The following have been confirmed as athletes, coaches and family members of the US Figure Skating Team aboard the flight:

Spencer Lane (Athlete – SC of Boston)
Christine (Mother of Spencer Lane)
Jinna Han (Athlete – SC of Boston)
Jin Han (Mother of Jinna Han)
Vadim Naumov (Coach – SC of Boston)
Evgenia Shishkova (Coach – SC of Boston)
Eddie Zhou (Athlete – SC of Northern Virginia)
Brielle Beyer (Athlete – SC of Northern Virginia)
Justyna Magdalena (Mother of Brielle Beyer)
Cory Haynos (Athlete – SC of Northern Virginia)
Everly Livingston (Athlete – Washington FSC)
Alydia Livingston (Athlete – Washington FSC)
Franco Aparicio (Athlete – Washington FSC)
Inna Volyanskaya (Coach – Washington FSC)
Sean Kay (Athlete – UD FSC)
Angela Yang (Athlete – UD FSC)
Alexandr Kirsanov (Coach – UD FSC)

The crash serves as a tragic reminder of the devastating loss of the entire U.S. figure skating team on Sabena Flight 548 in 1961, most of whom were from the Skating Club of Boston. That disaster profoundly impacted the figure skating community, wiping out a generation of top athletes, coaches, and officials. In the aftermath, the sport had to rebuild from the ground up, and the memory of those lost continues to be an integral part of U.S. Figure Skating’s history.

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