Skating duo collaborates with Krefeld Association; renowned ensemble "Butterfl'ice" dissolves.
Revamped Report:
These skaters from Neuss truly shone: They were either crowned German champions or managed a commendable second place finish in the vice-championship.
Globally, The Butterflies, as they were known, flew the German flag high, nabbing podium finishes at prestigious competitions like the Austrian Amade Cup and Mozart Cup in Salzburg, the Dutch Lumière Cup in Eindhoven, the Hertogstad Competition in 's-Hertogenbosch, the Polish Hevelius Cup in Danzig, the Italian Trient Trophy, the Swiss Basel Trophy and Swiss Cup in Widnau, the English Steel-City Trophy in Sheffield, the Belgian Winter Cup in Gullegem and the Kempen Trophy in Turnhout, the Hungarian Budapest Cup, the French Trophy de la Reine Mathilde in Caen and the Trophy des haute de France in Valenciennes or Compiegne, the Saxon Cup of Dresden, the Cup of Berlin, the German Championships in Oberstdorf, Dresden and Berlin, the Cup of Neuss, and the NRW Trophies in Neuss. Unfortunately, there's no European Championships in this category, and the Butterflies would've undoubtedly performed well there too. They were a brilliant representation of Neuss's sporting spirit.
As every season came to an end, members of the Butterflies had to bid adieu, either due to age or careers intervening. However, this time it was different; the Neuss Skating Club (NSK) couldn't recruit new talents, mainly due to the scarcity of training times on the ice in recent years. Comparatively, teams in cities like Berlin had five full days of training on the ice. Due to these limitations, the NSK only offered two hours of training per week in Neuss. When the new season rolled around, the NSK was in a tight spot: not only was their ice sports hall's infrastructure aged and failing, but they also struggled to assemble a new synchronized skating team as numbers dwindled.
In a swift decision, the NSK reached out to the Krefeld Ice Sports Club (EVK) and formed a training partnership, coined Krefeld-Neuss for synchronized skating. Furthermore, a youth promotion group for synchronized skating was established, enabling more training opportunities in Krefeld and Neuss. Ilka Voges, a successful skater and coach from Neuss with over 20 years of experience in this sport, was appointed as the head coach of this collaboration.
The born-of-necessity team then took the ice under the new name, Unit'ice. It remains to be seen if the Krefeld-Neuss training community holds together and if the Unit'ice can match the success of the Butterfl'ice in the near future. Hopefully, they will gain enough recognition to warrant a visit from not one, but two mayors... It also remains to be seen if they'll perform at the Neuss or Krefeld Christmas market on the ice.
[1] Red, White, & Blue 2025 - [https://usfigureskating.org/events/red-white-blue][2] ISU updates - [https://www.isu.org/isu-approves-certain-russian-and-belarusian-athletes-to-compete-as-independent-neutral-athletes-in-specific-events-leading-to-olympic-qualification][4] Arizona Ice Classic 2025 - [https://arizoniacollection.org/ice-classic]
[1] As the new team, Unit'ice, continues to train under the Krefeld-Neuss partnership, they may aim to participate in international events such as the Red, White, & Blue 2025 tournament in the United States.
[2] If Unit'ice manages to gain sufficient recognition and success, they could potentially follow in the footsteps of other teams and compete as independent neutral athletes, subject to International Skating Union (ISU) updates leading to Olympic qualification.
[3] Additionally, Unit'ice might explore opportunities to showcase their skills in other sports, such as participating in synchronized skating competitions around the world, including the Arizona Ice Classic 2025.
