ATHLETE BIOS » LADIES

Born: May 9, 1980 – Spartanburg, South Carolina Height: 5'4" Level: Senior Home Club: All Year FSC Hometown: San Pedro, California Training Town: Lake Arrowhead, California Coach: Igor Pashkevich

Competitive History
2004   Marshalls World Cup - 6th		1999   Four Continents Championships - 3rd
2004   Cup of China - 8th		1999   State Farm U.S. Championships - 3rd
2004   Smart Ones Skate America - 1st		1998   NHK Trophy - withdrew
2004   Four Continents Championships - 7th		1998   Skate America - 3rd
2004   State Farm U.S. Championships - 5th		1998   Keri Lotion Classic (Team USA) - 2nd
2004   Pacific Coast Sectional - 1st		1998   Goodwill Games - 4th
2003   Finlandia Trophy - 11th		1998   State Farm U.S. Championships - 5th
2003   State Farm U.S. Championships - withdrew		1998   World Junior Championships - 11th
2002   Hershey's Kisses Challenge (team) - 2nd		1998   World Junior Selections Competition - 4th
2002   State Farm U.S. Championships - 4th		1997   Skate America - 4th
2001   Hershey's Kisses Challenge (team) - 3rd		1997   State Farm U.S. Championships - 4th
2001   NHK Trophy - 4th		1997   Pacific Coast Sectional - 1st
2001   Cup of Russia - 3rd		1997   World Junior Selections Competition - 3rd
2001   Nations Cup - 3rd		1996   Pokal Der Blauen Schwerter - 2nd
2001   Goodwill Games - wdrw-inj		1996   Ondrej Nepela Memorial - 3rd
2001   World Championships - 5th		1996   State Farm U.S. Championships - 8th
2001   Four Continents Championships - 2nd		1996   Pacific Coast Sectional - 2nd
2001   State Farm U.S. Championships - 3rd		1996   Southwest Pacific Regional - 1st
2000   NHK Trophy - 4th		1996   World Junior Selections Competition - 6th
2000   Skate America - 5th		1995   U.S. Olympic Festival - 5th
2000   World Championships - 9th		1995   State Farm U.S. Championships, Junior - 5th
2000   Four Continents Championships - 1st		1995   Pacific Coast Sectional, Junior - 2nd
2000   State Farm U.S. Championships - 4th		1995   Southwest Pacific Regional, Junior - 3rd
1999   Cup of Russia - 4th		1994   State Farm U.S. Championships, Junior - 5th
1999   Skate America - 7th		1994   Pacific Coast Sectional, Junior - 2nd
1999   Keri Lotion Classic (Team USA) - 2nd		1994   Southwest Pacific Regional, Junior - 3rd
1999   World Championships - 12th

2004-05 Season Notes
SP Music: "Moonlight Sonata: by Beethoven; FS Music: "Romeo and Juliet" by Tchaikovsky

Nikodinov returned to the Grand Prix Series for the first time since 2001, winning gold at Smart Ones Skate America ... This is her first season working with new coach Igor Pashkevich.

2003-04 Season Notes
Short Program Music: "Just For You" by Giovanni; Free Skate Music: "Giselle" ... Nikodinov returned to action at the Finlandia Trophy, finishing 11th ... She had shoulder surgery in early 2003.

2002-03 Season Notes
Nikodinov missed the entire fall season due to two ailments ... First she reinjured a shoulder that had previously kept her out of the 2002 World Championships ... Then after recovering from the shoulder injury, an illness kept her off the ice again ... She returned to competition at the Sears Canadian Open in December, finishing fourth ... She struggled at the 2003 U.S. Championships, finishing 11th in the short program and reinjuring her shoulder ... She withdrew after the short program.

2001-02 Season Notes
Nikodinov announced that she will begin working with coach Frank Carroll ... Their first event was the Hershey's Kisses Figure Skating Challenge, Dec. 7, 2001 ... Nikodinov finished in seventh place overall in the Grand Prix Final and is the first alternate ... Nikodinov's coach for the past two seasons, Elena Tcherkasskaia, passed away at age 64 in her hometown of Moscow, Nov. 12, 2001, from complications stemming from pancreatic cancer ... Tcherkasskaia's good friend Irina Rodnina was Nikodinov's coach at Nations Cup and at Cup of Russia in St. Petersburg, November 21-25 ... Nikodinov won the bronze medal at Nations Cup, which was her first medal in a Grand Prix event since Skate America in 1998 ... Nikodinov withdrew from the free skate at the 2001 Goodwill Games after she was diagnosed with viral conjunctivitis, which caused blurry vision in her left eye.

Notes
The 2000-01 season unveiled an improved and more confident Angela Nikodinov that resulted in a memorable bronze medal at the 2001 U.S. Championships in Boston ... Making her third consecutive appearance at the World Championships, Nikodinov improved her consistency with the help of her coach Elena Tcherkasskaia, a former prima ballerina with the Bolshoi Ballet ... Nikodinov began skating at the age of 5 ... She enjoys water and snow skiing, roller blading and jet skiing ... The athlete she admires most is Dan Jansen because of his determination and comeback ... Nikodinov's parents moved to the United States from Bulgaria... Angela is fluent in the Bulgarian and Russian languages ... She is a 1998 graduate of Monte Vista High School ... Captured her first international title at the 2000 Four Continents Championships.