Dinh Tran (born June 21, 2001) is an American

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, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

. He is the 2022 Philadelphia Summer International silver 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 ...

junior silver medalist (2018, 2019).

Personal life

Tran was born on June 21, 2001, in San Francisco, California. His mother, Mimi Hoang, is a physical education teacher. The daughter of a Vietnamese mother and American soldier, she was left with her grandmother and grew up in

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

, working as a housekeeper from the age of 8, before moving to the U.S. at 18. Tran was raised in Tenderloin, San Francisco with two older brothers, Phong and Hao, and one younger, Trieu. His parents divorced when he was 14 years old. Growing up, he took flute lessons and performed with his school's jazz band. He received a full scholarship to attend

Stuart Hall High School Stuart Hall High School is a Catholic all boys college-preparatory high school located in San Francisco, California. It opened in the fall of 2000 and together with the Convent of the Sacred Heart High School and Convent Elementary forms Convent & ...

, graduating in 2020. He subsequently enrolled at

California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities i ...

as a computer science major but soon switched to mechanical engineering.

Career

Early years

Tran was first introduced to ice skating at a birthday party. He started taking lessons at the Yerba Buena ice rink, which offered free lessons to children from Tenderloin. Later, his family was granted a free membership at the Skating Club of San Francisco and also found a local sponsor. Early in his career, he was coached by Jeffrey Crandell. Tran sustained a sprained ankle and shin splints in the 2017–18 season. In October 2017, he debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) series, placing twelfth in Poland. He won silver in the junior men's event at the 2018 U.S. Championships. Tran sprained his ankle three more times in the fall of 2018. At the 2019 U.S. Championships, he repeated as junior silver medalist.

Senior career

By the 2019–20 season, Tran was training under Dee Goldstein. He placed ninth at his JGP assignment. He qualified to the senior men's event at the 2020 U.S. Championships, where he finished eighth. Making his senior international debut, he placed ninth at the

2021 U.S. International Figure Skating Classic The 2021 U.S. International Figure Skating Classic was held on September 14–17, 2021 in Norwood, Massachusetts. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, women's singles, and ice dance. This was the first time since 2013 that t ...

in September. In January, he finished eighth at the 2022 U.S. Championships. In August 2022, Tran won silver at the Philadelphia Summer International. He then appeared at two

Challenger Challenger, Challengers, or The Challengers may refer to: Entertainment Comics and manga * Challenger (character), comic book character * ''Challengers'' (manga), manga by Hinako Takanaga Film and TV * ''The Challengers'' (TV series), a 1979 ...

competitions, placing thirteenth at the

2022 CS Lombardia Trophy The 2022 CS Lombardia Trophy Memorial Anna Grandolfi was held on September 16–18, 2022 in Bergamo, Italy. It was part of the 2022–23 ISU Challenger Series. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, women's singles, and ice da ...

and seventh at the

2022 CS Finlandia Trophy The 2022 CS Finlandia Trophy was held on October 4–9, 2022 in Espoo, Finland. It was part of the 2022–23 ISU Challenger Series. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, women's singles, pairs, and ice dance. Entries The I ...

. Following

Eric Sjoberg Eric Sjoberg (born August 22, 2001) is an American figure skater. He is the 2021 U.S. International Figure Skating Classic bronze medalist and 2020 U.S. national junior silver medalist. Personal life Sjoberg Graduated from the Capistrano Connec ...

's withdrawal, Tran was invited to his first

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

event, the

2022 Skate America The 2022 Skate America was the first event in the 2022–23 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at the Tenley E. Albright Performance Center in Norwood, Massachusetts on ...

, where he finished tenth.

Programs

Competitive highlights

''GP:

; CS: Challenger Series; JGP:

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 junior-level competitions organized by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded in the disciplines of men ...

Senior and junior

Detailed results

Senior level

Junior level

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tran, Dinh 2001 births American male single skaters American sportspeople of Vietnamese descent Sportspeople of Vietnamese descent Living people Sportspeople from San Francisco Competitors at the 2023 Winter World University Games