Welcome to IDC’s new Team Series! In this series, we interview athletes who are entering the upcoming 2024-25 season or making their debut last season with a new partnership. In our fourth interview, we meet ice dance novices Sophia Feige and Wiles Middlekauff from the United States, who made their debut at the 2024 Dallas Classic and finished third. Photo by Melanie Heaney.
Tell us about your personal skating journey, including any special early memories.
Sophia Feige (SF): I started skating when I was about five or six years old in Plymouth, England with Clive Shorten. After about a year, my family moved back to the United States and I didn’t continue skating. In December 2021 I attended an open session with my mom and some family friends and found myself wanting to go back and skate more which led to my mom finally signing me up for learn to skate classes in January 2022 My mom is single Human skater, helped me a lot in finding a coach and training. In November 2022, I decided to try ice dancing and compete solo the following season while training with Steven Bellanger and Svetlana Serkeli in Palm Beach, Florida.
Wiles Middlekauff (WM): My brother and sister both skated, so I spent hours at the rink before I could walk. At one point, they put me in a bucket and pushed me around the rink so I could be on the ice with them. I started taking classes when I was three because I wanted to do what they were doing. But over time, my motivations changed. I love performing and I’m happy to be able to make the audience smile during my performances on the ice. When I was six years old, my family moved from Wisconsin to Canton, Michigan so that my brother could train with Marina Zueva. I started ice dancing lessons with Marina and loved it. When Marina moved to Florida, I trained with the Detroit Skating Club for a while and then moved to Novi to work with Igor Spielband. I like to get things done, and I found that through ice dancing I could pursue excellence and grow as a performer at the same time. My siblings no longer skate, but I take it more seriously than ever. I’m so glad they got me started on something that has become such a big part of my life.
What drew you to ice dancing?
SF: I was drawn to ice dancing because I love dancing to music on the ice with a partner. Ever since I started skating, I have enjoyed working on my skating skills. Learning and improving various turns, edges, and elements gives me a sense of accomplishment that motivates me to keep striving for more.
WM: My brother started competing in ice dance when I was a kid, so I had a lot of exposure to the sport. I was doing freestyle and dancing for a long time. Although I enjoy freestyle, I have to focus most of my time on jumping and not spend so much time on performing. With ice dancing, every moment on the ice is a performance, and I love that. I like that I have fun and the people watching me have fun too
SF: After the solo dance season ended in 2023, I originally planned not to dance solo next season because I wanted to find a dance partner. I was also looking for a new place to train with higher level ice dancers at this time to push me to improve and have a more organized training environment. In mid-March, when my mom and I contacted the coaches in Novi, Miss., for a visit, they invited me to work out with Wiles. The trial went well and a week later I was invited to stay for a longer trial. We officially started working together in early April.
WM: Sofia was looking for a new training center and decided to check out Novi. Since I was looking for a partner, we scheduled a trial with her present. It can be intimidating for a person to enter a new environment and work with a new coach. I was so impressed with the way Sophia took on this challenge and quickly adapted. We continued skating together after tryouts and then we met with the coach and I said I wanted Sofia to be my partner. Everyone agreed, so we skated together from the first tryout to this day.
What do you enjoy most about dancing with a new partner?
SF: Wiles works hard while maintaining a positive attitude. We communicate well during training and if I don’t understand something, he takes the time to explain and help me.
WM: Sophia has the perfect combination of positive attitude and strong work ethic. This allows us to have fun together while working hard and progressing quickly. Sofia is very supportive and encouraging and I feel like I can be myself with her. She has a strong artistic sense, so we were able to grow together as performers and athletes.
What experience did each of you bring to this collaboration?
SF: I did ballet for a few years when I was younger, and I’m a hard-working person who always strives for the best.
WM: I bring a relaxed attitude, a strong work ethic and years of competition experience.
What has been the biggest adjustment for you so far in working together?
SF: I didn’t have much difficulty adjusting to this partnership. I’m new to pas de deux, so there are a lot of new elements and skills to learn, which is a challenge, but we work hard to learn together.
WM: I found Sophia easy to work with, so it didn’t require a lot of adjustment for me. It feels very natural. This is perhaps one of the reasons why we were able to go directly from trial to extended trial to collaboration. We just have good compatibility, which allows us to make progress quickly.
Tell us about your training website.
We train at the Novi Ice Arena in Novi, Michigan. Igor Shpilband set up a complete ice dance program here, offering numerous courses on and off the ice. Several ice dance teams train there with us and it’s a very supportive environment. Being on the ice every day with so many great teams is very inspiring for us.
Who is your coach? Will one or both parties have to relocate? If so, please tell us about this move.
We train with an excellent team of coaches, including Igor Shpilband, Natalia Deller, Pasquale Camerlengo and Adrienne Lenda on the ice, and Renee Perkovski (dancing) and Oleg Ouchakov (weightlifting) off the ice. Sophia moved from Boca Raton, Florida to Novi, Michigan.
Who is programming your show?
Igor Shpilband did most of the choreography and music editing for us. It was a great arrangement because whenever we wanted to change something, he could adjust the choreography and the music at the same time. And, since Igor choreographed the show, he has been able to keep the big picture of the show in mind as he directs us every day.
If you could take a class with an ice dancer from the past/present, who would you choose? Why?
SF: I would learn from Tessa Virtue because she is a very talented and accomplished skater and very inspiring. I would also take a lesson from Irina Khavronina. I love the way she moves so smoothly and with control, which combined with her artistry and skating skills make her a skater to watch.
WM: Honestly, I already feel like I’m skating with the best coach I know. Igor had such a significant impact on the sport and I am honored to be a part of his legacy.
What are you most looking forward to this skating season? What is your biggest challenge?
SF: I’m looking forward to continuing to work hard and improve all aspects of our skating, as well as the upcoming competitions, including the Ice Dance Finals and National Championships.
WM: I’m looking forward to seeing how far we can go in year one. One challenge is to integrate the talents and skills we each possess into a unified whole.
Please share anything you’d like our readers to know about your team?
WM: There are many stories about how difficult the partner search process can be. My experience with Sophia was refreshing because it showed that two people with similar goals and attitudes can find each other and develop a partnership naturally. I think our compatibility and shared goals point to a bright future for our team.
