Mahbanoozadeh: "I will not be competing this coming season or for the foreseeable future"

[drivingmissdaisy]

Good for Armin for knowing when to hang them up and moving on with his life. I think at one point he had alot of promise but the results never materialized. I'm happy for him that he has another road to take. I honestly wish some other skaters would come to this realization as well and move on......... I wish him luck in whatever he does.

The USFSA never backed him as much as they could have and showed clear favoritism towards other athletes. That can't be fun for a teenager to handle and I wonder if it played a role in his apparent desire to not compete again.

 

[Mrs. P]

The USFSA never backed him as much as they could have and showed clear favoritism towards other athletes. That can't be fun for a teenager to handle and I wonder if it played a role in his apparent desire to not compete again.

I wouldn't blame him. He should've been sent to 4CC (or been the first-alternate) when he won the pewter medal. Instead, when Jeremy WD from the competition, he was passed over for someone who finished 9 places below him! I would be pretty frustrated if I was him.

 

[conga]

^^^ This, and it still makes me sad for him.

 

[Mathman]

I doubt if skating for Iran was ever an option. We do not know under shat circumstances his parents or grandparents left Iran, or what Armin's religion, political views, etc., are.

By the way, his name means something like, "Son of a priestess of the Zoroastrian moon god (Mah)."

 

[ffionhanathomas]

Good luck to him, he'll be amazing in whatever he does I'm sure. I will really miss his skating though, he's great & very talented.

 

[Sylvia]

competing for Iran would have given him more international competitions

How could he compete for a country that is not a member of the ISU?

One of Armin's career highlight skates - 2010 Skate America in Portland, Oregon where he won the bronze: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qysORp4-BVU

I feel like I've watched him grow up and wish him all the best in the next exciting chapter of his life!

 

[Cherryy]

I'm not going to say I loved him as a skater, because I just haven't watched enough performances by Armin but one thing I can tell is that I admire him a lot. He was able to compete at the national level with quite good results, play the piano with great love and somehow also find the time to study. Just unbelievable. Btw, many of his recordings on youtube are dedicated to Mao Asada, like Chopin Ballade, Claire de Lune, Bells of Moscow... How one could not like him?

 

[ilsalund]

Best of luck to Armin, I always liked him! Will miss seeing him on the ice.

I agree but will miss him on the ice more since I didn't see him at all last season. Good luck and maybe we'll see you on the pro circuit.

 

[mary01]

i am really sad to hear he is retiring, and it's somehow understandable, since he didn't even get a single GP assignment. I wish him all the good luck.

 

[ice coverage]

.... - Back home in Virginia, the 21-year-old is making up for lost college time, cramming in 16 credits this summer at the Northern Virginia Community College. He said he will transfer to the University of Virginia in the fall of 2014.
"With the timing of nationals, it was too late to apply for the regular decision at university," he said. "I can get done with college in less than three years, so I'm going to be saving a lot of time. It's not where I imagined, but there are many benefits."
The hard-working college student is majoring in computer science, although he said he hasn't decided whether he'll go into software or hardware. He plans to go to graduate school somewhere on the West Coast after college.
​

Update this morning :

Armin Mahbanoozadeh @Armin_hammer

It's been a long journey, but it's finally come full circle. Heading to Dartmouth this fall! #GoBigGreen
8:08 AM - 14 Jun 13​

 

[iluvtodd]

Woohoo - lucky Dartmoouth!