After 3 successful years at the juvenile and intermediate levels, Danielle and Alex place 5th in their first appearance at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships at the novice level.
As some of you know, Danielle and Alex's 2009-10 season didn't begin in the typical fashion of a brief rest after winning at Junior Nationals in December 2008. It began with a two month layoff to enable Danielle to recuperate from a broken pelvic bone.
Because of their Junior National win at the intermediate level in Lake Placid, Danielle and Alex advanced to the novice level for the 2009-10 season.
Already two months behind in training by March 2009, their coaches Alexander Esman and Evgeny Platov created an aggressive strategy to get them prepared for their first major competition, the Lake Placid Ice Dance Championships in August 2009.
As we posted earlier, the strategy worked; they won a gold and silver medal. Their next competition was the Philadelphia Challenge Cup in September 2009. Again, they were on the platform with a gold and a bronze medal. The Gamelin's were all very excited with their progress. But the excitement was short lived.
As we walked back to our car after the end of competition in the evening, Danielle stepped into a hole in the pavement and twisted her ankle so badly it tore a ligament in her ankle and ruptured a tendon in her foot. We thought this was the end of their season. We were so upset. But Danielle was determined to endure painful therapy and began training again in late October. The problem was it was just three weeks before the Eastern Championsips in Newark, Delaware.
Again, Danielle and Alex rose to the occasion. They were training so hard; Donna and Lee just kept quiet and hoped they wouldn't be too disappointed if they didn't qualify for Nationals. Their hard work paid off, and Danielle and Alex won the silver medal; missing gold by a mere 0.05 points, and qualified for their first U.S. Championships.
They were already winners, because only the top 12 novice ice dance teams in the U.S. make it to the U.S. Championships, and Danielle and Alex worked through so much to qualify. Their 5th place finish at Nationals capped an otherwise tumultuous season, and we're so proud of our children for their vision, persistence and determination.
Danielle and Alex will be advancing to the junior level for the 2010-2011 season and have been selected for U.S. Figure Skating's Development International Team for the second year running, and may qualify for the International Selection Pool to represent the U.S. in international competition. What a season!
A very special thanks to all who support us in this incredible adventure; especially those who have been so generous financially. Now on to another season!
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