After training for only 3 months, Evgeni Krasnopolski and Hailey Kops won one of 19 slots allotted to figure-skating pairs at the Winter Olympics.

A lot of hopes are riding on the skates of Hailey Kops and Evgeni Krasnopolski.

The figure-skating pair are among six athletes expected to represent Israel at the Beijing Olympics, February 4–20. And Israel has never medaled at the Winter Games.

“Yes, there’s a little pressure — but in the best way possible,” Kops tells ISRAEL21c.

This will be the first Olympics for Kops, 19, and the third for Krasnopolski, 33.

They’ve already accomplished an astonishing feat by securing one of just 19 slots allotted to figure-skating pairs at Beijing.

They began skating together only last June, and yet in September beat out top contenders from countries including China, Britain and Ukraine at a qualifying tournament in Germany.

“It was insane that they had a little more than three months to try and qualify for the Olympics,” says Hailey’s father, Steven Kops.

“Most teams have been skating for years together to get the timing and connection needed for pairs. They had three months. The music they skated to was ‘The Impossible Dream’ and it truly was impossible.”

Even more so, because Kops had taken a two-year break from competitive skating at age 17 to finish high school and study at a Jerusalem seminary for the 2020-21 academic year.

‘Tomorrow Hailey will be at the rink’

Kops grew up in northern New Jersey and took on Israeli citizenship upon joining Team Israel in middle school. Krasnopolski has resided in northern New Jersey for 13 years — Team Israel ice skaters often train there, under head coach Galit Chait Moracci, due to the shortage of rinks in Israel.

Krasnopolski and Kops fell out of touch after Kops went to Israel in the fall of 2020. He assumed her skating days were over. That’s why he didn’t think of her the following spring when he was seeking a new partner for his third Olympic bid.

Chait Moracci’s parents — Israel Ice Skating Federation President Boris Chait and Team Leader Irene Chait – did think of Kops but first pursued other options. Finally, on June 8, they phoned her father.

When Steven Kops answered the phone, Boris Chait said, “I have two words: Hailey Evgeni.”

“You won’t believe this,” replied Kops. “Hailey just returned this morning from seminary.”

She quickly accepted the opportunity to be Krasnopolski’s partner. “I have a huge amount of respect for him as a two-time Olympian,” she says.

Krosnopolski tells ISRAEL21c, “I knew nothing about it until Galit called me and said, ‘Tomorrow Hailey will be at the rink.’”

He was pleased to find that they had good chemistry and were both committed to the Olympic goal.

“Hailey was just crazy enough to believe that if we focused and put a year’s worth of work into three months, we could do it,” he tells ISRAEL21c.