Misha Mitrofanov
Misha Mitrofanov (born June 12, 1997) is an American pair skater. With his skating partner, Audrey Lu, he is the 2022 Four Continents champion, 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb champion, 2018 CS U.S. International Classic silver medalist, and 2022 U.S. national bronze medalist. Personal life. Mitrofanov was born on June 12, 1997, in Madison, Wisconsin. He is the eldest of two children born to Yelena, a real estate agent, and Gennadiy, a natural gas and oil marketer. He has a sister, Nina. After graduating (in May 2016) from Spring Creek Academy in Plano, Texas, he began studying  sports medicine at the University of Texas at Dallas. Career. Early years. Mitrofanov began learning to skate in 2001. He was coached by Alexei Mantsorov from 2005 to 2014. Skating in the novice pairs' category, he placed 8th at the 2015 U.S. Championships with Emily Chan, and 6th at the 2016 U.S. Championships with Ashlee Raymond. 2016–2017 season. Mitrofanov teamed up with Audrey Lu in May 2016. Making their international debut, the pair placed 12th at an ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) event in the Czech Republic in September 2016. Their season came to an end in November, after Mitrofanov  dislocated his shoulder at the Midwestern Sectional Championships. He underwent shoulder surgery and resumed training after six months. 2017–2018 season. Lu/Mitrofanov placed 5th at both of their JGP assignments. In January, they won the junior pairs' title at the 2018 U.S. Championships; they ranked first in both segments and outscored the silver medalists by 17.74 points. In March, the pair placed 5th (6th in the short program, 4th in the free skate) at the 2018 World Junior Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. 2018–2019 season. Making their senior international debut, Lu/Mitrofanov won silver at the 2018 CS U.S. International Classic  in mid-September, and then placed fifth at the 2018 CS Nebelhorn Trophy. They were invited to two Grand Prix events, the 2018 NHK Trophy and 2018 Internationaux de France, where they placed seventh and sixth, respectively. Debuting at senior Nationals at the 2019 U.S. Championships, they placed sixth. 2019–2020 season. Lu/Mitrofanov began the season with a fifth-place finish at the 2019 CS U.S. Classic. On the Grand Prix, they were eighth at the 2019 Rostelecom Cup. They concluded the season at the 2020 U.S. Championships, where they finished sixth. 2020–2021 season. With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting international  travel, Lu/Mitrofanov were assigned to attend the 2020 Skate America, the Grand Prix having been arranged primarily based on training location. They placed third in the short program, 3.31 points ahead of national pewter medalists Cain-Gribble/LeDuc. Coming fourth in the free skate, their lead from the short program was nevertheless enough to remain in third place overall, winning the bronze medal. Competing at the 2021 U.S. Championships, Lu/Mitrofanov placed third in the short program with a clean skate. They were fourth in the free skate, dropping to fourth place overall and winning the pewter medal. 2021–2022  season. After beginning the season with some minor America competitions, Lu/Mitrofanov competed on the Grand Prix at the 2021 NHK Trophy, finishing in fifth place. They went on to finish in fourth at the 2021 Rostelecom Cup, after which Lu said they were "satisfied" with the results on the Grand Prix that year. They next competed at the 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, where they won the gold medal, their first Challenger title. Lu/Mitrofanov won the bronze medal at the 2022 U.S. Championships. Mitrofanov said they were "very happy and grateful" for the event and its large  audience. As a result of their placement, they were assigned to compete at the 2022 Four Continents Championships in Tallinn, and named second alternates to the American Olympic team. Lu/Mitrofanov won both segments of the Four Continents competition to take the gold medal. In March, the cast list for the ice show An Evening with Champions was announced, announcing Mitrofanov skating with Hazel Collier. Competitive highlights. "GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix. Pewter medals (4th place) awarded only at U.S. national, sectional, and regional events."