Simon Shnapir

Simon Shnapir

Castelli and Shnapir atop the medal podium at the 2013 U.S. Championships
Personal information
Country represented United States
Born (1987-08-20) August 20, 1987
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Home town Sudbury, Massachusetts
Height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Partner DeeDee Leng
Former partner Marissa Castelli, Tanya Aziz, Courtney Gill
Coach Robert Martin, Carrie Wall, Mark Mitchell
Choreographer Julie Marcotte
Former choreographer Sheryl Franks, Carrie Wall, Robert Martin
Skating club SC of Boston
Training locations Boston
Began skating 1993
Retired June 30, 2015
ISU personal best scores
Combined total 187.82
2014 Winter Olympics
Short program 67.44
2014 Winter Olympics
Free skate 120.38
2014 Winter Olympics
Medal record
Representing  United States
Figure skating: Pairs
Olympic Games
2014 Sochi Team
Four Continents Championships
2013 Osaka Pairs
U.S. National Championships
2013 Omaha Pairs
2014 Boston Pairs
World Junior Championships
2009 Sofia Pairs

Simon Shnapir (born August 20, 1987) is an American pair skater. With former partner Marissa Castelli, he is the 2013 Four Continents bronze medalist, the 2009 World Junior bronze medalist, and a two-time U.S. national champion (2013 & 2014). The pair won a bronze medal in the team event at the 2014 Winter Olympics. After their split in May 2014, Shnapir teamed up with DeeDee Leng and competed in the 2014–15 season.

Personal life

Shnapir is Jewish and was born to Jewish parents, both chemical engineering graduates, in Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union.[1] He arrived in the United States with his family when he was 16 months old.[2] After living in Brighton, Boston for a few years, the family moved to Sudbury, Massachusetts.[1]

Shnapir graduated from Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School in 2005, and is majoring in marketing at Emerson College.[3][4]

Career

Early in his pairs career, Shnapir skated with Tanya Aziz and Courtney Gill. Bobby Martin became his coach in around 2000.[5]

Partnership with Castelli

Shnapir and Marissa Castelli teamed up in April 2006 and began training together in earnest in June.[2][6] They trained in Boston, coached by Bobby Martin, Carrie Wall (technical), Mark Mitchell (in-betweens, polishing), and Peter Johansson (throws).[3] Castelli broke Shnapir's nose once while they were practicing the twist.[7]

Castelli/Shnapir qualified for the 2008 Junior Grand Prix Final and placed sixth. The pair won the bronze medal at the 2009 World Junior Championships.

In the 2009–10 season, Castelli was off the ice for a month after a collision with an Italian skater resulting in 15 stitches to her inner thigh.[6] The pair placed tenth on the senior level at the 2010 U.S. Championships and were sent to the 2010 Four Continents Championships where they also finished tenth.

In 2012, Castelli/Shnapir split up for a month but decided to recommit to their partnership.[8] They won gold at the 2012 Ice Challenge and then won bronze, their first Grand Prix medal, at the 2012 NHK Trophy.[9] They won their first national title at the 2013 U.S. Championships.[8] They were assigned to the 2013 Four Continents and won the bronze medal.

Castelli/Shnapir won their second national title at the 2014 U.S. Championships and were named in the U.S. team to the 2014 Winter Olympics, held in February in Sochi, Russia. They won a bronze medal in the team event and placed 9th in the pairs event. In March, Castelli/Shnapir finished 11th at the 2014 World Championships in Saitama, Japan. They announced the end of their partnership on May 7, 2014.[10][11]

Partnership with Leng

On May 28, 2014, the Associated Press reported that Shnapir had teamed up with DeeDee Leng.[12] They were coached by Bobby Martin and Carrie Wall at the Skating Club of Boston.[5] For the 2014-2015 Grand Prix season, they were assigned to Rostelecom Cup and NHK Trophy.[13] After having placed 6th and 8th at these competitions, respectively, Leng and Shnapir placed 8th at the 2015 U.S. Championships.[14]

On April 2015, Leng suffered a season-ending concussion during a practice session.[15] On June 30, 2015, Shnapir announced his retirement from competitions.[16]

Programs

With Leng

Season Short program Free skating
2014-2015
[17]

With Castelli

Season Short program Free skating Exhibition
2013–2014
[18]
2012–2013
[19][20]
  • Payadora
    by Julian Plaza
    choreo. by Julie Marcotte
2011–2012
[21]
2010–2011
[22]
  • Money
    by Pink Floyd
  • For the Love of Money
    by the O'Jays
2009–2010
[6][23]
  • Prelude
  • Quadukka-l-Mayyas
    by Jesse Cook
2008–2009
[24]		 Survivor: Guatemala
by Russ Landau:
  • Wild Dogs
  • The Gathering
  • Ancient Voices of Guatemala
2007–2008
[6]
  • Gladiator
    by Hans Zimmer, Lisa Gerrard
2006–2007
[6]
  • Mon Enfant
    by George Winston
  • Salome
    by Richard Strauss

Competitive highlights

With Leng

International[14]
Event 2014–15
GP NHK Trophy 6th
GP Rostelecom Cup 8th
National[14]
U.S. Championships 8th
GP = Grand Prix; TBD = Assigned

With Castelli

Results[6][25]
International
Event 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14
Olympics 9th
Worlds 13th 11th
Four Continents 10th 3rd
GP Bompard 7th
GP NHK Trophy 7th 3rd 4th
GP Skate America 6th 5th 6th
GP Skate Canada 4th
Ice Challenge 1st
Ondrej Nepela 4th
U.S. Classic 4th
International: Junior
Junior Worlds 3rd
JGP Final 6th
JGP Czech Rep. 4th
JGP Estonia 10th
JGP Great Britain 4th
National
U.S. Champ. 9th N. 3rd N. 3rd J. 10th 5th 5th 1st 1st
East. Sectionals 4th N. 1st N. 1st
Team events
Olympics 3rd
World Team 1T/5P
GP = Grand Prix; JGP = Junior Grand Prix
Levels: N. = Novice; J. = Junior
T = Team result; P = Personal result; Medals awarded for team result only.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Cohen, Rachel (January 30, 2014). "US Olympic pairs skater Shnapir returns to Russia". Associated Press.
  2. 1 2 Mittan, Barry (January 8, 2009). "Castelli and Shnapir Top U.S. Pairs in Junior Grand Prix series". SkateToday. Retrieved July 30, 2011.
  3. 1 2 Walker, Elvin (January 3, 2013). "Door wide open for Castelli and Shnapir". Golden Skate.
  4. ↑
  5. 1 2 Brannen, Sarah S. (June 4, 2014). "Leng, Shnapir set sights on 2018 Olympic Games". IceNetwork.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Marissa Castelli / Simon Shnapir". IceNetwork.; Older versions: Archived February 11, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.; Archived April 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ↑ Schwartz, Jason (January 2014). "Q&A: Simon Shnapir & Marissa Castelli". Boston Magazine.
  8. 1 2 Clarke, Liz (January 26, 2013). "U.S. Figure Skating Championships: Simon Shnapir and Marissa Castelli win pairs; Maryl Davis and Charlie White dominate ice dancing". Washington Post.
  9. ↑ Pave, Martin (December 6, 2012). "Figure skaters Shnapir and Castelli having a breakout season". Boston Globe.
  10. ↑ "Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir End Partnership". U.S. Figure Skating. May 7, 2014.
  11. ↑ Rosewater, Amy (May 8, 2014). "Castelli, Shnapir get off 'emotional roller coaster'". IceNetwork.
  12. ↑ "Leng joins Olympian Shnapir as pair". Associated Press. May 28, 2014.
  13. ↑ "2014-15 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating - Pairs" (PDF). July 22, 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 "Competition Results: Dee Dee LENG / Simon SHNAPIR". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015.
  15. ↑ Rosewater, Amy (February 8, 2016). "Concussions in figure skating: How to treat them". IceNetwork.
  16. ↑ "Two-time U.S. pairs champion Shnapir retires" (Press release). U.S. Figure Skating. June 30, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Dee Dee LENG / Simon SHNAPIR: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. April 10, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR: 2013/2014". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 8, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 20, 2013.
  20. ↑ Rutherford, Lynn (January 15, 2013). "Road to Omaha: Door open for Castelli, Shnapir". IceNetwork.
  21. ↑ "Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 19, 2012.
  22. ↑ "Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR: 2010/2011". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 16, 2011.
  23. ↑ "Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on October 20, 2009.
  24. ↑ "Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR: 2008/2009". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009.
  25. ↑ "Competition Results: Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 8, 2014.

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