Kirstyn Nanista will return to the U.S. Figure Skating Junior Nationals in December for the second straight year. The difference this year is that she will enter the national competition armed with soaring confidence and an impressive double Axel.
Kirstyn, a 12-year-old from Norwalk who attends St. Aloysius School in New Canaan, finished second in the North Atlantic Regional championships for intermediate level skaters earlier this month in Lake Placid, N.Y. Kirstyn finished seventh last year in regionals and 18th in the nation. The difference this year is her double Axel, skating's most difficult jump. "They say,'' Kirstyn says, "that it separates the boys from the men." Kirstyn started practicing the jump earlier this year.
"It was in August when I finally had it,'' she said. "It's like you get it, then you lose it, then you get it back. I landed them in the competition, and it was amazing."
Kirstyn started skating at Terry Conners Rink in Stamford when she was a toddler and has been competing since was 4. Her mother, Rose, who teaches skating at Conners, started her in the sport. Kirstyn now travels to Hackensack, N.J., and works with some of the sport's top coaches, including Steven Rice, Wendy Weston, spin coach Sarah Beth, choreographer Chika Maratu and Robin Wagner. She credits her training in New Jersey with elevating her skating.
"The competitive atmosphere there really did it for me,'' Kirstyn says. "If I wasn't going there, I don't think I would've qualified."
Kirstyn's schedule is crammed with school and skating. On a typical day, she attends school from 8:25 a.m. to noon. Her mother or father, Jeff, then drives her to New Jersey, where she skates from 1 to 3 p.m. She does off-ice training when she returns to Connecticut before hitting the books for homework at 7 p.m. She also gets tutoring before school. "My teachers are amazing. They are so good about my skating and I really appreciate it,'' Kirstyn says. She also volunteers for community service programs and teaches skating to younger children. In 2008, she received St. Aloysius' Kindest Award, as voted by the school's faculty, for being the most helpful, kind and respectful student.
The young skater still has several levels to reach before she competes for the senior title. Kirstyn and her parents are committed to seeing how far she can go. More importantly, she still enjoys gliding and jumping on ice. "When I skate, I'm happy,'' Kirstyn says. "When you jump, it feels like you can fly. It's kind of hard to believe. Everything I trained for I'm finally able to do."
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