Mark Ladwig OLY (born May 6, 1980) is an American former competitive pair skater. He is best known for his partnership with Amanda Evora, with whom he competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics, placing tenth. They won bronze at an ISU Grand Prix event, the 2010 Cup of Russia, and two U.S. national silver medals. He later skated with Lindsay Davis for one season.

Mark Ladwig
OLY
Evora and Ladwig in 2009.
Born (1980-05-06) May 6, 1980 (age 44)
Fargo, North Dakota, U.S.
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Figure skating career
CountryUnited States
Skating clubRed River Valley FSC
Began skating1985

Personal life

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Mark Ladwig was born in Fargo, North Dakota to Carol and John, a medical technician and a doctor respectively, and grew up in Moorhead, Minnesota with two siblings, Todd and Erin.[1] He married his wife, Janet, in August 2006.[2] A boy named Holden Everett was born September 13, 2009.[3] A second son, Felix Rye Ladwig, was born July 1, 2014.[4]

Career

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Ladwig skated with Kelsey Sollom until 1999 in Moorhead, Minnesota and then with Keri Blakinger while at the University of Delaware Figure Skating Club in Newark, Delaware.[5][6] He volunteered at the 2002 Winter Olympics and worked in Salt Lake Olympic Square.[7]

In June 2002, Ladwig began skating with Amanda Evora. They finished 12th in their debut at the U.S. Championships and fifth at their first ISU Championship, the 2005 Four Continents. In 2007, Ladwig began serving on the U.S. Figure Skating Athletes Advisory Committee.[8] He was the pairs vice-chair of the 2008–09 Athletes Advisory Committee.[9]

2009–10 was a breakthrough season for Evora/Ladwig. They took second at the U.S Championships, their best finish at the event, which led to their selection for the US Olympic team. At the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, they beat their previous personal best by a sizable margin, and finished tenth, making them the top US pair at the Olympics.[10] They later competed at Worlds for the first time in their career, and finished in ninth place.

During 2010–2011 season, Evora/Ladwig were assigned to compete at Cup of China where they finished fifth (151.66 pts) and later earned their first Grand Prix medal, a bronze, at Rostelecom Cup, with a season's best of 110.27 and total score of 162.85. Evora/Ladwig repeated at US Nationals earning their second silver medal, and were selected to compete at Four Continents and Worlds. At Four Continents, Ladwig's left skate heel broke during the short program, but he and Evora were able to resume the program within the allowed three minutes after Canadian Rudi Swiegers lent his own boot to Ladwig.[11] Ladwig was able to repair his skate prior to the free skate,[12] and the pair went on to finish sixth overall. Evora/Ladwig were noted for their longevity as a pair, which is rare in U.S. pair skating.[13] Their partnership ended when Evora retired from competitive skating on April 10, 2012.[14]

Ladwig was elected to the USOC AAC in 2012. In May, he announced that he had teamed up with Lindsay Davis.[15] Davis/Ladwig competed at two Grand Prix events and won the pewter medal at the 2013 U.S. Championships. They confirmed the end of their partnership in February 2013.[16]

Programs

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With Davis

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Season Short program Free skating Exhibition
2012–2013
[17][18]

With Evora

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Season Short program Free skating Exhibition
2011–2012
[1][2][19]
2010–2011
[1][20]
2009–2010
[1][21]
2008–2009
[1][22]
2007–2008
[1][19]
2006–2007
[1]
2005–2006
[1]
2004–2005
[1]
2003–2004
[1]
  • Smokie Joe's Cafe

Competitive highlights

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With Davis

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International[23]
Event 2012–13
GP NHK Trophy 6th
GP Skate Canada 7th
U.S. Classic 5th
National[18]
U.S. Championships 4th
GP = Grand Prix

With Evora

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International[24]
Event 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12
Olympics 10th
Worlds 9th 11th
Four Continents 5th 6th 6th
GP Bompard 4th
GP Cup of China 4th 7th 5th 4th
GP Cup of Russia 3rd
GP Skate America 9th 4th 5th
GP Skate Canada 8th 7th
Nebelhorn 5th 3rd
Golden Spin 1st
National[1]
U.S. Champ. 12th 10th 5th 7th 4th 5th 4th 2nd 2nd 3rd

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Amanda Evora / Mark Ladwig". IceNetwork. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Amanda EVORA / Mark LADWIG: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012.
  3. ^ Meekins, Drew; Sarah S. Brannen (September 21, 2009). "The Inside Edge with Sarah and Drew – Sept. 21". Retrieved November 3, 2009.
  4. ^ Brannen, Sarah S.; Meekins, Drew (July 3, 2014). "The Inside Edge: Skaters debut new programs". IceNetwork.
  5. ^ "2000 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships Novice Pairs Final Standings". U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved November 3, 2009.
  6. ^ "2001 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships – Novice Pairs". U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved November 3, 2009.
  7. ^ Whiteside, Kelly (February 10, 2010). "US figure skating pairs grateful for Olympic chance". USA Today.
  8. ^ "Athletes Advisory Committee Leadership". U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved November 3, 2009.
  9. ^ "U.S. Figure Skating Athletes Advisory Committee 2008–09 Permanent Committee" (PDF). U.S. Figure Skating. Retrieved November 3, 2009.
  10. ^ "Figure skating gold goes to Chinese pair". Retrieved April 30, 2010.
  11. ^ Rutherford, Lynn; Stevenson, Alexandra (February 17, 2011). "Disaster strikes, but Swiegers saves the day". IceNetwork.com. Retrieved February 17, 2011.
  12. ^ Stevenson, Alexandra; Rutherford, Lynn (February 18, 2011). "Friday: Tidbits from New York and Taipei". Icenetwork. Retrieved August 28, 2011.
  13. ^ Rosewater, Amy (May 18, 2011). "Evora, Ladwig commit to skate next season". IceNetwork. Retrieved June 18, 2011.
  14. ^ "2010 Olympians Evora, Ladwig end partnership". U.S. Figure Skating. Ice Network. April 10, 2012.
  15. ^ Rutherford, Lynn (May 4, 2012). "Ladwig searches for new beginning with Davis". Ice Network.
  16. ^ "Lindsay Davis and Mark Ladwig End Partnership". U.S. Figure Skating. February 7, 2013.
  17. ^ "Lindsay DAVIS / Mark LADWIG: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 25, 2013.
  18. ^ a b "Lindsay Davis / Mark Ladwig". IceNetwork. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013.
  19. ^ a b Rutherford, Lynn (January 18, 2012). "Popular Evora and Ladwig have golden chance". IceNetwork. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
  20. ^ "Amanda EVORA / Mark LADWIG: 2010/2011". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 16, 2011.
  21. ^ "Amanda EVORA / Mark LADWIG: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on March 28, 2010.
  22. ^ "Amanda EVORA / Mark LADWIG: 2008/2009". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 16, 2009.
  23. ^ "Competition Results: Lindsay DAVIS / Mark LADWIG". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 21, 2014.
  24. ^ "Competition Results: Amanda EVORA / Mark LADWIG". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 20, 2014.
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