The American figure skating community suffered severe losses on Wednesday night as six people with ties to the Skating Club of Boston were on board a passenger plane when it collided with a U.S. Army helicopter.
Officials said Thursday there were no survivors of the crash and that the mission went from a rescue operation to a recovery operation. Nearly 30 bodies were pulled from the Potomac River.
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A U.S. Park Police helicopter flies over the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.(Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo)
The Skating Club of Boston CEO Doug Zeghibe identified those with ties to the club as athletes, Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, two coaches, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, and Jin Han, the mother of Jinna, and Molly Lane, the mother of Spencer, were identified as the victims with ties to the skate club.
“Our sport and this Club have suffered a horrible loss with this tragedy,” Zeghibe said in a statement posted to social media. “Skating is a tight-knit community where parents and kids come together 6 of 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.
LIVE UPDATES: MILITARY HELICOPTER COLLIDES WITH AIRCRAFT NEAR REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT
Bodies lie on the ground next to emergency vehicles, near the site of the crash after American Eagle Flight 5342 collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter while approaching Reagan Washington National Airport and crashed into the Potomac River, outside of Washington, D.C., on Jan. 30, 2025.(Carlos Barria/Reuters)
“These athletes, coaches, parents were returning from U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Camp, following last week’s U.S. Championships in Wichita. This camp is for young competitive skaters of tomorrow with the promise to be a champion of tomorrow. The club sent 18 athletes to compete at the U.S. Championships. It sent 12 athletes to the National Development Camp.”
Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, confirmed earlier Thursday that Naumov and Shishkova were among those on board the plane.
Naumov and Shishkova competed in pairs during their careers. They won a pairs title at the 1994 world championships and competed at the Winter Olympics twice.
U.S. Figure Skating said there were members of its organization on board as well.
“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.,” the organization said earlier Thursday. “These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas.
“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts. We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available.”
The International Skating Union said it was “deeply shocked” over the incident.
Rescuers on boats work as the sun rises at the site of the crash after a Black Hawk helicopter collided with American Eagle Flight 5342, which was approaching Reagan Washington National Airport, and crashed into the Potomac River, outside Washington, D.C., on Jan. 30, 2025.(Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)
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“Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this tragedy. Figure skating is more than a sport — it’s a close-knit family — and we stand together,” the organization said.
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President Donald Trump’s re-entrance into the White House has meant the complete overturning of Biden administration policies, the withdrawal of major international agreements and uncertainty that has left international partners waiting to see where they stand in the pecking order as some manage damage control while others vie for a seat at the table.
Trump’s actions came as no surprise this time around as the 47th president enters his second term. But what it means in terms of geopolitics remains unclear as adversaries and allies alike watch to see how these next four years will play out.
President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on January 20, 2025, including one that designates Mexican cartels as foreign terror organizations. (Jim Watson/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
TRUMP’S ‘SHOCK AND AWE’: FORGET FIRST 100 DAYS, NEW PRESIDENT SHOWS OFF FRENETIC PACE IN FIRST 100 HOURS
WHO’S IN
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni: Trump met with Meloni, leader of the conservative Brothers of Italy party, at his Mar-a-Lago residence earlier this month. The Italian leader, who has already voiced her support for Trump’s position on international issues like increasing NATO defense spending, attended Trump’s inauguration on Monday. According to reports this week, she has been deemed the “Trump whisperer” and the “preferred interlocutor in the EU” – a particularly important relationship amid concern that Trump could start a trade war with Europe.
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban: A long-time ally of Trump, Orban championed his return to the Oval Office this month and reportedly declared that with Trump in office he could launch the “second phase of the offensive that aims to occupy Brussels,” which he claimed is “occupied by a left-liberal oligarchy.” Orban, though invited, did not attend the inauguration due to a scheduling conflict.
Argentina’s President Javier Milei: Once hailed by Trump as the leader to “make Argentina great again,” Milei is looking to expand relations with the U.S. On Wednesday during the Davos World Economic Forum, he told Bloomberg he may be willing to leave the more than 30-year-old Mercosur trade bloc founded by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay in 1991, if it means securing a new trade deal with the U.S.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Argentina’s President Javier Milei share a joke as they arrive for the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump at the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on January 20, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)
WASHINGTON POST COLUMNIST SUGGESTS TRUMP MAY USE HIS CRYPTO TOKEN TO TAKE FOREIGN BRIBES
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi: India is also scrambling to secure a trade deal with the U.S. amid concerns over international tariffs. Despite improved ties between India and China, and a meeting between Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia last year, Reuters reported on Wednesday that Modi is looking to back off its reliance on Beijing – its largest trading partner – and instead lean in on relations with Washington. Modi is looking to meet with Trump in February.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: Trump and Netanyahu maintained a strong relationship during the president’s first term, and a similar dynamic is expected to remain during Trump’s second term. Netanyahu on Monday released a video message congratulating Trump on his inauguration and said that “the best days of our alliance are yet to come.” He also thanked Trump for the role his administration played in helping to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which initiated the return of the hostages still held in Gaza.
WHO’S TOEING THE LINE
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer: The U.S.-U.K. partnership has often been described as a “special relationship,” and London has long been one of Washington’s closest allies. But the ties between the U.S. and U.K. will be tested as Trump faces Labour leader Keir Starmer, who has previously been critical of Trump.
Starmer, in 2023, condemned the U.K.’s Conservative party for “behave[ing] more and more like Donald Trump” rather than embodying the values championed by Winston Churchill.
“They look at the politics of America and want to bring that here,” he said. “Is there anybody in the government now who feels a sense of obligation to anything other than their own self-interest? To democracy, the rule of law, serving our country?”
“It’s all woke, woke, woke. Wedge, wedge, wedge. Divide, divide, divide,” he added.
Starmer has since pledged to work with Trump and to ensure the “special relationship” endures, though he is expected to face a tough road.
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer addresses members at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, England on Tuesday.(AP)
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France’s Emmanuel Macron: The leader of the U.S.’s oldest ally is the only remaining European leader on the United Nations Security Council who was in office alongside Trump during his first term. Trump and Macron often butted heads during Trump’s first term and, despite an invitation to the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in December, reports indicate this time will likely be no different.
While Macron was among the first to congratulate Trump on his second presidential victory, he also issued multiple statements of warning this week, first when he said that now is the time for a “European strategic wake-up call,” emphasizing the need to lessen reliance on the U.S. for defense.
The second warning came on Wednesday when it said “it is necessary more than ever for Europeans . . . to play their role of consolidating a united, strong and sovereign Europe” as it stares down stiff tariffs vowed by Trump.
French President Emmanuel Macron meets with President-Elect Donald Trump at the Élysée Palace on December 7, 2024, in Paris, France. Donald Trump was among the wave of foreign dignitaries descending on Paris this weekend to attend a reopening ceremony at Notre Dame Cathedral, more than five years after it was damaged in a major fire.(Oleg Nikishin)
Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz: Scholz’s predecessor, Angela Merkel, often went head-to-head with Trump and reportedly believed that the U.S. president specifically had it out for Germany during his first term. Scholz, who leads the left-leaning Social Democrats, appears to be following in a similar no-nonsense approach when it comes to the second Trump administration and on Wednesday made it clear that Trump “will be, and so much is already clear, a challenge.”
Speaking alongside Macron on Wednesday, Scholz pledged to stand united with his European allies and said, “Our position is clear. Europe is a big economic power with around 450 million citizens. We are strong, we stand together. Europe will not duck and hide but will be a constructive and self-confident partner.”
WORLD LEADERS REACT AS TRUMP RE-ENTERS THE WHITE HOUSE
European Union: Trump has made clear that the EU is in his crosshairs, telling reporters this week, “The European Union is very, very bad to us.” But President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen made clear this week she is ready to work with the new U.S. president.
“No other economies in the world are as integrated as we are,” she said, noting that the trade volumes between the U.S. and Europe account for 30% of all trade globally, reported Reuters. “Our first priority will be to engage early, discuss common interests and be ready to negotiate.”
She made clear that the EU will not be bullied by Trump and said, “We will be pragmatic, but we will always stand by our principles. To protect our interests and uphold our values – that is the European way.”
EU feelings toward Trump appear fairly divided as the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, has backed Trump’s push to increase defense spending across the board in Europe. Right-wing Danish member of the European Parliament Anders Vistisen addressed Trump’s stated desire to acquire Greenland and in a public message did not mince words.
“Dear President Trump, listen very carefully: Greenland has been part of the Danish kingdom for 800 years. It is an integrated part of our country. It is not for sale,” Vistisen said. “Let me put it in words you might understand. Mr. Trump, f*** off!”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago in Florida on Friday Nov. 29, 2024 to discuss topics like the economy, illegal immigration and a proposed 25 percent tariff.(Justin Trudeau X)
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau: Following a series of dramatic reports and resignations relating to Trudeau’s handling of Trump after he was newly elected and claimed that Canada should be the U.S.’s 51st state, Trudeau resigned from the top job this month.
It remains unclear who will replace Trudeau in a March 9 election, within his Liberal Party ahead of the general election later this year, where the party is expected to lose to the country’s Conservatives.
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Trudeau has said, “There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States,” and government officials across the board are bracing for a trade war with the U.S. after Trump threatened to levy 25% tariffs on Canada, starting Feb. 1.
Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said this week that Ottawa “will continue to work on preventing tariffs” but said that officials are also “working on retaliation.”
