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PopCosmo PopStar

PopCosmo PopStar is a feature in which we share cool things that you are doing. ? Whether you make a difference with your volunteer work, you design jewelry, you are an athlete with a dream, or you do something else cool and unique, we would love to hear from you. ? No matter what you do, you are a star… so share your story with us!

Our very first PopStar is Kirsten, from Louisville. ? She is an unbelievable ice-skater and ice-skating teacher, and is only in high school. We caught up with her just before she heads out to the 2012 Midwestern Sectional Figure Skating Championships.

As a High School senior at Christian Educational Consortium, Kirsten plans to attend the? University of Louisville next fall. ? She’ll need to be close to an ice-skating rink because she practices? every week day, for roughly 3 hours a day, plus off-ice conditioning. ? This is not a new interest for her… she started skating when she was only 4 years old! ? Here are a few questions and answers we’d like to share from our interview:

What is the hardest jump/ move? For me so far, the Double Axel (2 1/2 revolutions) has been the trickiest to nail down, but I’m moving into doing Triple Jumps so its naturally more difficult to do 3 revolutions in the air.
Have you had a bad fall?? YES. Falling is a huge part of the sport. If you’re not falling, you’re not getting any better. You learn by the mistakes you make. In the “process” of falling, if you will, I have caught my toepick in the ice (the front “spikey” part of the blade) and torqued my knee badly. I ended up spraining my MCL, and had to take several months off to recover.
How do you learn new jumps? Coach tells you how to do it, you go try it. Basically its a large process of “trial-and-error” and fine tuning your muscles and muscle-memory to do the right thing at the right time.
Who is your idol? Good question. Ryan Bradley is DEFINITELY in my top 3 favorite skaters along with Evan Lysacek and Sasha Cohen.
What is your goal — in skating? My dream goal has always been to get to the Olympics. I’d love to shoot for that, but on a more short-term goal, to get to nationals at the Senior level. I am currently at the Junior level. Senior is next. ? And,? I’d like to do a professional ice show sometime as well.
Below is an amazing video of Kirsten during the? Jr. Ladies Eastern Great Lakes Regionals.
Thanks for taking some time off the ice with us, Kirsten! We wish you loads of luck as you continue achieving your goals, and we’ll definitely be looking for you in the Olympics!

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