Filippo Clerici (born 7 March 2001) is an Italian

pair skater Pair skating is a figure skating discipline defined by the International Skating Union (ISU) as "the skating of two persons in unison who perform their movements in such harmony with each other as to give the impression of genuine Pair Skating a ...

who currently competes for Finland. With his former skating partner,

Milania Väänänen Milania Kristiina Väänänen (born 29 November 2003) is a Finnish pair skater. With her former skating partner, Filippo Clerici, she is the 2023 CS Golden Spin gold medalist, 2023 Tayside Trophy bronze medalist, and three-time Finnish national ...

, he is the 2023 Golden Spin of Zagreb gold medalist, 2023 Tayside Trophy bronze medalist, and three-time Finnish national champion (2023–25).

Personal life

Clerici was born on 7 March 2001 in

Como, Italy Como (, ; , or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Nestled at the southwestern branch of the picturesque Lake Como, the city is a renowned tourist destination, ce ...

. After pairing up with

in 2022, Clerici began learning how to speak Finnish.

Career

Early career

Clerici began figure skating in 2008. He initially competed as a singles skater before switching to pairs in 2020. His first pair partner was Anna Valesi whom he won the 2021 Italian Championships with on the junior level. The following season, he competed with Alyssa Montan on the junior level, placing eighth at

2021 JGP Slovakia 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

and eleventh at 2021 JGP Austria. They went on to win gold at the 2022 Italian Junior Championships and competed at the 2022 World Junior Championships, finishing eighth. Montan/Clerici's partnership dissolved after the season ended.

Partnership with Väänänen

2022–23 season

Clerici considered retiring from competitive figure skating following the end of his previous partnership due to no longer being eligible to compete on the junior level and the increasing level of depth in Italian pair skating. However, Clerici's coaches, Luca Demattè,

Ondrej Hotarek Ondrej is a Slovak male given name, equivalent to Andrew. Notable people with the name include: * Ondrej Duda (born 1994), Slovak football player * Ondrej Otčenáš (born 1987), Slovak ice hockey player * Ondrej Nepela (1951–1989), Slovak figure ...

, and Rosanna Murante were contacted by Finnish-based Italian skating coach,

Maurizio Margaglio Maurizio Margaglio (; born 16 November 1974) is an Italian ice dancing coach and former competitor. With partner Barbara Fusar-Poli, he is the 2001 World champion, 2001 European champion, and 2002 Olympic bronze medalist. They won nine Italian ...

, and informed that Finnish pair skater,

, was searching for a new partner. Following a successful tryout, Väänänen moved to

Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...

so they could train together. They decided to represent

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. The newly formed team of Väänänen and Clerici competed only once during the 2022–23 season, winning the 2023 Finnish Champions in December 2022. They were ineligible to compete at spring championship events as they had not attained their technical minimums through international competition in the fall.

2023–24 season

Väänänen and Clerici began their season with the goal of attaining their ISU technical minimum scores to be eligible to compete at the

2024 European Championships 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is a square number, the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. Evolution of the Hi ...

and the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

. The team mearned their minimums during their international debut at the 2023 Lombardia Trophy, where they finished in seventh place. Following the event, Clerici commented, "We are really happy to have reached the technical point limits for the European Championship and the World Championship... Next we will focus on the levels and the quality of the elements in order to increase our points." At their next event, the 2023 Finlandia Trophy, Väänänen and Clerici were warmly received by a home audience. They placed sixth in the short program and rose to fourth in the free skate with a new personal best score to finish in fourth place overall. The following week, the team competed at the 2023 Tayside Trophy, where they won their first international medal: a bronze medal. Selected to compete at the

2023 Grand Prix of Espoo The 2023 Grand Prix of Espoo was the fifth event of the 2023–24 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating: a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at the Espoo Metro Areena in Espoo, Finland, from November 17–19. Med ...

, Väänänen/Clerici finished eighth. The pair then went on to win gold at both

2023 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb The 2023 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb was held on December 6–9, 2023, in Sisak, Croatia. It was the ninth and final event of the 2023–24 ISU Challenger Series. Medals were awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. ...

and the 2023–24 Finnish Championships. At the

Kaunas, Lithuania Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

, the pair finished in fourteenth place. They went on to compete at the 2024 World Championships in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada, the pair place nineteenth in the short program and seventeenth in the free skate, finishing eighteenth overall. Väänänen/Clerici became the first Finnish pair team to qualify for the free skate at a World Championships.

2024–25 season: End of Väänänen/Clerici

Väänänen/Clerici started the season by finishing seventh at the

2024 CS John Nicks International Pairs Competition The 2024 CS John Nicks International Pairs Competition was held on September 3–4, 2024, in New York City, New York, in the United States. as part of the 2024–25 ISU Challenger Series. Medals were awarded in pair skating only. Entries The ...

. Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix series, the pair placed eighth at 2024 Skate America and seventh at the

2024 Finlandia Trophy The 2024 Grand Prix of Finland, Finlandia Trophy was the fifth event of the 2024–25 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating: a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at the Helsinki Ice Hall in Helsinki, Finland, from N ...

. Following a tenth-place finish at the

2024 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb The 2024 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb was held on December 4–7, 2024, in Zagreb, Croatia. It was part of the 2024–25 ISU Challenger Series. Medals were awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pairs, and ice dance. Entries The Internationa ...

, the pair would go on to win their third consecutive national title at the 2025 Finnish Championships. Selected to compete at the 2025 European Championships in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

, Estonia the pair finished in fourteenth place. They followed this up with a fifth-place finish at the 2025 Merano Ice Trophy. Väänänen/Clerici then finished the season by placing nineteenth at the 2025 World Championships in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Personal life

Career

Early career

Partnership with Väänänen

2022–23 season

2023–24 season

2024–25 season: End of Väänänen/Clerici

Programs

Pair skating with Milania Väänänen

Pair skating with Alyssa Montan

Competitive highlights

Pair skating with Milania Väänänen (for Finland)

Pair skating with Alyssa Montan (for Italy)

Pair skating with Anna Valesi (for Italy)

Single skating (for Italy)

Detailed results

Pair skating with Väänänen

References

External links