Cypriot Emilea Zingas sensationally enters top 5 at Olympic figure skating

23-year-old Emilea Zingas, together with partner Vadym Kolesnik, became the main sensation of the ice dance tournament at the Milan Olympics. The duo were the only Olympic debutants to reach the top five and the youngest athletes in the top 10.

After their performance at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, the pair could not hold back their emotions: their free program earned 123.19 points — a personal best. Combined with the rhythm dance result (83.53), they scored 206.72 points.

Zingas admitted she is proud of her Cypriot roots:

“I am very proud of my Cypriot heritage. I am happy to make my family proud of my sporting achievements.”

The figure skater was born on April 22, 2002, in Michigan to a family originally from Paphos. Her grandparents emigrated to the U.S. in the early 1970s. She holds dual citizenship — U.S. and Cyprus. Her father and several cousins traveled to Milan to support her.

Path to the Olympics:

In 2021, Zingas became the first athlete from the Cyprus Figure Skating Federation to qualify for the World Championships. At that time, she competed in singles and tried to qualify for the 2022 Beijing Olympics, but was unsuccessful.

She began skating with Kolesnik in 2022. Just eight months ago, their goal was simply to reach the Olympics. However, the 2025–2026 season became a breakthrough: podium finishes at Grand Prix stages, participation in the series final, victory at the Four Continents Championship — culminating in a brilliant performance in Milan.

“We put our whole soul into this performance,” Zingas said after the event.

“This is just the beginning,” added Kolesnik.

For Cyprus, this result is historic: the country has achieved such a high Olympic result in ice dance for the first time.