Mark Gorodnitsky

Israeli figure skater
1.71 m (5 ft 7+1⁄2 in)Figure skating careerCountry IsraelDisciplineMen's singlesCoachAndrei Berezintsev
Inga ZusevSkating clubIce Holon IsraelBegan skating2005
Israeli Championships
Gold medal – first place 2020 Holon Singles
Gold medal – first place 2022 Holon Singles
Gold medal – first place 2023 Holon Singles
Gold medal – first place 2024 Holon Singles
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Holon Singles
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Holon Singles

Mark Gorodnitsky (Hebrew: מארק גורודניצקי; born March 23, 2001) is an Israeli figure skater. He is the 2023 CS Nepela Memorial bronze medalist, the 2018 Volvo Open Cup silver medalist and a four-time Israeli national champion (2020, 2022-24).

Personal life

Gorodnitsky was born on March 23, 2001, in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada to a Latvian mother and Belarusian father. His sister, Maya, who is three years younger, has also competed in figure skating for Israel on the international junior level.[1][2]

Gorodnitsky graduated from Richmond Green Secondary School in 2019, where he was part of the high performance athlete program.[2]

Career

Early career

Gorodnitsky began learning to skate in 2005 at around the age of four, and has been coached by Andrei Berezintsev and Inga Zusev at the Richmond Training Centre in Richmond Hill, Ontario since the age of five.[2]

Due to Gorodnitsky's father, Dmitry, having previously lived in Israel for eight years, the Israel Ice Skating Federation reached out to Gorodnitsky's parents when Gorodnitsky was fourteen years old, asking if he would be interested in competing for Israel. Ultimately, Gorodnitsky agreed to the request.[2]

2015–16 season

He debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series in October 2015 at the 2015 JGP Croatia, placing twentieth. In February, he competed at the 2016 Winter Youth Olympics in Norway and finished 13th. He did not advance to the free skate at the 2016 World Junior Championships, held a month later in Debrecen, Hungary.[3]

2016–17 season

Gorodnitsky began the season by placing tenth and fifteenth, respectively at the 2016 JGP Japan and the 2016 JGP Germany. He then placed sixth at the 2016 Santa Claus Cup.[3]

At the 2016–17 Israeli Championships, Gorodnitsky won the bronze medal and was sent to compete at the 2017 European Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic but did not advance to the free skate, finishing thirtieth overall. He went on to compete at the 2017 World Junior Championships in Taipei, Taiwan, finishing twenty-second overall.[3]

2017–18 season

Gorodnitsky started the season with a seventh-place finish at the 2017 JGP Austria and tenth-place finish at the 2017 JGP Poland. He also finished ninth at the 2017 CS Autumn Classic International.[3]

He went on to win the gold medal at the 2017 Golden Spin of Zagreb on the junior level. At the 2017–18 Israeli Junior Championships, Gorodnitsky won the gold medal.[3]

He then competed at the 2018 World Junior Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, placing eighteenth in the short program, fourteenth in the free program, and fourteenth overall.[3]

2018–19 season

Gorodnitsky started the season competing at the 2018 JGP Austria and 2018 JGP Slovenia, placing seventh and sixth, respectively. He then placed ninth at the CS Autumn Classic International for the second year in a row.[3]

Gorodnitsky went on to win his first senior international medal, taking silver at the Volvo Open Cup. At the 2018–19 Israeli Championships, Gorodnitsky won his second national bronze medal.[3]

Competing at the 2019 World Junior Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, Gorodnitsky ranked fifteenth in the short program, eighteenth in the free skate, and seventeenth overall.[3]

2019–20 season

Gorodnitsky began his season competing on the Junior Grand Prix series, placing fifth at the 2019 JGP France and seventh at the 2019 JGP Croatia. He also competed at the 2019 CS Autumn Classic International, 2019 Denis Ten Memorial Challenge, and the 2019 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, respectively finishing seventh, fifth, and twelfth.[3]

At the 2019–20 Israeli Championships, Gorodnitsky won his first senior national title. He was then sent to compete at the 2020 European Championships in Graz, Austria, where he finished seventeenth.[3]

2020–21 season

Gorodnitsky was assigned to make his Grand Prix debut at the 2020 Skate Canada International, but the event was cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.[4] He did not compete for the rest of the reason.[3]

2021–22 season

Gorodnitsky began his season with an eleventh-place finish at the 2021 Cranberry Cup. He then went on to place eighth at the 2021 U.S. Classic, twentieth at the 2021 CS Warsaw Cup, and fifteenth at the 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb.[3]

At the 2021–22 Israeli Championships, Gorodnitsky won his second national title.[3]

Although assigned to compete at the 2022 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, Gorodnitsky ultimately withdrew from the event due to his coach testing positive for COVID-19.[5] At the 2022 International Challenge Cup, Gorodnitsky finished fourth.[3]

Making his World Championships debut in Montpellier, France, Gorodnitsky placed twenty-fifth in the short program, failing to advance to the free skate.[3]

2022–23 season

Gorodnitsky started the season by winning gold at the 2022 Cranberry Cup International. He went on to finish fourth at the 2022 CS U.S. Classic, ninth at the 2022 CS Warsaw Cup, and sixth at the 2022 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb.[3]

At the 2022–23 Israeli Championships, Gorodnitsky won his third national title.[3]

Competing at the 2023 European Championships in Espoo, Finland, Gorodnitsky finished thirteenth. He then went on to place sixth at the 2023 International Challenge Cup. At the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, Japan, Gorodnitsky skated a career best short and free program, ultimately finishing sixteenth at the event.[3]

2023–24 season

Gorodnitsky began the season by winning the gold medal at the 2023 Cranberry Cup International for a second consecutive time. Given two Challenger assignments, he came sixth at the 2023 CS Autumn Classic International before winning the bronze medal at the 2023 CS Nepela Memorial.[3] Appearing on the Grand Prix, Gorodnitsky came sixth at the 2023 Skate Canada International.[6] He went on to win the silver medal at the 2023 CS Warsaw Cup behind Lukas Britschgi of Switzerland, earning personal best scores in all competition segments.[3]

In the second half of the season, Gorodnitsky finished twelfth at both the European and World Championships.[3]

Programs

Season Short program Free skating
2023–2024
[7]
  • Shape of Lies
  • True Love's Last Kiss
    by Eternal Eclipse
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev, Inga Zusev
2022–2023
[1]
  • Follow Your Heart
    by Scorpions
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev, Inga Zusev
2021–2022
[8]
  • Bull Run
    (from Knight and Day)
    by John Powell
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev, Inga Zusev
2020–2021 Did not compete this season
2019–2020
[9][10]
  • Stop It (I Like It)
    by Rick Guard
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
  • Bull Run
    (from Knight and Day)
    by John Powell
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev, Inga Zusev
2018–2019
[11]
  • Quando l'amore diventa poesia
    by Mogol, Piero Soffici
    performed by Il Volo
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
  • Stop!
    by Sam Brown
    performed by Joe Bonamassa
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
2017–2018
[12]
  • Diego, libre dans sa tête
    by Michel Berger
    performed by Johnny Hallyday Band
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
  • Per Te
    performed by Josh Groban
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
2016–2017
[13]
  • Puttin' On the Pin-Stripe Remix A
    by Chris Walden, Mark Kilian
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
  • Iron Man 3
    by Brian Tyler
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
2015–2016
[14]
  • Megapolis
    by Evgeni Sokolovski
    performed by Bel Suono
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
  • Lonely Heart
    by Evgeni Sokolovski
    performed by Bel Suono
    choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev

Competitive highlights

Competition placements at senior level [15][3]
Season 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
World Championships 25th 16th 12th
European Championships 30th 17th 13th 12th
Israeli Championships 3rd 3rd 1st 1st 1st 1st
GP Skate Canada 6th TBD
GP NHK Trophy TBD
CS Autumn Classic 9th 9th 7th 6th
CS Golden Spin of Zagreb 12th 15th 6th
CS Nepela Memorial 3rd
CS U.S. Classic 8th 4th
CS Warsaw Cup 20th 9th 2nd
Bavarian Open 6th
Challenge Cup 4th 6th
Cranberry Cup 11th 1st 1st
Denis Ten Memorial 5th
Santa Claus Cup 6th
Volvo Open Cup 2nd
Competition placements at junior level [15][3]
Season 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20
Winter Youth Olympics 13th
World Junior Championships 34th 22nd 14th 17th 21st
Israeli Championships 1st
JGP Austria 5th 7th
JGP Croatia 20th 7th
JGP France 5th
JGP Germany 15th
JGP Japan 10th
JGP Poland 10th
JGP Slovenia 6th
Autumn Classic 2nd
Golden Spin of Zagreb 1st
Open Ice Mall Cup 2nd

Detailed results

ISU personal best scores in the +5/-5 GOE System [16]
Segment Type Score Event
Total TSS 243.29 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
Short program TSS 82.06 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
TES 43.64 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
PCS 38.42 2023 CS Warsaw Cup
Free skating TSS 162.76 2024 World Championships
TES 83.54 2024 World Championships
PCS 79.22 2024 World Championships
ISU personal best scores in the +3/-3 GOE System [16]
Segment Type Score Event
Total TSS 186.02 2017 CS Autumn Classic International
Short program TSS 61.72 2018 World Junior Championships
TES 33.69 2018 World Junior Championships
PCS 28.50 2017 CS Autumn Classic International
Free skating TSS 125.50 2017 CS Autumn Classic International
TES 63.60 2017 CS Autumn Classic International
PCS 61.90 2017 CS Autumn Classic International

Senior level

Results in the 2016–17 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Dec 6–11, 2016 Hungary 2016 Santa Claus Cup 7 54.37 7 104.87 6 159.24
Jan 25–29, 2017 Czech Republic 2017 European Championships 30 51.72 – – 30 51.72
Results in the 2017–18 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Sep 20–23, 2017 Canada 2017 CS Autumn Classic International 10 60.52 9 125.50 9 186.02
Results in the 2018–19 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Sep 20–22, 2018 Canada 2018 CS Autumn Classic International 9 63.10 9 123.96 9 187.06
Nov 6–11, 2018 Latvia 2018 Volvo Open Cup 4 65.92 2 134.24 2 200.16
Results in the 2019–20 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Sep 12–14, 2019 Canada 2019 CS Autumn Classic International 7 67.12 7 122.40 7 189.52
Oct 9–12, 2019 Kazakhstan 2019 Denis Ten Memorial Challenge 5 69.89 6 125.45 5 195.34
Dec 4–7, 2019 Croatia 2019 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb 6 74.61 14 126.10 12 200.71
Dec 11–12, 2019 Israel 2020 Israeli Championships 2 85.29 1 154.78 1 240.07
Jan 20–26, 2020 Austria 2020 European Championships 12 76.20 17 130.63 17 206.83
Results in the 2021–22 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 11–15, 2021 United States 2021 Cranberry Cup International 11 55.23 9 110.86 11 166.09
Sep 14–17, 2021 United States 2021 U.S. International Classic 9 64.24 8 122.58 8 186.82
Nov 17–20, 2021 Poland 2021 CS Warsaw Cup 21 63.90 18 123.98 20 187.88
Dec 7–11, 2021 Croatia 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb 16 66.66 15 137.96 15 204.62
Dec 15–16, 2021 Israel 2022 Israeli Championships 1 82.62 1 144.08 1 226.70
Feb 24–27, 2022 Netherlands 2022 International Challenge Cup 4 78.59 4 143.73 4 222.32
Mar 21–27, 2022 France 2022 World Championships 25 69.70 – – 25 69.70
Results in the 2022–23 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 8–11, 2022 United States 2022 Cranberry Cup International 3 69.83 1 150.00 1 219.83
Sep 12–16, 2022 United States 2022 CS U.S. International Classic 2 77.65 5 141.18 4 218.83
Nov 17–20, 2022 Poland 2022 CS Warsaw Cup 14 67.44 7 134.86 9 202.30
Dec 7–10, 2022 Croatia 2022 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb 4 71.93 7 131.49 6 203.42
Dec 14–15, 2022 Israel 2023 Israeli Championships 1 82.64 1 149.43 1 232.07
Jan 25–29, 2023 Finland 2023 European Championships 22 64.94 9 137.40 13 202.34
Feb 23–26, 2023 Netherlands 2023 International Challenge Cup 5 77.21 8 136.89 6 214.10
Mar 22–26, 2023 Japan 2023 World Championships 14 77.89 16 154.24 16 232.13
Results in the 2023–24 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 9–13, 2023 United States 2023 Cranberry Cup International 2 76.29 2 154.70 1 230.99
Sep 14–17, 2023 Canada 2023 CS Autumn Classic International 5 73.46 6 139.66 6 213.12
Sep 28–30, 2023 Slovakia 2023 CS Nepela Memorial 4 80.55 3 155.75 3 236.30
Oct 27–29, 2023 Canada 2023 Skate Canada International 11 70.69 6 154.66 6 225.35
Nov 16–19, 2023 Poland 2023 CS Warsaw Cup 2 82.06 1 161.23 2 243.29
Jan 10–14, 2024 Lithuania 2024 European Championships 9 77.50 13 140.06 12 217.56
Jan 30 – Feb 4, 2024 Germany 2024 Bavarian Open 8 66.73 4 141.75 6 208.48
Mar 18–24, 2024 Canada 2024 World Championships 14 80.49 10 162.76 12 243.25
Apr 3–4, 2024 Israel 2024 Israeli Championships 1 84.29 1 153.87 1 238.16

Junior level

Results in the 2015–16 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Oct 7–10, 2015 Croatia 2015 JGP Croatia 23 31.73 16 80.26 20 111.99
Feb 12–21, 2016 Norway 2016 Winter Youth Olympics 12 44.48 12 91.30 13 135.78
Mar 14–20, 2016 Hungary 2016 World Junior Championships 34 45.28 – – 34 45.28
Results in the 2016–17 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Sep 8–11, 2016 Japan 2016 JGP Japan 11 55.19 11 109.86 11 165.05
Sep 28 – Oct 1, 2016 Canada 2016 Autumn Classic International 2 55.57 1 107.61 2 163.18
Oct 5–8, 2016 Germany 2016 JGP Germany 17 49.70 14 102.09 15 151.79
Mar 15–19, 2017 Taiwan 2017 World Junior Championships 22 59.27 21 111.32 22 170.59
Results in the 2017–18 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 30 – Sep 2, 2017 Austria 2017 JGP Austria 9 56.57 4 120.62 5 177.19
Oct 4–7, 2017 Poland 2017 JGP Poland 13 56.96 9 118.33 10 175.29
Dec 6–9, 2017 Croatia 2017 Golden Spin of Zagreb 2 59.29 1 116.86 1 176.15
Mar 5–11, 2018 Bulgaria 2018 World Junior Championships 18 61.72 14 118.71 14 180.43
Results in the 2018–19 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 29 – Sep 1, 2018 Austria 2018 JGP Austria 6 68.47 9 110.35 7 178.82
Oct 3–6, 2018 Slovenia 2018 JGP Slovenia 2 74.66 6 130.53 6 205.19
Feb 20–23, 2019 Israel 2019 Open Ice Mall Cup 2 68.71 2 128.95 2 197.66
Mar 4–10, 2019 Croatia 2019 World Junior Championships 15 69.22 18 116.40 17 185.62
Results in the 2019–20 season [15]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Aug 21–24, 2019 France 2019 JGP France 5 66.32 5 124.43 5 190.75
Sep 25–28, 2019 Croatia 2019 JGP Croatia 9 66.11 8 126.45 7 192.56
Mar 2–8, 2020 Estonia 2020 World Junior Championships 23 57.96 20 110.94 21 168.90

References

  1. ^ a b "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2022/2023". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on January 27, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Lungen, Paul (30 January 2020). "Richmond Hill figure skater competes for Israel". Canadian Jewish News. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x "Competition Results: Mark GORODNITSKY". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on November 11, 2018.
  4. ^ "Skate Canada International in Ottawa cancelled as COVID-19 cases rise". CBC Sports. October 14, 2020.
  5. ^ "נבחרת ישראל בהחלקה אמנותית פרשה מאליפות אירופה בגלל נדבקים בקורונה". Israel Hayom. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  6. ^ Slater, Paula (October 29, 2023). "Sota Yamamoto captures first Grand Prix gold". Golden Skate. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  7. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on November 23, 2023.
  8. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2021/2022". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 18, 2022.
  9. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on September 17, 2019.
  10. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 27, 2020.
  11. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2018/2019". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on November 9, 2018.
  12. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 29, 2018.
  13. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2016/2017". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 20, 2017.
  14. ^ "Mark GORODNITSKY: 2015/2016". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 20, 2016.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Mark Gorodnitsky". SkatingScores.com.
  16. ^ a b "Mark Gorodnitsky – Personal Bests". International Skating Union.

External links

Media related to Mark Gorodnitsky at Wikimedia Commons