Sasha Cohen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sasha Cohen
Cohen skating in 2009
Personal information
Country represented	United States
Born	(1984-10-26) October 26, 1984 (age 40) Westwood, California, United States
Home town	Newport Beach, California
Height	1.58 m (5 ft 2 in)
Began skating	1992
Retired	2010

Alexandra Pauline "Sasha" Cohen (born October 26, 1984) is a retired American figure skater. She won a silver medal at the 2006 Olympic Games. Sasha also earned three medals at the World Figure Skating Championships. She was the Grand Prix Final Champion in 2003. In 2006, she became the U.S. Champion.

Sasha is famous for her artistic style on the ice. People admired her flexibility and beautiful body lines. She was also known for how well she performed to music. Sasha Cohen is the most recent American woman to win an individual medal in figure skating at the Olympics.

Sasha Cohen's Early Life

Sasha Cohen was born in Westwood, California. This is a neighborhood in Los Angeles. Her nickname "Sasha" is a shorter, friendly version of "Alexandra" in Russian. Her mother, Galina Cohen, was a ballet dancer. She came from Odesa, in what was then the Soviet Union. Sasha's father, Roger Cohen, was a lawyer.

Sasha has a younger sister named Natalia, also called "Natasha." Sasha understands and can speak Russian. She finished high school in 2002. Later, in 2016, she graduated from Columbia University with a degree in political science. While at university, she used the name Alex.

In 2005, Sasha wrote a book about her life called Fire on Ice. A new version of the book came out in 2006. It included details about her 2006 skating season.

Sasha's Skating Journey

Cohen as a pre-teen skater in Baltimore in 1996

Starting Figure Skating

Sasha Cohen was a gymnast when she was very young. She started figure skating at age seven. But she didn't get serious about the sport until she was eleven. One of her first skating coaches was Victor Yelchin.

Sasha became well-known in skating during the 2000 U.S. Championships. She had just moved up from junior competitions. Sasha was first after the short program. She finished second overall after the free skate. This almost qualified her for the senior World team. However, she finished 6th at the World Junior Championships. This meant she couldn't compete at the senior World Championships that year.

Growing as a Senior Skater

Cohen performing a layback spin at the 2002 Winter Olympics

Sasha could not compete at the 2001 U.S. Nationals. This was because of a back injury. She started training fully again in June 2001. Sasha won the silver medal at the 2002 U.S. Championships. This earned her a spot at the Olympics. She competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. She finished in 4th place. She also placed 4th at the 2002 World Championships. Sasha was coached by John Nicks in California.

In the summer of 2002, Sasha moved to the East Coast. She trained with Tatiana Tarasova in Connecticut. She won her first ISU Grand Prix event at the 2002 Skate Canada. Then she won the 2002 Trophée Lalique. She also won a silver medal at the 2002 Cup of Russia. These wins helped her qualify for the 2002–03 Grand Prix Final. There, she became the champion. At the 2003 U.S. Championships, she won the bronze medal. She placed 4th again at the 2003 World Championships.

Her best season was 2003–04. She won gold at 2003 Skate America, 2003 Skate Canada, and 2003 Trophée Lalique. She even set a world record in the short program at Skate Canada. She won silver at the 2003–04 Grand Prix Final. In late 2003, she started training with Robin Wagner. Sasha placed second at both the 2004 U.S. Championships and the 2004 World Championships. This was her first medal at the World Championships.

In the 2004–05 season, Sasha had to withdraw from some events. This was due to a back injury that kept coming back. In late 2004, she decided to go back to California. She trained again with her first coach, John Nicks. She placed 2nd at the 2005 U.S. Championships and the 2005 World Championships.

The 2006 Olympic Season

Sasha started her Olympic season by winning the Campbell's International Figure Skating Challenge. Soon after, she withdrew from Skate America because of a hip injury. She took second place at Trophée Eric Bompard. There, she fell on a triple salchow during her free skate. In 2006, Sasha won her first U.S. Championship. This win automatically secured her spot on the U.S. Olympic team for the 2006 Winter Olympics.

At the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Sasha was in first place after the short program. She was just ahead of Russia's Irina Slutskaya. In the final free skate, Sasha fell on her first jump, a triple lutz. She also touched the ice with her hands on her second jump, a triple flip. She completed the rest of her moves, including five triple jumps. Sasha finished with an Olympic silver medal. She was behind the gold medalist, Shizuka Arakawa of Japan.

A month later, at the 2006 World Championships in Calgary, Sasha was again in first place after the short program. However, she only completed one jump combination and fell on a triple salchow. She placed fourth in the free skate. She ended up winning the bronze medal. Her teammate, Kimmie Meissner, won the gold medal.

Ice Shows and Break from Competing

In April 2006, Sasha began the Champions on Ice tour. She also performed in other skating shows. On April 15, 2006, Sasha announced she wanted to compete in the 2010 season. She also aimed for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

In December 2006, Sasha said she needed a break from competing. She would not defend her U.S. Championship title in 2007. She stated her main goals were the 2009 World Championships and the 2010 Olympics.

Sasha did not compete in 2007, 2008, or 2009. But she still kept her eligibility for the Olympics. She performed in many exhibitions, like the Rockefeller Christmas Tree lighting. She was also a main performer in the Stars on Ice tour for two seasons.

Coming Back to Competition

Sasha announced on May 6, 2009, that she planned to return for the 2010 Winter Olympics. She trained with Rafael Arutyunyan. Sasha was invited to compete in two Grand Prix events. But she had to withdraw from both due to tendinitis in her right calf. In November 2009, she changed coaches back to John Nicks.

On January 21, 2010, Sasha competed for the first time in four years. This was at the 2010 U.S. Championships. She performed her program to España cañí. She skated well, landing a triple lutz-double toe and a triple flip. She also did a double Axel and her famous spiral sequence and spins. She earned 69.63 points, putting her in second place. She was just behind Mirai Nagasu. In her free skate, set to Moonlight Sonata, she fell on a triple flip. She also had two-footed landings on other jumps. She finished fourth in the championships. She was behind Rachael Flatt, Mirai Nagasu, and Ashley Wagner. Sasha was not chosen for the Olympic team. She was named as a backup for the 2010 U.S. Olympic team and the 2010 World Championship team. She officially retired from figure skating in 2010.

Awards and Recognition

In 2015, Sasha Cohen was added to the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. The next year, on January 22, 2016, U.S. Figure Skating made her part of the U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame.

Sasha's Skating Style

Cohen performs a combination spin at the 2006 U.S. Nationals in St. Louis, Missouri

Sasha Cohen was the first skater to get the highest score (+3s) for spirals under the ISU Judging System. She was also the first female skater to score over 130 points in a free skate under this system. According to a figure skating historian, Sasha's amazing talent and artistry were sometimes held back. This was because she found it hard to perform two perfect programs in the same competition. This was especially true in World and Olympic events.

Ice Shows and Performances

Sasha Cohen has performed in the ice show Stars On Ice for many years. She also starred in the 2010 Art On Ice show with Stéphane Lambiel. She joined 2010 Olympic ladies champion Yuna Kim in the All That Skate ice show in South Korea. Other famous skaters like Michelle Kwan and Brian Joubert were also there.

Television and Movies

Sasha Cohen has appeared in many commercials, TV shows, documentaries, and movies. She has played herself and acted in roles.

TV Appearances

Sasha has done commercials for Citizen Watch, Simply Saline, and Got Milk?. She was on an episode of Project Runway. Designers had to create a skating dress for her. Sasha also made a short appearance on the NBC show Las Vegas in 2006. In 2008, she appeared as a contortionist on Secret Talents of the Stars. She also guest-starred as an ice skater in an episode of CSI: NY. In 2013, Sasha helped explain tornadoes on The Weather Channel.

Movie Roles

Sasha Cohen played Fiona Hughes in the movie Moondance Alexander. Fiona was the main character's rival. At the 2006 Academy Awards, Sasha was a guest reporter for Inside Edition. This led to a chat with Ben Stiller about a future comedy movie about figure skating. Sasha said she would love to be in it. In 2007, she appeared as herself in Blades of Glory. Later that year, she also had a role in Bratz: The Movie. In 2017, Sasha appeared as herself in the SyFy TV movie, Sharknado 5.

Sasha was also in The Weight of Gold (2020). This was an HBO Sports Documentary. It looked at the mental health challenges that Olympic athletes sometimes face.

Sasha's Personal Life

On July 5, 2015, Sasha Cohen announced her engagement to Tom May. He worked in finance. They got married on August 20, 2016, in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. In February 2018, they separated and began divorce proceedings. Sasha now works for Morgan Stanley.

In October 2019, Sasha announced her engagement to Geoffrey Lieberthal. He is also a business partner. They have two children. Their son was born in January 2020, and their daughter was born in August 2021. Sasha and Geoffrey got married in September 2022 in Aspen Mountain, Colorado.

Skating Programs

Cohen performs a Biellmann spiral on the 2008 Stars on Ice tour stop in Halifax

Competitive Achievements

GP = Grand Prix; JGP = Junior Grand Prix

Images for kids

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  From left to right: Kimmie Meissner (silver), Sasha Cohen (gold), Emily Hughes (bronze), and Katy Taylor (pewter) at the 2006 U.S. Championships.

See also

In Spanish: Sasha Cohen para niños