Hektor Giotopoulos Moore

Hektor Giotopoulos Moore
Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore at the 2023 Skate Canada International
Born	(2002-06-25) 25 June 2002 (age 21) Melbourne, Australia
Hometown	Sydney, Australia
Height	1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in)
Figure skating career
Country	Australia
Partner	Anastasia Golubeva
Coach	Galina Pachin Andrei Pachin
Skating club	Sydney FSC
Medal record Figure skating: Pairs Representing   Australia World Junior Championships 2022 Tallinn Pairs 2023 Calgary Pairs Junior Grand Prix Final 2022–23 Torino Pairs

Hektor Giotopoulos Moore is an Australian pair skater. With his skating partner, Anastasia Golubeva, he is the 2022 CS Warsaw Cup champion.

On the junior level, Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore are two-time World silver medalists (2022 and 2023) and the 2022-23 Junior Grand Prix Final champions.

Personal life

Giotopoulos Moore was born on June 25, 2002, in Melbourne, Australia. ^[1] He holds dual Australian-Greek citizenship, and is fluent in Russian, which he learned to speak while training in Moscow during the COVID-19 pandemic. ^[2]

Career

Giotopoulos Moore began skating at the age of nine after developing an interest in pair skating from watching a pair team, coached by Galina and Andrei Pachin, performing a lift in practice at the Sydney Figure Skating Club. The Pachins agreed to train him after seeing how tall Giotopoulos Moore's father was and knowing that Giotopoulos Moore would likely grow to be tall enough to be a pair skater as well. In addition, he won the 2017 Australian Novice Championships as a singles skater. ^[2]

Due to the difficulties of finding a suitable pair partner in Australia, Giotopoulos Moore and his coaches searched for potential partners abroad. He initially skated with Karina Akopova of Russia and Milania Vaananen of Finland but neither partnerships lasted. In the fall of 2019, Giotopoulos Moore had a try-out with Anastasia Golubeva, a singles skater from Moscow, after Galina and Andrei Pachin were able to get in contact with Golubeva's coach in Russia. Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore decided to team up following a successful try-out. ^[2]

In February of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit while Giotopoulos Moore was training with Golubeva in Moscow, and Golubeva had yet to obtain a visa to relocate to Australia. Due to lockdowns, Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore were unable to use Russian ice rinks to train so instead, they would meet daily to practice off-ice training. The pair would also temporarily train in Belarus because the country allowed a three-month visa-free entry. ^{[2] [3]}

The team would finally relocate to Sydney, Australia after the country re-opened its borders. ^[2]

2021–22 season

Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore debuted as a pair team on the 2021–22 ISU Junior Grand Prix and finished fifth at both their ISU Junior Grand Prix events in Russia and Austria. The pair would also go on to compete at the senior level the 2021–22 Challenger Series, placing eighth at the 2021 Nebelhorn Trophy and tenth at the 2021 Golden Spin of Zagreb. At the 2022 Winter Star in Minsk, Belarus, Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore would win the gold medal. ^[4]

Although the pair were assigned to compete at the 2022 World Championships in Montpellier, their plans were disrupted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Due to Golubeva's Russian citizenship, they were unable to have a visa processed in time to travel to France, and withdrew from the event. ^[5]

As a further result of the invasion, the International Skating Union banned all Russian and Belarusian skaters from participating in international competitions, which had a significant impact on the international pairs field. ^[6] Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore were assigned as well to the 2022 World Junior Championships, initially scheduled to be held in Sofia in March. However, due to both the invasion and COVID pandemic issues, Bulgaria renounced hosting the event, which was rescheduled for Tallinn in April. ^[7] Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore placed second in the short program. ^[5] They were second in the free skate as well, despite some minor errors, winning the silver medal. Golubeva said afterward that "this is my first medal. We have some little mistakes in the program, but overall we're very happy." ^[8] They became the third Australian pair team to win a World Junior medal, after Cain/Cain in 1976 and Alexandrovskaya/Windsor in 2017. ^[9]

2022–23 season

Although Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore were selected to compete on the Grand Prix circuit at 2022 Skate America and 2022 Grand Prix of Espoo, the pair elected to compete on the 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix instead. They were assigned to both Polish JGP events in Gdańsk, arriving at the first as the favourites to win, which they did by a wide margin. The gold medal was their first JGP medal. ^[10] The following weekend they won their second event as well, despite a number of errors that caused Giotopoulos Mooere to say it "wasn't as good as last week." Their results qualified them for the 2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final in Torino, Italy. ^[11]

Following the Junior Grand Prix, the pair also competed at the 2022 Warsaw Cup, which they won. ^[4] At the JGP Final, Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore placed second in the short program after Golubeva struggled to cleanly land the throw triple toe-loop, but the pair would go on to deliver a strong free skate and take the gold medal. After their free skate comeback, Golubeva said that they "tried to give all the strength we had to put into this program." Theirs was the second Junior Grand Prix Final title for an Australian pair, after Alexandrovskaya/Windsor. ^[12]

Although assigned to compete at the 2023 Four Continents Championships, Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore withdrew from the event. At the 2023 World Junior Championships in Calgary, Alberta, they placed second in the short program after unexpectedly missing their death spiral. The pair were able to deliver a solid free skate, however, and win the silver medal behind Americans Baram/Tioumentsev. Giotopoulos Moore called it "a huge achievement for us and we are very happy." ^[13]

Making their World Championship debut at the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, Japan, the pair placed eleventh in the short program after Golubeva fell on a throw triple loop attempt but the pair would go on to deliver an almost-perfect free skate, earning a new personal best and placing fifth in that segment of the competition, moving up to eighth-place overall. Golubeva said that they had achieved their goal of a top ten placement, adding they were "so happy and thrilled" with how they had skated. ^[14]

2023–24 season

With Giotopoulos Moore aging out of junior eligibility, the team planned for its first full senior season, primarily training in Australia for Golubeva's residency purposes, but also spending time in Montreal due to the coach's belief they needed to train with other high-level pair skaters, and Russia's being difficult to train in at the time. ^[2] They were invited to participate in the Shanghai Trophy, finishing fourth. ^[4]

Golubeva and Giotopoulos Moore during their short program at the 2024 World Championships

Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore made their senior Grand Prix debut at the 2023 Skate Canada International. They placed third in both segments of the competition, but finished fourth overall, less than two points behind bronze medalists Beccari/Guarise of Italy. Despite several errors in their free skate, they considered it an improvement on their earlier performances, with Golubeva saying "we are looking forward to growing this program." ^[15] At the 2023 NHK Trophy they finished third in the short program, but dropped to fourth place after the free skate. They said they considered their first Grand Prix season a valuable experience given its much greater professionalism in comparison to the Junior Grand Prix. ^[16]

For the first time in their partnership, the team was able to compete at a domestic championships, winning the Australian national title. ^[4] At the 2024 Four Continents Championships in Shanghai, Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore were seventh in the short program after she fell on a jump. They rallied in the free skate, coming fourth in that segment and moving up to fourth overall. The two said that they were pleased at their ability to recover from a disappointing short program, and that they planned to train in Montreal in advance of the 2024 World Championships in that city. ^[17] The team ultimately came tenth in Montreal. ^[4]

Programs

With Golubeva

Season	Short program	Free skating	Exhibition
2023–2024 [18] [2]	Architect of the Mind by Kerry Muzzey choreo. by Jonathan Guerreiro	The Umbrellas of Cherbourg by Michel Legrand choreo. by Jonathan Guerreiro	Another Love by Tom Odell
2022–2023 [19]		Sing, Sing, Sing by Louis Prima Summertime performed by Ella Fitzgerald Mr. Pinstripe Suit by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy choreo. by Galina Pachin
2021–2022 [1]	Fire Dance by Jennifer Thomas choreo. by Galina Pachin

Competitive highlights

CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

Pairs with Golubeva

International [4]
Event	21–22	22–23	23–24
Worlds	WD	8th	10th
Four Continents		WD	4th
GP Finland		WD
GP NHK Trophy			4th
GP Skate America		WD
GP Skate Canada			4th
CS Autumn Classic			WD
CS Golden Spin of Zagreb	10th
CS Nebelhorn Trophy	8th
CS Warsaw Cup		1st
Shanghai Trophy			4th
International: Junior [4]
Junior Worlds	2nd	2nd
JGP Final		1st
JGP Austria	5th
JGP Poland I		1st
JGP Poland II		1st
JGP Russia	5th
Winter Star	1st
National [4]
Australian Champ.			1st
TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew

Detailed results

ISU personal best scores in the +5/-5 GOE system  ^[20]

Segment	Type	Score	Event
Total	TSS	189.47	2023 World Championships
Short program	TSS	64.61	2023 NHK Trophy
	TES	33.15	2022 CS Warsaw Cup
	PCS	29.49	2023 NHK Trophy
Free skating	TSS	127.52	2023 World Championships
	TES	68.03	2023 World Championships
	PCS	59.89	2023 NHK Trophy

Current personal best scores are highlighted in bold.

Small medals for short and free programs awarded only at ISU Championships.

With Golubeva

Senior results

2023–2024 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
18–24 March 2024	2024 World Championships	11 63.35	8 119.36	10 182.71
30 Jan. – 4 Feb. 2024	2024 Four Continents Championships	7 58.79	4 125.04	4 183.83
2–8 December 2023	2023 Australian Championships	1 65.94	1 124.62	1 190.56
24–26 November 2023	2023 NHK Trophy	3 64.61	4 120.78	4 185.39
27–29 October 2023	2023 Skate Canada International	3 62.80	3 116.81	4 179.61
3–5 October, 2023	2023 Shanghai Trophy	1 63.51	4 97.71	4 161.22
2022–23 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
22–26 March 2023	2023 World Championships	11 61.95	5 127.52	8 189.47
17–20 November 2022	2022 CS Warsaw Cup	2 63.62	1 121.91	1 185.53
2021–22 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
7–11 December 2021	2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb	13 53.41	9 110.16	10 163.57
22–25 September 2021	2021 CS Nebelhorn Trophy	13 49.55	8 99.80	8 149.35

Junior results

2022–23 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
27 February–5 March 2023	2023 World Junior Championships	3 59.18	2 111.18	2 170.36
8–11 December 2022	2022–23 Junior Grand Prix Final	2 60.19	1 121.18	1 181.37
5–8 October 2022	2022 JGP Poland II	1 59.90	1 101.27	1 161.17
28 September–1 October 2022	2022 JGP Poland I	1 58.03	1 108.53	1 166.56
2021–22 season
Date	Event	SP	FS	Total
13–17 April 2023	2022 World Junior Championships	2 61.72	2 108.19	2 169.91
10–13 February 2022	2022 Winter Star	1 56.22	2 98.36	1 154.58
6–9 October 2021	2021 JGP Austria	5 53.04	4 107.12	5 160.16
15–18 September 2021	2021 JGP Russia	5 57.35	5 101.33	5 158.68

References

1. "Anastasia GOLUBEVA / Hektor GIOTOPOULOS MOORE: 2021/2022". International Skating Union.
2. Flade, Tatjana (26 June 2023). "Bright future ahead for Australia's Golubeva and Giotopoulos Moore". Golden Skate. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
3. "Juniors end long and exciting Figure Skating season on a high note in Tallinn (EST)". International Skating Union. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
4. "Competition Results: Anastasia GOLUBEVA / Hektor GIOTOPOULOS MOORE". International Skating Union.
5. Slater, Paula (14 April 2022). "Safina and Berulava stand out in Tallinn". Golden Skate. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
6. "ISU Statement on the Ukrainian crisis – Participation in international competitions of Skaters and Officials from Russia and Belarus". International Skating Union. 1 March 2022.
7. "ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2022 allotted to Tallinn (EST)". International Skating Union. 4 March 2022.
8. Slater, Paula (15 April 2022). "Safina and Berulava take first Junior World gold for Georgian Pairs". Golden Skate. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
9. "Safina/Berulava score historic Junior Pairs title for Georgia". International Skating Union. 15 April 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
10. "Shimada (JPN) scores second Junior Grand Prix victory". International Skating Union. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
11. "More Skaters secure spots for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final". International Skating Union. 10 October 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
12. "Favorites Golubeva/Giotopoulos Moore fight back in Free Skating to win Australia's second Junior Grand Prix Final title". International Skating Union. 10 December 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
13. "Baram/Tioumentsev take first Junior Pairs gold for USA in 10 years". International Skating Union. 3 March 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
14. Slater, Paula (23 March 2023). "Miura and Kihara grand-slam their way into history". Golden Skate. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
15. Slater, Paula (29 October 2023). "Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps dominate pairs at Skate Canada". Golden Skate. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
16. Slater, Paula (25 November 2023). "Hase and Volodin dominate pairs at NHK Trophy in debut season". Golden Skate. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
17. Slater, Paula (3 February 2024). "Stellato-Dudek claims Four Continents title". Golden Skate. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
18. "Anastasia GOLUBEVA / Hektor GIATOPOULOS-MOORE: 2023/2024". International Skating Union . Retrieved 26 August 2023.
19. "Anastasia GOLUBEVA / Hektor GIOTOPOULOS MOORE: 2022/2023". International Skating Union . Retrieved 19 November 2022.
20. "AUS-Anastasia GOLUBEVA / Hektor GIOTOPOULOS MOORE". Skating Scores.

External links

• Anastasia Golubeva / Hektor Giotopoulos Moore at the International Skating Union