It’s a chilly evening in January. The breeze is picking up a bit as individuals skate happily around the Midway Plaisance ice rink.
Among the group of skaters are three U-High students: Hannah Gao, Lily Davidson and Tal Neiman, all members of the U-High figure skating club. Each week they meet on the Midway rink whenever they are able to, to improve and perfect their skating skills for upcoming competitions.
Despite each having prior experience in the sport, they enjoy spending time together and doing the thing they love most: figure skating.
Outside of school, Lily has skated competitively for around six years, originally starting when she was 3 years old.
“I went to some camps when I was younger, to improve my skating skills, and I think that’s where I just fell in love with competing and everything skating had to offer,” Lily said.
Meanwhile, Hannah has enjoyed skating for leisure since 2015. She, along with Lily, wanted to bring this joy of skating to Lab, so they decided to start a club to connect with other students who also enjoyed the sport. After developing the idea for the club two years ago, they finally put it into action this winter, and are now the co-presidents and co-founders.
Since the figure skating club has only been operating for three months, it has one other member at the moment: ninth grader Tal, who has been skating for about six years and joined the club to get closer to other skaters.
“Having a place to do what I love with my community is so much fun,” Tal said, “and it’s really nice to share a passion with others in my more immediate community.”
Their goal is to meet twice a week, although they have only met a few times in and outside of school during the winter season.
When they do meet, they skate for leisure or to prepare for upcoming competitions against other high school skating clubs.
“We have our very first competition this Saturday, so we had to register our team through US Figure Skating, to get a membership. Once we got that membership we’re able to compete at pretty much any competition,” Lily said.
To advertise their club they made an Instagram account, @uhigh_figure_skating, where they post information on the training they do each meeting and videos showcasing their skills.
“We thought having an Instagram would be a pretty fun way to promote the club,” Hannah said. “It’s also a really nice way to connect with people and show them what we’re doing and learning.”
Although their content has brought them a bit of popularity, Hannah says that students are still shocked that the club exists, having not heard of it before, due to its recent addition to Lab’s club repertoire or the small member population.
Despite the recent publicity, though, Lily and Hannah say that what they need most for the club to exist — and thrive — is ice.
“When it starts to get warmer outside we’re going to move to McFetridge, an indoor ice rink,” Lily said. “Indoor ice is also better for skating, so it’s kind of a benefit.”
Until the weather becomes too warm to skate outdoors, students can find the club at the Midway ice rink, practicing their skills and enjoying each other’s company.
