Camille Kovalev(néeMendoza;born 29 November 1994 inToulouse) is a Frenchpair skater.

Camille Kovalev
Camille Kovalev and Christopher Boyadji at the2012 World Junior Championships
Other namesCamille Mendoza
Born(1994-11-29)29 November 1994(age 30)
Toulouse, France
HometownAngers, France
Height1.60 m (5 ft 3 in)
Figure skating career
CountryFrance
DisciplinePair skating
PartnerPavel Kovalev(since 2014)
Christopher Boyadji(2011–12)
CoachLaurent Depouilly
Skating clubClub Olympique de Courbevoie
Began skating2000
Medal record
French Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Cergy-Pontoise Pairs
Gold medal – first place 2023 Rouen Pairs
Gold medal – first place 2024 Vaujany Pairs
Silver medal – second place 2016 Épinal Pairs
Silver medal – second place 2020 Dunkirk Pairs
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Caen Pairs
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Vaujany Pairs

WithPavel Kovalev,she is a two-timeISU Grand Prixmedalist, 2018Volvo Open Cupsilver medalist, 2015International Cup of Nicebronze medalist, 2015Lombardia Trophybronze medalist, and is a three-timeFrench national champion.

Earlier in her career, she skated withChristopher Boyadjiand competed in the final segment at the2012 World Junior Championships.

Personal life

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Mendoza was born on 29 November 1994 inToulouse,France.She married her skating partner,Pavel Kovalev,in December 2017 and subsequently adopted his last name.[1]

Career

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Early career

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Kovalev began figure skating in 2000 at the age of six.[1][2]She would begin competing as a pair skater in 2011 after teaming up withChristopher Boyadji.Coached by Vivien Rolland and Diana Skotnicka, Kovalev/Boyadji represented the Club Olympique de Courbevoie.[3]They competed at the2012 World Junior Championships,where they would finish sixteenth. Their partnership would eventually dissolve following the2011–12 figure skating season.[4]

Partnership with Kovalev

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2014–2015 season

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In 2014, it was announced that Kovalev had teamed up with Russian pair skater,Pavel Kovalevand that they would be coached byMedhi Bouzzineand that they would represent the Club Olympique de Courbevoie.[5][6]

Their first competition as a team was at the2014 Master's de Patinage,although they would withdraw from the event after placing third in the short program. They would subsequently compete at the2014 NRW Trophyand the2015 Bavarian Open,finishing fourth at both events.[7]

2015–2016 season

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The Kovalevs started the season by winning their first international medal together, a bronze at the2015 Lombardia Trophy.They would then go on to win silver at the2015 Master's de Patinageand bronze at the2015 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur.[7]

In December, the Kovalevs would win silver at the2016 French Championships.They then closed the season with a fourth-place finish at the2016 Bavarian Open.[7]

2016–2017 season

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Beginning the season with a gold medal win at the2016 Master's de Patinage,the Kovalevs would subsequently finish sixth at the2016 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azurand fourth at the2016 CS Tallinn Trophy.[7]

They would end the season by winning bronze at the2017 French Championships.[7]

2017–2018 season

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The Kovalevs started the season by winning bronze at the2017 Master's de Patinage.They would then compete at the2017 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azurand the2017 CS Tallinn Trophy,finishing eighth and fifth, respectively.[7]

2018–2019 season

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The Kovalevs began the season by winning silver at the2018 Master's de Patinageand at the2018 Volvo Open Cup.They then concluded the season by winning bronze at the2019 French Championships.[7]

2019–2020 season

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Beginning the season at the2020 Master's de Patinage,the Kovalevs won the gold medal. They would then go on to compete on the2019–20 ISU Challenger Series,finishing thirteenth at the2019 CS Warsaw Cupand seventeenth at the2019 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb.[7]

In December, the Kovalevs would win their second national silver medal at the2020 French Championships.[7]

2020–2021 season

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The Kovalevs only competed at one event that season, the2020 Master's de Patinage,where they won the bronze medal.[7]

2021–2022 season: First national title and World Championship debut

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In fall 2021, it was announced that the Kovalevs were now being coached byLaurent DepouillyinCourbevoie.[1]They started the season by finishing seventh at the2021 CS Lombardia Trophy.Making theirGrand Prixseries debut at the2021 Internationaux de France,the pair would come in seventh place.[7]

In December, they would win their first national title at the2022 French Championships.With this result, the Kovalevs were selected to represent France at the European and World Championships for a first time. At the2022 European ChampionshipsinTallinn,Estonia, they would come in fourteenth place.[7]

In March 2022, theInternational Skating Unionbanned athletes representing Russia from competing at international events as a result of theirinvasion of Ukraine.In addition, theChinese Skating Associationopted not to send any athletes to compete at the2022 World ChampionshipsinMontpellier,France.[8]Because of this, the Kovalevs finished World Championships with a strong eighth-place.[7]

2022–2023 season: First Grand Prix medal

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The Kovalevs began the season by finishing sixth at the2022 CS Nebelhorn Trophybefore going on to win gold at the2022 Master's de Patinage.[7]

Going on to compete on the2022–23 Grand Prixcircuit, the pair won the their first Grand Prix medal, a silver, at the2022 Grand Prix de France.They would subsequenetly finish fifth at the2022 NHK Trophy.[7]

In December, the Kovalevs won the national title for a second consecutive time at the2023 French Championships.Named to the European and World team, the Kovalevs would finish sixth at the2023 European ChampionshipsinEspoo,Finland and fourteenth at the2023 World ChampionshipsinSaitama,Japan.[7]

Selected to compete for Team France in the pairs discipline at the2023 World Team Trophy,the pair would individually place fifth and Team France would finish in fifth place overall.[7]

2023–2024 season: Second Grand Prix medal

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The Kovalevs started the season by winning gold at the2023 John Nicks Pairs Challenge.Following a ninth-place finish at the2023 CS Autumn Classic International,the pair would win gold for a fourth time at the2023 Master's de Patinage.They would subsequently compete at the2023 CS Finlandia Trophy,where they placed fifth.[7]

Competing on the2023–24 Grand Prixcircuit, the Kovalevs won the bronze medal at the2023 Grand Prix de Franceand finished fifth at the2023 Grand Prix of Espoo.[7]In December, they would win their third national title at the2024 French Championships.[7]

The pair then went on to compete at the2024 European ChampionshipsinKaunas, Lithuania,despite Camille developing a fever two days before the event. During the short program, Camille would have a very hard fall on the throw triple flip, landing on her chest. She would then fall again on the side-by-side triple toe. As a result of these mistakes, the pair would only place fifteenth in the short program. They would end up withdrawing before the free skate due to Camille's illness.[9][10][7]The Kovalevs would subsequently compete at the2024 International Challenge Cup,where they took the bronze medal.[7]

Weeks before the2024 World Championships,the Kovalevs announced that they would not compete at the event due to Pavel injuring himself from a very bad fall in training.[11]

In June, the pair announced that while continuing their coaching relationship withLaurent Depouilly,that they would begin training at the ASGA Figure Skating Club.[12]

2024–2025 season

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During the off-season, Pavel dislocated his ankle and underwent surgery during the summer. He would also injure his back shortly after returning to the ice and would subsequently be forced to miss another two weeks of training. The Kovalevs, having initially been told by doctors that they would likely need to sit out of the beginning of the season, Pavel would eventually be cleared to skate at the2024 Master's de Patinagein late September, much earlier than the couple would have expected. They would ultimately win silver at the event.[7][13][14]They would subsequently finish sixth at the2024 Tayside Trophy.[7]

Going on to compete on the2024–25 Grand Prixcircuit, the Kovalevs finished seventh at the2024 Grand Prix de Franceand sixth at the2024 Cup of China.[7]

Programs

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With Pavel Kovalev

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Season Short program Free skating Exhibition
2024–2025
[15]
2023–2024
[16]
2022–2023
[17]
2021–22
[1]
  • The Curse
    byAgnes Obel
    choreo. by Nathalie Depouilly
2018–19
[18]
2017–18
[18]
2016–17
[18]
2015–16
[18][5]
2014–15
[18][5]
  • Industrial Revolution, Part 2
    by Nic Raine
    choreo. by Léonie Corbin

With Christopher Boyadji

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Season Short program Free skating
2011–12
[3]

Competitive highlights

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Pair skating with Pavel Kovalev

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Competition placements at senior level [7]
Season 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
World Championships 8th 14th
European Championships 14th 6th WD
French Championships 2nd 3rd 3rd 2nd 1st 1st 1st
World Team Trophy 5th
(5th)
GPCup of China 6th
GPFinland 5th
GPFrance 7th 2nd 3rd 7th
GPNHK Trophy 5th
CSAutumn Classic 9th
CSFinlandia Trophy 5th
CSGolden Spin of Zagreb 17th TBD
CSNebelhorn Trophy 6th
CSTallinn Trophy 4th 5th
CSWarsaw Cup 13th
Bavarian Open 4th 4th
Challenge Cup 3rd
Cup of Nice 3rd 6th 8th
John Nicks Challenge 1st
Lombardia Trophy 3rd 7th
Master's de Patinage WD 2nd 1st 3rd 2nd 1st 3rd 1st 1st 2nd
NRW Trophy 4th
Tayside Trophy 6th
Volvo Open Cup 2nd

Pair skating with Christopher Boyadji

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Competition placements at junior level [4]
Season 2011–12
World Junior Championships 16th
JGPEstonia 10th
Bavarian Open 1st
Master's de Patinage 1st

Detailed results

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Pair skating with Pavel Kovalev

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ISU personal best scores in the +5/-5 GOE System [19]
Segment Type Score Event
Total TSS 179.85 2022 Grand Prix de France
Short program TSS 63.98 2022 Grand Prix de France
TES 36.67 2022 Grand Prix de France
PCS 29.21 2023 World Team Trophy
Free skating TSS 115.87 2022 Grand Prix de France
TES 57.30 2023 World Team Trophy
PCS 59.86 2022 Grand Prix de France
ISU personal best scores in the +3/-3 GOE System [19]
Segment Type Score Event
Total TSS 141.87 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy
Short program TSS 51.76 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy
TES 29.44 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy
PCS 22.32 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy
Free skating TSS 91.11 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy
TES 46.35 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy
PCS 45.76 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy
Results in the2024-25 season[7]
Date Event SP FS Total
P Score P Score P Score
Sep 26-28, 2024 2024 Master's de Patinage 2 42.75 2 94.88 2 137.63
Oct 12–13, 2024 2024 Tayside Trophy 3 52.72 6 92.61 6 145.33
Nov 1-3, 2024 2024 Grand Prix de France 7 54.81 6 102.23 7 157.04

References

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  1. ^abcd"Camille KOVALEV / Pavel KOVALEV: 2021/2022".International Skating Union. Archived fromthe originalon 2 January 2022.
  2. ^Pomiès, Fabien (25 April 2007)."Patinage artistique. Du talent et de l'élégance dans les patins".ladepeche.fr(in French).Archivedfrom the original on 24 September 2015.
  3. ^ab"Camille MENDOZA / Christopher BOYADJI: 2011/2012".International Skating Union.Archivedfrom the original on 19 April 2012.
  4. ^ab"FRA-Camille Kovalev / Christopher Boyadji".SkatingScores.
  5. ^abc"Travail d'équipe..."Skate-Info.Skate-Info.Retrieved2 November2024.
  6. ^"Camille MENDOZA / Pavel KOVALEV: 2015/2016".International Skating Union.International Skating Union.Retrieved2 November2024.
  7. ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaa"FRA-Camille Kovalev / Pavel Kovalev".SkatingScores.
  8. ^Campigotto, Jesse (March 22, 2022)."Get ready for a bizarre figure skating world championships".CBC Sports.
  9. ^"LIVE - Pairs Short Program - ISU European Championships - Kaunas 2024".YouTube.YouTube.Retrieved2 November2024.
  10. ^"Pour préserver l'intégrité physique de Camille, malade, elle et son mari Pavel Kovalev ont déclaré forfait pour le programme libre de ce jeudi".Lequipe.Lequipe.Retrieved2 November2024.
  11. ^Kovalev, Camille."Juste une petite annonce, pas la plus agréable à faire mais importante..."Instagram.Instagram.Retrieved2 November2024.
  12. ^Kovalev, Camille."On vous annonce officiellement qu'on a décidé de rejoindre le club @asgapatinageartistique pour les saisons à venir".Instagram.Instagram.Retrieved2 November2024.
  13. ^Mathieu, Solène."Interview Camille et Pavel Kovalev, Laurent Depouilly: cap vers Angers pour l'objectif JO".Skate-Info.Skate-Info.Retrieved2 November2024.
  14. ^Kovalev, Camille."Fin des Masters 2024, Nous étions présent pour avancer dans notre préparation en vue des Grands Prix".Instagram.Instagram.Retrieved2 November2024.
  15. ^"Camille KOVALEV / Pavel KOVALEV: 2024/2025".International Skating Union. Archived fromthe originalon 26 September 2024.
  16. ^"Camille KOVALEV / Pavel KOVALEV: 2023/2024".International Skating Union. Archived fromthe originalon 6 March 2024.
  17. ^"Camille KOVALEV / Pavel KOVALEV: 2022/2023".International Skating Union. Archived fromthe originalon 8 April 2023.
  18. ^abcde"Camille Kovalev & Pavel Kovalev".Golden Skate.
  19. ^ab"Couple Records Camille Kovalev / Pavel Kovalev".International Skating Union.
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