The Russian ice skating coaches and former world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were on board the American Airlines plane that crashed into the Potomac river near Washington DC on Wednesday night, Russian state media reported.
Shishkova and Naumov, who were married, won the world championships in pairs figure skating in 1994 and lived in the United States, where they trained young ice skaters.
Their son Maxim was also feared to have been on board the plane, Russia’s Tass and RIA news agencies reported. He had been competing at the US figure skating championships in Wichita, Kansas, according to the event’s website.
A statement from the national US figure skating governing body, confirmed that athletes, coaches, and family members were on the crashed plane. “These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the national development camp held in conjunction with the US figure skating championships in Wichita, Kansas,” it said. “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.”
An American Airlines regional passenger jet and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into the Potomac after a midair collision near Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, officials said.
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