Kiri Nicole Baga (born April 15, 1995) is an American former
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, with its introduction occurring at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic d ...
. She won two gold medals 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 figure skating competition, junior-level competitions organized by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded ...
series and placed 7th at the
2010 World Junior Championships. She is the 2010
U.S. junior pewter medalist and 2009 novice national champion.
Personal life
Kiri Baga was born as the youngest of five children in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
,
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
. She was a student at
Minnesota Connections Academy, an online school,
[ and then studied psychology at ]Simmons College
Institutions of learning called Simmons College or Simmons University include:
* Simmons University
Simmons University (previously Simmons College) is a private university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1899 by ...
in Boston
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 ...
. In autumn 2014, she moved to the University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
.[ She is majoring in the biological basis of behavior.][
]
Career
Baga began skating when she was two and a half. She began group lessons at age four, and private lessons shortly thereafter. Early in her career, she was coached by Sue Lien. She switched to Lorie Charbonneau when she was nine. Early in her career, she represented the Duluth Figure Skating Club. She changed club representation to the FSC of Bloomington in Bloomington, Minnesota
Bloomington is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. It is located on the north bank of the Minnesota River above its confluence with the Mississippi River, south of downtown Minneapolis and just south of the Interstate 494/Inter ...
following the 2005–2006 season.
In the 2005–2006 season, Baga began competing on the juvenile level. She placed 8th at her regional championship.
In the 2006–2007 season, Baga moved up to the Intermediate level. She won the bronze medal at her regional championship, qualifying her for the 2007 U.S. Junior Championships. At the Junior Championships, she placed 3rd in her qualifying group, 4th in the short program, and 10th in the free skating to place 8th overall.
Baga moved up to the novice level in the 2007–2008 season. She placed fifth at her regional championship and did not advance to her sectional championship She remained on the novice level for the 2008–2009 season. At her regional championship, she won the short program and placed third in the free skating to win the silver medal overall. At her sectional championship, she placed 5th in the short program and won the free skating to win the competition. This win qualifier her for the 2009 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. At the U.S. Championships, she won the short program and placed second in the free skating to win the gold medal overall.
Baga moved up to the Junior level for the 2009–2010 season. She made her international debut in the 2009–2010 ISU Junior Grand Prix. At her first event, in Germany, she won the short program and placed second in the free skating to win the competition overall. Following that win, she was assigned to the event in Turkey as her second event. At that event, she won the short program. Baga was the third qualifier to the 2009–2010 ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.
Baga was named the first alternate to the US ladies team to the 2010 World Junior Championships and was added to the team after Ashley Wagner
Ashley Elisabeth Wagner (born May 16, 1991) is an American former competitive figure skater. She is the 2016 World Figure Skating Championships, 2016 World silver medalist, a Figure skating at the 2014 Winter Olympics, 2014 Olympic bronze medali ...
withdrew. She debuted a new long program to Maksim Mrivca's "Hana's Eyes" and Piano Concerto in A minor by Edvard Grieg.pair skating
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 ...
, while continuing her singles career.[ In May 2014, she said she would no longer train for elite competition, deciding to focus on her education.][
]
Programs
Competitive highlights
Single skating
Pair skating with Toth
References
External links
*
*
Kiri Baga
at IceNetwork
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baga, Kiri
American female single skaters
Figure skaters from Detroit
Sportspeople from Bloomington, Minnesota
1995 births
Living people
21st-century American sportswomen