Tamar Katz

Tamar Katz
Personal information
Country represented Israel
Born September 26, 1988
Dallas, Texas, United States
Height 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)
Former coach Mark Mitchell, Peter Johansson, Mary-Lynn Gelderman, Peter Burrows, Galit Chait, Galina Zmievskaia, Anthony Liu
Former choreographer Mark Mitchell, Lea Ann Miller, Nikolai Morozov
Skating club Metula FSC
Former training locations Boston, Massachusetts; Monsey, New York; Metula, Israel; Rockville, Maryland
Began skating 1999
Retired 2010
ISU personal best scores
Combined total 129.48
2009 Merano Cup
Short program 48.80
2009 Merano Cup
Free skate 80.68
2009 Merano Cup

Tamar Katz (Hebrew: תמר כץ‎, born September 26, 1988) is an Israeli former competitive figure skater. She is the 2005, 2007, and 2008 Israeli national champion.

Personal life

Tamar Katz was born September 26, 1988 in Dallas, Texas.[1] The daughter of Leora and Yirmi Katz, she was raised with two brothers, Eyal and Ronen.[2] Due to her father's work as a diplomat at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., she resided in Maryland from the age of seven, before settling in Metula, Israel when she was 13.[3] At age 15, she returned to the United States for training opportunities.[4] She began college studies at the University of Pennsylvania in 2010.

In September 2010, her brother, Ronen, was killed in a hit and run accident in New York City.[5]

Career

Katz began skating as an extracurricular activity at the age of 9 and became more serious about skating a year later.[6][7] She trained in Rockville, Maryland until she was 13, followed by Metula, Israel until age 15, and then in the United States again.[3][4]

Katz's best season was 2006–07. She won a silver medal at the 2006 Golden Spin of Zagreb, finished a career-best 13th at the 2007 European Championships, and qualified for the free skate at the 2007 World Championships.

In 2008, Katz was 16th at the Europeans and 22nd at Worlds. She sustained a stress fracture to her right foot and a broken hand on December 2008 and missed the 2009 European Championships. She finished 25th at the 2009 World Championships. She was coached by Peter Burrows in Monsey, New York.[8]

Katz qualified a spot for Israel in ladies' figure skating at the 2010 Olympics with her 12th place finish at the 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy;[9] she was the first Israeli ladies' single skater to qualify for an Olympics.[4] However, suffering from a virus, she had a poor showing at the 2010 European Championships, failing to meet the Israeli Olympic committee's criterion of finishing in the top 14 at the event.[4] Katz appealed this decision with the support of the Israeli Ice Skating Federation, but was unsuccessful. The Israeli Olympic Committee ceded the Olympic spot to the alternate, Australian skater Cheltzie Lee.[9][10] Katz stated that "The Israeli Olympic Committee said that they want medals and that I can compete in 2014. What they don't understand is that if they want me to medal at 2014, the crucial exposure and experience that this Olympics would have given me has been taken away."[9] She competed at the 2010 World Championships, but did not qualify for the free skate. During the 2009–10 season, she was coached by Burrows, Mary-Lynn Gelderman, and Galit Chait at Sport-o-Rama in Monsey, New York[1][4] and then by Mark Mitchell and Peter Johansson in Boston, Massachusetts.[11]

Programs

Season Short program Free skating
2010–2011
[12]
2009–2010
[12][11]
2008–2009
[12][8]
  • Gone With the Wind
    by Max Steiner
  • Concerto in F
    by George Gershwin
    choreo. by Lea Ann Miller
2007–2008
[12][13]
2006–2007
[12][14]
  • Malagueña
    by Ernesto Lecuona
2005–2006
[15]
  • Spanish medley
    2004–2005
    [16]
    2003–2004
    [17]
    • Doctor Zhivago
      by Maurice Jarre
      performed by German Philharmonic Orchestra
    2002–2003
    [18]
    • Doctor Zhivago
      by Maurice Jarre

    Competitive highlights

    JGP: Junior Grand Prix

    International[19]
    Event 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10
    Worlds 16th QR 23rd 22nd 25th 27th
    Europeans 13th 16th 21st
    Nebelhorn 12th
    Golden Spin 2nd 5th
    Karl Schäfer 4th
    Merano Cup 4th
    Skate Israel 4th
    International: Junior[19]
    Junior Worlds 22nd
    JGP Bulgaria 9th
    JGP Croatia 16th
    JGP Germany 10th 12th
    JGP Japan 12th
    JGP Romania 8th
    EYOF 9th
    National[19]
    Israeli Champ. 2nd J. 1st
    J. = Junior level; QR = Qualifying round

    See also

    References

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Tamar KATZ: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on January 24, 2010.
    2. ↑ "Profile". Official site of Tamar Katz. Archived from the original on February 21, 2015.
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Soul on ice". israel21c.org. October 19, 2003. Archived from the original on February 21, 2015.
    4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Siegel, Masada (January 29, 2010). "An Olympic Qualifier, but Not in Israel’s Eyes". The New York Times.
    5. ↑ Moynihan, Colin; Schweber, Nate (September 20, 2010). "Two Lives Intersect in Fatal Manhattan Crash". The New York Times.
    6. ↑ Golinsky, Reut (2009). "Let us introduce: Tamar Katz, Part I". AbsoluteSkating.com. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
    7. ↑ Golinsky, Reut (2009). "Let us introduce: Tamar Katz, Part II". AbsoluteSkating.com. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
    8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Tamar KATZ: 2008/2009". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on July 9, 2009.
    9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Rutherford, Lynn (February 1, 2010). "Israel cedes Olympic ladies spot to Australia". icenetwork.com. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
    10. ↑ Siegel, Masada (February 2, 2010). "Australian Figure Skater Is Helped by Israel’s Rules". The New York Times.
    11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Tamar KATZ: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 16, 2011.
    12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 "Programs". Official site of Tamar Katz. Archived from the original on February 21, 2015.
    13. ↑ "Tamar KATZ: 2007/2008". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 4, 2008.
    14. ↑ "Tamar KATZ: 2006/2007". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 23, 2007.
    15. ↑ "Tamar KATZ: 2005/2006". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 16, 2006.
    16. ↑ "Tamar KATZ: 2004/2005". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 3, 2005.
    17. ↑ "Tamar KATZ: 2003/2004". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 8, 2004.
    18. ↑ "Tamar KATZ: 2002/2003". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on July 29, 2003.
    19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 "Competition Results: Tamar KATZ". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012.

    External links