{"id":3271,"date":"2015-07-23T00:47:20","date_gmt":"2015-07-23T00:47:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/2015\/07\/23\/tobias-returns-to-the-ice-with-tkachenko\/"},"modified":"2015-07-23T00:47:20","modified_gmt":"2015-07-23T00:47:20","slug":"tobias-returns-to-the-ice-with-tkachenko","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/tobias-returns-to-the-ice-with-tkachenko\/","title":{"rendered":"Tobias returns to the ice with Tkachenko"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"14SWD-4554Photos by Robin Ritoss<\/em><\/p>\n

Sometimes you must go back to go forward.<\/p>\n

Isabella Tobias & Ilya Tkachenko skated together briefly in 2008.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we tried out that summer, and he decided he wanted to skate with me, it was a dream come true,\u201d Tobias said. <\/p>\n

Potential citizenship issues caused the team to go their separate ways after only six months.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat January, Ilya\u02bcs coach decided it would be in Ilya\u02bcs best interest to skate with a partner that had Russian citizenship,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cAt the time it was absolutely devastating to me, and I was sad about it for a long time. Looking back on it now, with all of my citizenship struggles, I can understand where his coach was coming from.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two years later, Tobias teamed up with Deividas Stagniunas, a four-time Lithuanian national champion with a competitive international resume. Stagniunas had been paired with American Katherine Copely, but the two had parted ways in 2010 after an injury led Copely to retirement. <\/p>\n

Copely had applied for Lithuanian citizenship after the team had earned a spot at the 2010 Olympic Games, but her request was denied and the spot went unfilled.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Tobias applied for Lithuanian citizenship in October 2012. After being interviewed by the Citizenship Commission and passing the Lithuanian language test, she was denied citizenship <\/p>\n

by Dalia Grybauskaite, the President of Lithuania, in January 2013. Despite this off-ice setback, Tobias and Stagniunas finished 15th at the 2013 World Championships, earning Lithuania an ice dance spot at the 2014 Olympic Games. <\/p>\n

\"14SWD-4520That fall, Tobias read an article that stated that the first alternate to the Olympic Games would likely have an opportunity to compete, since Tobias would not receive her Lithuanian citizenship. <\/p>\n

\u201cI remember calling my parents before the free dance at Skate America, hysterical, asking them what the point was, that everyone was counting us out,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cI can\u02bct even describe it, the feeling that I had no control over my own destiny, over a spot at the Olympics that Deividas and I had proven we deserved.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the last minute, Grybauskaite had a change of heart and granted Tobias\u02bc citizenship request in December 2013. <\/p>\n

\u201cI thought at first someone was pulling a mean prank on me when the messages started pouring in that I had gotten my citizenship,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cFrom that point on, Deividas and I were just so grateful, we kind of floated on air for the rest of the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite her struggles with the citizenship process, Tobias remains philosophical.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore and more partnerships are becoming of mixed nationality, out of necessity,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cI hope, eventually, that the Olympic rules adjust to accommodate this growing trend. Plus, I really do think that two people from two totally different parts of the globe coming together and forming a team is very symbolic of what the Olympic Games represent\u2014global unity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tobias & Stagniunas finished 17th at their Olympic debut, but Tobias left Sochi with so much more. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy Olympic experience is something I will be grateful for the rest of my life,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cCompetition-wise, I was not focused on results or pressure or anything like that, I just wanted to soak in and live every moment to the fullest. The Olympics, to me, are about much more than results.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two weeks after the World Championships, where they finished 15th, Tobias & Stagniunas met with coach Igor Shpilband. Stagniunas announced his plans to retire due to injuries. <\/p>\n

\u201cI spent the next week searching my soul, trying to decide if I felt I had closure with the dream I had followed my whole life,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cI ultimately decided that I would like to continue on through the next Olympic cycle, but wasn\u02bct sure there were any partners available to make that possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Re-enter Ilya Tkachenko, whose partnership with Ekaterina Riazanova had also ended. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have always thought that Ilya is one of the most talented male ice dancers in the world, and he was the first person that came to mind when thinking of prospective people to skate with,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cIgor and I made a total leap of faith by calling him.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cI was done skating with Katya. I was thinking about what to do, keep skating or start coaching,\u201d Tkachenko said. \u201cI did choreography for pairs skaters in my hometown, and then I went on vacation to Egypt. Igor called me the first day there. I knew that Isabella is very talented skater and Igor is my favorite coach, so I said yes, and right after Egypt, I flew to Detroit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"14SWD-4623\u201cThe fact that Ilya came out of retirement to skate with me is something that makes me believe in myself more and more every day,\u201d Tobias added. \u201cI am very lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because they switched countries, Tobias & Tkachenko had to sit out last season. With one year of training already completed, they are eager to make their competitive debut. Although they have not yet decided which competition it will be, they hope to debut this summer.<\/p>\n

Their short dance will be set to Disney\u02bcs \u201cCinderella,\u201d weaving music from both the most recent release (2015) and the original classic, while their free dance is to \u201cPolovtsian Dances\u201d from the opera \u201cPrince Igor.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cIlya\u02bcs character is Prince Igor, while I portray a Polovtsian slave,\u201d Tobias said. \u201cIlya thought of the short and I thought of the free. We always joke that we are shocked that our own Prince Igor (Shpilband) did not think of our free dance himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team will represent Israel, which came as a surprise to some. Tobias has represented Lithuania for the past four seasons, while Tkachenko has represented Russia throughout his entire career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am of Jewish heritage on both sides of my family; Israel is my ancient homeland,\u201d Tobias said.  \u201cI can think of no greater honor than representing the one and only Jewish state, a country so brave and with such soul.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u02bcs a new step in my life,\u201d Tkachenko added. \u201cI\u02bcm glad that I have a chance to start everything from the beginning. I\u02bcll do my best representing Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though a coincidental sequence of events brought them back to each other and a new partnership six years later, they are both appreciative of their past partnerships and what the future holds for them as a team going forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always say, everything happens for a reason in life, and I cherish the years I skated with Deividas,\u201d Tobias said. <\/p>\n

\u201cWithout that mistake of stopping skating with Isabella I would probably never have met my wife, but I\u02bcm happy that life gave a chance to correct that mistake,\u201d Tkachenko added.<\/p>\n

 Tobias & Tkachenko will make their debut as a team at the Lake Placid Ice Dance International<\/em> next week.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photos by Robin Ritoss Sometimes you must go back to go forward. Isabella Tobias & Ilya Tkachenko skated together briefly in 2008. \u201cWhen we tried out that summer, and he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6039,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_gspb_post_css":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3271","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-interviews"],"blocksy_meta":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=957%2C566&ssl=1","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=957%2C566&ssl=1",957,566,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=150%2C150&ssl=1",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=300%2C177&ssl=1",300,177,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=768%2C454&ssl=1",768,454,true],"large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=957%2C566&ssl=1",957,566,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=957%2C566&ssl=1",957,566,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=957%2C566&ssl=1",957,566,true],"et-pb-post-main-image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?resize=400%2C250&ssl=1",400,250,true],"et-pb-post-main-image-fullwidth":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?resize=957%2C566&ssl=1",957,566,true],"et-pb-portfolio-image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?resize=400%2C284&ssl=1",400,284,true],"et-pb-portfolio-module-image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?resize=510%2C382&ssl=1",510,382,true],"et-pb-portfolio-image-single":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?fit=957%2C566&ssl=1",957,566,true],"et-pb-gallery-module-image-portrait":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?resize=400%2C516&ssl=1",400,516,true],"rpwe-thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Articles.jpg?resize=45%2C45&ssl=1",45,45,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Team IDC","author_link":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/author\/idcadmin\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Photos by Robin Ritoss Sometimes you must go back to go forward. Isabella Tobias & Ilya Tkachenko skated together briefly in 2008. \u201cWhen we tried out that summer, and he […]","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7GOSM-QL","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3271","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3271"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3271\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6039"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3271"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3271"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ice-dance.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3271"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}