Efimova and Mitrofanov Eye Statement Season

Above: Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov show their unison at the 2024 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Columbus, Ohio. Photo credit: Getty Images

By Kama Korvela

The story of Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov’s partnership began in an unlikely place — an Instagram DM.

Efimova previously competed for Germany with partner Ruben Blommaert. Blommaert retired from competitive skating shortly after the 2023 World Figure Skating Championships.

One year prior, Mitrofanov found himself with out a pairs partner. He skated with Audrey Lu from May 2016 through April 2022. When Lu retired from competitive skating to attend college in California, Mitrofanov decided to continue his career and began searching for a new partner.

After Mitrofanov heard the news that Efimova and Blommaert had split, he reached out to her via a direct message on Instagram and asked if she would be interested in a tryout. The pair officially began skating together in June 2023.

When the newly formed team stepped on to the ice for their free skate at the 2024 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Columbus, Ohio, they were in fifth place. At that point in time, they had only been skating together for seven months but looked as though they had been together for much longer. Efimova and Mitrofanov leaned on their collective experience and it paid off. They won the free skate and finished their season as the 2024 U.S. silver medalists.

Now, it’s a new season and the team is ready to build upon what they started last year.

“I’m excited because I haven’t done international competitions in two seasons,” Mitrofanov said. “My last international competition was Four Continents in February 2022, so I’ve been itching to compete again. We’ve been training extremely hard in the offseason, and we’re ready to show the results of our hard work.”  

Like her partner, Efimova had extended break from competing internationally. Because Efimova competed for Germany until March 2023, she had to sit out for a year.

“I didn’t have an international competition at all last season,” she said. “Before that, I only had one international competition, and before that, I had a two-year break from international competitions.

You just appreciate the opportunity to compete. Of course, I want to enjoy the journey but I also want to show everyone the potential we have as a team.”

They are off to a strong start. Efimova and Mitrofanov won the silver medal at the John Nicks Pairs Challenge and finished fourth at the Nebelhorn Trophy.

“We learned a lot about ourselves at Nebelhorn,” Mitrofanov said. “Each competition is a learning experience.”

The team is especially excited to compete at Skate America, which takes place later this month in Allen, Texas. Mitrofanov lived in the area for several years before relocating to Boston in 2020.

“The venue for Skate America is 10 minutes from my old house back in Dallas,” he said. “Lots of friends and family will be there to watch and cheer for us.”

Efimova and Mitrofanov are eager to showcase what they have been working on in the off-season. The pair has worked extensively to improve their overall performance quality and refine their personal style.

“We have a spicy Spanish piece for our short program (“Ameksa” and “Uccen” by Taalbi Brothers) and are skating to a French piece for the free program (“Je Suis Malade” by Forestella),” Mitrofanov said. “We are pushing ourselves choreographically this season. It’s all about telling the story.”

They collaborated with three-time U.S. national ice dance champion and renowned choreographer Renee Roca to create both of their programs.

“When we first started working with Renee, we did our short program,” Mitrofanov said. “Typically, in the past, it took us around six hours to put together a short program. With Renee, we spent a week on it. She is very detail oriented. I really liked her approach — we started with the middle (of the program), then the ending, and then focused on the beginning.”

Working with Roca has taken their skating to a new level.

“I feel like Renee had a vision for the programs,” Efimova said. “We’re still growing into the programs. It’s challenging, in a good way, because we’re always trying to reach the ideal version of the program. Every day, every week — we’re trying to reach the ideal version.”

The team wants to continue to improve upon on their successes from last season.

“I look at this as ‘building the bricks,’” Efimova said. “We have a strong base for training, and we rely on that training and each other. Everyone is giving 100% effort.”

Though it’s too early to tell how Efimova and Mitrofanov’s season will end, one thing is for certain — they are determined to make a lasting impression.

“When we got to nationals earlier this year, our goal was to put out two good programs,” Mitrofanov said. “Now, we want to become memorable. We want to be very clear with the music and very clear with the choreography. We want to tell a better story.”

Don't miss Efimova and Mitrofanov when they compete at 2024 Skate America this week. For tickets, results, how to watch information and more, visit 2024skateamerica.com.