Four figure skaters from Minnesota flew out from a development camp two days before others in their community boarded a commercial airliner in Wichita, Kan., that collided Wednesday night with a military helicopter near Reagan International Airport in Washington, D.C.
4 Minnesota skaters left national camp 2 days before others in their community died in D.C. plane crash
USA Figure Skating: “Figure skating is more than a sport — it’s a close-knit family — and we stand together.”
The Minnesota Star Tribune
January 30, 2025 at 11:17PM
The 14-person skating contingent made up of athletes, family and coaches were among the 60 passengers and four crew members on the American Airlines plane when it crossed paths with a three-person Blackhawk helicopter over the Potomac River. Everyone on both aircraft, which landed in the frigid waters, is presumed dead.
The skaters and their supporters were returning from National Development Camp, which was held in conjunction with last week’s U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
The skaters in Wichita from Minnesota were junior pair Reagan Moss, of Minnetonka, and Jakub Galbavy, who lives in Shakopee and is from Slovakia; and novice pair Alena Kerr, of Shakopee, and Mitchell Castelletti, of Roseville, Moss’ mother told the Minnesota Star Tribune.
“We arrived home, thankfully, on Monday,” said Ann Moss. “We are just devastated to hear the news.”
The skaters’ coach, Trudy Oltmanns, said Thursday afternoon that “U.S. Figure Skating and the skating world as a whole is a very close, tight-knit family. This horrific tragedy is being felt by our friends, colleagues and families in all corners of the world. All we can do is send healing thoughts and prayers to all the families affected and allow them privacy in their time of grief.”
On Jan. 21, Moss and Galbavy finished first in the junior pairs competition. That same day, Kerr and Castelletti won novice pairs.
“We are heartbroken to learn that figure skaters, along with their families, friends and coaches, are understood to be among those on board,” U.S. Figure Skating, the sport’s governing body, said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this tragedy.
“Figure skating is more than a sport — it’s a close-knit family — and we stand together.”
If everyone aboard the plane was killed, it would be the deadliest U.S. airline crash since Nov. 12, 2001, when an American Airlines flight crashed into a residential area of Belle Harbor, N.Y., just after takeoff from Kennedy Airport, killing all 260 people aboard.
This story contains material from the Associated Press.
Defendant Makayla April Sua Richardson was not yet old enough to drink legally at the time of the crash and was not licensed to drive alone.
