Figure skating community mourns those killed in mid-air collision

By John Fitts

Staff Writer

SIMSBURY – As coaches, the late Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov imparted more than world-class figure skating knowledge to their students.

“What I can say about Vadim and Genia is they loved all of their students. It didn’t matter if they were [students] for five minutes or 20 years or more. They were beautiful people, and the world has lost some wonderful, wonderful coaches,” said Dawn Sadera-Harden, whose sons Paul and John-Michael studied with the pair at the International Skating Center of Connecticut for many years. “They were phenomenal. They corrected a lot of mistakes, and they were also very encouraging and patient. They were firm. They had expectations and they were kind, and it made the children engage a little but more. They were fun too; they had a lot of fun through the years. They had a lot of jokes and the children really gravitated to that.”

Sadera-Harden and members of her family were among more than 150 members of the skating community who gathered at the Simsbury skating facility on Feb. 3 for simultaneous moment of silence at rinks across the country ­– broadcast at livebarn.com – in honor of those killed in the Jan. 29 collision of a Black Hawk helicopter and regional jet over Washington, D.C.

Several renowned figure skating coaches and talented young skaters were killed on the plane. The group was returning from a national development camp that had followed the U.S. Championships in Wichita, Kansas.

Shishkova, 52, and Naumov, 55, were among those killed.

The couple’s son Maxim Naumov, a Simsbury High School graduate, had returned from Wichita prior to the development camp.

For many years, Shishkova and Naumov were an integral part of the ISCC and greater Farmington Valley community. They moved to Simsbury just a few years after their 1995 wedding and stayed until circa 2016, when they relocated to work at the Skating Club of Boston facility in Norwood.

“Today, we take a moment to honor and remember the lives lost on Flight 5342. This tragedy has deeply impacted so many, especially within the U.S. Figure Skating community. Among those we lost were skaters, coaches, and families who dedicated their lives to this sport and to the next generation of athletes,” Shawn Kelly, Director of Marketing at ISCC noted after figure skaters, hockey players, local officials and residents took the ice for the moment of silence. “For many years, Evgenia and Vadim called the International Skating Center of Connecticut home. Their passion, talent, and kindness left a lasting mark on those who had the privilege of knowing them. Their legacy lives on in the skaters they coached, the friends they made, and the community they helped build.

As we stand together on this ice, we reflect on their lives and the lives of all who were taken too soon. Please join us in a moment of silence in their memory.”

Granby residents Elle and Mike Kowal were among those in attendance. Their daughter Hayley worked with Shishkova and Naumov for 10 years.

“We spent so much time with them, and they put so much energy into all of our kids and they taught them a lot more than just what you get on the ice and they’re going to be very missed,” said Elle Kowal.

Mike Kowal said Shishkova and Naumov helped their students learn time-management skills that really presented when attending college. The young skaters had to juggle ice time, school, homework, off ice-training and so much more.

“These kids were so organized and regimented,” he said.

The Kowal family were among the many who have left tributes to Shishkova and Naumov on a table in the ISCC lobby after the mid-air collision in D.C.

Among the handwritten notes, flowers and pictures is a rubber goldfish.

One year, Shishkova and Naumov had given Hayley a freeze-dried goldfish. It came back to life in water but didn’t live long. They didn’t have the heart to tell Evgenia, so they bought another. Sadly, that fish didn’t make it either after Hayley’s sibling had overfed it.

“Vadim thought it was hysterical; it was just a good memory,” Elle Kowal said.

The Sadera-Harden family knows the dedication that figure skating brings. Paul Sadera and John-Michael Harden started training at ISCC for six days a week from a young age after Shishkova and Naumov had met them at a facility in Massachusetts. It didn’t matter that Simsbury was an hour-and a half drive.

Paul Sadera hasn’t figure skated in a few years, but he had seen the couple when he went to the Skating Club of Boston with his brother.

“[Vadim] asked me to come out on the ice with him – come out of retirement – and I said, ‘oh maybe next time,’ and here we are. Next time never came,” Sadera said.

Sadera added that it was quite emotional to take the ice at ISCC for the moment of silence.

“It’s the first time since their passing that I’ve been able to step out on the ice and even then, it was really difficult for me because all I see is them out there,” he said.

Gabby Cicala spent many years skating at ISCC. Shishkova and Naumov weren’t her coaches, but she remembers them and their impact well, having been on the ice with them daily for so many years. Cicala came from her home near Boston for the moment of silence. Like many other attendees she connected with people she hadn’t seen in years as their community struggles with this indiscernible loss.

“The news is very shocking, very heartbreaking but I do think it’s nice that everybody can still come together and remember them in such a nice, kind way,” Cicala said.

Valley LIFE is also working on gathering tributes for our March edition. Those who would like to share can reach out to editor John Fitts at jfitts@turleyct.com.