Denis Margalik

Denis Margalik (born June 3, 1997) is an Argentine figure skater. He became the first skater representing Argentina to win a medal on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, obtaining bronze at JGP Bratislava in 2015. He is the first male skater to compete for Argentina in an ISU Championship, appearing at Four Continents in 2015 and at the World Championships in 2016.

Denis Margalik
Personal information
Country represented	Argentina
Former country(ies) represented	Canada
Born	(1997-06-03) June 3, 1997 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Coach	Andrei Berezintsev, Inga Zusev
Former coach	Robert O'Toole
Choreographer	Lori Nichol, Andrei Berezintsev
Skating club	AREPH
Former skating club	Woodbine Winter Club
Training locations	Richmond Hill, Ontario
Began skating	2005
Retired	2016
ISU personal best scores
Combined total	193.44 2014 Skate Canada Autumn Classic
Short program	63.83 2015 JGP Slovakia
Free skate	131.50 2014 Skate Canada Autumn Classic

Personal life

Denis Margalik was born on June 3, 1997, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.[1] His parents, born in Ukraine, relocated the family to New York, United States, in late December 1999, and soon after, to Canada.[2] Margalik, the second of three boys, grew up in Mississauga before moving to Richmond Hill, Ontario.[2][3] He attended Silverthorn Collegiate Institute,[4] then graduated from Richmond Green Secondary School in June 2016.[5] He now attends Western University in London, Ontario where he is assistant coach and captain of the Varsity Figure Skating Team.[6]

Career

Margalik began skating in 2005.[1] His first coach was Robert O'Toole, who taught him for eight years, mainly at the Woodbine Winter Club in Toronto.[4] Margalik's early career was hindered by Osgood–Schlatter disease, which affected his knees.[4] Competing on the junior level, he won the silver medal at the 2013 Canadian Championships and gold at the 2013 Mladost Trophy, his only international appearance for Canada. He changed coaches later in 2013, joining Andrei Berezintsev and Inga Zusev at the Richmond Training Centre in Richmond Hill, Ontario.[2][7] He won the national junior title at the 2014 Canadian Championships.

Margalik debuted for Argentina in September 2014, placing fourth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Japan. Making his senior international debut, he finished seventh at the 2014 Skate Canada Autumn Classic, a part of the ISU Challenger Series.[8] In February 2015, he competed at his first ISU Championship, the Four Continents in Seoul, South Korea. This is the first time an Argentine skater have participated in the Four Continents Championships. This is also the first time a male skater represented Argentina in an ISU Championship.[1] Ranked 18th in the short program, he qualified for the free skate, where he placed 15th and rose to 16th overall.[9] At the Junior Worlds, he achieved 12th place.[8]

In August 2015, Margalik won Argentina's first ISU Junior Grand Prix medal, taking bronze at the 2015 JGP in Bratislava, Slovakia. In February 2016, he placed 17th at the Four Continents in Taipei. In March 2016, he participated at the World Championships in Boston, as the first skater representing Argentina in history.[10]

Margalik announced his retirement on July 12, 2016.[11] In a related news article, an ankle injury was cited.[12]

Programs

Season	Short program	Free skating
2015–2016 [10]	Introduction from The Lady and the Hooligan by Dmitri Shostakovich Tango by Dmitri Shostakovich choreo. by Lori Nichol	Theme from Gladiator by Hans Zimmer performed by Maksim Mrvica
2014–2015 [1][2]	Introduction from The Lady and the Hooligan by Dmitri Shostakovich Tango by Dmitri Shostakovich choreo. by Lori Nichol	Lee Loos' Tune performed by Maksim Mrvica choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev
2013–2014 [2]		Lee Loos' Tune performed by Maksim Mrvica choreo. by Andrei Berezintsev

Competitive highlights

CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

For Argentina

International[8]
Event	2014–15	2015–16
World Champ.		29th
Four Continents Champ.	16th	17th
CS Autumn Classic	7th
Autumn Classic		7th
International: Junior[8]
World Junior Champ.	12th
JGP Japan	4th
JGP Slovakia		3rd
JGP Spain		8th

For Canada

International: Junior[8]
Event	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14
Mladost Trophy		1st J.
National[8]
Canadian Champ.	14th J.	2nd J.	1st J.
J. = Junior level

References

1. "Denis MARGALIK: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 23, 2015.
2. Slater, Paula (August 29, 2014). "Canada's Denis Margalik to represent Argentina". Golden Skate.
3. Colpitts, Iain (January 23, 2014). "Skaters place first and second at nationals". The Mississauga News.
4. Girard, Daniel (January 15, 2013). "Canadian figure skating championships: Promising teen finding his legs after bout with growing pains". Toronto Star.
5. Margalik, Denis (June 28, 2016). "See ya later RGSS! 😅 #Graduation" (Instagram).
6. "uwo student directory". October 26, 2018.
7. Smith, Beverley (January 15, 2014). "Grenier and Deschamps claim junior pair title in first season together; Margalik tops podium in junior men's". Skate Canada.
8. "Competition Results: Denis MARGALIK". International Skating Union.
9. "ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2015 - Protocol" (PDF). International Skating Union. February 15, 2015.
10. "Denis MARGALIK: 2015/2016". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on July 1, 2016.
11. Margalik, Denis (July 12, 2016). ""Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" - Dr. Suess" (Instagram).
12. Grieco, Flavio (July 15, 2016). "Se retiró Denis Margalik, emblema del patinaje sobre hielo argentino" [Denis Margalik, emblem of Argentine ice skating retired]. Cinco Anillos (in Spanish).

External links

• Denis Margalik at the International Skating Union