On January 29, the world lost 67 people in a crash between an American Airlines plane and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. Twenty-eight of those people belonged to the ice skating community. This includes the 1994 World Figure Skating pairs champions Evgenia “Zhenya” Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. Their son, Maxim Naumov, is also a skater. However, he was not on that flight.
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Needless to say, Maxim is devastated by the loss of his parents. So, to honor them, he participated in an event called Legacy on Ice in Washington D.C. at the Capital One Arena. Here, funds were raised for both families of the victims and first responders who helped with this tragedy. You can watch the skater’s emotional performance in the video below.
Maxim Naumov pays a touching tribute to his parents Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov 🤍🕯️ pic.twitter.com/sm6eWHqXqL
— figure skating archive (@skatingarchive) March 2, 2025
“I started crying when he put out both his hands as if grabbing each of his parents. He’s so brave and I hope he is surrounded by people who are supporting him through this horrible time,” someone shares in reply to Maxim’s performance, another person adding, “What a beautiful way to pay tribute to the people who raised you. I’m sorry for your loss.”
This Emotional Skater’s Tribute Performance for His Late Parents is One to Remember
As you can imagine, the entire event was full of emotional performances like this one. You can watch the entirety of Legacy on Ice on NBC on March 30 at 1 p.m. ET. While this was a perfect way to honor those who were lost in this tragedy, it’s clear that these skaters will continue to honor them with every future performance, too. Plus, they will continue to lean on each other for strength.
“We’re all here to remember them and to keep them in our hearts, keep them in our heads, to just keep them in our hearts when we skate, and just skate for them,” Ilia Malinin, 2024 world champion, shares. “Today was very emotional and very hard for all of us. It’s really an experience for us to go through, and we’re just glad that we’re all here as the figure skating family and community, just to support everyone and support each each other.”
You can find the source of this story’s featured image here!
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