Denis Petukhov

Denis Petukhov

Gregory & Petukhov at the 2004 Four Continents Championships.
Personal information
Country represented  United States
Former country(ies) represented  Russia
Born October 6, 1978 (1978-10-06) (age 33)
Residence Newark, Delaware
Height 180 cm (5.9 ft)
Partner Melissa Gregory
Former partner Oksana Potdykova
Coach Shae-Lynn Bourne
Former coach Priscilla Hill,
Natalia Linichuk,
Gennadi Karpanosov,
Nikolai Morozov,
Skating club SC of New York
ISU personal best scores
Combined total 183.97
2005 4CC
Comp. dance 38.02
2005 4CC
Original dance 55.61
2006 Skate America
Free dance 92.74
2003 Skate America

Denis Petukhov (born October 6, 1978 in Kirov, Russia) is a Russian-American ice dancer. With partner and wife Melissa Gregory, he is the 2004-2007 U.S. silver medalist.

Contents

Biography

Petukhov was raised in Kirov by a single mother, Lubov, who worked as a secretary.[1] He has one younger sister, Natalia.[2]

Petukhov began skating at age eight, in ice dancing from the start.[3] He originally competed for Russia with partner Oksana Potdykova, with whom he was the 2000 Russian national bronze medalist and a two-time medalist at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships. That partnership ended in the spring of 2000 when she ruptured her achilles tendon and was forced to retire from skating.[4]

Petukhov met American ice dancer Melissa Gregory through an online partner search for pairs skaters. He came to the United States on a tourist visa at the end of August 2000 to test with her and other prospective partners, but after skating with Gregory first, he canceled his other tryouts.[5] He never used his return plane ticket to Russia, and he and Gregory were married on February 2, 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The next month they flew to Russia so that Petukhov's family could celebrate their marriage, as well.[6] Together they have won four silver medals and two bronze medals at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships and competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics.[2]

Petukhov became a U.S. citizen on February 22, 2005.[7] He is one of the few skaters to have competed at both the European Figure Skating Championships and Four Continents Figure Skating Championships.[2]

Gregory and Petukhov both suffered injuries in a fall during the warmup before the free dance at 2007 Skate Canada International on November 4, 2007. Petukhov lost his footing while practicing a one-handed rotational lift, dropping Gregory onto the ice and injuring her ribs and hip and skidding into the boards himself, hurting his own knee and neck. Gregory was taken to a hospital following the fall but released that night.[8] They were then forced to withdraw from competition for the rest of the season while they healed from their injuries.[9]

Gregory and Petukhov did not return to competition, partially due to financial difficulties. In 2008, they moved to Connecticut and began coaching and choreographing for other skaters at the International Skating Center of Connecticut. They also launched their own YouTube channel, OlympianUncut, which focuses on a behind-the-scenes look at the skating world.[10] They continue to skate in shows such as the Stars, Stripes and Skates show in September 2009.

Petukhov choreographs the majority of his and Gregory's programs himself and has also choreographed programs for other skaters such as singles skaters Johnny Weir and Evgeny Plushenko.[11]

In 2010, Petukhov was cast on Skating with the Stars as a partner for celebrity contestant Sean Young.[12]

Coaching changes

Gregory and Petukhov were originally coached by Oleg Epstein and Sandra Hess but made a change in 2003 to Nikolai Morozov and Shae-Lynn Bourne.[13] Following the 2005/2006 season, they switched again to Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karpanosov[14] at the University of Delaware in Newark. On September 7, 2007, they announced another coaching change, this time to Priscilla Hill at The Pond Ice Arena, also in Newark.[15]

Competitive highlights

(with Gregory)

Event 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08
Winter Olympic Games 14th
World Championships 12th 11th 9th 10th
Four Continents Championships 6th 4th 2nd
U.S. Championships 3rd 3rd 2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd
Grand Prix Final 6th
Skate Canada International 8th 3rd WD
Skate America 5th 5th 2nd
Cup of Russia 4th
Trophée Eric Bompard 4th
NHK Trophy 4th 3rd
Cup of China 4th
Nebelhorn Trophy 2nd

(with Potdykova)

Event 1996-1997 1997-1998 1998-1999 1999-2000
European Championships 12th
World Junior Championships 2nd 3rd
Russian Championships 7th 3rd
Cup of Russia 7th
Finlandia Trophy 2nd 3rd
Golden Spin of Zagreb 1st
Skate Israel 5th
Challenge Lysiane Lauret WD
ISU Junior Series Final 2nd
Junior Grand Prix, Germany 1st
Junior Grand Prix, Hungary 3rd

References

  1. ^ USA Today, December 22, 2005: "U.S. Ice Dancers Keep it in the Family"
  2. ^ a b c US Figure Skating Official Site: Athlete Bio
  3. ^ Mittan, Barry (March 26, 2008). "We’ll Be Back Say Dancers". SkateToday. http://www.skatetoday.com/2008/03/26/well-be-back-say-dancers/. Retrieved August 6, 2011. 
  4. ^ New York Times, January 30, 2006: "Behind All That Glitter, Ice Dancing's Daily Grind"
  5. ^ WNBC.com, January 2006: "Figure Skating: Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov"
  6. ^ About.com: Marriage "Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov"
  7. ^ US Figure Skating Official Site, February 23, 2005: "Denis Petukhov Becomes a United States Citizen"
  8. ^ US Figure Skating Official Site, November 5, 2007: "Melissa Gregory Expected to Make Full Recovery after Fall during Warm-up at Skate Canada"
  9. ^ U.S. Figure Skating Official Site, January 11, 2008: "Ice Dancing Team Gregory and Petukhov Withdraw from 2008 U.S. Figure Skating Championships"
  10. ^ icenetwork.com, January 1, 2009: "Gregory, Petukhov Hit the Road with Camera"
  11. ^ Minneapolis Star-Tribune, January 25, 2008: "New Focus Slides Structure Ahead of Schtick"
  12. ^ http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2010/11/11/pro-skater-pairings-host-and-color-commentator-for-abcs-skating-with-the-stars-announced-11114/20101111abc03
  13. ^ US Figure Skating Official Site, April 24, 2003: "Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov Switch Coaches"
  14. ^ US Figure Skating Official Site, May 31, 2006: "Ice Dancers Gregory and Petukhov Announce Coaching Change"
  15. ^ US Figure Skating Official Site, September 7, 2007: "Gregory and Petukhov Change Coaches"

External links