CHANDLER, Ariz. — Synchronized skating is not in the official Olympics rundown yet, but many in Arizona are pushing for the sport to make its debut in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
While the majority of winter sports focus on the individual, synchronized skating is all about their team.
Alex VanLare is a synchronized skater who trains in the Valley.
"You create the program together and it's so fun to get to compete with other people as well," said AlexVanLare, a synchronized skater in Chandler.
"I just feel so powerful when I hit the ice," said Kiki Owens said, who skates with VanLare and they also compete with ASU's collegiate team.
That power, freedom and expression for synchronized skaters lead to a series of intricate moves these skaters perform together at the Ice Den.
There are five synchronized skating teams in Chandler now, from beginners on up. The sport, despite its extreme attention to detail, is catching on quick in Arizona, said Jacqueline Benson, an Ice Denettes coach.
"To take all of these skaters with their own individual skating skills and match them to do intricate footwork, lift elements, and special synchronized skating elements altogether, is definitely a whole different side of skating," Benson said.
Successful teams are filling up fast, according to Jaime Kalnicky, the director of synchronized skating at the Ice Den. She and members of the team say they hope the swirling success helps the sport get recognized on the Olympic stage.
"I think it should definitely be a part of the Olympics," VanLare said. "Because it shows it takes all of the stuff in individual and pair skating and basically combines it."
VanLare and her team want to see synchronized skaters being given their chances at an Olympic medal.
"It's a small group of people who make it to the Olympics in all of figure skating," Kalnicky said. "So this would allow between 12 and 20 to make it."
While 2022 won't feature this discipline of figure skating, these athletes will keep perfecting their routines, hoping to see their sport get its turn to dazzle on ice in 2026.
If you're interested in joining a synchronized skating team, they take skaters to learn how to skate as young as three years old at the Ice Den. Then once the skater gains some skills, they can look into joining a synchro team.
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