Michal Češka

Michal Češka
Mansour and Češka at the 2018 European Championships
Born (1992-09-02) 2 September 1992 (age 32)
Děčín, Czechoslovakia
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Figure skating career
CountryCzech Republic
PartnerCortney Mansour
CoachIgor Shpilband
Skating clubSK Kraso Děčín
Began skating1996

Michal Češka (born 2 September 1992) is a Czech ice dancer. With partner Cortney Mansour, he has won three international medals and reached the free skate at three ISU Championships.

Personal life

Michal Češka was born on 2 September 1992 in Děčín.[1] His father is a former figure skater.[2] His younger brother plays ice hockey.[3]

Early career

Češka began skating at age four and switched from singles to ice dancing when he was about fifteen.[2] He began competing with Karolína Procházková in 2007. In 2010, they were selected for their first World Junior Championships and finished 26th at the event in The Hague, Netherlands.

Procházková/Češka's luggage containing their skates did not arrive in time at the 2011 Junior Worlds in Gangneung, South Korea, forcing them to withdraw.[4] They placed 21st at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Minsk, Belarus and 23rd at the 2013 World Junior Championships in Milan, Italy. They were coached by Rostislav Sinicyn and Natalia Karamysheva in Prague.[4]

Partnership with Mansour

2013–14 season

In mid-2013, Češka teamed up with Canada's Cortney Mansour to compete for the Czech Republic, following a tryout in Europe.[3] They were coached by Carol Lane, John Lane, and Juris Razgulajevs in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[5] Making their international debut, Mansour/Češka placed 12th at a Junior Grand Prix (JGP) event in Gdańsk in September 2013 and tenth the following month at JGP Ostrava in the Czech Republic. The duo finished 13th at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, after placing 14th in both segments.

2014–15 season: Senior debut

Mansour/Češka advanced to the senior level in the 2014–15 season. Competing in the Challenger Series, they placed ninth at the 2014 CS Nebelhorn Trophy and tenth at the 2014 CS Skate Canada Autumn Classic. Ranked 19th in the short dance and 15th in the free, they finished 17th at the 2015 European Championships in Stockholm, Sweden.

2015–16 season

Mansour/Češka placed sixth at two Challenger Series events in the first half of October, the 2015 CS Ondrej Nepela Trophy and 2015 CS Finlandia Trophy. Deciding to change coaches, they joined Igor Shpilband in Novi, Michigan at the end of the month.[3] The duo won gold at the Pavel Roman Memorial and then finished 13th at the 2016 European Championships in Bratislava after placing 14th in the short and 13th in the free. Ranked 24th in the short, they did not qualify for the free dance at the 2016 World Championships.

2016–17 season: Grand Prix debut

In July 2016, Mansour/Češka received their first Grand Prix assignment, replacing Federica Testa / Lukas Csolley at the 2016 Trophée de France.[6]

Programs

With Mansour

Season Short dance Free dance
2017–2018
[7]
2016–2017
[8]
  • The Godfather Part II
    by Nino Rota, Carmine Coppola
    • Kay
    • A New Carpet
    • Main Title/The Immigrant
  • The Godfather
    by Nino Rota
    • Godfather Waltz
    • Finale
2015–2016
[1]
2014–2015
[9]
  • Flamenco: Babylon Flamenco
  • Paso Doble: La Gracia de Dios
2013–2014
[5]
  • Foxtrot: Kiss Me
    by Brenda Boykin
  • Quickstep: It Don't Mean A Thing
    performed by Club des Belugas

With Procházková

Season Short dance Free dance
2012–2013
[4]
2011–2012
[10]
  • Cha Cha
  • Samba
2010–2011
[11]
  • Waltz: Happy Day
  • Quickstep: I Won't Dance
  • Chicago
    by John Kander, Fred Ebb
Original dance
2009–2010
[12]
  • Spanish medley

Results

GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

With Mansour

International[13]
Event 13–14 14–15 15–16 16–17 17–18 18-19
World Champ. 24th 26th
European Champ. 17th 13th 25th
GP GP Finland TBD
GP Trophée de France 8th
CS Autumn Classic 10th
CS Finlandia Trophy 6th
CS Golden Spin 7th
CS Nebelhorn Trophy 9th 5th
CS Nepela Memorial 6th 6th 8th
CS U.S. Classic 10th
Autumn Classic 5th
Bavarian Open 3rd
Open d'Andorra 3rd
Pavel Roman Memorial 2nd 1st
Santa Claus Cup 4th
Volvo Open 4th
International: Junior[13]
World Junior Champ. 13th
JGP Czech Republic 10th
JGP Poland 12th
Pavel Roman Memorial 2nd J
National[13]
Czech Champ. 1st J 1st 1st
J = Junior level
TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

With Procházková

International[14]
Event 07–08 08–09 09–10 10–11 11–12 12–13
Golden Spin 7th
International: Junior[14][15]
Junior Worlds 26th WD 21st 23rd
JGP Austria 8th 7th
JGP Croatia 10th
JGP Czech Rep. 10th 6th
JGP Germany 9th
JGP Italy 8th
JGP Latvia 4th
JGP Poland 9th
JGP Turkey 7th
Bavarian Open 3rd J 1st J
Ice Challenge 1st J
NRW Trophy 10th J 10th J
Pavel Roman 10th J 4th J 2nd J 1st J
Tirnavia 3rd J
National[14][15]
Czech Champ. 3rd J 1st J 1st J 3rd 1st J
J = Junior level; WD = Withdrew

References

  1. ^ a b "Cortney MANSOUR / Michal CESKA: 2015/2016". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 27, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ a b "Interview with Karolina Procházková / Michal Češka". figureskating-online.com. July 2012. Archived from the original on 6 March 2013.
  3. ^ a b c Bromley, Susan (March 30, 2016). "Ice dancers skate different paths to date with destiny". Hometown Life. Archived from the original on April 14, 2016.
  4. ^ a b c "Karolina PROCHAZKOVA / Michal CESKA: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 31 March 2013.
  5. ^ a b "Cortney MANSOUR / Michal CESKA: 2013/2014". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 21, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ ISU GP Trophee de France 2016: Ice Dance at the International Skating Union at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
  7. ^ "Cortney MANSOUR / Michal CESKA: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on December 27, 2017.
  8. ^ "Cortney MANSOUR / Michal CESKA: 2016/2017". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 30, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  9. ^ "Cortney MANSOUR / Michal CESKA: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 20, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  10. ^ "Karolina PROCHAZKOVA / Michal CESKA: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012.
  11. ^ "Karolina PROCHAZKOVA / Michal CESKA: 2010/2011". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011.
  12. ^ "Karolina PROCHAZKOVA / Michal CESKA: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 15 October 2009.
  13. ^ a b c "Competition Results: Cortney MANSOUR / Michal CESKA". International Skating Union.
  14. ^ a b c "Competition Results: Karolina PROCHAZKOVA / Michal CESKA". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 21 March 2014.
  15. ^ a b "Karolina Prochazkova & Michal Ceska". Tracings.net.
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