Charles E. Shoemaker/The Gazette
Silver Spring resident Kristine Musademba, 16, will compete in the senior ladies category at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Cleveland, Ohio, Jan. 18-25.
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When athletes reach their pinnacle in competition, it's only natural to start thinking ahead to the Olympics, or even professional career opportunities.
But those thoughts never enter the imagination of 16-year-old Silver Spring resident Kristine Musademba. The Georgetown Day School sophomore takes her figure skating career week to week, competition to competition. Staying in the present, she said, is what's helped go as far as she has.
From Jan. 18-25, Musademba will compete for the first time in the senior ladies category at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Cleveland, Ohio. She'll be among the top 25 female figure skaters in the United States, a group that also includes Olympian and fellow Maryland native Kimmie Meissner.
As part of a send off, Musademba skated her program in front of family and friends Sunday at the Fort Dupont Ice Arena in Washington D.C., during a public exhibition hosted by the Washington Figure Skating Club, for which Musademba skates.
"I'm really excited to be going to nationals," Musademba said. "I've always looked up to senior nationals and dreamed of skating there. There's going to be a lot more pressure and more eyes on all the skaters there, but I just want to be focused on my skating and skate good programs."
Musademba, who's been skating internationally for two years, received an automatic bid to nationals by reaching the Junior Grand Prix final in Goyang City, South Korea, where she placed sixth. Musademba won gold medals at Junior Grand Prix events in Courchevel, France and Madrid, Spain, this summer to qualify for the final.
Musademba has all the physical skill prevalent in an elite figure skater, combining terrific speed on the ground and height on jumps with tremendous balance throughout programs laced with various spins. It hasn't happened overnight; she trains up to three hours after school every day, adding an hour in the gym for cardiovascular fitness and weightlifting twice a week.
She says she's missed out on time with her friends, but is willing to make the sacrifices to stay an international-caliber athlete.
"That feeling you get on the ice, you can't get anywhere else," Musademba said. "I just love the way figure skating combines athleticism with artistry."
Musademba's career has really taken off over the past two years. At this time last year, she couldn't consistently land her triple Lutz. On Sunday, it was hardly a problem.
"A lot of the things I've learned in figure skating translate into the rest of my life," she said. "I've learned a lot of discipline. That's the reason my room's always clean. I've learned focus more on my homework. And I've learned that sometimes you have to make sacrifices."
Musademba's figure skating career is headed in the right direction, with nationals as just one more step. But that's as far as Musademba will look ahead right now.
"I think it's important to stay in the present," she said. "That's what got me here."
