36 | JANUARY 27 • 2022 

ERETZ

A 

lot of hopes are riding on the 
skates of Hailey Kops and Evgeni 
Krasnopolski.
The figure-skating pair are among six 
athletes expected to represent Israel at the 
Beijing Olympics, Feb. 4–20. And Israel 
has never medaled at the Winter Games.
“Yes, there’s a little pressure — but in the 
best way possible,” Kops tells ISRAEL21c.
This will be the first Olympics for Kops, 
19, and the third for Krasnopolski, 33.
They’ve already accomplished an aston-
ishing feat by securing one of just 19 slots 
allotted to figure-skating pairs at Beijing.
They began skating together only last 
June, and yet in September beat out top 
contenders from countries including 
China, Britain and Ukraine at a qualifying 
tournament in Germany.
“It was insane that they had a little more 
than three months to try and qualify for 
the Olympics,” says Hailey’s father, Steven 
Kops.
“Most teams have been skating for 
years together to get the timing and con-
nection needed for pairs. They had three 
months. The music they skated to was 
‘The Impossible Dream’ and it truly was 
impossible.”
Even more so because Kops had taken a 
two-year break from competitive skating 
at age 17 to finish high school and study 
at a Jerusalem seminary for the 2020-21 
academic year.
Kops grew up in northern New Jersey 
and took on Israeli citizenship upon 
joining Team Israel in middle school. 
Krasnopolski has resided in northern 
New Jersey for 13 years — Team Israel ice 
skaters often train there, under head coach 
Galit Chait Moracci, due to the shortage of 
rinks in Israel.

Krasnopolski and Kops fell out of touch 
after Kops went to Israel in the fall of 
2020. He assumed her skating days were 
over. That’s why he didn’t think of her the 
following spring when he was seeking a 
new partner for his third Olympic bid.
Chait Moracci’s parents — Israel Ice 
Skating Federation President Boris Chait 
and Team Leader Irene Chait — did think 
of Kops but first pursued other options. 
Finally, on June 8, they phoned her father.
When Steven Kops answered the phone, 
Boris Chait said, “I have two words: Hailey 
Evgeni.”
“You won’t believe this,” replied Kops. 
“Hailey just returned this morning from 
seminary.”
She quickly accepted the opportunity to 
be Krasnopolski’s partner. “I have a huge 
amount of respect for him as a two-time 
Olympian,” she says.

Krosnopolski tells ISRAEL21c, “I knew 
nothing about it until Galit called me 
and said, ‘Tomorrow Hailey will be at the 
rink.’”
He was pleased to find that they had 
good chemistry and were both committed 
to the Olympic goal.
“Hailey was just crazy enough to believe 
that if we focused and put a year’s worth 
of work into three months, we could do it,” 
he says.

A CONNECTION TO ISRAEL
Evgeni Krasnopolski moved to Israel 
from Ukraine with his family at age 3. 
He started skating at 7, and as a preteen 
began representing Israel internationally. 
Having won many doubles competitions, 
he qualified for the 2014 and 2018 Winter 
Olympics.
He was drafted, like his peers, at 18 

She’s from New Jersey, he’s from Ukraine, 
and they trained together for just three months. 

Israeli Figure Skating Duo Chase 
‘Impossible Dream’ To Beijing

ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN ISRAEL21C

KRPHOTOGS PHOTOGRAPHY VIA ISRAEL21C

Israeli figure skaters Hailey Kops and Evgeni Krasnopolski. 

