Maxim Naumov began figure skating because of his parents. Almost exactly one year after losing both of them in a plane crash, he will make his Olympic debut for Team USA.
Naumov, 24, was with his parents, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas in January 2025, but they stayed behind after his fourth-place finish to attend a developmental clinic.
Vadim and Evgenia flew home on American Eagle Flight 5342, which was involved in a mid-air collision with a Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. They were among the 67 people who died in the accident.
In the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, Maxim did not know if he would ever lace up a pair of skates again, let alone compete on the world’s biggest stage.
Figure Skater Left Wichita Just Days Before Parents Died in Plane Crash
“All I wanted to do in that moment was lay in my bed or lay on my couch and just rot, essentially,” Maxim told The New York Times in January. “And it was a moment where I knew that the complete opposite of that was the path.”
As the weeks went on, Maxim surrounded himself with family friends from his hometown of Simsbury, Connecticut, making sure he had company 24 hours a day.
“I know a couple who is with him right now,” said Ekaterina “Katia” Gordeeva, a former teammate and close friend of Maxim’s parents, in a February 2025 interview with People. “They weren’t even in Washington yet, but … that morning [of the plane crash], we all connected right away, all the people from Simsbury.”
Though it took him a while to skate again, he was quick to take the mantle from his parents in leading their development program for children in Boston. By watching them, he was reminded of the passion he had for the sport since he first stepped onto the ice at age 5.
Figure Skaters Evgenia Shishkova, Vadim Naumov’s Relationship Timeline
Fittingly, he qualified for the Olympics by returning to the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in January 2026, this time in St. Louis. He placed third, earning a spot on the team.
Maxim brought a photo of his parents to the press conference after the event and held it up for the cameras.
“We did it,” he said. “We did it together.”
Maxim added that he thought of his parents “immediately” when he learned he had qualified.
“I wish they could be here to experience it with me, but I do feel their presence, and they are with me,” he said.
Maxim added, “I came into this competition thinking how grateful I am to even have the ability to compete and the fact that I overcame so, so much. Looking back, even not being able to lace up my skates and not knowing if I was going to compete, let alone skate, what I did [Saturday] — I don’t even have the words, honestly, of just what I had to overcome to be here.”
14 Figure Skaters Killed in American Airlines Plane Crash: ‘Lost Family’
Two weeks later, on the one year anniversary of his parents’ deaths, Maxim remembered them with a tribute via Instagram.
“It’s hard to believe that it’s already been one full year. The most difficult year of my entire life,” he wrote alongside a photo of them. “I still find myself waking up some days and just wondering why? How could this all have happened? For what reason? Why were they taken away from me so soon?”
He continued, “Unfortunately, there are always more questions than answers. But, despite all of that I get ready, put on my coat and head out the door. Every. Single. Day. Because I have a job to do. I am quickly reminded of the goal we set out to achieve when I was 5 years old. Together. As a family.”
