Roman Zaretsky Israeli figure skater Date of Birth: 04.12.1983 Country: Israel

1. Roman Zaretsky
2. Early Life and Career
3. Training and Coaching
4. International Success
5. Olympic Representation
6. Retirement and Post-Career

Roman Zaretsky

Roman Zaretsky is a renowned Israeli figure skater who excelled in ice dancing with his sister, Alexandra Zaretsky. As a duo, they achieved remarkable success, including three Israeli national championships, a victory at the 2009 Winter Universiade, and participation in two Winter Olympic Games: Turin in 2006 and Vancouver in 2010.

Early Life and Career

Born in Belarus, Zaretsky immigrated to Israel with his family in 1991. His skating journey began with single skating under the guidance of Vladimir Klochok in Minsk. In 1995, he switched to ice dancing and formed a partnership with his sister, Alexandra. Together, they trained under their parents, Elena and Igor, until 2001.

Training and Coaching

In 2001, the Zaretskys moved to Wilmington, Delaware, for training with Irina Romanova and Igor Yaroshenko. After returning to Israel in 2003 due to Roman's military service, they continued their training under their mother. In 2005, they began training with Evgeni Platov.

In 2008, Nikolai Morozov became their coach, assisted primarily by Galit Chait. Zaretsky and his sister remained with Chait when she established her own coaching practice.

International Success

Roman and Alexandra Zaretsky became the first Israeli athletes to win International Olympic Committee medals in winter sports through the European Olympic Youth Festival in Bled, Slovenia. They also achieved podium finishes at various junior Grand Prix stages and qualified for junior Grand Prix finals.

Olympic Representation

The Zaretskys represented Israel at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, placing 22nd. In 2009, they claimed gold at the Winter Universiade, marking Israel's first gold medal in a Universiade event.

They qualified for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, where they placed 10th. At that year's World Championships, they secured a career-best sixth place finish.

Retirement and Post-Career

After the 2010 season, the Zaretskys retired from competitive skating due to lack of funding from the Israeli figure skating federation. Currently, Roman and Alexandra focus on coaching.