Domnina and Shabalin take the lead in Ice Dance

Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin took the lead in the Compulsory Dance, followed by Tessa Virtue and      Scott Moir of Canada and USA’s Meryl Davis and Charlie White.

The Tango Romantica was selected for the Compulsory Dance. The dance, which was invented by Ludmilla Pakhomova, Alexander Gorshkov and Elena Tchaikovskaya, was first performed in Moscow in 1974.

Domnina and Shabalin gave a commanding and expressive performance, showing excellent interpretation of…

Domnina and Shabalin win second European title

The third set of medals at the European Championships were been decided today in the ice dance competition.

Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin have achieved impressive progress since their debut at the 2010 Russian Nationals a…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain lead after Original Dance

The ice dance competition  at the 2010 European Figure Skating Championships continued today with the original dance, which this year, is a rather cutthroat event for the lower ranked teams.

The number of couples advancing to the free…

Domnina and Shabalin lead Ice Dance in Tallinn

The 2010 European Figure Skating Championships are being held Jan. 19-24 Tallinn, Estonia at the Saku Suurhall.  It is  the first time in history that Estonia has hosted an ISU Championship. Approximately 177 skaters from 38 different  …

Domnina and Shabalin on the comeback trail

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin are the reigning  World Champions in Ice Dance, however, they have fallen off the radar this Olympic season after missing the Grand Prix series due to Shabalin’s reoccurring knee injury.

Last week,…

Domnina and Shabalin win third national title

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin took the Ice Dance title, while Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev of Moscow (MOS) edged out  Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer (MOS) for the silver.

Ekaterina Riazanova and Ilia Tkachenko (MOB) maintained…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain easy lead after Original Dance

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin of Moscow Oblast (MOB) maintained an easily lead after the Original Dance (OD), while Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer of Moscow (MOS) and Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev (MOS) are nearly…

Domnina and Shabalin lead after Compulsory Dance

The Russian National Figure Skating Champions kicked off with nine dance teams  performing Tango Romantica for the Compulsory Dance (CD).

As expected, current World Champions Oksana Domnina  and Maxim Shabalin of Moscow Oblast (MOB)…

Domnina and Shabalin win gold at 2009 Worlds

As expected, it was a tight race to determine the final placements and medals in the ice dance competition. Five teams had a very real shot…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain lead at 2009 Worlds

For a few hours this afternoon, the Staples Center was transported back in time to the 1920s, 30s, and 40s as the Original Dance (OD) competition featured music and dances from that era. Skaters could select their own rhythms among those represented by music from that time period. As a result, the audience was treated to dances from all over the rhythmic spectrum including blues, the foxtrot, swing, and…

Domnina and Maxim Shabalin grab lead in Los Angeles

The 2009 World Figure Skating Championships are being held March 24-28 in Los Angeles, California at the Staples Center. It is the first time Los…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain lead at Cup of Russia

Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski of Russia won the Original Dance with an entertaining performance, but remain in second place going into the Free Dance.

The students of Irina Zhuk and Alexander Svinin were the most energetic couple on the ice, and their routine to Sam’s Blues and Puttin’ on the Ritz allowed them to post the best technical score of the night.

“Our dance did not have grand idea,” explained…

Domnina and Shabalin lead at Cup of Russia

The fifth event of the 2008-09 ISU Grand Prix Series continues with the Cup of Russia which is being held in Moscow, Russia at the Ice Palace…

Fresh start for Domnina and Shabalin

Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin are the most unknown factor in the world of ice dancing for this season. How has Shabalin recovered from his knee injury…

Domnina and Shabalin capture European gold

In the final showdown of the ice dance competition, Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin regained their leading position with an inspiring performance to Masquerade Waltz. Skating after their rivals, they held nothing back. The flow of their Free Dance…

Domnina and Shabalin capture Grand Prix Final title

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin of Russia rose from third to first place overall to capture the gold, while USA’s Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto and France’s Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder slipped to second and third place overall, respectively.

Domnina and Shabalin earned a new personal best of 103.26 (53.50/49.76) points for their commanding performance to Waltz from Masquerade in which all elements were awarded a level four.

“I am…

Domnina and Shabalin win gold at Cup of Russia

Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin easily maintained first throughout the event to win the gold, distancing themselves by over 21 points from the rest of the pack (205.24 points total).

Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat of France took…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain easy lead

Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin easily maintained their overnight lead, winning the Original Dance (OD) with a new personal best of 63.20 (32.70/30.50) points.

Domnina had a minor stumble in the step sequence right before…

Domnina of Shabalin lead ice dance in Moscow

The fifth event of the 2007-08 ISU Grand Prix Series continued with the Cup of Russia which is being held in Moscow, Russia at the Khodynka Ice Palace.

Approximately 60 skaters from 19 different…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain lead at Cup of China

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin maintained their lead over USA’s Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto, tacking on a few more points to their total score after the Original Dance (OD).

“Emotionally it was a strong performance,” said Domnina. “Technically it still could have been better.”

Domnina added that they weren’t sure if they were going to be ready for the competition.

“We lost a lot of time because Maxim first had meniscus…

Domnina and Shabalin take lead at Cup of China

Cup of China is the third of six events of the International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix series and is being held at the Harbin International Conference Exhibition and Sports Center, Nov. 8-11, in Harbin, China.

Approximately 58 skaters from 18 different countries are competing for points and global prize monies totaling $180,000 in U.S. dollars. The points will go toward qualification for the Grand Prix Final in which the…

2007 European Figure Skating Championships: Ice Dance Highlights

France’s Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder were the gold medal winners in the ice dance event, while Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin or Russia placed a very close second (.31 points).

Defending champions, Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviski of Bulgaria, were third.

Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat of France withdrew from the event due to Pechalat injuring her wrist earlier this month.

Hungary’s Nora Hoffmann and Attila Elek, who stood in seventh…

Domnina and Shabalin capture second national title

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin won their second title, while teammates Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski and Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer won the silver and bronze, respectively.

All medalists have earned a spot at the upcoming European Figure Skating Championships.

Domnina and Shabalin opened their powerful routine to Borodin’s Polovetsian Dances with a very good level four dance spin, followed by a solid level four diagonal step sequence, and an…

Domnina and Shabalin maintain lead at Russian Nationals

The event continued with the OD in which the dance for the 2006-2007 season is the “Tango”. Couples can choose one to three tango rhythms. If two rhythms are used, one can be repeated. Vocals are permitted.

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin were sharp and precise in their routine, earning a level four on all elements. The current national silver medalists produced excellent synchronized twizzles, a midline step sequence, a…

Domnina and Shabalin lead at Russian Nationals

The Compulsory Dance (CD) for the event was the Golden Waltz. The dance was invented by Natalia Dubova, Marina Klimova, and Sergei Ponomarenko and was first performed at the 1987 Moscow Cup.

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin delivered a powerful CD, emphasizing holds and displaying good expression to place first with 41.26 points.

Clearly a class apart from the rest of the field, Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski placed second with…

2006 Cup of Russia: Ice Dance Highlights

The ice dance event proved to be tough, exciting, and somewhat unpredictable as the top three teams were on each other’s heels throughout the competition.

USA’s Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto edged out Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin by less than one point to win the gold, while Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder of France settled for bronze.

The Compulsory Dance (CD) for the event was the Golden…

2006 Cup of China: Ice Dance Highlights

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin of Russia were the winners in the ice dance event, edging out USA’s Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto by 1.26 points, who settled for silver. Teammates Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski easily won the bronze, their first medal at a Grand Prix event.

The Compulsory Dance for Skate Canada was the Rhumba. The dance was invented by Walter Gregory and was first performed…

2003 World Junior Figure Skating Championships: Ice Dance Highlights

The dance competition at the 2003 Junior World Championships ended with the top three teams in the same order as at the Junior Grand Prix Final with Russia’s Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin taking the gold, followed by Hungary’s Nora Hoffmann and Attila Elek and Russia’s Elena Romanovskaya and Sergei Grachev. Both of the top teams had competed in seniors at the European Championships a few weeks earlier, placing…