Signe Ronka (born April 23, 1988) is a Latvian Canadian former competitive figure skater. She won three medals on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series and competed at the 2003 World Junior Championships.
Signe Ronka | |
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Personal information | |
Country represented | Canada |
Born | (1988-04-23) April 23, 1988 (age 34) Riga, Latvia |
Residence | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
Height | 1.67 m (5 ft 5+1⁄2 in) |
Former coach | Ellen Burka, Marcus Christensen, Petra Burka |
Former choreographer | Ellen Burka, David Wilson |
Skating club | Granite Club |
Began skating | 1997 |
Retired | 2006 |
ISU personal best scores | |
Combined total | 111.84 2004 JGP Belgrade |
Short program | 36.65 2004 JGP Belgrade |
Free skate | 75.81 2004 JGP Romania |
Ronka was born on April 23, 1988 in Riga, Latvia.[1] She arrived in Toronto, Ontario, Canada at the age of three.[2]
Ronka trained at the Granite Club in Toronto with coaches Ellen Burka and Marcus Christensen. In the 2001–02 season, she debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series. She won the junior bronze medal at the 2002 Canadian Championships[3] and the junior gold medal at the 2002 Triglav Trophy.
In the 2002–03 season, Ronka won a pair of medals at her JGP assignments — bronze in Courchevel and silver in Milan. Her results qualified her for the JGP Final in The Hague, Netherlands, where she finished seventh. She withdrew from the 2003 Canadian Championships due to a groin injury, having resumed full training in mid-January.[4] She placed 16th at the 2003 World Junior Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic.
In 2004, Ronka won bronze at a JGP event in Belgrade. She ended her career with a 10th place finish at the 2006 Canadian Championships and then retired from elite competition. She went on to skate for the University of Toronto varsity team, placing 1st at the 2007 and 2008 OUA Finals. In 2008, she received the Competitive Athlete of the Year award from the University of Toronto. Injuries ultimately ended Ronka's competitive career.
Ronka skated for two seasons (2007 to 2008) at the Canada's Wonderland "Endless Summer" ice show. She has worked as a coach and choreographer at the East York Skating Club, the Granite Club in Toronto, Ontario, and the Richmond Training Centre in Richmond Hill, Ontario.[5]
She has developed a sport specific fitness program called Figure Skater Bootcamp, which helps skaters prevent injuries and improve performance on the ice. She is a certified strength and conditioning specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association and is a certified personal trainer.[6]
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Season | Short program | Free skating |
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2002–2003 [8] |
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2004–2005 [1] |
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JGP: Junior Grand Prix
International[9] | |||||||
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Event | 99–00 | 00–01 | 01–02 | 02–03 | 03–04 | 04–05 | 05–06 |
World Junior Champ. | 16th | ||||||
JGP Final | 7th | ||||||
JGP Bulgaria | 9th | ||||||
JGP Croatia | 6th | ||||||
JGP France | 3rd | ||||||
JGP Italy | 7th | 2nd | |||||
JGP Romania | 7th | ||||||
JGP Serbia | 3rd | ||||||
Triglav Trophy | 1st J | ||||||
National[9] | |||||||
Canadian Champ. | 3rd J | WD | 11th | WD | 10th | ||
Canadian Jr. Champ. | 9th P | ||||||
Eastern Challenge | 1st P | 1st J | |||||
Central Ontario Sect. | 1st V | 1st P | |||||
Tomorrow's Champions, Kelowna, BC | 5th V | ||||||
WD = Withdrew Levels: V = Juvenile; P = Pre-novice; J = Junior |