When you hear the word “ice” in summer, a refreshing treat might be the first thing that comes to mind. But for figure skaters, ice means something entirely different. To be at their best in the winter, skaters must put in the hard work on and off the ice right now during the hottest months of the year.

Davide Lewton Brain (MON), Lukas Britschgi (SUI) and other skaters during their training camp in July 2026 in Oberstdorf, Germany © Tatjana Flade / ISU

What exactly does a figure skater’s summer look like? 

Even though the competitive season hasn't started yet, skaters are busier than ever. The summer months lay the foundation for success during fall and winter. In this crucial time, athletes:

Build the Foundation: Work with top coaches, choreographers and experts to create and polish brand-new programs.

Push Technical Boundaries: Upgrade their technical content by learning new jumps, mastering intricate spins and footwork, and honing their skating skills.

Train Beyond the Rink: Balance rigorous on-ice sessions with intense off-ice conditioning, ballet, contemporary dance and professional recovery.

Rather than remaining at their home rinks, many elite skaters travel across the globe to attend national and international training camps. These camps offer a unique opportunity to work with renowned coaches and choreographers in a different setting. Bonus: Skaters get to reunite with friends from all over the world, training together and pushing each other.

We caught up with some of the world's top skaters to find out exactly how they are preparing to take the ice by storm this fall and winter.

Skaters during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Donovan Carrillo: Enjoying the choreography process

“During summer training, we normally choreograph our new programs, but also we try new things. That's the time when we are more open to trying new jumps, new combinations, and maybe creating a choreographic spin, which is a lot of fun, but also a lot of work. 

“It's also the time to build strength in your muscles to have that conditioning prepared for the whole season. 

Donovan Carrillo during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

“It's very tiring. Your body is very sore, but if you push correctly, you'll make your season a lot easier. 

“I normally train on the ice two or three sessions, but I work a lot more off the ice. 

“I also do ballet, I do Pilates, I do workouts, I do cardio, lots of cardio. But the thing that I enjoy the most in the summertime is the choreography. That's where I really feel free and I can be myself.”

Donovan Carrillo during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Emilea Zingas & Vadym Kolesnik: “Summer makes you or breaks you”

Vadym: “Summer training is hard. I'll be really honest because coming back after such a stressful season, you can't lose the momentum, but you have to accelerate on it and training is even more difficult than it was. 

“In the summer, it either makes you or breaks you. It's really hard to catch up if you're not well trained in the summer.”

Emilea Zingas & Vadym Kolesnik during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Emilea: “Last year, it helped that we built a lot of strength, a lot of stamina, endurance during the summer. It sustained us through the season, and as you know, we had a longer season than we were used to in the past. 

“In the summer we are working hard and continuing to just dedicate ourselves to training even when we want to go outside or don’t feel like doing anything. 

“We also have a workout program in Detroit. They're working us really hard in the summer. We spend two hours at the gym every day and we do bodyweight exercises, weighted exercises, cardio exercises. 

“They do physical therapy for us, they do the sauna, they do the cold tanks, they do the cryotherapy machines, they do cupping for us. It's really a comprehensive thing, and in the summer, we're going more often than during the season.

“It's kind of not sustainable in the season because we're doing so much on the ice. This [kind of training] is something that is very important for us to prepare for the season.” 

Emilea Zingas & Vadym Kolesnik during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Minerva Hase & Nikita Volodin: Rebuilding the body

Minerva: “We started our summer training following my army courses at the end of May. In June, we basically only did footwork because we wanted to fix some minor problems that we’ve taken from the season before fully committing to element training again. Therefore, we’ve been doing alternative training and rehab training at the Olympic Training Center. 

“We’ve done lots of stability training, lots of strengthening of the muscle groups that are too weak and have caused injuries or problems. 

“You’re basically rebuilding your body so that everything is back in place where it’s supposed to be and you no longer make those compensatory movements. Injuries occur when you make movements that aren’t correct. You try to retrain yourself to do things the right way.”

Minerva Hase & Nikita Volodin during summer training in Berlin, Germany © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Nikita: “We need to have fun when training. It is not hard to get started again, but it feels a bit new. 

“It’s easy for me to come back into our normal rhythm of life, but there is no stress. It is important to be relaxed mentally. Then the season will be easier for us than last year.”

Minerva Hase & Nikita Volodin during summer training in Berlin, Germany © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Adam Siao Him Fa: Busy on and off the ice

“It’s summer, and I want to enjoy it, but I’m taking the time to work on a lot of things and try out things I don’t have as much time for during the competitive season. I can experiment with choreography, program ideas, transitions before jumps, and new acrobatic elements. 

“There’s a lot to do in terms of physical preparation because that’s very important for the season. 

“I also started coaching and putting together programs. That’s something new for me, but I’m looking forward to it. 

“I’m continuing my studies. I'd like to attend business school, and I work a lot with artificial intelligence. I've developed programs, websites, and systems, and I've implemented software. I really enjoy that.”

Adam Siao Him Fa during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

Stephen Gogolev: Building up strength again

“You create new programs, build your stamina up again, and learn new elements. 

“I feel I do more load off the ice and also on the ice during the off-season, especially now. We learn more technique. As I am doing right now, I'm learning new jumps and I'm improving my technique on the other jumps that I have. 

“We're building new programs. Off-season means just building your strength back up again. Learning some new things and then on-season is repeating those things that you learned and just improving on what you already have.” 

Stephen Gogolev during the training camp in June 2026 in Courmayeur, Italy © Tatjana Flade / ISU

You may also like:

Sun, Surf and Summer Escapes: Skaters Share Their Holiday Adventures

Me & My Pet: Figure Skaters Introduce Their Beloved Animal Companions