Natalia Kaliszek
Natalia Kaliszek (; born 17 May 1996) is a retired Polish ice dancer. With her skating partner, Maksym Spodyriev, she has won medals on the ISU Challenger Series, including gold at the 2017 CS Tallinn Trophy, and eight Polish national titles. They have represented Poland at the 2018 and 2022 Winter Olympics, as well as the European and World championships. At the junior level, they placed in the top ten at the 2015 Junior Worlds. Personal life Natalia Kaliszek was born on 17 May 1996 in Toruń, Poland. She has two siblings, Michał and Anna, both of whom have competed in figure skating. Early career Natalia Kaliszek competed in ladies' singles as a child. In 2007, she teamed up with her brother, Michał Kaliszek, to compete in pair skating. In 2009, they appeared at two ISU Junior Grand Prix events, placing thirteenth and eighteenth. In 2010, the two switched to ice dancing at the suggestion of Sylwia Nowak-Trębacka. In the 2011–2012 season, the Kaliszeks received two JGP assignments, finishing eleventh at both, and debuted on the senior level at the Pavel Roman Memorial, where they placed fifth. They were sent to the 2012 World Junior Championships in Minsk, Belarus, but were eliminated after the preliminary round. They trained in Toruń and ended their partnership after the 2012–2013 season. In 2013, Kaliszek teamed up with Russian ice dancer Yaroslav Kurbakov. The two were coached by Nowak-Trębacka and represented Poland. They placed ninth and thirteenth at their JGP assignments and second at the Polish Junior Championships. They parted ways at the end of the season. Partnership with Spodyriev 2014–2015 season In 2014, Kaliszek began competing with Ukrainian ice dancer Maksym Spodyriev for Poland, coached by Nowak-Trębacka in Toruń. The two made their international debut at the Volvo Open Cup, where they took the junior silver medal. Switching to the senior level, they placed sixth at a Challenger Series (CS) event, the Warsaw Cup, before winning gold at the Santa Claus Cup. They won the Polish national title at the Four Nationals in December 2014 and took bronze the following month at the Toruń Cup. Kaliszek/Spodyriev were selected to represent Poland at the European Championships, held in late January 2015 in Stockholm, Sweden. Ranked fifteenth in the short dance, they qualified to the free dance, where they placed fourteenth and rose to fourteenth overall. In early March, they made their second and final appearance on the junior level, competing at the World Junior Championships in Tallinn, Estonia; they placed tenth in the short dance, sixth in the free dance, and seventh overall. Later in March, they traveled to Shanghai, China, for the World Championships but were eliminated after placing twenty-fourth in the short dance. 2015–2016 season Kaliszek/Spodyriev competed in three 2015–16 Challenger Series competitions. After placing seventh at the Nebelhorn Trophy, they won bronze at the Mordovian Ornament and silver at the Warsaw Cup. They finished third in the Challenger Series ranking. Kaliszek/Spodyriev placed eleventh at the 2016 European Championships in Bratislava, having