The next level of figure skating

Millstone's Jessica Torregrossa, an eighth-grader at Oak Hill Academy, Lincroft, started her new synchronized skating season by earning a silver medal for her performance with the Ice-Lantics team at the Terry Conners Classic in Connecticut earlier this month. Synchronized skating is one of the fastest-growing sports in America, with potential for becoming a medal sport in the 2010 Olympics, and one Millstone youth revels in getting the activity the recognition it deserves.

Synchronized skating teams consist of 12 to 20 ice skaters, instead of the usual one or two figure skaters most people are accustomed to seeing on the ice during competitions. Team members are connected to one another during most of their routine through different types of holds, such as a hand-to-hand or shoulder-toshoulder hold.

During competitions, synchronized teams are required to perform programs with five elements called intersections, circles, blocks, spins and moves in the field sequence. The teams are judged on the execution of the elements and on presentation.

There are eight distinct competition levels within the U.S. Figure Skating structure, with the most competitive being the senior and collegiate levels. The competition at each level has grown more intense with the sport's rising popularity. In 2000, the International Skating Union held the first World Synchronized Skating Championships in Minneapolis, Minn., where 21 teams from 16 different countries participated. The Olympics has used synchronized skating as a demonstration sport and is considering it for official competition in the near future.

Although the sport is just gaining popularity, synchronized skating has been around for years. In 1838, the Oxford Skating Society in England practiced "combined figure skating" in groups with up to 12 skaters. The sport has grown in the United State alone from one team in Michigan to more than 500 registered teams nationwide. One of those teams is the Ice-Lantics, which practices in the Gold Coast Arena in Farmingdale. Millstone's Jessica Torregrossa, 13, skates on the team under the direction of coaches Lynne Leger and Konstantin Kaplan and assistant coach Kaitlyn Buffone,

Jessica began ice skating at age 7 and joined the synchronized skating team and started skating competitively at age 10.

"I wanted to try something that no one else could do and do it successfully," Jessica said.

Jessica currently skates at the intermediate level of the sport. Her team recently returned from Stamford, Conn., sporting silver medals after its first competition of the season at the Terry Conners Synchronized Skating Classic. The event drew teams from across the Middle Atlantic and lower New England states.

During the competition, Jessica's team debuted its "Gladiator" program of complex formations and maneuvers, intricate footwork and transitions with speed, accuracy and in complete unison to music from the award-winning film score.

"We've worked really hard and we've been enjoying what we've been doing," Jessica said. "We're all good friends, and that makes sharing a win so meaningful. It's so nice to be out there with people who will always support you and inspire you."

Leger said, "These girls have been working together since last spring to meet the challenges of competing at a higher level, under a new judging system, while rolling with endless adjustments to the choreography," Leger said. "To pass this first test so successfully against more experienced teams is a great shot in the arm for them."

This season's intermediate squad is sponsored by the Garden State Skating Club and consists of 21 skaters. The team will compete at United States Figure Skating's 2009 Eastern Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships in Morristown in January against teams from the Eastern section of the United States.

This is an important year for the intermediate squad, as most of the skaters on the team have been skating together for four years, but this is their first at the national level. If they do well throughout the season, they will earn a chance to travel to Maine to compete against other intermediate teams from across the nation.

Jessica's long-term goal with the team is to skate internationally at the age of 16 or 17. Currently, she tours with the Ice-Lantics, competing along the East Coast during the winter months and practicing at rinks in New Jersey throughout the remainder of the year.

Her mother, Janet, said synchronized skating is a fantastic sport for young ladies to get involved in because it promotes physical fitness, camaraderie and travel.

"The girls need to be friends because they need to be able to depend on each other to be out there on the ice," Janet said. "As a parent, I think it's good for a child to get physical activity and to learn to be disciplined."

Jessica said the sport keeps her motivated.

"It inspires me to do better in other things, like school," she said. "It also helps me with time management."

Janet said all of the skaters on Jessica's team are "true competitors and true athletes."

"They give 110 percent," she said. "They have to watch what they eat and get to sleep early. They sacrifice a great deal and miss parties and sleepovers. These girls are truly dedicated."

She continued, "After putting in all of this effort, they do get results. They don't have to be first, but they don't want to be at the bottom, and they're always striving for perfection."

Jessica plans to continue skating throughout college and has hopes of one day being able to coach her own synchronized skating team.

"How can you imagine not doing this after it's been a part of your life for so long," she said.

For more information about synchronized skating in southern and central New Jersey, and

sponsorship opportunities, contact team manager Angie Rosen at arose57@aol.com or visit www.ice-lantics.com.