European Figure Skating Championships - 'It's difficult to put into words how excited I am'

The European Figure Skating Championships are starting this week, and this year they are in the UK.

Hosted in Sheffield between 14 January and 17 January, the games will see some of the best figure skaters in Europe competing against each other.

Many of those taking part in the championships will also be hoping to compete for GB medals at the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics.

And the results might show us if GB has a chance to win their first Olympic figure skating medal in more than 30 years.

The championships are split into three disciplines:

In single skating, athletes compete individually. They show their ability through jumps, spins, steps and other choreography.

Pairs is where a male and female skating duo compete together. This performance usually includes lifts, jumps, spins, steps and choreography done in harmony.

And the final discipline is ice dance. This is maybe the most well-known one. Again a male and female pair compete together, but rather than focusing on athleticism (like in the pairs event), this event is all about rhythm and showmanship as well as the skills. The pair usually compete in eye-catching costumes and with a musical accompaniment.

All members of the Team GB figure skating squad for the Winter Olympics will be competing in Sheffield before they jet off to the games next month.

One of those competing is Luke Digby.

He and his skating partner, Anastasia Vaipan-Law, came fifth at the 2025 European Championships and will be heading to the Winter Olympics for the first time.

Ricky went to meet him to find out how his preparation has been going and hear a bit about his journey into the sport.

There are two British contenders in the women's singles: Nina Povey and Kristen Spours, who has recovered from a spinal injury to return to Olympic level.

The only men's singles competitor is Edward Appleby, a three-time British national champion.

Competing for Britain in the pairs are Anastasia Vaipan-Law and Luke Digby.

The pair only came together to compete in 2019 but are already five-time British national champions.

Don't forget to check out Ricky's interview with him above.

You might remember figure skating duo Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson, who De-Graft went to meet a few months ago.

They won the first World Championship medal for Great Britain in more than 40 years and were ranked first by the ISU after the 2024-25 season.

Now, they will be competing in the ice dance discipline at the European Championships.

And they aren't the only GB duo competing.

Phebe Bekker and James Hernandez are also taking part. They came fourth at the Junior World Figure Skating Championships in 2023.

The championships, which take place in Sheffield, will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer.