Figure skating in shock as athletes, coaches perish in US crash

She was one of the best skaters I've ever seen, honestly. She was one of the best pair girls to skate."

Her former husband, Ross Lansel, paid tribute to her talent, saying

Just knowing the impact she made on all the skaters and everyone just hurts my soul, I wish all those kids she taught-just my condolences and all my prayers go out to them."

Lansel expressed his sorrow over the loss, particularly for the young skaters she coached in Virginia, adding

It's confirmed that none of the 67 people in last night's crash survived, including members of our community like Inna Volyanskaya, an ice skating coach in Ashburn."

Virginia Representative Suhas Subramanyam confirmed the tragic news, stating

Both pilots had flown this specific route before, at night. This wasn't something new to either one of them. Even the crew chief in the back has been in the unit for a very long time, very familiar with the area, very familiar with the routing structure."

Jonathan Koziol, the Army aviation chief of staff, remarked

This is undoubtedly the worst day of my life".

Sam Lilley, 28, one of the two pilots on American Airlines flight 5342, was confirmed dead by his father Timothy Lilley, who told FOX 5 Atlanta

Brian Boitanotime US champion

Any time there's a loss of these talented people like Spencer and Jinna... it really affects all of us. We're mourning their loss and we still have more people to find out about."

Four-time US champion Brian Boitano, the 1988 Olympic men's champion, called the deaths "a huge loss for the sport" and added

They were people producing champions of our future,

he said

We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available

the sport governing body said in a statement

Nancy Kerrigantime Olympic medalist

I've never seen anyone love skating as much as these two and that's why I think it hurts so much,

Kerrigan said of Han and Lane

Russian news outlets have included me on a list of presumed people on the flight from Wichita to Washington D.C.,

the skater shared on Instagram

These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas,

a spokesperson for the organization, which serves as the sport’s national governing body, said in a statement to HuffPost

These Olympic hopefuls represented the bright future of Team USA, embodying the very essence of what it means to represent our country – perseverance, resilience and hope,

Hirshland said

Sarah HirshlanduS Olympic and Paralympic Committee chief executive

Today we join in mourning the profound loss of the passengers aboard Flight 5342 and all those impacted by this tragedy,

Sarah Hirshland, CEO of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, said in a statement on social media

Christine BrennancNN sports analyst

So this is US figure skating’s future,

Brennan said

To the best of our knowledge, 14 skaters returning home... were lost in the plane crash,

Zeghibe said

This camp is for young competitive stars of tomorrow with the most promise to be a champion of tomorrow,

Zeghibe said

Our sport and this club have suffered a horrible loss with this tragedy,

Zeghibe said

I don’t want to name names,

he said, calling it “such a tragedy.”

Starr Andrewsamerican figure skater

I am at a loss for words... I can't even explain how devastated I feel for the loss of amazing people that were on this flight. I'm sending prayers to their families and the figure skating community,

Starr Andrews said

Words cannot fathom the fear and sadness I feel from this event,

reigning pairs U.S. junior champion Hana Maria Aboian said early Thursday morning