Rocky Marval

Rocco Marvaldi,[1] known professionally as Rocky Marval, (born November 11, 1965)[2] is an American former pair skater. With Calla Urbanski, he is the 1991 Skate America champion, the 1992 NHK Trophy bronze medalist, and a two-time U.S. national champion (1992–1993). They represented the United States at the 1992 Winter Olympics and finished tenth.

Rocky Marval
Personal information
Full name	Rocco Marvaldi
Country represented	United States
Born	(1965-11-11) November 11, 1965 Trenton, New Jersey
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Former partner	Calla Urbanski, Natasha Kuchiki, Maria Lako
Former coach	Ronald Ludington
Former training locations	Wilmington, Delaware
Retired	1994

Personal life

Marval worked as a truck driver during his skating career, having established a small trucking company with his brother in the early 1980s.[3] He married Canadian pair skater Isabelle Brasseur.[2] Their daughter, Gabriella Marvaldi, is the 2012 U.S. juvenile pairs champion, with partner Kyle Hogeboom.[4]

Career

Marval teamed up with Calla Urbanski in 1990. They were coached by Ronald Ludington in Wilmington, Delaware.[3] The media dubbed the pair "The Waitress and the Truck Driver" because of their occupations.[5] In the 1991–92 season, Urbanski/Marval won gold at the 1991 Skate America and at the 1992 U.S. Championships. They were named in the U.S. team to the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France and finished tenth. Both developed chest colds at the event and waited a day for medication because the approved type had initially run out.[6] The pair placed seventh in the final event of the season, the 1992 World Championships.

In June 1992, Urbanski and Marval announced the end of their partnership.[7] Both arranged tryouts with other skaters — Urbanski with Scott Kurttila and Marval with Natasha Kuchiki — but the two decided to reunite in late July.[8] They competed together for one more season, winning bronze at the 1992 NHK Trophy and their second U.S. national title.

Marval teamed up with Kuchiki in late 1993.[9] They finished fourth at the 1994 U.S. Championships, missing the 1994 Olympic team. Marval then reunited with Urbanski and turned professional. In 1998, the pair placed third at the World Professional Championships.

Marval is the director of skating at the Igloo Ice Rink in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.

Results

With Maria Lako

Event	1989	1990
U.S. Championships	11th	7th

With Calla Urbanski

International
Event	1990–91	1991–92	1992–93
Winter Olympics		10th
World Championships	9th	7th	8th
Skate America	7th	1st	4th
International de Paris		4th
NHK Trophy			3rd
Nations Cup		4th
National
U.S. Championships	2nd	1st	1st

With Natasha Kuchiki

Event	1994
U.S. Championships	4th

Professional

• 1994 Challenge of Champions: 4
• 1994 Goodwill Games: 6
• 1994 U.S. Open: 3
• 1995 Challenge of Champions: 2
• 1995 Legends Championships: 4
• 1995 Rider's Skating Championship: 4
• 1996 Canadian Professional Championships: 4
• 1996 Masters Miko: 3
• 1996 The Professional Championships: 5
• 1996 U.S. Professional Championships: 3
• 1997 Challenge of Champions: WD
• 1998 World Professional Championships: 3

References

1. Hersh, Phil (March 5, 1991). "Life Begins At 30 For Calla". Chicago Tribune.
2. "Rocky Marval". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18.
3. Hersh, Phil (December 26, 1991). "Skater Figures Charity Begins At Home". Chicago Tribune.
4. Nagy, Julia (December 13, 2011). "Marvaldi and Hogeboom find mirth in victory". Ice Network. Retrieved December 15, 2011.
5. Glauber, Bill (January 7, 1992). "Ice skates, blue collars Trucker Marval, waitress Urbanski chase Olympics". Baltimore Sun.
6. Jeansonne, John (February 10, 1992). "It's Cold Comfort For Pair Ailing, nervous Rocky-Calla 7th". Newsday.
7. Harvey, Randy (June 4, 1992). "U.S. Pairs Skating Champions Separate". Los Angeles Times.
8. Hersh, Phil (August 30, 1992). "Urbanski, Marval Melt Ice, Reunite". Chicago Tribune.
9. Harvey, Randy (January 9, 1994). "Awarding of Final Pairs Berth Creates Furor". Los Angeles Times.

Further reading

• BLADES on ice Vol 5. No.2 page 45