Nottingham Icicles Seniors have been selected by British Ice Skating to represent Great Britain at World Synchronized Skating Championships 2024.
British Ice Skating (BIS) has announced today (Friday 23 February) that Nottinghamâs Icicles Senior synchronized skating team have been selected to represent Great Britain at the World Synchronized Skating Championships.
Two of the skaters are from West Bridgford, Zelda Harrison and Niamh Whitely. Zelda will be competing at her first World Championships and Niamh at her second.
In the photo Niamh and Zelda are the skaters being lifted, with Niamh in the foreground and Zelda in the background.
The competition will take place on April 5-6 in Zagreb, Croatia, where top ice skating teams from North America, Europe, Asia and Australasia will compete to be World Champions.
Icicles Senior, who will represent their country for the fourth time in a row, train at Nottingham Synchronized Skating Academy (NSSA). NSSA celebrated its 25th anniversary last November.
The skaters, aged from 16 to 24, come not only from the East Midlands but also London, Leeds and Birmingham to train three times a week at the National Ice Centre, Nottingham. Team-members are either in work or further education.
The selection to represent GB is the culmination of a busy competitive season for the Icicles, who became British Champions in January. They have competed all over the UK as well as at the Santa Claus Cup in the Czech Republic.
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Trained by head coaches Esther Morris and Lauren Kelly, the team perform two programmes, a short and a free, incorporating various compulsory elements, such as lifts, synchronized spins and jumps. Creative choreography is used in these complex routines so that the sixteen skaters tell a story on the ice, at speed to music, to present a seamless spectacle.
Esther said: âWe are honoured to get the chance to represent Great Britain and share the ice with the best teams from across the world.
âEvery year, the rules get harder and the elements get more demanding so the teamâs selection is an incredible tribute to the skatersâ achievements.â
Lauren said: âThis selection means a lot to everyone at the club. It takes many hours of practice every week to make the different elements of the routine flow so the team can score the points needed.
âThe skaters show such dedication to training to improve their skills and performance, including a regular 5am start every Sunday morning. Iâm pleased that they will now have the chance to show their fabulous routines on the world stage.â
Club chair Lisa Walker said: âWeâre very proud of the teamâs selection, but attending a World Championships is unfortunately expensive and the skaters are all completely self-funded. We would also love to hear from any businesses who are interested in sponsoring the skaters get to Croatia to represent Great Britain. Any help would be very gratefully received.â
Businesses in the region interested in helping fund the trip, please contact lisa.nssa@hotmail.com to discuss.
NSSA has five other teams that train alongside Icicles Seniors, with skaters ranging from 8 to 42 years. Five of the six teams are reigning British Champions. To find out more about becoming a synchronized ice skater, visit the clubâs website for details: https://www.nssa-nottingham.
Get updates on the teamâs progress on social media: Instagram: teamiciclesgb.sr
