Figure skater Maxim Naumov returned to the ice for a powerful routine in honor of his late parents, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, who died in the Washington, D.C. plane crash in January.
Maxim, 23, performed a solo routine set to “The City That Doesn’t Exist” at the Legacy on Ice U.S. Figure Skating Benefit at Capital One Arena in D.C. on Sunday, March 2. Prior to his performance, Naumov placed two white roses on a table next to the rink.
After his emotional routine was finished, he dropped to his knees and began crying as a spotlight shone on him. The sold-out crowd inside the arena, many of whom were also visibly crying, gave Maxim a lengthy standing ovation.
The event served as a benefit for the loved ones and families of those affected by the January 29 plane crash, which took the lives of 28 members of the figure skating community. In total, 67 people were killed when a commercial airliner collided with an Army helicopter near D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport and crashed into the Potomac River.
Days before the crash, Maxim’s parents were in attendance to watch their son skate at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas.
Evgenia, 52, and Vadim, 55 — the 1994 world champions in pairs skating — stayed in Wichita to help coach the U.S. National Development Camp as part of their affiliation with The Skating Club of Boston.
“Max was competing at the U.S. Championships in the senior men’s event, championship men,” Skating Club of Boston CEO Doug Zeghibe explained in a January 30 press conference. “He placed fourth, which is a medaling spot. His time in Wichita concluded on Sunday with the men’s event. He was actually on a plane on Monday. I came back with him. He had no reason to stay at the National Development Camp.”
After the deaths of his parents, Maxim was surrounded by loved ones.
“I know a couple who is with him right now,” Ekaterina “Katia” Gordeeva, a former teammate and close friend of the Naumov family, told People. “They weren’t even in Washington yet, but … that morning [of the plane crash], we all connected right away.”
Gordeeva explained the woman staying with Maxim was “like a godmother to him, and she is with him right now there and her husband.”
Sunday’s benefit featured performances and appearances from prominent figure skaters across generations, including former Olympian Johnny Weir, who is now a coach after retiring from performing in 2023.
“Imagining that it could have been their mom or their family on the plane, it’s just devastating,” Weir, 40, said after his performance, which was set to “Memory” from Cats. “I could never say that this event brings closure, but it shows the kids I work with every day that great skaters can get torn up about things and still show up for others. It’s OK to be sad.”
He added, “I think the moment of unity is the greatest gift we can give to those people we lost.”
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