Ivan Dinev ( bg, Иван Динев; born November 8, 1978) is a Bulgarian former competitive

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 m ...

. He is a three-time

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 ...

medalist, an 11-time Bulgarian national champion, and competed at three Olympics.

Career

In the 1997–98 season, Dinev won two gold medals on the ISU Junior Series and qualified for the

Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

where he took the silver medal. He competed at his first Olympics in 1998, finishing 11th. At the 1999 World Championships, Dinev became the first Bulgarian skater to land a quadruple toe loop in competition. He won bronze at the

1999 Trophée Lalique The 1999 Trophée Lalique was the fourth event of six in the 1999–2000 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris on November 18� ...

, becoming the first skater from his country to medal at a Grand Prix event. At the

2000 Sparkassen Cup The 2000 Sparkassen Cup was a tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts in Leipzig, Germany. It was part of the Tier II category of the 2000 WTA Tour. It was the 11th edition of the tournament and was held from 30 October through 5 Novemb ...

, Dinev's blade broke during a warmup before the free skate; he bought a replacement of a different brand and finished 5th. He went on to win bronze at two other GP events, the 2001 Cup of Russia and 2001 NHK Trophy. Dinev trained in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. ...

, Bulgaria until the end of the 2001–02 season. He finished 13th at his second Olympics in 2002. Dinev then moved to

Lake Arrowhead, California Lake Arrowhead is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place (CDP) in the San Bernardino Mountains of San Bernardino County, California, surrounded by the San Bernardino National Forest, and surrounding the eponymous Lake Arrowhea ...

to work with Rafael Arutyunyan. He missed his 2002 Grand Prix events due to a broken leg. From 2004 to 2005, he was coached by

Igor Pashkevich Igor Anatolyevich Pashkevich (russian: Игорь Анатольевич Пашкевич; 1 July 1971 – 26 March 2016) was a figure skating coach and competitor. He was the 1990 World Junior champion for the Soviet Union and the 1996 European ...

in Los Angeles and Sofia. In the 2005–06 season, Dinev was coached by Angela Nikodinov. He competed at his third Olympics, finishing 17th, and retired from competition at the end of the season. Dinev and Nikodinov coach together in Harbor City, California. In spring 2016, they became the coaches of Kaitlyn Nguyen, who won the 2017 U.S. junior ladies' title.

Personal life

Dinev was born on November 8, 1978 in

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Mac ...

. His son, Ivan Jr., from his first marriage was born in spring 2002. He is currently married to Angela Nikodinov, an American of Bulgarian descent. Their daughter was born in May 2012.

Programs

Competitive highlights

''GP:

; JGP: Junior Series (Junior Grand Prix)''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dinev, Ivan 1978 births Living people Bulgarian male single skaters Figure skaters at the 2006 Winter Olympics Figure skaters at the 2002 Winter Olympics Figure skaters at the 1998 Winter Olympics Olympic figure skaters of Bulgaria Figure skaters from Sofia Bulgarian emigrants to the United States