Pidgaina & Koval Close Junior Career with Podium Finish

Photos by Yoriko Suzuki & Robin Ritoss

In a season shaped by resilience and growth, Ukrainian ice dancers Iryna Pidgaina and Artem Koval have established themselves as one of the most compelling young teams on the international stage. After capping their final junior season with a bronze medal at the World Junior Championships, the team was interviewed by Team IDC.

Tell us about your individual figure skating journeys. What drew you to ice dance?

Iryna Pidgaina (IP): I started skating at four years old. I never did singles. I started right away with ice dance. At seven, I tried ice dance with a partner in Odessa. I had three partners before skating with Artem.

Artem Koval: (AK): It all started when I was eight years old. I have a sister. She was often sick as a child, and doctors advised her to take up figure skating for her health. On the day she was supposed to go to practice, she fell ill, and to avoid missing out on a spot in the group, my mother suggested I try it out. As soon as I started skating, I realized I really loved it and was good at it. After that practice, I approached my mother and told her I wanted to take up figure skating. And so began my fascinating journey into the world of figure skating.

What attracts me to figure skating and ice dance is the grace, the beauty of execution, the lines, the individuality and beauty of the costumes, the musical variability, the competitive spirit, the competitive experience, the large number of new acquaintances, and of course, how I feel on the ice—a feeling that cannot be described in words.

How did the two of you first decide to team up?

IP:  We were skating in the same school all our careers, just with other partners. When Artem came back from Kharkiv to Odessa, he and his partner decided to break up. Our previous coach decided to put us in a couple that’s it!

You started your partnership in your home country of Ukraine, but had to relocate to Austria because of the war. Can you talk about how you moved to Austria and the challenges of leaving your homes to train there? 

IP: Leaving all your life behind and start everything over again it’s always hard 

But skating helped to find a way through this dark and difficult situation. Everything that happens in our country is heart breaking. My dad is still in Ukraine so I really miss him. Because of the season, I see him only one time in a year.

AK: This move was quite difficult and daunting, as we didn’t know where we were going, why, or what awaited us. I took only a few things with me, one bag with everything I needed: skates, clothes, documents, and a computer. Ira and I first moved to Moldova, where we stayed for a month, hoping that everything would soon be over and we could return to our previous lives. But a month later, the situation hadn’t improved at all, and it was only getting worse, until our coach, Galina Churilova, contacted us and said there was an opportunity to move to Vienna and continue our shared story. After some consideration and weighing the pros and cons, we decided to move to Austria to continue our life’s work and achieve our goals.

Can you tell us about your coaches and choreographers. and the role they play in your program development?

IP: Everyday we work with our coach Galina Churilova. Her passion and energy inspires us to work and grow. She was there for us supporting and making this story together. We love her! She’s doing a fantastic job. Also, Alexandra (Sasha) Nazarova and Maxim Nikitin, it’s such a pleasure to work with them. Most of the time we have lots of fun during choreographing programs.

AK: First, Ira and I simply share with the entire team the music options we’d like to use. Then we go through what we call a “refining process.” Our coach and choreographers eliminate options that don’t align with Ira’s and my vision, and then select the most suitable one. If no suitable options are found, they suggest their own.

Next, the choreographers and I begin creating the program’s framework, arranging all the elements and transitions, and refine it slightly, adding arm movements and accents. Then, after working with Sasha and Maxim, us and our coach, Galina Churilova begin working on refining the program, its appearance, the quality of execution, straightening the lines, and smoothing out any irregularities. After this, a few months later, we present the “product” on stage. After this, throughout the season, refinements and adjustments are made, and towards the end of the season, as a rule, the program becomes fully completed and balanced.

Tell us about your programs this season. What inspired your music choices and overall themes?

IP: Backstreet Boys was Alexandra’s offer. She said it even before we knew rules and we all said it’s the best choice for us. We loved to perform it, also the costumes this season was our accent, we wanted to have something unique and memorable.

AK: It’s also a new style for us—hip-hop. In this program, we decided to try to emphasize the dance part rather than the gliding. Overall, we’re happy with what we put out.

For the free dance this season, we wanted to try something new, something that wasn’t essential to us. We chose the musical Moulin Rouge. Ira and I listened to all the tracks from the musical together and really enjoyed them. Afterward, our entire team approved the tracks we would use in the production. As for the characters, we chose two main characters: I played Harold Zidler, and Ira played Satine. The idea of the program was to show the beginning of the musical, the beginning of the story, bringing the joy, fun, and madness of the Moulin Rouge to the audience.

We were super excited because it was something new. We did a lot of new lifts and new elements, plus the music was amazing and you wanted to listen to it all the time, there were a lot of funny moments, and we put together the program itself very quickly. Overall, we’re happy with what we put out.

Is there a competition performance that stands out as a breakthrough moment for you as a team (so far)?

AK: The coolest and most amazing performance of the entire season was our last performance at the Junior World Championships, which everyone, including ourselves, was thrilled about. In it, we accomplished everything we’d worked on all season and, in my opinion, evoked the emotions we wanted. If we speak about all the years together, then it’s definitely gold medal at the Junior Grand Prix in Budapest in 2023.

This season, Iryna was sick with a serious illness and you weren’t sure you were going to be able to compete. How did your relationship grow during this time as you (Artem) were supporting Iryna?

AK: It was a shock for us. Ira stayed in the hospital for about two weeks. During that entire time, I visited her regularly and was always there and helped in any way I could. Sometimes, I even spent the night in the hospital. My priority was to help Ira recover quickly and recuperate both physically and mentally. I tried to support her as much as possible, talking to her frequently about various topics.

Congratulations on winning the bronze medal at the 2026 World Junior Championships! What were your emotions when you saw your final score and realized you were on the podium?

IP: It was an amazing feeling. I started to cry. I couldn’t imagine how far I could go cause a year ago almost exactly in the same days a got into the hospital with a really serious sickness which could stop my skating career, so my emotions were just on a high level.

AK: Our first emotion was pure delight. We worked so hard to achieve this medal, we’d been through so much. For us, this was pure happiness and delight—for us, for our team, which supported us through thick and thin, and our team’s result is our collective result. And it was even more special to realize that 11 years ago, in this arena, our choreographers also won bronze.

Looking back on the event, what moments from the competition stand out the most to each of you?

IP: All of this event we enjoyed so much. Our last JWC were so memorable.

AK: For me, this competition was unforgettable from start to finish, as it was our last Junior World Championships. I enjoyed every day, every minute. This competition was a major event in my life.

This was the final competition and the close of your junior ice dance career. What will you take from this season as you prepare for your first senior season?

IP: This season was hard, absolutely, but we realized how important we are to each other, how important our team is for us and only by holding together we can grow and build our senior career.

AK: Of course, all our valuable experience, because over the past four years we’ve accumulated a wealth of knowledge that will be useful to us in the future. And all the pleasant memories that will warm us and motivate us.

As seniors next year, what do you think will be the biggest challenge? 

IP: Being seniors it’s always about improving and getting better, what was enough in juniors will be less in seniors, so we would like to show on a strong senior skating

AK: The main challenge will be to not lose face, skate a very good season and make a good debut.

How has your partnership evolved since you first teamed up?

Our relationship has evolved greatly; we’ve grown together as individuals, become more empathetic and gentler towards each other. We’ve gone from being just partners to best friends, always ready to help each other.

What does it mean to you to represent Ukraine on the international stage?

IP: We are proud to represent our country and show how strong our nation is. Our people, soldiers, every person which went and going through this tough times for our beautiful country are the strongest people in the world.

AK: It’s a great honor for us to represent Ukraine on the international stage, to have the Ukrainian anthem played on the international stage. It’s important for us, especially in times like these, to show that Ukraine and its people are very strong, that we have wonderful and capable athletes who shouldn’t be underestimated, and that we are a voice for our country, a voice that will be heard and never forgotten. Slava Ukraini!

If you could have a lesson with any ice dancer past/present, who would it be? 

IP: I would take a lesson with Tessa Virtue. 

AK: I would like this lesson to take place with a figure skating master, with GOAT, with Guillaume Cizeron, I would like to learn from him everything he can do. Because for me this man is God, he can do everything, his skating skills are mesmerizing, his movements, tenderness, quality, all the basic criteria of figure skating he has multiplied them all a hundredfold, when he skates, it is impossible to take your eyes off him.

What’s one word that best describes your partnership?

IP: Emotions. We are both really emotional in many ways – we [are] arguing, crying, laughing.

AK: Crazy!!!!

You can follow Iryna and Artem on their team Instagram account. The team also has a GoFundMe campaign to assist them with training expenses.