Weiss Plans Busy Season

Veteran U. S. skater Michael Weiss has a busy scheduled planned for 2004-2005, but it’s a bit different from the routine he’s followed for the last several years. “I will be doing three of Steve Disson’s events on NBC this winter, two tributes to Andrea Boccelli and Kenny Loggins, and a holiday special. Having the opportunity to skate to the live music of such legendary performers will be a great experience. I’ll also be doing sixteen Stars on Ice shows in February and March. That’s a change for me, while still competing.”

Weiss has traditionally appeared on the Champions on Ice tour, but not last summer. “I needed a break, if I am going to have a run at 2006,” he explained. “It was a short tour, so I was glad to spend the…

Serov Returns With a Splash

Israel’s Roman Serov returned to the figure skating international scene this season after a two-year absence from major ISU competitions. Serov, a 27-year-old who was born in Moscow, competed for Russia for many years, finishing in the top six at Russian Nationals between 1999 and 2002. But then he fell in love and married Israeli skater Rachel Lior in August 2002. Since Lior had dual Israeli-U.S. citizenship, Serov elected to skate for Israel, but he had to sit out the last two seasons because of switching countries. “In Russia, there were too many good skaters and I never got to go to Europeans or Worlds or many Grand Prixs,” he said. “I definitely want to go to the 2006 Olympics, but after that, we’ll see.”

Last season,…

Poland’s Kauc and Zych Dance Towards 2006 Olympics

Alexandra Kauc thought she had a good chance of making it to the Olympics in 2002, especially after finishing 17th at Worlds in 2000 with former partner Filip Bernadowski. But the couple finished skating after the European Championships in 2001 and Kauc concentrated on her studies. Now she’s back in the sport after a two-year absence and hoping for better success with a new partner, 22-year-old Michal Zych.

The couple started training together in April 2003. “Michal called me last year after Europeans,” Kauc said. “The Polish Federation gave him a proposal to call me. I had been focusing on my school for the last two years since my last partner stopped.” Kauc had previously competed with Michael Przyk and Krysztof Tomaczyk before her success with Bernadowski.

They had good success in…

Meissner Prepares for Junior Grand Prix Final

USA’s Kimberly Meissner has moved rapidly up the figure skating ladder since she burst on the scene in her first U.S. national event by winning the novice ladies title in 2003. Meissner, who prefers to be called Kimmie, followed up with a win at the 2004 U. S. Nationals in junior ladies. This season, she’ll be moving to seniors at Nationals with two seasons to go before the 2006 Olympic Games in Torino, Italy. Meissner will be 16 in Torino, about the same age as recent Olympians Tara Lipinski and Sarah Hughes. But if she doesn’t make it into 2006, the talented youngster plans to stay around for at least the 2010 Olympics and maybe beyond. “I want to skate for a long time,” she said, “until I can’t skate any more.”

Meissner…