32 IFSMAGAZINE.COM OCTOBER 2019
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anadian men have a rich history of success on the
international stages. With some 14 World titles to their
credit, names like Brian Orser, Kurt Browning, Elvis Stojko
and Patrick Chan have become legendary. But when three-
time World Champion Chan hung up his skates for good
in April 2018, there was a void in the Canadian pipeline. Without an
obvious successor to Chan, it appeared as if the national team would
be entering a rough patch.
But then Stephen Gogolev happened. The gangly 13-year-old made
his senior debut alongside Chan at the 2018 Canadian Championships,
where he finished in 10th place. And although it might have seemed
like Gogolev appeared out of thin air, in reality, however, he was already
laying the groundwork to begin his own reign at the top. It was not a
matter of if, but when.
Gogolev won the Canadian pre-novice, novice, and junior men’s titles
in succession from 2015 to 2017, and almost snared the senior title in
his second try earlier this year, finishing first in the short program and
taking the silver medal overall. He is not fazed by his successes, but
instead uses them to craft a laser-sharp focus on improving everything
about his skating.
“I try to do my best at every competition and treat every competition
the same, regardless of how big it is,” said Gogolev. “Of course, I would
like to do well at the bigger competitions, but I still try to treat all
events the same.”
Perhaps it was his philosophy of focusing on improvement versus
results that led him to Rafael Arutyunyan. After leaving his long-term
Toronto training base at the end of last season, Gogolev made a bold
move in June, relocating to Irvine, California, to train with Arutyunyan
at the new Great Park Ice Arena.
“Generally, we thought it was a good place to train. I really like it
here,” said Gogolev who made the move with his mother. “Everything
is completely new and it’s warm here. Rafael and I have not worked
together that long yet, so we are still in the early stages of figuring out
what we need to do.”
Gogolev, who trained with the likes of two-time Olympic champion
Yuzuru Hanyu and two-time World champion Javier Fernández in
Toronto, is enjoying sharing ice with reigning World champion Nathan
Chen, who also trains with Arutyunyan.
“It’s really motivating to be training right beside him,” Gogolev said
of Chen. “Watching him do impressive jumps and to witness how hard
he works every day. I look up to him, and in the future I would like
skaters to look up to me in a similar way.Stephen Gogolev
Moves South of the Border
BY ELVIN WALKER
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’