Calla Vita Urbanski-Petka (born June 26, 1960) is an American former

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 ...

. With

Rocky Marval Rocco Marvaldi, known professionally as Rocky Marval, (born November 11, 1965) is an American former pair skater. With Calla Urbanski, he is the 1991 Skate America champion, the 1992 NHK Trophy bronze medalist, and a two-time U.S. national champ ...

, she is the 1991

Skate America Skate America is an international, senior-level figure skating competition held as part of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. It is hosted by U.S. Figure Skating. The location changes yearly. Medals are awarded in four disciplines: m ...

champion, the 1992

NHK Trophy The NHK Trophy is an international, senior-level figure skating competition held as part of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. Organized by the Japanese Skating Federation, it began in 1979 and was added to the Grand Prix series in 199 ...

bronze medalist, and a two-time

U.S. national Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...

champion (1992–1993). They represented the United States at the

1992 Winter Olympics ) , nations = 64 , athletes = 1,801 (1313 men, 488 women) , events = 57 in 6 sports (12 disciplines) , opening = 8 February 1992 , closing = 23 February 1992 , opened_by = President François Mitterrand , cauldron ...

and finished tenth.

Personal life

Urbanski was raised in

Skokie, Illinois Skokie (; formerly Niles Center) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, neighboring the City of Chicago's northern border. Its population, according to the 2020 census, was 67,824. Skokie lies approximately north of Chicago's do ...

, the daughter of a radio engineer and a hair stylist. She worked double shifts as a waitress and barmaid during her skating career.

Career

Competing with Michael Blicharski, Urbanski placed 6th at the 1988 U.S. Championships. Their partnership ended when he decided to join an ice show due to financial problems. She then competed two seasons with Mark Naylor but they split after finishing seventh at the

1990 Goodwill Games The 1990 Goodwill Games was the second edition of the international multi-sport event created by Ted Turner, which was held between July 20 and August 5, 1990. Following an inaugural edition in Moscow, the second games took place in Seattle, United ...

. Urbanski teamed up with

in 1990. They were coached by

Ronald Ludington Ronald Ludington (September 4, 1934 – May 14, 2020) was an American figure skating coach and pair skater. With Nancy Rouillard Ludington, he was the 1960 Olympic bronze medalist, 1959 World bronze medalist, and a four-time U.S. national cham ...

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

. The media dubbed the pair "The Waitress and the Truck Driver" because of their occupations. In the 1991–92 season, Urbanski/Marval won gold at the

1991 Skate America The 1991 Skate America was held at the Oakland Coliseum Arena in Oakland, California. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing Ice dance (sometimes referred to as ice dancing) is ...

and at the 1992 U.S. Championships. They were named in the U.S. team to the

Albertville Albertville (; Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile'') is a subprefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It is best known for hosting the 1992 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. In 2018, the commune had ...

, France and finished tenth. Both developed chest colds at the event and waited a day for medication because the approved type had initially run out. The pair placed seventh in the final event of the season, the 1992 World Championships. In June 1992, Urbanski and Marval announced the end of their partnership. Both arranged tryouts with other skaters — Urbanski with Scott Kurttila and Marval with

Natasha Kuchiki Natasha Maria Hanako Kuchiki (born October 28, 1976) is an American former competitive pair skater. She is the 1991 World bronze medalist with Todd Sand. Personal life Kuchiki was born in Burbank, California. Her parents, Denise and Sashi, wer ...

— but the two decided to reunite in late July. They competed together for one more season, winning bronze at the

1992 NHK Trophy The 1992 NHK Trophy was held at the Yoyogi National Stadium in Tokyo. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing Ice dance (sometimes referred to as ice dancing) is a discipline of ...

and their second U.S. national title. Urbanski then teamed up with Joseph Mero. After the pair finished seventh at the 1994 U.S. Championships, she reunited with Marval and turned professional, enjoying several successful years in the mid-1990s. She coached in Wilmington,

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

and then in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Results

With Blicharski

With Naylor

With Marval

With Mero

Professional

(with Marval) *1994 Challenge of Champions: 4 *1994 Goodwill Games: 6 *1994 U.S. Open: 3 *1995 Challenge of Champions: 2 *1995 Legends Championships: 4 *1995 Rider's Skating Championship: 4 *1996 Canadian Professional Championships: 4 *1996 Masters Miko: 3 *1996 The Professional Championships: 5 *1996 U.S. Professional Championships: 3 *1997 Challenge of Champions: WD *1998 World Professional Championships: 3

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Urbanski, Calla 1960 births American female pair skaters Figure skaters at the 1992 Winter Olympics Olympic figure skaters for the United States Living people Figure skaters from Chicago Universiade medalists in figure skating Universiade bronze medalists for the United States Competitors at the 1987 Winter Universiade Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games 21st-century American women