IW synchronized skating teams had a successful Trophy D’Ecosse in Dumfries on 6 to 8 February, coming away with one gold and two silver medals.

Wight Sparkles, the IW’s youngest team, took silver in the Elementary category, scoring 16.19. Winners Ice Pops from Nottingham scored 21.03, Solway Lightning from Dumfries took bronze with 11.51, just ahead of fourth-placed Starlight Blizzard from Stirling on 11.39. Solway Lightning were therefore Scottish champions, being the top-placed Scottish team in the category.*

Wight Crystals, skating in the Basic Novice B category, also took silver, scoring 26.06. Gold medallists and, therefore, Scottish champions Solway Eclipse from Dumfries scored 32.63, and bronze medallists Fusion of Bracknell scored 21.82.

Wight Jewels were second after the short programme in the Junior B event on 22.00, with Dumfries’ Solway Stars ahead on 25.27 and Eindhoven’s Kids on Ice third on 21.72. However, the tables turned in the long, with the Jewels able to to overtake the Stars. Scores for the free programme were Wight Jewels 51.60, Solway Stars 43.77, and Kids on Ice 34.32, giving the overalls scores of Wight Jewels 73.60, Solway Stars 69.04 and Kids on Ice 56.04. Although Wight Jewels took the gold, Solway Stars as the highest placed Scottish team in the category are Scottish champions.

Catch-up videos are available on YouTube on Ryan T Thornton’s channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwLf0F2HLnuWVirEMLV445w. At the request of Trophy D’Ecosse organisers, Ryan was able to provide streaming coverage of the event at very short notice, a service that iowskaters for one greatly appreciated.

* It is a peculiarity of the Trophy D’Ecosse that the winners are not necessarily also the Scottish champions. The event combines the former Scottish championships, and so the Scottish champion is the top Scottish team in each category. This leads to situations where the Scottish champion can be one of the non-medalling teams, as happened this year with Braehead’s Starlight Rain in the Mixed Age class, who were sixth.

Results: www.icephoto.co.uk/TDE2015/index.htm