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Synchro News – May 2010
Pre-Juvenile Team Places Fourth in the
2010 Synchronized Skating Challenge Series:
Congratulations to the Achilles Edge Pre-Juvenile team, which placed
fourth out of ten teams in their group in the 2010 Synchronized Skating
Challenge Series held by USFS during the 2009-2010 season.
Synchronized teams at the Beginner 1, 2 and 3, preliminary,
pre-juvenile, open juvenile, open collegiate and open adult levels were
invited to take part in the series. Participating teams were required to
compete in at least three nonqualifying competitions in their sections,
and teams earned points for their finishes. Points from the three best
finishes were counted toward the results. The Achilles Edge skaters
finished fourth in Pre-Juvenile Group B. Results are posted in the
synchronized skating section of the USFS website,
www.usfsa.org. Way to go, team!
 Synchro Mini-Camp:
On Saturday, May 15, the Albany Figure Skating Club hosted a United
States Figure Skating-sponsored DREAM
program synchronized skating mini-camp at the Schenectady County
Recreational Facility/Glenville Rink. Instructors for the program
included Erika Hoffman and Jenna Longo from the Haydenettes, U.S. Figure
Skating’s 2010 Gold Medalists and reigning National Champions in Team
Synchronized figure skating and the 2010 ISU World Championship Bronze
Medalists. The 23 participants watched videos of the synchro world
championships and other synchro events and had the chance to learn
drills and footwork from the Haydenette skaters. Sessions also included
skating expression and teambuilding exercises. Everyone had a great
time and learned a lot from these world-class skaters.
A big thank you to Erika and Jenna for
sharing their expertise with our synchro skaters in this fun program.
Thanks also to coach Wayne Hussey for creating the program, to coach
Stephanie Hunter for assisting, and to Dawn Hopsicker and Tara DiRisio
for their organizational assistance.
Achilles Edge Tryouts:
On Sunday, May 16, the Achilles Edge Synchronized Skating Team held
preliminary team tryouts for the 2010-2011 season at the Schenectady
County Recreation Facility. Skaters at the tryouts participated in
synchro drills and had the opportunity to work on some of the elements
that might be in their programs in the fall. Achilles Edge expects to
field two teams this coming year, a Pre-Juvenile or Open Juvenile team,
and an Intermediate team. There are still openings on both teams for
interested skaters.
Interested in Trying Synchro?:
The Albany Figure Skating Club sponsors the largest and most
experienced competitive synchronized skating program in the Capital
District. In 2009-2010, the Achilles Edge Pre-Juvenile Team placed 5th
in the finals of the U.S. Figure Skating Eastern Synchronized Skating
Sectional Championships in January, and our Intermediate team members
are three-time consecutive New York State Empire State Winter Games
Medalists and the current 2010 Silver Medalists.
Synchro is great training for individual
skaters, since it helps improve coordination, stamina, edges, footwork,
and speed. In addition, it allows skaters to participate in a team
sport and to attend synchro parties, group fundraisers, and separate
synchro-only competitions.
The Achilles Edge synchro program
intends to have a series of open practices over the summer during which
skaters can come and skate with the teams. We would love to have you
join us! Watch your e-mail for more information about these sessions.
For more information about the Albany
FSC Achilles Edge Synchronized Skating Team, please contact Dawn
Hopsicker at
jhopsicker@nycap.rr.com or Tara DiRisio at
Tdirisio@verizon.net . |
Thomas H. Abele, DMD