Chris Cooper is a life-long ice skating fan, and he was in the stands for every moment of the excitement at the 2025 ISU European Figure Skating Championships just over a month ago in Tallinn, Estonia. Here he shares his experience and perspective on the event and the success of the GBR Team.
By Chris Cooper:
Tallinn 2025 was an epic European Figure Skating Championships for Great Britain. One year out from a home Europeans in Sheffield, and just over a year out from the Olympics in Milan, our super talented British team delivered plenty for fans to cheer loudly from the stands.
One of those was me! I’ve been a huge skating for over 40 years, almost all of my life. And without doubt, this was one of the best British team performances across the board in my lifetime. There is a really positive mood within British Ice Skating at the moment, a quiet confidence and determination that has built across this Olympic cycle, which was firmly in evidence on the ice in Tallinn.
Perhaps the best example of this was from our pairs team of Anastasia Vaipan-Law and Luke Digby. The consistency and quality they demonstrated throughout the season prior to Tallinn has been very impressive. Now in their fourth season together since switching from singles, they have developed great strength across all element types, with their lifts especially having improved so much. Every one of their numerous PBs this season has looked expected from their reactions in the kiss and cry. As coach Simon Briggs said to me during the event, they deliver so consistently during training, so they have the belief to show this in competition too.
In the short program, Ana and Luke’s performance was testament to the huge strides they have made. In a very deep pairs competition, they held their nerve to strongly execute all seven elements, achieving positive grades of execution across the board, while other teams faltered and made some mistakes. They placed 4th in the short, the highest ranking for over 40 years by a British team in this section of the pairs event, scoring 64.83 points, and earning a spot in the final group for the free. When I spoke to them shortly afterwards, both Ana and Luke (as least outwardly!) were very composed about what they just achieved. Ana is from my hometown of Blackpool, so their performance brought an extra layer of joy for me, and she told me she appreciated hearing a hometown accent!
Thursday, the day of the pairs free was incredibly challenging. The tragic plane crash in Washington DC that claimed the lives of so many skaters, coaches, parents and others associated with skating, occurred the night before. On what should have been a purely joyful day for the sport, day two of a European Championships, there was also great sadness at the loss of so many people within the close-knit skating community. This was palpable in the arena among fans, and so many of the skaters and team members personally knew people who died in the crash.
During morning practice, which took place not long after the terrible news broke, Ana had a heavy fall during a lift. However, the incredible courage and strength of both Ana and Luke was demonstrated in the evening during their free program. Appearing relaxed and composed during warm up for the final group, they skated first and delivered a very strong performance, earning a new personal best of 118.93 points, placing 6th in the free, and the only team in the top 10 to score a new PB. Their 5th place overall matched the finish of Cheryl Peake and Andrew Naylor at Birmingham in 1989, the highest placing by a British pairs team at Europeans since Joyce Coates and Anthony Holles at Davos, Switzerland in 1959.
Their performances in Tallinn indicated that Ana and Luke have the potential make a future European podium. They placed above two teams who won European medals in past seasons, and based on elements they have previously landed cleanly, their free program PB could soon be in the 125-130 range. Their total competition score in Tallinn of 183.76 points would have earned 10th at last year’s Worlds, and was over 24 points higher than their tally in 2024 for 9th place. With a pre-competition goal of getting into the top 8, their 5th place was a huge step forward. And such was the hugely positive impression they made, Ana and Luke were also invited to perform in the gala, a prestigious achievement.
Also opening her account on the first day of competition, newly crowned British Champion Kristen Spours continued the run of clean performances for the British Ice Skating team. Aged 24, and competing at her first Europeans, Kristen performed all seven elements strongly to earn a new ISU PB of 57.39, for 10th place. Kristen is another skater to have significantly improved her competition consistency this season, working alongside coach Chris Boyadji. Her performance placed her higher than other skaters with greater experience and higher PBs prior the event, and earned her a place in the penultimate warm-up group for the free.
In the arena, I was fortunate to be seated adjacent to Kristen’s former coach Ruth Woodstock, who was so happy at what she saw Kristen achieve. Ruth also coached Chris Boyadji and partner Zoe Jones, together achieving a top 10 place at worlds in 2022. Chris joined Ruth in the audience for the first group of the free, his relaxation showing the immense confidence he has in Kristen. When it came time for her turn on the ice, Kristen’s tenacity and determination was once again in evidence, as she earned positive GOEs for 11 of the 12 elements. Her score of 110.82 was another ISU PB, enough for 9th in the free and 9th overall. This matched the placing achieved by Jenna McCorkell in 2009, and means that in Sheffield next year Great Britain will be able to field two competitors in the women’s event at Europeans for the first time since 2010.
Having won his second British men’s title last November, Edward Appleby was competing at his second Europeans. After narrowly missing out on the free in 2024 by one just place, Ed came out for Thursday’s short program looking determined and focused. He executed a strong performance, with positive GOEs on all elements, and achieving a total of 72.45 points, close to his season’s best and enough for 16th place in men’s field of incredible depth. Ed’s performance demonstrated a growing maturity at 20 years of age, as he continues to develop working alongside long time coach John Wicker. As can be the case in sport, Saturday evening’s free program didn’t go Ed’s way. However, his 20th place overall was the best finish by a British man since 2018, and is surely only the start of a great future for this incredibly talented skater. I’m excited to watch his career develop.
The final event to get under way in Tallinn was the ice dance – so often the highlight for British skating fans, myself included! It’s so exciting to have two incredible teams competing for Great Britain right now in the form of Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson, and Phebe Bekker and James Hernandez.
Just weeks after winning their first Challenger event in Zagreb, Phebe and James delivered a crowd-pleasing rhythm dance to a medley of Beatles songs, really invoking the spirit of the 60s British music scene. It was enough for 13th place with a score 68.13 points. The heart shape they made on the ice was highly appropriate for how well they were received.
For Lilah and Lewis, expectations were high after consecutive silver medals at the 2023 and 2024 Europeans. This year’s RD theme of social dances of the 50s, 60s and 70s is perfect for the team affectionately known to fans as the ‘Disco Brits’. Their performance to music by Chic and Stevie Wonder was characteristically a big hit with the crowd. A couple of small errors meant they were a few points short of their season’s best in an incredibly high standard of competition at Europeans, however 81.57 points was enough for third place.
In the free dance on Saturday afternoon, Phebe and James delivered a super performance to a medley of music from Bond films, looking sleek and sophisticated in their presentation, and nailing strong GOEs in all elements, plus strong program component scores. Their tally of 107.89 points was close to their recent PB from Zagreb. Remarkably, they skated such a fantastic performance despite James coming down sick the night before and being unable to skate during morning practice. They are incredible athletes and competitors and consolidated their 13th place, with much more to come in future seasons. When I saw Phebe in the arena afterwards, she was very happy with what they achieved, and lovely person that she is, she gave me a hug to say thank you for cheering them on this week!
Lilah and Lewis’ showstopping Beyonce free dance was performed with their trademark personality and dynamism, and their score of 124.45 points was within 1.1 points of their season’s best. It was enough for second place in the free dance, and a bronze medal, just 0.74 points shy of silver in a very tight podium battle. Lilah and Lewis have enjoyed a stellar season so far, the only ice dance team to win both their Grand Prix events, plus a bronze medal at the Grand Prix final - the first Brits ever on the podium at this event. Winning bronze in Tallin meant Lilah and Lewis became the first British skaters since the legendary Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean in 1984 to win at least three medals at a European Championships. What’s more, the combined placings of Lilah and Lewis and Phebe and James were the best achieved in ice dance by Great Britain for 40 years.
What we witnessed from the British team all week were performances of superb character, grit and steely determination. Highly appropriate, given that next year’s Europeans will be in Sheffield, the ‘steel city’ as Europeans returns to Britain after 14 years. A sizeable team from British Ice Skating, including Robin Cousins, did a great job tirelessly promoting the event within the arena all week. From speaking to fellow fans from across Europe, many will be attending next year. I encourage all fans in the UK to come out and support the British team in what is sure to be an incredible event, just over a month before the Winter Olympics in Milan!
Congratulations to the achievements of all members of the British team in Tallinn. Next stop for all is Boston for the World Championships, and the opportunity to gain spots for Team GB at the Olympics. Based on how they performed here, it could be another highly memorable competition for British Ice Skating! - Chris Cooper
Sheffield 2026 promises to be an unforgettable experience, bringing together over 160 of Europe’s elite skaters to compete in front of passionate fans. With All-Event Tickets on sale right now, spectators will have the chance to secure their seats for this prestigious event.
Championship Ambassador and former European and World competitor Mark Hanretty added: “With the Olympic Games right around the corner, Sheffield 2026 will be a thrilling opportunity for athletes to showcase their best performances and for fans to witness world-class skating at its finest. This event will inspire future generations and leave a lasting legacy for British Ice Skating.”
With the British Team gaining momentum and home-ice advantage in Sheffield, the countdown to Europe’s biggest skating event has officially begun.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit: www.europeans2026.com