Before this week, most casual figure skating fans could not have told you who Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik were. By the time they stepped off the ice at Milano Ice Skating Arena on Tuesday night, the whole world knew their names.
The 23-year-old from Detroit, Michigan, and the 24-year-old from Kharkiv, Ukraine — who have been partners for just four years — became the only ice dance team making their Olympic Winter Games debut to finish in the top five at the 2026 Games, placing fifth in one of the most crowded and competitive ice dance fields in Olympic history.
"I would say, 'You're lying,' if someone had told me before these Games that we'd finish fifth. I genuinely would not have believed it." — Emilea Zingas
Their story starts in March 2022, when Zingas — who had previously competed internationally for Cyprus as a singles skater — teamed up with Kolesnik, who had moved from Ukraine to suburban Detroit to train under coach Igor Shpilband. Kolesnik received U.S. citizenship in summer 2025, just in time to represent Team USA in Milan. Within two seasons of teaming up, they were U.S. pewter medalists. In 2026 they won the Four Continents title and earned the second U.S. ice dance berth for the Olympics.
Their Romeo and Juliet free dance — filled with dramatic lifts, deep edges and a chemistry that seemed to transcend their four years on ice together — earned them a standing ovation from the sold-out arena and personal-best scores across the board. Their total of 209.20 at the subsequent World Championships placed them comfortably in the bronze medal position in their very first World Championship appearance.
"Vadym came here from Ukraine to pursue this dream with me. Everything he gave up, everything his family gave up — this result is for all of them." — Emilea Zingas
Zingas, who plans to pursue a degree in sports psychology and volunteers with the National Alliance on Mental Illness, said she hopes their story resonates beyond figure skating. "We just showed up every day, loved what we were doing, and tried to be the best versions of ourselves. That's all anyone can do."
