Team Berlin 1 was founded in 1994. At this time teams consisted of 24 skaters.
At the first official ÒISU Synchronized Figure Skating ChampionshipsÒ in 2000 in Minneapolis, USA, the team placed 6th and made a name for themselves with high quality technical and chorographical programs.
Team Berlin 1 is still the most successful German synchronized skating team, winning the German championships 15 times in a row.
The team currently consists of 20 skaters, including two men, of which during competition only 16 skaters perform the programs. Every year we also include an international skater, one who wants to skate with Team Berlin 1 for just one season. This season we have two skaters from Switzerland and one from Japan. The majority of athletes are either university or school students and consider figure skating not only as a hobby, but as a elite sport, often competing since childhood.
Team Berlin 1 is in the A-squad of the German Skating Union (DEU). For years the team has been placed amongst the top teams on the international circuit, alongside the best synchronized skating nations Sweden, Finland, USA and Canada.
The team has also won the title at ISU competitions such as ÒSpring CupÒ (Italy), "Prague CupÒ (Czech Republic), ÒNeuchatel TrophyÓ (Switzerland) and were silver medallists at the "Cup of BerlinÒ (Germany) and "Zagreb Snowflake TrophyÒ (Croatia), all which helped in establishing Team Berlin 1Õs status as a top International team.
During the skating season, Team Berlin 1 is enthusiastically invited to participate in several shows and skating performances. The team has performed at the ARD annual Ice-Gala (GermanyÕs first television channel), on Eurosport, for Holiday on Ice, for music videos, with Stefan Raab and even for a world premiere of the Audi AG.
For several years, the Swedish coach Andrea Doh‡ny has been the teamÕs technical and choreographic consultant.
Team Berlin 1 also attacks top international teams to the Cup of Berlin, held in the German capital. The Cup of Berlin has been included in the International Skating Union (ISU) calendar for January 2011.
|