Camille Kovalev (née Mendoza; born 29 November 1994 in Toulouse) is a French pair skater. With Pavel Kovalev, she is a two-time ISU Grand Prix medalist, 2018 Volvo Open Cup silver medalist, 2015 International Cup of Nice bronze medalist, 2015 Lombardia Trophy bronze medalist, and is a five-time French national champion (2022–26).
Earlier in her career, she skated with Christopher Boyadji and competed in the final segment at the 2012 World Junior Championships.
Personal life Kovalev was born on 29 November 1994 in Toulouse, France. She married her skating partner, Pavel Kovalev, in December 2017 and subsequently adopted his last name.
Career Early career
Kovalev began figure skating in 2000 at the age of six. She began competing as a pair skater in 2011 after teaming up with Christopher Boyadji. Coached by Vivien Rolland and Diana Skotnicka, Kovalev/Boyadji represented the Club Olympique de Courbevoie. They competed at the 2012 World Junior Championships, where they finished sixteenth. Their partnership eventually dissolved following the 2011–12 figure skating season.
Pair skating with Pavel Kovalev 2014–2015 season: Debut of Kovalev/Kovalev In 2014, it was announced that Kovalev had teamed up with Russian pair skater, Pavel Kovalev and that they would be coached by Medhi Bouzzine and that they would represent the Club Olympique de Courbevoie.
Their first competition as a team was at the 2014 Master's de Patinage, although they withdrew from the event after placing third in the short program. They subsequently competed at the 2014 NRW Trophy and the 2015 Bavarian Open, finishing fourth at both events.
2015–2016 season The Kovalevs started the season by winning their first international medal together, a bronze at the 2015 Lombardia Trophy. They then went on to win silver at the 2015 Master's de Patinage and bronze at the 2015 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur.
In December, the Kovalevs won silver at the 2016 French Championships. They then closed the season with a fourth-place finish at the 2016 Bavarian Open.
2016–2017 season Beginning the season with a gold medal win at the 2016 Master's de Patinage, the Kovalevs subsequently finished sixth at the 2016 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur and fourth at the 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy.
They ended the season by winning bronze at the 2017 French Championships.
2017–2018 season The Kovalevs started the season by winning bronze at the 2017 Master's de Patinage. They then competed at the 2017 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur and the 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy, finishing eighth and fifth, respectively.
2018–2019 season The Kovalevs began the season by winning silver at the 2018 Master's de Patinage and at the 2018 Volvo Open Cup. They then concluded the season by winning bronze at the 2019 French Championships.
2019–2020 season Beginning the season at the 2020 Master's de Patinage, the Kovalevs won the gold medal. They then went on to compete on the 2019–20 ISU Challenger Series, finishing thirteenth at the 2019 CS Warsaw Cup and seventeenth at the 2019 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb.
In December, the Kovalevs won their second national silver medal at the 2020 French Championships.
2020–2021 season The Kovalevs only competed at one event in the 2020-2021 season, the 2020 Master's de Patinage, where they won the bronze medal.
2021–2022 season: First national title and World Championship debut In fall 2021, it was announced that the Kovalevs were now being coached by Laurent Depouilly in Courbevoie. They started the season by finishing seventh at the 2021 CS Lombardia Trophy. Making their Grand Prix series debut at the 2021 Internationaux de France, the pair came in seventh place.
In December, they won their first national title at the 2022 French Championships. With this result, the Kovalevs were selected to represent France at the European and World Championships for a first time. At the 2022 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, they came in fourteenth place.
In March 2022, the International Skating Union banned athletes representing Russia from competing at international events as a result of their invasion of Ukraine. In addition, the Chinese Skating Association opted not to send any athletes to compete at the 2022 World Championships in Montpellier, France. Because of this, the Kovalevs finished World Championships with a strong eighth-place.
2022–2023 season: First Grand Prix medal The Kovalevs began the season by finishing sixth at the 2022 CS Nebelhorn Trophy before going on to win gold at the 2022 Master's de Patinage.
Going on to compete on the 2022–23 Grand Prix circuit, the pair won their first Grand Prix medal, a silver, at the 2022 Grand Prix de France. They subsequently finished fifth at the 2022 NHK Trophy.
In December, the Kovalevs won the national title for a second consecutive time at the 2023 French Championships. Named to the European and World team, the Kovalevs finished sixth at the 2023 European Championships in Espoo, Finland and fourteenth at the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, Japan.
Selected to compete for Team France in the pairs discipline at the 2023 World Team Trophy, the pair individually placed fifth and Team France finished in fifth place overall.
2023–2024 season: Second Grand Prix medal The Kovalevs started the season by winning gold at the 2023 John Nicks Pairs Challenge. Following a ninth-place finish at the 2023 CS Autumn Classic International, the pair won gold for a fourth time at the 2023 Master's de Patinage. They subsequently competed at the 2023 CS Finlandia Trophy, where they placed fifth.
Competing on the 2023–24 Grand Prix circuit, the Kovalevs won the bronze medal at the 2023 Grand Prix de France. “We are so happy,” said Camille. “We came here with the goal to win a medal and we did it. We fought until the end to get it!” They went on to finish fifth at the 2023 Grand Prix of Espoo. In December, they won their third national title at the 2024 French Championships.
The pair then went on to compete at the 2024 European Championships in Kaunas, Lithuania, despite Camille developing a fever two days before the event. During the short program, Camille had a very hard fall on the throw triple flip, landing on her chest. She then fell again on the side-by-side triple toe. As a result of these mistakes, the pair only placed fifteenth in the short program. They ended up withdrawing before the free skate due to Camille's illness. The Kovalevs subsequently competed at the 2024 International Challenge Cup, where they took the bronze medal.
Weeks before the 2024 World Championships, the Kovalevs announced that they would not compete at the event due to Pavel injuring himself from a very bad fall in training.
In June, the pair announced that while continuing their coaching relationship with Laurent Depouilly, that they would begin training at the ASGA Figure Skating Club.
2024–2025 season
During the off-season, Pavel dislocated his ankle and underwent surgery during the summer. He also injured his back shortly after
returning to the ice, and would subsequently be forced to miss another two weeks of training. The Kovalevs, having initially been told by doctors that they would likely need to sit out of the beginning of the season, Pavel was eventually cleared to skate at the 2024 Master's de Patinage in late September, much earlier than the couple had expected. They ultimately won silver at the event. They subsequently finished sixth at the 2024 Tayside Trophy.
Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix circuit, the Kovalevs finished seventh at the 2024 Grand Prix de France and sixth at the 2024 Cup of China.
In late December, the Kovalevs won their fourth national title at the 2025 French Championships.
The Kovalevs then competed at the 2025 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, where they finished ninth overall. They subsequently finished fourth at the Road to 26 Trophy in Milan, Italy, a test event for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Selected to compete at the 2025 World Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, the Kovalevs placed twenty-first in the short program and did not advance to the free skate segment. They then closed the season by competing for Team France at the 2025 World Team Trophy, placing sixth in all segments of the pairs event and Team France finished fourth overall.
2025–2026 season: Milano Cortina Olympics
In June, the Kovalevs announced that they had made a coaching change from Laurent Depouilly to Bruno Massot.
They opened the season by winning gold at the 2025 Master's de Patinage. They then competed at the 2025 Skate to Milano, the final Olympic qualifying event. At the event, the Kovalevs placed second in the short program and fifth in the free skate, placing fourth overall. Due to this placement, Team France was given the first alternate spot for pair skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Going on to compete on the 2025–26 Grand Prix series, the Kovalevs finished sixth at the 2025 Grand Prix de France. They went on to compete at the 2025 NHK Trophy, however, Camille sustained a shoulder injury following a fall on their side-by-side triple toe attempt in the short program. As a result, the team was forced to withdraw. According to their coach, Bruno Massot, the injury involved a dislocation, but the available three-minute injury recovery period was insufficient for her to resume skating. Kovalev did not require immediate hospital treatment and was expected to undergo further evaluation upon returning home.
In December, the Kovalevs competed at the 2026 French Championships, where they won their fifth national title. They were subsequently named to the 2026 Winter Olympic team to compete in the figure skating team event. The following month, the Kovalevs competed at the 2026 European Championships in Sheffield, England, United Kingdom, where they finished in tenth place.
Less than two weeks before the start of the 2026 Winter Olympics, it was announced that the Winter Sports Association of Uzbekistan had reliquinshed their sole Olympic pair skating spot. As the first alternates, the Kovalevs were selected to compete in the Games' individual pair event.
On February 6, the Kovalevs placed seventh in the short program in the 2026 Winter Olympics Figure Skating Team Event. Paula Slater says, “There’s so much to enjoy here,” said Camille. “Honestly, everything. It feels like a dream come true. Every moment, we try to take pictures, look around, see what’s happening next, what we can do next. I really feel like a kid in Disneyland!”
2026–2027 season The pair opened their season with a 6th place finish at the 2026 Kinoshita Group Cup.
Programs With Pavel Kovalev Season Short program Free skating Exhibition2026–2027 Ameksaby Taalbi Brothers Days Gone Quietby Lewis Capaldi 2025–2026 Une vie d'amour Come Together After Dark Seven Nation Army Maison 2024–2025 Toxic Toxic Lordly Manners Maketh Man Gun Barrel A Terrible Choice No Time to Die No Time to Die (M+ike remix) Unknown (To You) 2023–2024 The Feeling Begins (Remix) Prince of Persia (Electrosila digital mix) 2022–2023 My Boy Bad Guy Caruso Natural 2021–22 Libertango The Curse 2018–19 What Love Can Be 2017–18 Long Tall Sally Bleeding Love 2016–17 2015–16 Iron Sky To Build a Home 2014–15 Industrial Revolution, Part 2 The Earth Prelude
With Christopher Boyadji Season Short program Free skating 2011–12 Mr. & Mrs. Smith Pearl Harbor
Competitive highlights
Pair skating with Pavel Kovalev
Pair skating with Christopher Boyadji
Detailed results Pair skating with Pavel Kovalev
]\ |51.76|2017 CS Tallinn Trophy |29.44|2017 CS Tallinn Trophy |22.32|2017 CS Tallinn Trophy |91.11|2016 CS Tallinn Trophy |46.35|2016 CS Tallinn Trophy |45.76|2016 CS Tallinn Trophy
References
External links
Camille Kovalev at Milano Cortina 2026