Staff Coaches

	Peter Oppegard Peter is a National, World, and Olympic-level coach. He was named “Choreographer of the Year” and “Coach of the Year” by the Professional Skaters Association and US Figure Skating. Peter has coached his skaters to 10 national singles and pairs titles. He is a three time United States Pairs Champion, and 1988 Olympic Bronze Medalist. In 2004, Peter was inducted into the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame. He specializes in singles, pairs, and choreography.
	Li Mingzhu National, World, and Olympic coach. She coached Chinese champion Lu Chen to a gold medal at the 1995 World Championships and two Olympic bronze medals. She teaches all competitive levels from beginner to advanced, specializing in jump technique and freestyle.
	Lia Trovati Lia was the Italian National Dance Champion and represented Italy at the World and Olympic Championships. She has 17 years of teaching experience. Her specialties are moves in the field, choreography, stroking, and dance.
	Yuriy Kocherzhenko Yuriy was the Ukranian National Champion in 2001 and has represented Ukraine at the Olympic, World, and European Championships. He has 24 years of competitive experience. Yuriy specializes in power stroking, conditioning, off-ice training, moves in the field, ice dancing, and advanced footwork.
	Karen Kwan-Oppegard Karen is a U.S. National competitor, an international medalist, and a Pacific Coast and Eastern Champion with over 20 years of skating experience. She is a member of the Professional Skaters Association and US Figure Skating. Karen specializes in choreography, presentation, advanced jump technique, and spins.
	Alex Chang Alex has eight years of National Competition experience at the Novice, Junior, and Senior levels. He has competed in both the World Championships and the World Junior Championships. Along the way, he earned titles in Regional and Sectional Championships in Novice, Junior, and Senior Men’s events and completed the Gold Tests in Figures and Freestyle. Alex has coached national and internationally ranked skaters. He loves to choreograph and to teach jumps, spins, and moves in the field. He is also an IJS Technical Specialist. He received his B.A. degree from Harvard University.
	Jere Michael Jere is a ten-time U.S. National competitor, international medalist, World Junior Bronze medalist, and a former U.S. Junior National Champion. He has over 20 years of coaching experience and is a member of the Professional Skaters Association. Jere specializes in choreography and advanced jump and spin technique.
	Lia Nitake Lia is a seven-time U.S. National competitor and has represented the U.S. in international competition. She has 17 years of skating experience and has earned her gold medals in moves in the field and ice dance. Lia specializes in fundamental skating technique, ice dancing, stroking, moves in the field, and choreography.
	Caroline Shafer Caroline has been involved in figure skating for over 25 years. She has silver medals in Freestyle and Free Dance, and a gold in Dance. She trained at the Olympic Training Center and medaled four times at Pacific Coast Sectionals. A rated member of the Professional Skaters Association, Caroline has extensive experience developing young talent. She specializes in freestyle, choreography, moves in the field, and off-ice training.
	Tiffany Bailey Tiffany competed for 11 years in the US Figure Skating program. She passed her Gold Freestyle test at age 14 and also completed the 6th Figure test. In addition, she has 11 years of ballet experience. Tiffany specializes in basic skills, moves in the field, freestyle, spins, and synchronized skating.
	Lisa Parisi Lisa has 24 years coaching experience, specializing in training the US Figure Skating competitive skater. She has built a strong foundation for many regional, sectional and national contenders, achieving outstanding results with an excellent track record for developing young talent. Lisa’s expertise focuses on advanced jump technique, including on- and off-ice conditioning for quality doubles and triples. Her extensive teaching background includes spins, moves in the field, choreography, the jump harness, and rollerblading for cross-training and strengthening.
	La Rhonda Scott La Rhonda has been coaching for 10 years. She is a member of US Figure Skating, the Ice Skating Institute, and the Professional Skaters Association with a Registered Freestyle rating. Through USFS, she is a technical specialist. She has considerable expertise in all aspects of a skater’s training regimen, but considers jump technique her specialty. In addition to coaching figure skating, La Rhonda holds a Master’s Degree in Biological Education. Education is La Rhonda’s passion, she teaches High School Biology, and offers tutorial assistance for figure skaters.
	Themi Leftheris Themi is a gold medalist in Pairs, Free Skating, and Moves in the Field. He is a U.S. National silver medalist in pairs and an international team member. He has 6 years of teaching experience and has long been involved in the Special Olympics program. Themi specializes in pairs skating, freestyle, and moves in the field.
	Sima Ganaba Highlights from Sima’s competitive career include U.S. Junior Pairs Champion, two time international champion, four time national medalist, nine time national competitor, four time Pacific Coast Champion, and triple USFS Gold medalist. Sima specializes in pairs and freestyle.
	Peter Kongkasem Peter is an International medalist, World Championship competitor, and two-time National Champion of Thailand. He has also competed in nine U.S. Championships, earning two medals in men’s singles and ice dance. As a professional, Peter has toured around the world in shows including Ice Capades and Legends on Ice. Peter specializes in jump technique, program components, choreography, and power skating — for beginners through advanced skaters.
	Gene Shvetsov Gene is a three-time U.S. National competitor. He is a gold medalist in Pairs and Moves in the Field, and a silver medalist in Freestyle. Gene has extensive experience with children in a teaching atmosphere, and has helped many maximize their potential. He works with children of all ages, specializing in freestyle, stroking, and pair skating.