3 Chappaqua Skaters Are 2019 U.S. Synchronized Skating Champions

Three Chappaqua skaters - Rhianna Gold, Lauren Sallay and Emmy Sloan - traveled with their Skyliners teammates to Plymouth, Michigan last weekend for the 2019 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. Gold and Sloan, 11th-graders at Horace Greeley High School, earned Gold medals and became the national champions in their respective divisions, and Sallay, who attends JFK Catholic High School, earned Bronze.

The Skyliners Synchronized Skating Team capped its 2018-19 season with history-making results and five National medals. Three Skyliners qualifying lines – Junior, Novice and Juvenile – won National Championship Gold medals at the 2019 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. The Intermediate line won Bronze, and the Senior line won Silver.

“It’s been an amazing season for Skyliners,” said Josh Babb, Skyliners Head Coach and Director of Synchronized Skating. “As our team grows, so do our accomplishments. Our skaters work extremely hard, and their efforts have really paid off this year.”

Nationals brought together the best teams in the nation at the USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan for three days of intense competition, and the Skyliners skaters proved their technical and artistic prowess across every division.

The Skyliners Senior line thrilled the standing-room-only crowd with its top-scoring short program set to “What a Wonderful World,” and a dramatic free skate to “Turandot,” which sealed a Silver medal at 218.14 total points.

Junior took home their third consecutive National Championship title with 202.48 total points – a season high - for their elegant short program “Who Wants to Live Forever” and dazzling “Carmen” free skate.

Skyliners Novice captured its third consecutive National championship title with their standout “The Greatest Showman” program, scoring a season’s best 76.13 points. Intermediate locked in the Bronze medal with their “Go-Getter” program, earning a 66.17. And Juvenile captured their National title with an entertaining “Circus” program, scoring a season high score of 61.94 points.

The Skyliners Junior and Senior lines – each Team USA designees – were both selected to represent the U.S. at their upcoming respective World Championship events. Junior competes in Neuchatel, Switzerland March 15-16 and Senior competes in Helsinki, Finland April 12-14.