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HACKENSACK, New Jersey (WABC) — Several victims of the plane crash over Washington D.C. were figure skaters and the collision has shaken members of the tight-knit community.
They were part of a group returning home from a national skating development camp and now members of the skating community in the Tri-State are overcome with grief — but also with guilt and what ifs.
And for some, small decisions prevented them from being on that flight, which is only adding to the pain.
RELATED | ‘Hearts are heavy’: 14 figure skaters among victims of DC plane crash
“So it just feels almost like a member of your family has passed away, it’s that devastating for us,” said Craig Maurizi, the director of figure skating at Ice House in Hackensack.
The small, close knit community of figure skaters is devastated to learn a group of young skaters, their parents and coaches are now presumed dead.
The American Airlines plane they were on collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter as the flight made its final approach into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
“Two friends of mine that were have been coaching for years and years from Connecticut, who I even competed against in the 1980s were on that,” Maurizi said. “Their son actually is a very high level competitive skater. And the thought of him being orphaned and knowing him from the day he was born is, it makes you, you know, makes you want to throw up.”
Maurizi is talking about coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. The couple were Olympic gold medalists. Their son left Wichita earlier this week.
Maurizi says skaters, including those who train in Hackensack, were there for the National Championships last week and some of the best young figure skaters stayed for a training camp.
“The fact that we’re not going to see these people, you know, ever again at competitions after we see them all the time, is you know, it’s probably too early right now to even understand,” Maurizi said. “We probably, I mean, I don’t think I’ve been impacted enough. But just the initial shock is I mean, we’re really sad. Really sad.”
Fourteen skaters were among the 64 people on the flight.
Jinna Ha and Spencer Lane, who were traveling with their mother, along with coaches Shishkova and Naumov were members of the Boston Skating Club.
The CEO of the club spoke about the talented teens on Thursday morning.
“Jinna, just a wonderful kid, wonderful parents, great athlete, great competitor, loved by all,” said Doug Zeghibe, CEO of Skating Club of Boston. “Spencer, in the best way possible, was a crazy kid, highly talented, like incredibly talented, has not been skating that long and just rocketing to the top of the sport. “
The director of figure skating at Ice House said not only is this devastating, there is a significant loss of talent.
The young skaters on the flight were the best of the best and he says the impact on the quality of skaters in this country will be noticeable in the next several years.
ALSO READ | Tara Lipinski, Nancy Kerrigan mourn loss of figure skaters in DC plane crash
Fourteen members of the figure skating community were killed in the plane crash, six of them from the Skating Club of Boston.
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