Ice dancers Chelsea Verhaegh and Sherim van Geffen cannot claim a starting ticket for the European Championship through the courts. The duo had filed a case against the KNSB skating association, but the preliminary relief judge judges Wednesday that the association’s dispute committee is the only one allowed to provide a solution according to its own statutes.
The issue revolves around the competing ice dancing duo Hanna Jakucs and Alessio Galli, who have been appointed for the European Championship by the Dutch association. The two ice dancers from Hungary and Italy have been performing for the Netherlands since 2020. Verhaegh and Van Geffen believe that Jakucs and Galli do not meet the requirements to play for the Netherlands and went to court. The Netherlands may only send one ice dancing couple to the European Championships.
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Does ice dancing duo Jakucs-Galli live in the Netherlands ‘enough’ for a European Championship ticket?
According to Verhaegh and Van Geffen, Jakucs and Galli do not live enough in the Netherlands to participate in international competitions as a Dutch duo. Both the association and the couple are also said to have failed to pass on relocation information to the international skating association ISU, while this is one of the requirements for the validity of their approval document.
Moving information
Skating association KNSB acknowledged last week during the hearing between June 2022 and early 2024 that it had not been alert enough to the whereabouts of Jakucs and Galli. This, and the approaching European Championship, are no reason for the judge to make a substantive ruling. He refers Verhaegh and Van Geffen back to the association’s disputes committee, where they can initiate emergency proceedings. “We are working on that now,” Van Geffen said by telephone. It is not yet known how quickly this procedure will proceed. The chance of participation in the European Championship seems small for him and Verhaegh due to the judge’s ruling.
The skating association also wants clarity about the validity of the approval documents for Jakucs and Galli. It has referred the matter to the ISU membership council, which meets on Thursday. It is not known whether that meeting will immediately provide clarity. “We haven’t completely put the European Championship out of our minds yet,” said Van Geffen.