World champion figure skaters Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov among victims from plane crash
Russian world champion figure skaters Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov are among the casualties from the devastating plane crash in Washington, DC, according to Russian state media.
Their son, Maxim Naumov, is also feared to have been on board.
The death toll is rising after an American Airlines plane collided with a military Black Hawk helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport.
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Shishkova, 52, and Naumov, 55, who were married, were among the first victims identified.
Their 23-year-old son, Maxim, competed for the United States in singles, was also feared to be on board, according to Russia’s TASS and RIA news agencies.
He had been competing at the US figure skating championships in Wichita, Kansas.
Shishkova and Naumov were reported to have been returning from the competition and travelling with a group of young skaters.
Russia’s Mash news outlet published a list of 13 skaters, many of them the children of Russian emigres to the US, who it said were believed to have been on the plane.
Inna Volyanskaya, a former skater who competed for the Soviet Union, was also reported to have been on board, TASS reports. She was a coach at the Washington figure skating club, according to its website.
The US figure skating governing body confirmed that athletes, coaches and family members were on the plane, returning from a national development camp and the championships in Wichita.
“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts. We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available,” the statement said.
Shishkova and Naumov won gold in the pairs skating at the 1994 world championships. They also won bronze in 1993 and completed the set with silver in 1995.
They also competed at the two Winter Olympics, placing fifth in 1992 and fourth in 1994 to just miss out on a medal.
The pair married in 1995 and relocated to Connecticut in the US where they coached young skaters.
- With Reuters
Originally published on 7NEWS Sport
