Allison Reed

Allison Lynn Reed (born June 8, 1994) is a Lithuanian-American ice dancer who currently competes for Lithuania with Saulius Ambrulevičius. They are the 2024 European bronze medalists, three-time ISU Grand Prix bronze medalists, and seven-time ISU Challenger Series medalists (two golds, five silvers). They have finished in the top ten at three World Championships (2022, 2023, 2024).

She previously skated with Otar Japaridze for Georgia and with Vasili Rogov for Israel. With Japaridze, she competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Biography

Allison Reed was born on June 8, 1994, in Kalamazoo, Michigan to a Japanese mother and an American father. She is the younger sister of Japanese ice dancers Cathy and Chris Reed. She grew up in Warren Township, New Jersey and attended Warren Middle School and Watchung Hills Regional High School. She received a Georgian passport in January 2010. In November 2024, Reed was granted Lithuanian citizenship by President Gitanas Nausėda. On December 17, 2024 she took the oath of allegiance at the Lithuanian embassy in Ottawa, Canada.

On March 17, 2020, Reed announced on her social media that their brother, Chris, had suddenly passed away in Detroit, Michigan, on March 14, 2020, due to cardiac arrest. She had been training in Lithuania with her ice dance partner, Saulius Ambrulevičius, during the COVID-19 pandemic when she had learned the news. Reed credits Ambrulevičius for helping her through her grieving process. President of the JSF, Akihisa Nagashima paid tribute to Chris Reed: "I am absolutely stunned by the sad news. I would like to offer my deepest appreciation to Chris Reed for his contribution to Japanese ice dancing over the years and extend condolences to his family. May Mr. Reed rest in peace."

A memorial service was held at a Michigan funeral home on March 21, 2020, and was publicly live-streamed on numerous platforms. Her sister, Cathy, paid tribute to him in both Japanese and English: "I miss your voice. I miss your big smile. I miss holding your hand. But I'll be strong for you, Chris."

Since his death, Reed began storing a photo of her brother in her Lithuania team jacket pocket whilst at competitions.

Career

Reed started skating in 1997 at the age of three.

Partnership with Japaridze

Originally a solo ice dancer, she teamed up with her first ice dancing partner, Georgia's Otar Japaridze, in May 2009. They trained in Mount Laurel, New Jersey with coach and choreographer Evgeni Platov. They qualified an entry for Georgia at the 2010 Winter Olympics at the 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy. Reed and Japaridze split following the 2010–2011 season.

Partnership with Rogov

In 2012, Reed teamed up with Vasili Rogov to compete for Israel. They withdrew from the 2013 European Championships after Rogov fell ill. Reed/Rogov went on to compete at the 2013 World Championships and finished 23rd. They dropped down to 30th at the 2014 World Championships but moved up to 20th at the 2015 World Championships in Shanghai, advancing to the Free Skate for the first time at the World Championships. Reed and Vogov announced the end of their partnership on June 24, 2015.

Partnership with Ambrulevičius

2017–18 season

In spring 2017, it was announced that Reed had teamed up with Lithuania's Saulius Ambrulevičius and that they would represent Lithuania, while coached by Marina Zueva, Johnny Johns, Massimo Scali, and Oleg Epstein.

They made their competitive debut at the 2017 CS Ondrej Nepela Trophy, where they finished sixth. They then went on to place seventh at the 2017 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, fifth at the 2017 Santa Claus Cup, and eighth at the 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy.

Reed/Ambrulevičius won the gold medal at the 2017–18 Lithuanian Championships. Selected to compete at the 2018 World Championships in Milan, Italy, they finished twentieth overall.

2018–19 season

Reed/Ambrulevičius began their season at the 2018 Halloween Cup, where they won the silver medal, before going on to finish fifth at the 2018 Volvo Open Cup.

Debuting on the Grand Prix series, Reed/Ambrulevičius placed sixth at the 2018 Rostelecom Cup and ninth at the 2018 Internationaux de France. They then went on to win their second consecutive national title at the 2018–19 Lithuanian Championships.

Selected to compete at the 2019 European Championships in Minsk, Belarus, Reed/Ambrulevičius finished thirteenth, before going on to finish seventeenth at the 2019 World Championships in Saitama, Japan.

2019–20 season

Reed/Ambrulevičius opened their season at the 2019 CS Lombardia Trophy, finishing sixth. They then went on to place seventh at the 2019 CS Nebelhorn Trophy and fifth at the 2019 CS Finlandia Trophy. Competing on the 2019–20 Grand Prix series, Reed/Ambrulevičius placed tenth at the 2019 Internationaux de France and fifth at the 2019 Rostelecom Cup.

After winning their third national title at the 2019–20 Lithuanian Championships, Reed/Ambrulevičius went on to finish eleventh at the 2020 European Championships in Graz, Austria and win the gold medal at the 2020 Bavarian Open.

Although selected to compete at the 2020 World Championships, the event was ultimately cancelled due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

2020–21 season

Reed/Ambrulevičius switched coaches from Marina Zueva to Maurizio Margaglio prior to the season. They began the season with a seventh-place finish at the 2020 Rostelecom Cup, before going on to win their fourth national title at the 2020–21 Lithuanian Championships.

At the 2021 World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden, Reed/Ambrulevičius placed fifteenth.

2021–22 season

Prior to the season, Reed/Ambrulevičius relocated to Montreal, Quebec to train under Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, and Romain Haguenauer. Despite Reed/Ambrulevičius qualifying a spot for a Lithuanian dance team at the 2022 Winter Olympics with their place at the 2021 World Championships, it was announced in October 2021 that Reed's application for Lithuanian citizenship was denied, thus ending their bid for the Winter Olympics.

Reed/Ambrulevičius nonetheless began their season at the 2021 Budapest Trophy, where they took the silver medal. On the Grand Prix series, Reed/Ambrulevičius placed eighth at the 2021 Internationaux de France and seventh at the 2021 Rostelecom Cup. They then won the silver medal at the 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb as well as their fifth national title at the 2021–22 Lithuanian Championships.

At the 2022 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, Reed/Ambrulevičius finished eighth, before going on to finish tenth at the 2022 World Championships in Montpellier, France.

2022–23 season

Reed/Ambrulevičius opened their season by winning silver at both the 2022 CS Lombardia Trophy and the 2022 CS Nebelhorn Trophy. Although they withdrew from the 2022 Skate America, they did compete at the 2022 NHK Trophy, where they finished fourth. At the event, Reed saw her sister Cathy in-person for the first time in over two years, having been separated due to the pandemic.

Reed/Ambrulevičius went on to win the silver medal at the 2022 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, before competing at the 2023 European Championships in Espoo, Finland, where they achieved a career-best fourth-place finish. They were only 2.54 points out of third place. They ended their season at the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, Japan, where they finished seventh.

2023–24 season

Beginning the season at the 2023 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, Reed/Ambrulevičius won the silver medal at the event for the second consecutive season. Given two assignments on the Grand Prix, they began at the 2023 Skate Canada International, this time held in Vancouver. They finished third in both segments, winning the bronze medal, their first on the circuit. It was the first Grand Prix medal for Lithuania since Drobiazko/ Vanagas's silver at the 2001 NHK Trophy. Reed said afterward that "there was some opposition, opportunities missed, and some dreams we were not able to achieve, but this is a dream we achieved." They won another bronze medal at their second event, the 2023 NHK Trophy. She called it "extra special" to win a medal in Japan, and with her sister Cathy in attendance while coaching one of her own teams. Reed/Ambrulevičius were named as first alternates to the Grand Prix Final.

Reed/Ambrulevičius concluded the first half of the season at the 2023 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, where they won the gold medal, their first Challenger title. Reed hailed it as a "truly wonderful way to end the year."

With the 2024 European Championships being hosted on home ice in Kaunas, Reed/Ambrulevičius entered the event as the medal hopes of the nation. They finished third in the rhythm dance, before setting new personal bests in the free dance and total score to come third there as well, taking the bronze medal, their first time on an ISU championship podium. The free dance occurred on Lithuania's Day of the Defenders of Freedom, which Ambrulevičius noted as significant, saying "we fought for our freedom and today we fought for our country again and we did it." The duo's success brought renewed attention to the issue of Reed's Lithuanian citizenship application. On February 9, Reed announced that she would renew her bid for citizenship.

The 2024 World Championships were held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the location of the team's training base. Reed/Ambrulevičius finished a career-best sixth overall, an end to what Reed called an "incredible, incredible season".

2024–25 season

During summer preparations, Reed's skate blade injured Ambrulevičius' hand twice, as a result delaying their start by a month. They discarded their initial plan to compete at the 2024 CS Nebelhorn Trophy. Reed/Ambrulevičius instead began their season on the Challenger series at the 2024 CS Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur, where they won the gold medal. Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix circuit, Reed/Ambrulevičius finished fourth at the 2024 Grand Prix de France, having struggled with level issues. The following week they competed at their second event, the 2024 NHK Trophy, where they won the bronze medal, despite lost twizzle levels in the free dance. Reed said afterward regarding their goals for the season and Olympic qualification, "we're just really looking forward to performing at Worlds and hopefully getting that spot from Lithuania. Hopefully we'll be the ones to go this time."

Following the Grand Prix, the issue of Reed's bid for Lithuanian citizenship came to a head, following an October recommendation by Lithuania's citizenship committee that she be granted citizenship, with her sporting achievements cited as "special merits to the country." On November 18, Reed met with President Gitanas Nausėda at the Presidential Palace in Vilnius, and told reporters afterward that it had "been a long journey to this moment, but now I'm very happy. I think it went very well." On November 21, Nausėda decreed that her request be granted. Reed took the oath of allegiance in a ceremony at the Lithuanian embassy to Canada in Ottawa on December 17.

At the 2025 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, Reed and Ambrulevičius finished in sixth place. At the 2025 World Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, they skated in the penultimate group of the rhythm dance, and performed shortly after the Finnish team of Juulia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis had unexpectedly fallen and appeared poised to miss qualification for the free dance by one ordinal. However, Reed also fell in the segment, and as a result, Reed and Ambrulevičius finished twenty-first, missing the free dance. The Finns, who thereby reached the free dance, said afterward that they had "shared their grief," adding: "We're all good friends, and we really felt for them."

Programs

Ice dance with Saulius Ambrulevičius (for Lithuania)

Ice dance with Vasili Rogov (for Israel)

With Otar Japaridze (for Georgia)

Results

Ice dance with Saulius Ambrulevičius (for Lithuania)

Ice dance with Vasili Rogov (for Israel)

Ice dance with Otar Japaridze (for Georgia)

Detailed results

Ice dance with Saulius Ambrulevičius (for Lithuania)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Allison
1994 births
Living people
American female ice dancers
Lithuanian female ice dancers
Israeli female ice dancers
Female ice dancers from Georgia (country)
Sportspeople from Kalamazoo, Michigan
Figure skaters at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Olympic figure skaters for Georgia (country)
American sportspeople of Japanese descent
People from Warren Township, New Jersey
Sportspeople from Somerset County, New Jersey
Watchung Hills Regional High School alumni
21st-century American sportswomen
European Figure Skating Championships medalists