USA’s Aboian and Veselukhin take 2026 Junior World title in Ice Dance
USA’s Hana Maria Aboian and Daniil Veselukhin were crowned the Ice Dance champions at the 2026 World Junior Figure Skating Championships on March 7. Amber Perrier Gianesini and Samuel Blanc Klaperman of France placed second, followed by closely by Iryna Pidgaina and Artem Koval of Ukraine.
Hana Maria Aboian and Daniil Veselukhin
Aboian and Veselukhin showcased fast level-four twizzles in their stylish rhythm dance to “Vogue.” Their rotational lift was also graded a level four, and the routine featured crisp poses and expressive arm choreography throughout. The 2025-26 Junior Grand Prix Final champions scored 66.45 to take the lead heading into the free dance.
“It was great!” said Aboian. “We accomplished everything that we wanted to do here and we’re happy with our skate.”
Veselukhin felt they have improved since the Junior Grand Prix (JGP) series where they took gold in the Final.
“We worked very hard on our program,” he said. “I think our main goal today was not competing but performing and showing the people what is inside us and the true emotions.”
Showing good speed and expression, the two-time junior national champions produced a free dance in which Aboian portrays a goddess sculpture being brought to life. The twizzles received a level four and three, while both the one-foot and diagonal steps were a level two. All elements were awarded positive grades of execution (GOE), particularly on their level-four combination curve-rotational lift. They finished first in this segment and overall (100.26/166.71).
“I feel very proud of our performances,” said Aboian. “I think we delivered exactly what we wanted, and I am proud that we were able to do what we have been training for since the Final and since nationals. We are very, very proud of the result.”
Veselukhin agreed, adding: “When we started two years ago, we would never have imagined becoming Junior World Champions two years later. I still cannot process these feelings. We are very proud of our work.”
Aboian chalked up most of their success to their coaches and rink availability.
“We have a lot of ice time available, and we really use it to the maximum of what we possibly can,” she said. “We are very focused in training and make sure that every day is another step forward. That we continue growing from one competition to another, because we are still juniors and still developing. I think the key to success is really having a strong support system.”
Adding that they will continue to make progress, Aboian shared that they were already working on new concepts that will have a different approach.
“We are excited to explore different ideas, different concepts, and rebuild our repertoire,” she said. “I think that is really important for us, even more than placements, because we are still growing.”
Amber Perrier Gianesini and Samuel Blanc Klaperman
Perrier Gianesini and Blanc Klaperman earned a new personal best of 66.31 for their playful 90s pop-inspired rhythm dance set to hits by the Backstreet Boys and Ginuwine. The routine featured cheeky choreography and lively character work. Their twizzles were graded levels two and four, while the rotational lift received a level four. The 2025-26 JGP Final silver medalists were in a close second heading into the free dance.
“I would say I was really tense just before the skate,” admitted Perrier Gianesini. “When I entered the ice, I was like, well, I know I just need to dance. I was listening to ‘Just Dance’ by Lady Gaga before I went out there, and I was like, I just have to keep doing that.”
“I was also thinking about Laurence (Fournier Beaudry),” she added. “She sent me a message and said, ‘I hope you are really going to have fun, you and your partner, and just put out some fire, you can do it.’ So just having a message from her, I was like, ‘oh my God, they are Olympic champions, you know?’ It is so awesome! I was at lunch and saw that she texted me, and I was just so happy. I want to honor that, you know. I want to honor that because they won gold at the Olympic Games.”
The two-time junior national champions earned a new personal best score of 98.87 for their free dance to selections from The Legend of Tarzan. Both lifts and the dance spin were graded a level four while the twizzles received a three and four. Both the one-foot and circular steps were graded a level two and three. They placed third in this segment, but with a total score of 164.88, maintained second place overall.
“Maybe it was not the very best performance we could deliver, but it was still an opportunity to be here,” said Perrier Gianesini. “I am really proud that we achieved second place. It is a big achievement, even if I wanted the gold medal. Sometimes you need to take a step back and rethink it. But honestly, the American team was the best today.”
The team has not yet decided if they will remain on the junior circuit. Perrier Gianesini confessed she was a little afraid of the Golden Waltz, but that one thing drawing her toward seniors is that there are no key points involved.
Iryna Pidgaina and Artem Koval
Pidgaina and Koval delivered a high-energy 90s pop-club rhythm dance set to music by the Backstreet Boys and MC Hammer. The team earned strong grades of execution (GOE) for their level-four twizzles and rotational lift, but the midline step sequence was graded only a level one. The 2025-26 JGP Final bronze medalists finished third in the segment with 65.45 points—a tad off their season’s best.
“We were really motivated to skate and show everything we have been practicing for,” said Koval. “For me, it felt like everything was okay, but our coach said it was not the best of our runs, so we can definitely still do better in the free dance.”
“The competition is still not finished, so today was only the first day,” added Pidgaina. “We only had one practice in the main rink before today; that felt a bit frustrating, but we are making the best out of it.”
The team from Odesa, who currently train in Austria, confirmed they will be moving up to the senior level next season.
“The judges and most people expect us to be more mature, stronger, more skillful, like they already see us more as a senior couple,” said Koval. “And we like that. It is an amazing feeling, because when you get feedback after the competition and your coach says you need to skate beyond the scale, like seniors, that is so great to hear because it means they see good potential in us.”
The five-time JGP medalists picked up a new season’s best for second place (98.87) with their free dance to selections from Moulin Rouge! The Musical. The team racked up high GOEs throughout, especially on their one-foot and diagonal steps. Both lifts and the dance spin garnered a level four in their cabaret-inspired routine, while the twizzles were a three and four. They placed third overall with a total score of 164.32.
“It is an amazing feeling to win a bronze medal at Junior Worlds because after the last Junior Worlds we had some struggles,” said Koval. “Iryna was in the hospital for two weeks, fighting for her life. It was a very serious illness, and the recovery was hard and long. At the beginning of the season, we really thought that we could not compete this year. It was really scary and everybody was ready to skip the entire season.”
“I was off the ice for more than a month,” added Pidgaina. “The recovery took a long time, but all of our team supported us, and we are very thankful for everybody who stood behind us during that time. I am just so thankful.”
Koval shared that during her illness, he tried to keep himself in shape.
“I was in the gym, but of course it was difficult,” he said. “At the beginning of the season we had hoped for a little more time before our first Junior Grand Prix, but then suddenly we were already in Ankara. So yes, we are really happy with how far we have come. During the summer we also learned that we are really there for each other. So now achieving this medal means a lot.”
Layla Veillon and Alexander Brandys
Layla Veillon and Alexander Brandys of Canada produced a strong rhythm dance set to music by Daft Punk and Faithless featuring level-four twizzles and a level-four rotational lift. Their midline step sequence received a level two, and they demonstrated deep edges and good ice coverage throughout. A highlight was their creative “around-the-world” move. The two-time junior national champions posted 63.81 points for fourth place.
“Today was good. It was fun,” said Veillon. “It was exactly what we have been training. It was more enjoyable.”
The team, who placed fifth at the JGP Final earlier this season, have been working with a sports psychologist.
“Obviously, what happened at the Final stays a little bit in the back of your mind,” said Veillon of the event where they took a hard fall. “And it was also the consistency we had in all of our run-throughs. We knew how to fix it. We have been so consistent, so we knew exactly what we had been doing every single day in practice. This is what we can do, and that is what we did today.”
“In our sport, things can happen,” she added. “The important thing is how you bounce back from them. I think we have done a great job and pushed ourselves to work really hard. Practices have gone really well since the Final.”
Veillon and Brandys delivered a contemporary free dance to “Summer 2” and “Vorsprung” that featured level-four twizzles and lifts. Both the one-foot and diagonal steps were graded a level two, while the dance spin was a level four. The three-time JGP medalists picked up positive GOEs throughout, placing fourth in this segment and overall (96.77/160.58).
“We feel pretty good,” said Brandys. “I feel like both skates were strong here.”
“It was exactly what we have been training for,” added Veillon. “We are really proud of what we were able to put out and how much we have grown this season. Also, how we pushed ourselves not to be afraid of uncomfortable situations.”
The team will be moving up to the senior level next season.
“I think we feel ready to move up,” said Veillon. “We do have the skill set, and we are ready to push ourselves into the senior field.”
Dania Mouaden and Theo Bigot
Dania Mouaden and Theo Bigot of France showed clever transitions throughout their rhythm dance to “Groove is in the Heart” and “Gonna Make You Sweat.” Both the twizzles and rotational lift were graded level four, and they placed sixth with 60.60 points.
“We feel really good about our performance because we were connected and we stayed in the moment,” said Mouaden. “Coming back to Junior Worlds after two years really shows our work, our hard work, and that we got back here because of the work we put in.”
Since the JGP Final, the team has been focusing on their connection and making the skate “bigger.”
“It was our first big competition like that,” recalled Mouaden of the Final. “Now our goal was to be a little bit more relaxed.”
The two-time JGP silver medalists put out an intense and dark free dance to “Nature Boy” and “Bad Guy” which was highlighted by their level-four dance spin and rotational lift. The twizzles were graded a level four and three, and the team earned positive GOEs throughout. They placed fifth in this segment and moved up one spot to fifth overall (92.40/153.00).
“We feel so good!” said Mouaden. “The audience was amazing because the second music is bad guy and the crowd was really into it; a lot like in Japan at the Junior Grand Prix Final, which was a big highlight of our season.”
They are planning to go to work right away for next season.
“There are so many things to work on, so many details,” said Mouaden, who loves the new rhythm dance. “It is funny for us, also because it is a quieter theme. We always have upbeat music, and now it is something calmer. It is definitely different and we are excited for that.”
Arianna Soldati and Nicholas Tagliabue
Italy’s Arianna Soldati and Nicholas Tagliabue earned a new personal best of 61.55 for fifth place in the rhythm dance. Their routine to “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)” and “Get Ready” featured level-four twizzles and a stationary lift.
“We are feeling very good,” said Soldati. “We are very happy with our performance, our first Junior Worlds. I hope tomorrow will be the same.”
“It has been a really great season,” added Tagliabue. “We did not expect to be this high up. We expected it would be good, but not this good. Obviously, we are very happy about that and very grateful. We really think we made great progress from last season, so we really could not be happier.”
The team from Milan feels that they’ve mostly improved on the one-foot and pattern steps.
Soldati and Tagliabue placed seventh in the free dance and sixth place overall with new personal best scores (87.26/148.81) after their heist-themed free dance to selections from Moulin Rouge! and Mission Impossible. The 2025 JGP Solidarity Cup bronze medalists had a break in the twizzles, which were graded a level four and three with a few negative GOEs, but the straightline-rotational lift and dance spin were graded a level four.
“There were some small mistakes, but we are happy and overall, it was good,” said Soldati. “We enjoyed it a lot and it is a beautiful experience.”
“We were mainly here for that, so the result is secondary,” added Tagliabue. “There were a couple of mistakes here and there, but we cannot be upset because overall it was great.”
The team felt this this season was a “good start.”
“Of course we want to continue like this, and next season we want to become better and better,” said Tagliabue. “We do not want to define one achievement as the goal. Of course, we want to do our best again in the Junior Grand Prix like this year, and we also hope to come back here to Junior Worlds. During all of that, we want to improve our skating and ourselves.”
Rounding out the top 10
Zoe Bianchi and Daniel Basile of Italy finished seventh overall (147.51) in their debut at this event.
“It was a beautiful program for us, and we really enjoyed skating it,” Bianchi said of their free dance. “We saw that on the diagonal step we got a level 1 that we do not really understand, so that is something we want to ask about and understand better, so we know what to fix.”
“We want to rest a little now and then train hard over the summer to become stronger for next season,” she added.
Germany’s Alexia Kruk and Jan Eisenhaber placed eighth (139.85).
“We are very happy that we made the top ten,” said Kruk. “We are very happy with our World Championships debut. Of course, the goal is to skate Junior Worlds again. This year at the Junior Grand Prix we were already close to winning a medal, so the goal for next season is to go all in at the Junior Grand Prix and win a medal.”
Czechia’s Diane Sznajder and Jachym Novak finished ninth, followed by Anita Straub and Andreas Straub of Austria.
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