Naumov heading to Olympics

The Skating Club of Boston (SCB) hosted a watch party on Saturday at the Castle Island Brewery where Norwood resident Maxim Naumov skated his way to the U.S. Olympic Team.

Naumov, originally from Hartford, Connecticut, placed third in the championship on Saturday and won placement in the U.S. Olympic Figure Skating Team on Sunday. He said afterwards that this was one of the last things he talked about with his father, Vadim Naumov, before he and his wife Evgenia Shiskova passed away when American Airlines Flight 5342 collided with a U.S. Army helicopter at Reagan National Airport on Jan. 29 of last year.

“We absolutely did it,” Naumov said later in a press conference. “Every day, year after year, we talked about the Olympics. It means so much in our family. It's what I've been thinking about since I was 5 years old, before I even know what to think. I can't put this into words.”

Naumov later said in a statement that this means the world to him and also to his parents.

“My parents, what we talked about and how much we discussed this through my entire life, and how much it means to us, and how much the Olympics is part of our family. I thought of them immediately. I wish they could be here to experience it with me, but I do feel their presence, and they are with me.”

Naumov performed in St. Louis on Saturday and won a score of 249.16 for third place in the Men’s Singles event on Saturday. He also placed fourth in the Men’s Short Program with a score of 85.72 that Thursday.

SCB Skaters Emily Chan and Spencer Howe were also named to the Olympic Team.

“We are shocked,” said Spencer Howe. “This whole competition was just filled with a lot of roller coasters. As things have moved through the competition, all I can say is so many miracles have been happening throughout it. I’ve got to thank God at this point.”

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Danny O’Shea “We want to go out there and skate the way we know we can, but at the same time experience skating across those Olympic rings, looking at the crowd at the Olympics, experiencing having our families with us, having achieved the dream of our 4-year-old selves.”

“Our entire Club community is thrilled that Max, Emily and Spencer have made the Olympic team and will be representing the Club, the Town of Norwood, the City of Boston and the United States at the upcoming games in Milan,” said Doug Zeghibe, CEO and Executive Director of The Skating Club of Boston. “These kids fought so hard for their places on the team and we are incredibly proud of them. They are what it means to be an Olympian.”

SCB skater Jimmy Ma placed fourth in the Men’s Free Skate on Saturday with a score of 150.15. SCB skater Sophie Joline von Felten placed 10th on Thursday in the Women’s Short Program, and on Wednesday, Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov took first place in the Pairs Short Program with 75.31.

Zeghibe said the club was proud of the pair’s accomplishments at the show.

“We are incredibly proud of what Alisa and Misha accomplished at these U.S. Championships. They truly are champions – both on and off the ice. We are equally disappointed they will not be joining Team USA in Milan. But we look forward to them representing the United States at the 2026 ISU World Championships in Prague. I think they have a lot more to accomplish and to show the world what they can do as a pair.”

Though they won their division at the U.S. Championships, the pair is not eligible for Team USA due to Alisa Efimova’s citizenship status.

For the watch party, which SCB Events Manager Kelly Flaherty said was the first in-person event the club had partnered with Castle Island on, the two organizations were promoting a new beer from the brewery called Five Ringer. A portion of the sales of the beer will go to the Always Champions campaign, which is designed to raise money for remembrances and scholarships in the names of the SCB skaters lost in the 2025 plane crash.

The SCB will be supporting scholarships in the names of skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, who perished in the crash. Han’s mother Jin Hee Han, Lane’s mother Christine Lane, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova will also be memorialized at the club.

Flaherty said the fundraising for the scholarships and memorials is moving along.

“It’s going really well,” Flaherty said on Saturday. “We have two folks who have been selected to run the Boston Marathon. They’re literally hitting the ground running for the remaining funds.”

For more information on the program, go to https://scboston.org/always-champions/

Residents from all over came out to support Naumov’s bid on Saturday at the brewery. Resident Terryon Fagan said she’s not even much of a figure skating enthusiast, but regardless she came down with her children from Gloucester because it looked like it was going to be a fun time.

“I used to watch it on the Olympics, but it’s been a long time,” she said. “We needed something to do on the weekend, and it was on Eventbrite, and we thought it looked like a good time.”

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Nico Cohen and Catherine Copeland said they came to support the Club. Cohen said they help design and fit the skaters’ uniforms at the club and felt compelled to support the team in this major competition.

“I should be even more of a fan because I personally know Maxim and Jimmy,” they said. “I actually did Maxim’s costumes for the last couple of seasons – not this season – but I’ve also done Will Annis’, and I’ve worked with a lot of them. Those are my boys! Those are my lads! I’ve got to support them.”

Cohen said comfort is the crucial thing when putting the costumes together. They said movement needs to come as naturally as possible to perform the intricate and dexterous maneuvers required for the sport.

“They need to feel supported by the costume and how they feel is really important,” they said. “Also if they feel they look good, they skate better.”

Copeland said she’s excited that events like this help to bring skating to the forefront.

“It’s always just been a small community of people who watch it, but it’s so exciting to watch, especially when it’s your people skating,” she said. “When I first started watching, I mean I watched it just to understand what was happening. It’s so confusing, let alone the politics around it. But just being able to support it like this is amazing.”

Resident and SCB member Paulina Duarte said she learned under Alisa Efimova – who is also a coach at the Club – since Duarte joined the club four years ago.

“I’m a big supporter of hers,” she said.

Duarte said she felt it was encouraging to see figure skating promoted at a place like Castle Island Brewery.

“I’ve been here before for a game night pre-pandemic, but as someone who doesn’t really follow professional sports, I can’t wait to see all the energy here when the magic happens,” she said. “But it’s just great to see everybody outside the skating club and support the Five Rings fundraising efforts. It’s a real fine community here.”