Selena Zhao (born 10 May 1998) is a Canadian competitive

figure skater Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

. She is the 2015 Canadian Junior Champion.

Personal life and education

Zhao was born in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and holds a dual citizenship as an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

. Her parents were born in

Beijing, China } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

before

emigrating Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, where her father earned his

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

. They eventually moved to

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, where Zhao's older brother, Davis, was born. The family later settled in

Kirkland, Washington Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. A suburb east of Seattle, its population was 92,175 in the 2020 U.S. census which made it the sixth largest city in the county and the twelfth largest in the state. The city's downto ...

for Zhao's father's job, where she was eventually born. In 2012, Zhao moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, before relocating in 2013 to

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

, where she trained from 2013-2016. During this time, she attended

Cheyenne Mountain High School Cheyenne Mountain High School (CMHS) is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. It is the only high school in Cheyenne Mountain School District 12. Its campus contains several buildings, including a recreation center, library, cafet ...

as a top student in her classes, winning a department award in

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

. Zhao now studies

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

as a member of the Class of 2020. She also performs in the annual cancer research fundraiser show,

An Evening with Champions An Evening with Champions (EWC) is an annual benefit figure skating show organized by students of Harvard University. The event is a two-day skating show generally in October, which regularly attracts world-class skaters, thousands of spectators, ...

Career

Early career

Zhao began skating at the age of four. She landed her first triple at the age of twelve, and mastered all of them a year later. In the 2008-2009 season, Zhao won her regional competition and qualified for the U.S. Junior Figure Skating Championships on the juvenile level, where she placed 9th. A year later, at the intermediate level, Zhao once again won regionals to qualify for the U.S. Junior Figure Skating Championships on the intermediate level. The following season, Zhao repeated her win at regionals on the intermediate level and competed for the third time at the U.S. Junior Figure Skating Championships. In the 2011-12 season, Zhao won regionals at the novice level by 21.07 points and placed fourth at sectionals to qualify for the 2012 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, where she placed seventh. For the 2012-13 season, Zhao moved to Chicago to train with Kori Ade and

Rohene Ward Rohene Andre Ward (born June 28, 1983) is a retired American figure skater and choreographer. He competed four times at the U.S. Championships, in 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008. He also competed for Puerto Rico and is the 2004 Puerto Rican national ...

, coaches of 2014 US Olympian Jason Brown. She won the inaugural US Challenge Skate at the junior level, ahead of

Polina Edmunds Polina Edmunds (born May 18, 1998) is a retired American figure skater. She is the 2015 Four Continents champion, the 2014 CS U.S. Classic champion, and a two-time U.S. national silver medalist (2014, 2016). She represented the United States a ...

. Zhao won regionals by 45.37 points but placed 5th at sectionals, failing to qualify for the 2013 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Zhao began working with coaches Christy Krall and

Damon Allen Damon L. Allen (born July 29, 1963) is a former professional quarterback who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He is currently fourth in all-time professional football passing yards and second in all-time CFL passing yards after he ...

, at the age of fourteen, prior to the 2013-14 season. but failed to qualify for the 2014 U.S. Figure Skating Championships after placing 5th at sectionals.

2014-2015 season

Zhao made her international debut on the

ISU Junior Grand Prix The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (titled the ISU Junior Series in the 1997–98 season) is a series of international junior-level competitions organized by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded in the disciplines of men ...

during the 2014-15 figure skating season, representing Canada. Zhao finished 10th at her JGP event in

Ljubljana, Slovenia Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

and 9th at her JGP event in

Dresden, Germany Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth la ...

. At the 2015 Canadian Junior Championships, Zhao overcame a prior foot injury, sustained while training a triple-triple jump combination, to win the gold medal by 13.34 points. This earned her a spot for the

2015 World Junior Figure Skating Championships The 2015 World Junior Figure Skating Championships was an international figure skating competition in the 2014–15 season. Commonly called "World Juniors" and "Junior Worlds", the event determined the World Junior champions in the disciplines ...

where she had the

flu Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptom ...

but competed anyway and placed 26th.

2015-2016 season

Zhao made her senior debut at the 2015 U.S. International Classic, where she placed 5th.

Programs

Competitive highlights

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhao, Selena 1998 births Living people Canadian female single skaters Canadian sportspeople of Chinese descent Harvard College alumni