Figure Skater Maxim Naumov, 23, Receives Constant Care After Losing Parents in DC Plane Crash

Maxim Naumov skates in the Championship Men Free Skate during the Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kan., on Jan. 26, 2025. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Maxim Naumov, a 23-year-old figure skater from Connecticut, is facing unimaginable grief following the tragic loss of both his parents, Evgenia “Zhenya” Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, in a plane crash near Washington, D.C. on Jan. 29.

The couple, who won the 1994 World Figure Skating Championship for pairs, died when American Airlines Flight 5342 collided midair with a U.S. Army helicopter.

In the wake of the crash, which killed 67 and left no survivors, Naumov is being supported by a close family friend who has been by his side continuously. “I know a couple who is with him right now,” Ekaterina “Katia” Gordeeva, a longtime friend and former Russian Olympic teammate of Shishkova and Naumov, told People.

The tragedy has sent shockwaves through both the skating world and the small community of Simsbury, Connecticut, where the family lived. Gordeeva recounted how members of the community were already in touch with each other ahead of the flight’s planned arrival.

“They weren’t even in Washington yet, but ... that morning [of the plane crash], we all connected right away, all the people from Simsbury,” Gordeeva said.

She said that the family friends looking after the young Naumov had shared a close relationship with his late parents. “[They were] together all the time. So she is like a godmother to him, and she is with him right now there and her husband,” she said.

The couple has been in Maxim’s life since his birth and were “very supportive to Vadim and Zhenya all the time,” according to Katia. “I know that Maxim has someone with him 24 hours.”

Shishkova, 52, and Vadim Naumov, 55, were among the 67 victims who died in the plane crash near the Reagan Washington National Airport. The collision took place on Wednesday night, killing 60 passengers and four crew members aboard American Airlines Flight 5342 and three crew members who were in the Black Hawk helicopter.

Days before the crash, the couple had expressed pride in Maxim, who finished in fourth place in the U.S. National Championships in Wichita, Kan.

“Once again, Maxim made us all proud, getting on to the podium at Nationals after 7th place in the short. This beautiful and emotional performance is a result of a team work,” they wrote on an Instagram post. “Maxim has earned his place in the team of 4 Continents.”

Following the crash, it was announced on Jan. 31 that Maxim had withdrawn from the Four Continents Championships, which would have been his final competition of the season. He was replaced by Tomoki Hiwatashi.

The Russian Figure Skating Federation issued a statement regarding the incident Thursday.

“The Russian Figure Skating Federation, Russian skaters, coaches, judges and experts are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragedy which has occurred in Washington,” the federation wrote, according to The Associated Press.

“All of us express our sincere condolences to the families and friends of those who have died, and also to the U.S. Figure Skating Association, which has lost talented junior athletes and qualified coaches in this air disaster.”

This photo taken on February 24, 1996, shows Russian figure skaters Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov performing at the Pairs event at the Figure Skating Championship finals in Paris. Pierre Verdy/AFP via Getty Images