Olympic figure skater Tara Lipinski is mourning the deaths of those involved in the Wednesday, January 29, plane crash in Washington, D.C.
“My heart is broken for our skating community,” Lipinski, 42, wrote via her Instagram Stories on Thursday, January 30. “It’s unimaginable the loss. We will mourn their loss and ALWAYS remember them. My heart is with all the families affected — that part I have no words for.”
She continued, “‘Strength’ and ‘Love’ won’t do it justice. So many of our own were on this tragic flight and my heart aches for them and for everyone part of this devastating accident.”
News broke late on Wednesday that an American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas crashed in the Potomac River after a collision with a military helicopter. Several members of the U.S. Figure Skating Team were passengers.
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“U.S. Figure Skating can confirm that several members of our skating community were sadly aboard American Airlines Flight 5342, which collided with a helicopter yesterday evening in Washington, D.C.” a statement from the skating organization read. “These athletes, coaches and family members were returning home from National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas.”
Lipinski, who won a gold medal in the sport in 1998, had worked as a broadcaster during the national championship earlier this month alongside Terry Gannon and Johnny Weir. The fellow sportscasters have also addressed the tragedy.
“I’m praying for everyone affected by this tragic accident,” Weir, 40, wrote via his Instagram Stories on Thursday. “Members of our skating family were on that flight returning home from Nationals in Wichita. We mourn their loss and pray for their families and loved ones.”
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While names of the athletes on board the American Airlines flight weren’t immediately revealed, at least six of the passengers were presumably members of the Skating Club of Boston.
“Our sport and this Club have suffered a horrible loss with this tragedy,” Doug Zeghibe, the executive director of the Boston organization, wrote in a statement. “Skating is a tight-night community where parents and kids come together 6 or 7 days a week to train and work together. Everyone is like family. Of the skaters, coaches and parents on the plane, we believe six were from The Skating Club of Boston. We are devastated and completely at a loss for words.”
According to Zeghibe, the victims had been “returning from U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Camp following last week’s U.S. Championships in Wichita.” The camp is a training program for young competitive ice skaters.
