Valentina Marchei (born 23 May 1986) is an Italian retired pair and single figure skater. As a singles skater, she is a five-time Italian national champion (2004, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014). Her highest ISU Championship placements were 4th at the 2013 European Championships and 8th at the 2012 World Championships. She represented Italy at the 2014 Winter Olympics and placed 11th. Also, Marchei competed as a pair skater with Ondřej Hotárek, representing Italy. The pair finished 6th at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Personal life Valentina Marchei was born 23 May 1986 in Milan, Italy. She is the daughter of Marco Marchei, a competitor in the marathon at the 1980 and 1984 Olympics. Her early interests were speed skating and gymnastics. She studied with a focus on sport at university and has worked as a reporter for Italian television.
Career in singles Marchei began skating in 1993. She was coached by Cristina Mauri from the age of nine.
Ahead of the 2007–08 season, Marchei spent the first part of July training with Viktor Kudriavtsev in Flims, Switzerland. She trained in Courchevel in the remainder of July and August and then Paris and Milan in the winter, coached by Pierre Trente and Cristina Mauri. Marchei injured her knee in September 2007.
In September 2008, Marchei began working with Nikolai Morozov in Hackensack, New Jersey. She missed most of the 2008–09 season after injuring her right ankle on a triple Lutz at 2008 Skate America. Marchei did not receive any Grand Prix invitations in 2009–10. She finished 8th at the 2010 European Championships. In 2010–11, Marchei returned to the Grand Prix series, competing at 2010 Skate Canada International and 2010 Cup of Russia. She was 10th at the 2011 European Championships.
In 2011, Marchei changed coaches to Jason Dungjen and Yuka Sato in Detroit. She had ankle and knee injuries in 2011. She finished 8th at the 2012 World Championships in Nice, France. Marchei represented Italy at the 2014 Winter Olympics, where she placed 11th. In September 2014, she withdrew from both of her Grand Prix assignments, the 2014 Skate Canada International and 2014 Rostelecom Cup.
Career in pairs On 2 July 2014, La Gazzetta dello Sport wrote that Marchei and Ondřej Hotárek were considering skating as a pair. Bruno Marcotte confirmed on 26 July 2014 that the two were training together. They are coached by Marcotte in Montreal and by Franca Bianconi in Milan. On 6 August 2014, Marchei sprained the medial collateral ligament of her right knee. On 8 September, she said she would resume light on-ice training in a few days. Commenting on her switch to pairs, Marchei stated: "At the beginning practicing pairs was just to do shows or stuff like that, but then it was something that got to me. It's crazy. I still do single programs at shows, but it is strange, I'm looking around, where is he?"
2014–15 season Marchei/Hotárek began the season by winning the bronze medal at the 2014 CS Warsaw Cup as well as the silver medal at the 2014 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb. They then went on to win the 2015 Italian Championships.
Selected to compete at the European Championships in Stockholm, Sweden, Marchei/Hotárek finished fourth.
At the World Championships in Shanghai, China, they finished eleventh.
2015–16 season Marchei/Hotárek started the season by winning gold at the 2015 Lombardia Trophy.
Debuting on the Grand Prix series, Marchei/Hotárek competed in the short program at 2015 Skate Canada International but withdrew on the day of the free skate due to Hotárek sustaining a concussion while practicing a triple twist. They went on to compete at the 2015 Rostelecom Cup, finishing sixth.
At the Italian Figure Skating Championships, Marchei/Hotárek won the silver medal behind Nicole Della Monica / Matteo Guarise.
Going on to compete at the 2016 European Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia, Marchei/Hotárek finished fifth. They went on to compete at the 2015 Hellmut Seibt Memorial, where they won the gold medal.
At the 2016 World Figure Skating Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, Marchei/Hotárek finished fourteenth.
2016–17 season Marchei/Hotárek began the season by winning the silver medal at the 2016 CS Lombardia Trophy.
They then competed on the Grand Prix series, finishing eighth at 2016 Skate America and fourth at the 2016 Rostelecom Cup. They went on to also win the gold medal at the 2016 CS Warsaw Cup.
At the 2017 Italian Championships, Marchei/Hotárek won the silver medal for the second consecutive year.
Selected to compete at the 2017 European Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic, Marchei/Hotárek finished sixth.
Competing at the 2017 World Championships in Helsinki, Finland, Marchei/Hotárek placed ninth.
2017–18 season Marchei/Hotárek began the season with winning the bronze medal at the 2017 CS Lombardia Trophy.
They then competed on the 2017–18 Grand Prix series, finishing fifth at the 2017 Cup of China and fourth at the 2017 Rostelecom Cup. They also won the gold medal at the 2017 CS Warsaw Cup.
At the 2018 Italian Championships, Marchei/Hotárek won the silver medal for the third year in a row.
Competing at the 2018 European Championships in Moscow, Russia, Marchei/Hotárek finished fifth.
Selected to compete at the 2018 Winter Olympics in both the Team and Pair events, Marchei/Hotárek placed second in the free program segment of the team event, helping Team Italy finish in fourth place overall. In the pairs event, Marchei/Hotárek placed seventh in the short program and sixth in the free skate, finishing in sixth place overall.
At the 2018 World Championships in Milan, Italy, Marchei/Hotárek finished in tenth place. On 16 September 2018 Marchei announced the end of her partnership with Hotárek via Instagram.
On 1 September 2020, two years after she last competed, Marchei announced her retirement via Facebook, citing that she considered returning, if not for the ongoing pandemic.
Programs
With Hotárek Season Short program Free skating Exhibition 2017–18 Tu vuò fà l'americano Amarcord Barbie Girl by Aqua 2016–17 Seven Nation Army Skyfall (James Bond soundtrack) Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (soundtrack)YesterdayPerformed by Michael Bolton 2015–16 Morir d'amor The Way We Were Saturday Night Fever 2014–15 Malagueña La Strada All of Me
Single Skating
Season Short program Free skating Exhibition 2013–14 Torna a Surriento Nyah 2012–13 Esperanza The Artist Toxic
Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend 2011–12 Johnny's Mambo Mr Pinstripe Suit by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Jessica's Theme from Who Framed Roger Rabbit by Alan Silvestri Minnie the Moocher Jumpin Jack by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy 2010–11 Lux Aeterna Die Fledermaus 2009–10 Méditation 2046 Requiem for a Dream The Lord of the Rings 2008–09 La traviata Theme & Polonaise Requiem for a Dream 2007–08 La traviata Noi Siamo le Zingarelle Les Feuilles Mortes Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
The Way You Look at Me 2006–07 L'Arlésienne Carmen Adiós Nonino 2005–06 Xotica 2004–05 Cinderella 2003–04 Anastasia Les Feuilles Mortes 2001–02 Flamenco
Competitive highlights GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix
Pairs with Hotárek
International Event 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 Olympics 6th World Champ. 11th 14th 9th 10th European Champ. 4th 5th 6th 5th Cup of China 5th Rostelecom Cup 6th 4th 4th Skate America 8th Golden Spin 2nd Lombardia Trophy 2nd 3rd Warsaw Cup 3rd WD 1st 1st Lombardia Trophy 1st Seibt Memorial 1st National Italian Champ. 1st 2nd 2nd Team events Olympics 4th T
Single skating
International Event 02–03 03–04 04–05 05–06 06–07 07–08 08–09 09–10 10–11 11–12 12–13 13–14 Olympics 11th Worlds 23rd 23rd 11th 13th 8th 18th 16th Europeans 15th 31st 19th 5th 6th 8th 10th 8th 4th 6th Bompard 10th 6th 9th Cup of China 9th NHK Trophy 11th 6th Rostelecom 5th 9th Skate America 9th 10th WD 9th 4th 7th Skate Canada 8th Challenge Cup 2nd Cup of Nice 2nd 2nd Denkova-Staviski 1st Finlandia Trophy 12th 8th Golden Spin 7th 6th Ice Challenge 2nd Lombardia Trophy 1st Merano Cup 2nd 2nd 2nd 1st 1st 3rd NRW Trophy 1st Nepela Memorial 2nd Schäfer Memorial 4th Universiade 2nd 2nd International: Junior Junior Worlds 14th 16th Bulgaria 9th Czech Rep. 12th Germany 13th Japan 6th Netherlands 6th Serbia 6th Gardena 5th J National Italian Champ. 1st 2nd 3rd 1st 4th 1st 2nd 1st 2nd 1st Team events Olympics 4th T World TeamTrophy 6th T 8th P
Detailed results Current personal best scores are highlighted in bold.
With Hotárek 2017–18 season Date Event SP FS Total 19–25 March 2018 2018 World Championships 8 71.37 8 130.65 10 202.02 14–15 February 2018 2018 Winter Olympics 7 74.50 6 142.09 6 216.59 8–12 February 2018 2018 Winter Olympics (Team event) 2 138.44 15–21 January 2017 2018 European Championships 4 71.89 5 132.31 5 204.20 13–16 December 2015 2018 Italian Championships 1 71.64 2 107.15 2 178.79 16–19 November 2017 2017 CS Warsaw Cup 1 66.70 1 126.44 1 193.14 3–5 November 2017 2017 Cup of China 5 59.53 4 128.48 5 188.01 20–22 October 2017 2017 Rostelecom Cup 3 68.48 4 125.15 4 193.63 14–17 September 2017 2017 CS Lombardia Trophy 3 61.32 3 119.54 3 180.86 2016–17 season Date Event SP FS Total 29 March – 2 April 2017 2017 World Championships 9 71.04 9 132.88 9 203.92 25–29 January 2017 2017 European Championships 6 66.53 6 125.40 6 191.93 14–17 December 2016 2017 Italian Championships 2 66.04 1 127.34 2 193.38 17–20 November 2016 2016 CS Warsaw Cup 1 67.04 1 122.22 1 189.26 4–6 November 2016 2016 Rostelecom Cup 3 66.82 5 120.79 4 187.61 21–23 October 2016 2016 Skate America 6 62.49 8 107.20 8 169.69 8–11 September 2016 2016 CS Lombardia Trophy 1 59.40 2 120.16 2 179.56 2015–16 season Date Event SP FS Total 28 March – 3 April 2016 2016 World Championships 13 59.76 15 110.97 14 170.73 23–27 February 2016 2016 Hellmut Seibt Memorial 1 57.78 1 122.42 1 180.20 25–31 January 2016 2016 European Championships 8 58.47 4 124.14 5 182.61 16–19 December 2015 2016 Italian Championships 2 63.74 1 118.88 2 184.28 20–22 November 2015 2015 Rostelecom Cup 4 62.43 6 115.76 6 178.19 20–22 November 2015 2015 Skate Canada International 6 54.00 WD WD 17–20 September 2015 2015 Lombardia Trophy 1 63.85 1 113.57 1 179.56 2014–15 season Date Event SP FS Total 23–29 March 2015 2015 World Championships 9 60.56 11 111.99 11 172.55 16 January – 1 February 2015 2015 European Championships 4 57.95 4 117.44 4 175.39 20–21 December 2014 2015 Italian Championships 1 58.44 1 115.32 1 173.76 4–6 December 2014 2014 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb 2 55.18 2 112.00 2 167.18 21–24 November 2014 2014 CS Warsaw Cup 4 52.32 3 102.28 3 154.60
References
External links