Avonley Nguyen

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Avonley Nguyen
Avonley Nguyen and Vadym Kolesnik - 2019 World Junior Championships.jpg
Nguyen/Kolesnik at the 2019 World Junior Championships
Personal information
Full nameAvonley Claren Nguyen
Country represented United States
Born (2002-11-22) November 22, 2002 (age 19)
Cleveland, Ohio
Home townStone Ridge, Virginia
ResidenceNovi, Michigan
Height1.54 m (5 ft 1⁄2 in)
PartnerGrigory Smirnov
Former partnerVadym Kolesnik
Maxwell Gart
CoachIgor Shpilband
Pasquale Camerlengo
Adrienne Lenda
Natalia Deller
Former coachGreg Zuerlein[1]
Vitaliy Shalin[2]
ChoreographerIgor Shpilband
Pasquale Camerlengo
Skating clubSC of New York
Former skating clubWashington FSC
Training locationsNovi, Michigan
Former training locationsWashington, D.C.
Began skating2009
ISU personal best scores
Combined total177.18 (JWR)
2020 Junior Worlds
Short dance69.20
2019 JGP Poland
Free dance108.91 (JWR)
2020 Junior Worlds
Medal record
Representing  United States
Figure skating: Ice dance
World Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tallinn Ice dance
Junior Grand Prix Final
Silver medal – second place 2019–20 Torino Ice dance

Avonley Claren Nguyen (born November 22, 2002) is an American ice dancer. With her former partner, Vadym Kolesnik, she is the 2020 World Junior champion, the 2019–20 Junior Grand Prix Final silver medalist, and the 2020 U.S. junior national champion. She has also won four medals on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, including three golds, and qualified to the 2018–19 Junior Grand Prix Final.

As of September 2021, she competes with Grigory Smirnov.

Personal life[]

Nguyen was born on November 22, 2002, in Cleveland, Ohio.[3]

Career[]

Early years[]

Nguyen began learning to skate in 2009.[3] She began solo ice dance at age 11 and switched from singles to ice dance at the age of 12.[2][4] With her first partner, Maxwell Gart, she won silver in the intermediate category at the 2016 U.S. Championships.[5]

2016–2017 season[]

In autumn 2016, Nguyen and Ukrainian ice dancer Vadym Kolesnik had a three-week tryout in Novi, Michigan, following which he returned to Ukraine for a few months.[4] They began their partnership in February 2017.[6]

2017–2018 season[]

Nguyen/Kolesnik received their first ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) assignments in the 2017–2018 season. They placed fifth at JGP Belarus and sixth at JGP Italy. After taking gold in junior ice dancing at Midwestern Sectionals, they qualified to the 2018 U.S. Championships, where they would finish fifth.

2018–2019 season[]

Nguyen/Kolesnik won the silver medal at 2018 JGP Lithuania, behind Russia's Arina Ushakova / Maxim Nekrasov, and the gold at 2018 JGP Slovenia to qualify for their first JGP Final. They placed fifth overall at the 2018–19 Junior Grand Prix Final after placing fifth in the rhythm dance and fifth in the free dance.

At the 2019 U.S. Championships they won the silver medal behind Caroline Green / Gordon Green after placing second in the rhythm dance and winning the free dance.

At the 2019 World Junior Championships, Nguyen/Kolesnik placed fifth in the rhythm dance, but moved up to fourth overall after placing third in the free dance. They were awarded a small bronze medal for the free, where they had the highest technical base value of any of the competing teams, and the second-highest technical score overall.[7]

2019–2020 season: Junior World title[]

Nguyen/Kolesnik at the 2019–20 JGP Final

Nguyen/Kolesnik began their Junior Grand Prix season at the 2019 JGP United States, where they placed first in both segments with personal best scores and won the gold medal. At 2019 JGP Poland, they again set personal best scores in both segments to take the title and qualify for the 2019–20 ISU Junior Grand Prix Final. Competing at the Final, Nguyen/Kolesnik narrowly lost the gold medal by only 0.16 points behind Maria Kazakova / Georgy Reviya of Georgia at the JGP Final.[8] She commented "we're a little disappointed right now, but we’ll continue to keep on working. All our competitors were really strong. We were only a fourth of a point behind and we felt we could push and get to the next level, but it didn’t work out."[9]

At the 2020 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Nguyen/Kolesnik scored 184.38 total points to take the gold medal by more than 22 points. Their free dance, set to Rachmaninoff's "Piano Concerto No. 2," featured all positive grades of execution and eight Level 4 elements, earning 109.89 points.[10]

At the 2020 Bavarian Open, they placed first in both the rhythm dance and free dance to win the gold medal. They concluded the season at the 2020 World Junior Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, where they entered as one of the favorites for the title. Nguyen/Kolesnik placed third in the rhythm dance, behind Shanaeva/Naryzhnyy and Kazakova/Reviya, after Nguyen stepped out of her twizzle sequence. She remarked that they had "left a few points on the table, but now we'll focus on the free dance."[11] They won the free dance, setting a new junior world record and taking the Junior World title over Kazakova/Reviya. Nguyen said afterward "I've dreamed about this moment for so long and to know that our work finally paid off, it just feels great!" Kolesnik indicated that they had not decided whether to move up to senior competition or remain at the junior level for another season.[12]

At the end of June, Nguyen announced that the two had split. She said she had "many happy memories" of their partnership, and wished him the best as they "pursued different paths." She said she was going to look for a new partner who shared her "passion, dedication and commitment" to the sport.[13]

Within minutes, Kolesnik's announcement post followed. He thanked Nguyen "for all you have done for our partnership," expressed his admiration for her, and wished her all the best.[14]

2020–2021 & 2021–2022 seasons[]

Nguyen did not compete during the 2020–2021 season. In September 2021, it was confirmed that she and Russian ice dancer Grigory Smirnov had teamed up for the United States after Smirnov's former partner, Anastasia Shpilevaya, was forced to retire.[15]

Programs[]

With Smirnov[]

Season Rhythm dance Free dance Exhibition
2021–2022
  • Dusk Till Dawn
    by Zayn, feat. Sia

With Kolesnik[]

Season Rhythm dance Free dance Exhibition
2019–2020
[16]
2018–19
[3]
Short dance Free dance Exhibition
2017–2018
[17]

Records and achievements[]

Junior world record scores[]

Nguyen/Kolesnik are the current junior world record holders for the free dance and total scores.

Junior ice dance combined total records
Date Score Event Note
March 7, 2020 177.18 2020 World Junior Championships Current junior world record holder.
Junior ice dance free dance
Date Score Event Note
March 7, 2020 108.91 2020 World Junior Championships Current junior world record holder.

Competitive highlights[]

JGP: Junior Grand Prix

With Smirnov[]

National
Event 21–22
U.S. Champ. TBD

With Kolesnik[]

Nguyen/Kolesnik (left) with Kazakova / Reviya (center) and Shanaeva / Naryzhnyy (right) on the 2019–20 JGP Final podium
International: Junior[18]
Event 17–18 18–19 19–20
Junior Worlds 4th 1st
JGP Final 5th 2nd
JGP Belarus 5th
JGP Italy 6th
JGP Lithuania 2nd
JGP Poland 1st
JGP Slovenia 1st
JGP U.S. 1st
Bavarian Open 1st
National[18]
U.S. Champ. 5th J 2nd J 1st J
Midwestern Sect. 1st J
J = Junior level; TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

With Gart[]

National
Event 2015–16
U.S. Championships 2nd I
Eastern Sectionals 3rd I
I = Intermediate level

Detailed results[]

Small medals awarded only at ISU Championships. ISU personal bests highlighted in bold.

With Kolesnik[]

Junior results[]

Nguyen/Kolesnik at the 2019–20 JGP Final
2019–20 season
Date Event RD FD Total
March 2–8, 2020 2020 World Junior Championships 3
68.27 		1
108.91 		1
177.18
February 3–9, 2020 2020 Bavarian Open 1
64.13 		1
101.33 		1
165.46
January 20–26, 2020 2020 U.S. Championships 1
74.49 		1
109.89 		1
184.38
December 5–8, 2019 2019–20 Junior Grand Prix Final 2
68.72 		2
106.02 		2
174.74
September 18–21, 2019 2019 JGP Poland 1
69.20 		1
105.48 		1
174.68
August 28–31, 2019 2019 JGP United States 1
66.17 		1
104.63 		1
170.80
2018–19 season
Date Event RD FD Total
March 4–10, 2019 2019 World Junior Championships 5
65.18 		3
102.72 		4
167.90
January 18–27, 2019 2019 U.S. Championships 2
65.92 		1
105.14 		2
171.06
December 7–12, 2018 2018–19 JGP Final 5
63.73 		5
94.74 		5
158.47
October 3–6, 2018 2018 JGP Slovenia 1
65.41 		1
100.22 		1
165.63
September 5–9, 2018 2018 JGP Lithuania 2
63.40 		2
98.44 		2
161.84
2017–18 season
Date Event SD FD Total
Dec. 28, 2017 – Jan. 7, 2018 2018 U.S. Championships 7
54.02 		4
80.29 		5
134.31
October 11–14, 2017 2017 JGP Italy 6
52.84 		6
72.46 		6
125.30
September 20–23, 2017 2017 JGP Belarus 5
50.37 		6
64.52 		5
114.89

With Gart[]

Intermediate results[]

2015–16 season
Date Event P1 P2 FD Total
January 16–24, 2016 2016 U.S. Championships 6
18.26 		2
22.15 		1
50.84 		2
91.25

References[]

  1. ^ Nguyen, Avonley (April 29, 2018). "Thank you @gzuerlein" (Instagram). Archived from the original on 2021-12-24.
  2. ^ a b "Focus on Solo Dance: Athlete Perspective (Part I)". ice-dance.com. July 28, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Avonley NGUYEN / Vadym KOLESNIK: 2018/2019". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on October 12, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Getting to Know Avonley Nguyen & Vadym Kolesnik". ice-dance.com. July 25, 2017.
  5. ^ "2016 U.S. Figure Skating Championships: Intermediate Dance". U.S. Figure Skating. January 17, 2016.
  6. ^ "Avonley Nguyen and Vadym Kolesnik". U.S. Figure Skating. Archived from the original on October 14, 2018.
  7. ^ Slater, Paula (March 9, 2019). "Canada's Lajoie and Lagha take ice dance title at Junior Worlds". Golden Skate.
  8. ^ Slater, Paula (December 6, 2019). "Georgia's Kazakova and Reviya take lead in Junior Ice Dance in Torino". Golden Skate.
  9. ^ Slater, Paula (December 8, 2019). "Kazakova and Reviya capture first Junior Grand Prix gold for Georgia". Golden Skate.
  10. ^ "First Junior Champions Crowned at U.S. Championships". U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone. January 22, 2020.
  11. ^ Slater, Paula (March 5, 2020). "Shanaeva and Naryzhnyy take narrow lead at Junior Worlds". Golden Skate.
  12. ^ Slater, Paula (March 7, 2020). "Nguyen and Kolesnik dance to Junior World title". Golden Skate.
  13. ^ Nguyen, Avonley (2020-06-29). ""It is with many mixed emotions that I announce the end of my partnership with Vadym."" (Instagram). Archived from the original on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
  14. ^ Kolesnik, Vadym (2020-06-29). "Avonley and I have an announcement to make. We have achieved quite a lot in just three years but we have decided it's time to go in different direction. …". Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-24.
  15. ^ "Challenge Cup 2021". Philadelphia Skating Club. September 17, 2021.
  16. ^ "Avonley NGUYEN / Vadym KOLESNIK: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019.
  17. ^ "Avonley NGUYEN / Vadym KOLESNIK: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 29, 2018.
  18. ^ a b "Avonley NGUYEN / Vadym KOLESNIK: Competition Results". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on October 14, 2018.

External links[]

World Junior Record Holders
Preceded by Junior Free Dance
March 7, 2020 – present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by Junior Total Score
March 7, 2020 – present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Retrieved from ""