MVP: Massachusetts high school ice skaters head to Nationals
BOSTON - Newton's Annie Huang and Lexington's Simon Mintz have only been ice dancing partners for a year, but soon they could be national champions.
A special chemistry
Huang and Mintz have a chemistry - they're perfectly in sync. Both skaters are on their third partner.
"I feel like, honestly, on the second practice, our trust was, like, already there," Huang said.
"After I separated from my first partner, I think I spent several months before I found a new partner," Mintz said.
It turns out there is even a website to find a skating partner
"It's like an ice dance equivalent of a dating app," Mintz said.
You don't swipe right, but you are looking for competitors who match your height, skill and ambition.
Finding the perfect partner
Dmitri Boundoukin was coaching both teens, but they had different partners. He noticed the potential chemistry.
"I think they match very well together height-wise, skating styles and just great personalities, too," he said.
Once they paired up, the connection was instant.
"I would say we are friends," Mintz said. "We get along well together."
"He's really funny. He makes me laugh," Huang said.
Life off the ice
Both skaters are high school juniors. Huang is at Newton North High School and Mintz is at Lexington High School. Their families said most of their national competitors are homeschooled to make it easier for them to find ice times.
"We obviously have a lot of workload, but I feel like we both find time to do our homework and stuff, " Huang said.
That includes traveling to Connecticut to train with Svetlana Kornikova, their choreographer.
"They're both great kids and as long as they ready to learn - and that's an important part for the coach - and they are," Boundoukin said of the duo.
Big goals
A routine and the Midwestern Sectional Ice Dance Final earned them a spot at the U.S. Figure Skating Nationals. The pair will head there at the end of January. And their ambitions are big.
"I want to represent Team USA in the Junior Grand Prix," Huang said.
"Obviously, the Olympics is, you know, definitely not outside of the goals," Mintz said.
"A few seasons in advance - two, three - I can see them definitely making Team USA, the way they're going right now, " Boundoukin said.
