Juni Marie Benjaminsen
Juni Marie Benjaminsen (born 21 March 1999) is a Norwegian former competitive figure skater. In 2015, she became the first Norwegian ladies' skater in 16 years to advance to the free skate at the World Junior Championships. She has competed in the final segment at two editions. Personal life. Juni Marie Benjaminsen was born on 21 March 1999 in Oslo, Norway. Her parents are Finnish orienteer Anne Benjaminsen and Norwegian orienteer Vidar Benjaminsen. Orienteer Andrine Benjaminsen is her sister. Career. Early career. Benjaminsen started skating in 2004 at Oslo Skøiteklub. Benjaminsen won the Norwegian novice ladies' title  during the 2012–13 season. The following season, she competed on the junior level, placing 10th at the 2014 Nordic Championships. 2014–2015 season. Benjaminsen made her ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) debut in the 2014–15 season, placing 19th in Courchevel and 23rd in Tallinn. She placed 5th in junior ladies at the Tallinn Trophy, took the junior bronze medal at the 2015 Nordic Championships, and finished 13th at the 2015 European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF). At the 2015 World Junior Championships in Tallinn, she scored her personal best in the short program and advanced to the final, finishing 22nd overall. She  was the first Norwegian in 16 years to qualify for the ladies' free skate at a World Junior Championships. 2015–2016 season. During summer 2015 she trained in Oberstdorf, Germany and Richmond, Virginia, United States. Benjaminsen began her season on the JGP series, placing 16th in Latvia and 14th in Spain. In Riga, Latvia, she became the first Norwegian woman to have successfully landed a triple-triple combination in competition. Making her senior international debut, she finished 12th at an ISU Challenger Series (CS) event in November, the 2015 Tallinn Trophy. She won the silver medal at the 2016 Norwegian Junior  Championships, and placed 6th at the 2016 Nordics after winning the short program. At the 2016 Junior Worlds she advanced to the final placing 20th in the short program, and finished 22nd overall. 2016–2017 season. Benjaminsen competed in Slovenia and Germany in the JGP season. She competed in the senior category for the first time at the 2017 Norwegian Championships, taking silver behind Jemima Rasmuss. She also competed at the 2017 Junior Worlds, but did not advance to the free skate. She announced her retirement from competitive skating on 10 May 2017. Competitive highlights. "CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand  Prix"