Panagiotis "Joti" Polizoakis (born 9 June 1995) is a German ice dancer and choreographer. He is a three-time German national champion (2016–2018) and has finished 16th at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.

Personal life Joti Polizoakis was born on 9 June 1995 in Bietigheim-Bissingen. He is the oldest child of a Czech woman and a Greek who was born in Germany. He is fluent in German, Czech, and Greek, as well as English and French. He has two younger siblings. Polizoakis served as a sports soldier in the German military from 2017 to 2019.

Joti Polizoakis resides and lives in Berlin, Germany.

Career

Polizoakis began learning to skate in 2000. He competed at ISU Junior Grand Prix events and won the German junior national title. He was the German Junior National Champion in 2013 and 2014.

He was coached by Michael Huth.

In 2014–15, he moved up to the senior level but struggled with many injuries and health problems. He competed at two ISU Challenger Series events and placed 6th at the 2015 German Championships.

Partnership with Lorenz In the spring of 2015, Polizoakis teamed up with Kavita Lorenz to compete in ice dancing. The two had known each other for many years. They were coached by Igor Shpilband and Martin Skotnický in Novi, Michigan.

Making their international debut, Lorenz/Polizoakis finished fourth at the 2015 Nebelhorn Trophy, a Challenger Series (CS) event. They placed fifth at the 2015 Ondrej Nepela Trophy (CS), first at the 2015 Open d'Andorra, and fifth at the 2015 Warsaw Cup (CS). In December, they won the German national title ahead of Katharina Müller / Tim Dieck and were selected to represent Germany at the 2016 European Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia. At Europeans in January, Lorenz/Polizoakis placed 13th in the short dance to qualify for the free, where they ranked 15th, resulting in a final placement of 14th at their first ISU Championship. In March, they qualified for the final segment at the 2016 World Championships in Boston by placing 18th in the short dance and went on to finish 17th overall. They ended their partnership in April 2016, but announced in June that they would continue skating together.

Polizoakis and Lorenz defended their national title in 2017 and 2018 for three consecutive times and managed to secure a spot for the 2018 Winter Olympics. This should be, so far, the biggest achievement of his career. They switched coaches in the Olympic season to be trained by Marina Zoueva and Massimo Scali in Canton, Michigan.

After the World Championships in 2018, Lorenz ended her career, and Polizoakis has been looking for a partner ever since.

Olympic Winter Games Polizoakis and his partner qualified for the Winter Olympic Games 2018 in PyeongChang, South Korea, by winning the German National Championships in 2018. At the Olympic Games, they placed 7th in the figure skating team event. In the individual event, Polizoakis qualified for the final and ended up in 16th place in the ice dance event.

Holiday On Ice Polizoakis toured Germany and Austria as a star guest in the 2019/2020 season with Holiday On Ice.

In total, he performed in 11 different cities.

Programs

With Lorenz Season Short dance Free dance 2017–18 Aguanile Mil Pasos (Remix) Magalenha Pride & Prejudice (soundtrack) 2016–17 Come Together Black or White remix Malagueña Jeux Interdits Jaleo Poeta 2015–16 The Sound of Music Amélie

Single skating Season Short program Free skating 2014–15 Zorba the Greek Bring Him Home 2013–14 La gazza ladra The Phantom of the Opera 2012–13 Adiós Nonino The Nutcracker

Competitive highlights GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

With Cimlová for Czech Republic International Event 22-23 Budapest Trophy 13th Golden Spin WD Mezzaluna Cup 3rd Pavel Roman Memorial 1st Santa Claus Cup WD National Czech Champ. 2nd Four Nationals 6th TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

With Lorenz for Germany International Event 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 Olympics 16th World Champ. 17th 19th 16th European Champ. 14th 14th WD Skate Canada 8th Golden Spin 4th 9th Nebelhorn Trophy 4th 5th 3rd Nepela Memorial 5th 5th Tallinn Trophy 5th Warsaw Cup 5th Bavarian Open 3rd NRW Trophy 2nd Open d'Andorra 1st Volvo Open Cup 2nd National German Champ. 1st 1st 1st Olympics 7th T 8th P TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

Single skating for Germany International Event 08–09 09–10 10–11 11–12 12–13 13–14 14–15 Golden Spin 18th Warsaw Cup 8th Challenge Cup 10th NRW Trophy 14th International: Junior Croatia 14th Czech Rep. 6th France 11th Poland 12th Bavarian Open 3rd J 8th J Challenge Cup 3rd J Printemps 2nd J Merano Cup 2nd J NRW Trophy 7th J 8th J Warsaw Cup 1st J National German Champ. 13th J 6th J 4th J 3rd J 1st J 1st J 6th J = Junior level

TV

Dancing On Ice Joti Polizoakis became known nationwide while appearing as a professional Dancer in the first season of Dancing On Ice in 2019. Sarah Lombardi was his partner in the first season, and together they won the first season.

One year later, he was partnered with Lina Larissa Strahl for the second season of Dancing On Ice. Once again, Polizoakis made it to the final as a pro and finished in third place with Lina Larissa Strahl.

Other projects On May 16, 2020, Polizoakis performed as a dancer at the Free European Song Contest. Since then, he has appeared as a dancer in many music videos.

In the fall of 2020, Polizoakis shot his first short movie as an actor. Series Celebrity partner Place4Sarah Lombardi1st5Lina Larissa Strahl3rd

References

External links