Elliana Pogrebinsky (born April 22, 1998) is a retired American competitive ice dancer. With Alex Benoit, she is a two-time ISU Challenger Series Tallinn Trophy bronze medalist (2016, 2017), the 2016 Lake Placid Ice Dance International champion, and the 2017 U.S. national pewter medalist.

Personal life Elliana Pogrebinsky was born April 22, 1998, in Los Gatos, California. She is the daughter of Natalia and Vladimir Pogrebinsky, and has an elder brother, Daniel. Her parents moved to the United States in the late 1980s from Odesa, Ukraine. She is Jewish and celebrated her bat mitzvah in 2011.

As a child, Pogrebinsky studied at a ballet school in San Jose, California, and competed in ballroom dancing and in rhythmic gymnastics, winning a Pacific Region title and qualifying for three national championships at three levels. After moving from California to Maryland in 2009, she attended Westland Middle School and Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School. In 2016, she graduated from FlexTech Academy in Novi, Michigan. She is now enrolled at the University of San Francisco pursuing a bachelor's degree in Kinesiology and has an internship at the athletic department in Strength and Conditioning at USF.

Career

Early years Pogrebinsky began skating as a three-year-old in San Jose. From 2005 to 2009, she was coached by Marina Klimova and Sergei Ponomarenko in California.

Pogrebinsky teamed up with Ross Gudis in March 2009. They were coached by Alexei Kiliakov, Elena Novak, and Dmytri Ilin in Wheaton and Rockville, Maryland. Making their ISU Junior Grand Prix debut, they placed 6th in Lake Placid, New York, and 11th in Bled, Slovenia in 2012, before placing 5th in junior dance at the 2013 U.S. Championships. In the 2013–14 season, they competed at two more JGP events – finishing 4th in Riga, Latvia, and 6th in Gdańsk, Poland – and placed 5th for the second year in a row at the U.S. Championships.

Partnership with Benoit Pogrebinsky teamed up with Alex Benoit in March 2014 after a tryout in Novi, Michigan, that was suggested by Igor Shpilband. Their international debut came at the 2014–15 ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) in Aichi; after placing fifth in Japan, Pogrebinsky/Benoit were sent to the JGP in Zagreb, Croatia, where they finished 8th. In January 2015, they won the junior bronze medal at the 2015 U.S. Championships and were selected to compete at the 2015 World Junior Championships in Tallinn. Ranked 12th in the short dance, they qualified for the free dance (14th) and finished 13th overall in Estonia.

During the 2015–16 ISU Junior Grand Prix series, Pogrebinsky/Benoit placed fourth in Linz, Austria, and won the bronze medal in Logroño, Spain. They repeated as junior national bronze medalists and were assigned to the 2016 World Junior Championships in Debrecen, Hungary; they placed fifth in the short dance, fourth in the free, and fourth overall.

Pogrebinsky/Benoit decided to compete on the senior level in the 2016–2017 season. Making their Grand Prix debut, they placed 7th at the 2016 Skate America and 6th at the 2016 Rostelecom Cup. They won bronze at the 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy and then the pewter medal (fourth place) at the 2017 U.S. Championships.

In their second senior season, the two finished 7th at both of their Grand Prix assignments and took bronze at the 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy before placing 7th at the 2018 U.S. Championships. Their coaches included Igor Shpilband, Adrienne Lenda, Greg Zuerlein, and Fabian Bourzat. In March 2018, Benoit announced his decision to retire from competitive skating while Pogrebinsky said that she would search for another partner.

Programs

With Benoit Season Short dance Free dance 2017–2018 Simba Lo So Che Finirà Bailar I Put a Spell on You Original composition 2016–2017 Trouble Persian legend: Layla and Majnun Sadko The Feeling Begins 2015–2016 My Sweet and Tender Beast Romeo + Juliet Roméo et Juliette: de la Haine à l'Amour Romeo + Juliet 2014–2015 Straight to Memphis Beijos Banto Swan Lake Act I, Introduction Act I, No. 5 Act II, No. 10 Act III, No. 24

With Gudis Season Short dance Free dance 2013–2014 Pink Panther Jumping at the Woodside El Conquistador Para Mi Nicole El Conquistador 2012–2013 Overpowered The Blues Cry Baby Masquerade Mazurka Romance Waltz 2011–2012 Relax Max Party is Over The Master and Margarita 2010–2011 The Matrix Revolutions Spirit of the Universe Tetsujin 2009–2010 Mimes

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

With Benoit International Event 14–15 15–16 16–17 17–18 Cup of China 7th France 7th Rostelecom Cup 6th Skate America 7th Lombardia Trophy 4th Nebelhorn Trophy 4th Tallinn Trophy 3rd 3rd Lake Placid IDI 1st 3rd International: Junior World Junior Champ. 13th 4th Austria 4th Croatia 8th Japan 5th Spain 3rd National U.S. Championships 3rd J 3rd J 4th 7th J = Junior level TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

With Gudis International Event 11–12 12–13 13–14 Latvia 4th Poland 6th Slovenia 11th United States 6th National U.S. Championships 8th J 5th J 5th J

References

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