Nikodinov Mom killed, dad, coach, self hurt

[md2be]

"Nikodinov's mother was killed in a car accident Wednesday morning, Jan. 12, 2005, on her way to the competition from the airport in Portland, Ore., U.S. Figure Skating said in a release. Delores Nikodinov was killed instantly. Angela and her father, Nick, who were in the car were treated at Legacy Emanuel Hospital and were released. Nikodinov's coach, Igor Pashkevich, is in fair condition at the hospital and was to be kept overnight. "

:(

[jcspkbfan]

How heartbreaking for Angela to experience such a tragedy on top of everything else she's gone through during the past few years. :cry: My deepest sympathies towards her and her family.

[backspin]

OMG!! How unspeakably horrible. :cry:

[Lise]

I had posted this in the USA forum, but whatever.

My condolences to Angela's family.

Lise

[toepick688]

OMG 8O That's terrible...

[jcspkbfan]

You can send Angela condolence notes at her official website:

http://skatinginc.com/Skaters/Nikodinov/

[Blade1]

What terrible news !!! That's so sad ! :cry:

[fadedstardust]

I almost cried when I read this, then gave my mom a big hug. I'm definitely sending Angela a message, and hope everyone else does too. Sometimes I don't understand why certain people need to go through so much pain, especially when they are trying to recover from previous ones. I hope Angeles still skates tomorrow, and I hope she outshines them all.

[Sing_Alto]

How unbelievably horrible. :cry: I heard a brief mention of this accident on a Portland channel, but I didn't know it involved Angela and her family.

[danibellerika]

I almost cried when I read this, then gave my mom a big hug. I'm definitely sending Angela a message, and hope everyone else does too. Sometimes I don't understand why certain people need to go through so much pain, especially when they are trying to recover from previous ones. I hope Angeles still skates tomorrow, and I hope she outshines them all.

I am hearing that Angela has a broken arm, so I'm pretty sure she will withdraw. I wouldn't have been suprised if she withdrew without the broken arm. I would completely shut down after having something like that happen to me. I am so sorry for her.

[Nicki]

How tragic! I feel so bad for Angela and her family. :cry:

[lilwish]

much love to Angela

[Lise]

Angela has withdrawn from Nationals.

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=1965709

The article has a few more details regarding the accident.

[purplecat]

I'm so shocked at this sad news. I am literally in tears for Angela. :cry:

[ankiel]

This is very sad news. She will need time but I hope she is strong enough to pick herself up.

[Aussie Willy]

Thanks for posting. Very sad news indeed.

[Schmeck]

My thoughts and prayers are with the Nikodinov family as well.

[loveskating]

I am just so so sorry. My thoughts and prayers are with you Angela.

[yogurtslinger]

Wow, I feel so bad for her. Too many things have happened to her. :cry: I hope she will be alright.

[NJSk8Fan]

What a horrible tragedy! My thoughts and prayers go out to Angela and her family. :cry:

[The Village Idiot]

What a sad, fluke tragedy. Condolences for the Nikodinov family...

[TRAxel]

My condolences to Angela, her family and friends.

[icedancer2]

Apparently the cab (van shuttle) hit the side barrier and rolled. This is the article from our local newspaper, the Oregonian:

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1105621552102670.xml

Very, very sad. I am going over to Nationals in a little while. I am sure the whole place will be in a state of sadness. I was really rooting for Angela, too. :cry: :cry:

[fadedstardust]

Well, the reports say the van hit a car (a Jetta) and then hit the rail and rolled over from a blown tire....as they were merging onto the freeway. If that is the case, then there are very high chances that the driver was at fault here, he doesn't have any kind of right of way when he's merging onto the freeway so if he hit a car, it doesn't look good. Also, this certainly doesn't lessen the tragedy of this accident by any account, but after seeing pictures of the accident, I can see that someone's head distinctively went through the window, which coincides with the report that Angela's mother died of head trauma after smashing her head in a window. This means she was not wearing a seatbelt, and from the report, there were seatbelts in this minivan- especially in the front seat, which is where the window broke. I think this is a testament to all- WEAR YOUR DAMN SEATBELTS.

I'm back to feeling very sad about this issue, but really. If she'd worn it she MAY be alive and that truly angers me.

[PaulWyliefan]

The seatbelts may not have been working. That's sometimes the case in buses and shuttles.

[flippet]

The seatbelts may not have been working. That's sometimes the case in buses and shuttles.

You know....then the smart thing to do is get out and find another vehicle where the belts do work. I was riding in the backseat of our Blazer, next to my son's car seat, and discovered that the seatbelt didn't want to latch. We weren't going very far, but there was no way I was riding without a belt...I went to the other side of the car and moved a bunch of stuff, including shifting the car seat, in order to have a working seat belt. It's just stupid, otherwise.


But aside from that...how horrible for Angela and the family. It wouldn't surprise me if she retired, period after this, although I would miss her skating terribly.

[TRAxel]

There is also the attitude in pretty much all of mankind of "Meh, nothing will happen to me" "Oh that will never happen to me"

Maybe the seatbelt was on, and did work and during the accident it didn't do it's job properly... meaning it was faulty... who knows, things do break.

Regardless, this is just so, so sad.

[Julie K]

You know....then the smart thing to do is get out and find another vehicle where the belts do work. I was riding in the backseat of our Blazer, next to my son's car seat, and discovered that the seatbelt didn't want to latch. We weren't going very far, but there was no way I was riding without a belt...I went to the other side of the car and moved a bunch of stuff, including shifting the car seat, in order to have a working seat belt. It's just stupid, otherwise.


But aside from that...how horrible for Angela and the family. It wouldn't surprise me if she retired, period after this, although I would miss her skating terribly.

Meh. I have a friend who is alive today because he was wearing a seatbelt when a crazyman hit him. He didn't normally wear one.

And I have a friend who's alive today because he wasn't wearing a seat belt...the accident threw him just far enough out of where he was sitting that the roof didn't smash him where he sat.

I wear a seatbelt. The latter case is against the odds. But I can't really tell someone they should; it's their choice.

I also live in a state that requires seatbelt use, but if you carry $10,000 worth of accident coverage, you don't have to wear a motorcycle helmet...to me, that is stupid. And if you do that, have your organ donor card signed, kay?

[shannonannafan]

I feel so awful for Angela's family. What a horrible thing to happen. :cry:

[clametyjane]

I advocate seatbelt use as well but from what I have read, It was the blowing out of the window resulting in a head trama from her head hitting the concret. The only thing that would have saved her is if she was in another area of the vehicle. It looks like anyone who had that seat would have been in trouble.
I had met Mrs. Nikodinov on several occasions and always enjoyed speaking with her. She was a lovely person and she will be missed.
Christine

[Anita18]

Agreed. Whether she was wearing a seatbelt or not, it sounded like the window would have broken in on her anyway. How horrible. ((HUGS)) to Angela.

[fadedstardust]

Well from the picture of the accident, the hole in the window is literally the size and shape of someone's head, I don't think it's coincidence. Plus, the police said not everyone in the vehicle was wearing seatbelts. It doesn't make it any less of a tragedy, but I think that as we mourn this terrible loss, we should still find the opportunity to remind everyone how important it is to wear seatbelts. What I'm surprised is that there were no airbags in this vehicle. The entire accident is completely shady, I do hope the investigation continues and that the Nikodinovs pursue the driving company if it indeed was the driver's fault and if the airbags weren't working.

I would understand Angela retiring, but I truly hope she doesn't.

[danibellerika]

There is going to be a moment of silence tonight.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050114/ap_on_sp_ot/fig_us_skating_nikodinov_5

Between the tim pics and all this you can't help but get teary eyed.

[Skatingsarah]

This is so horrible. Angela has gone through so much in the past its terrible for this to be happening now. My condolences to her and her family!

[Tigger]

My thoughts and prayers are w/Angela and her family.

Poor, poor girl...How much can one person handle? :cry:

[SkatingMonday]

I just have to say that our hearts go out to Angela and her family She is a great skater, I have always thought she should be placed higher than she usually is (skating politics I'm sure). As for the seat belt thing, they don't always save your life. From the news report that I read the window blew out and mom received head injury that way, a seat belt wouldn't have changed that. besides seat belts only help those people who are taller that 5ft 3'. I speak from experience.

[Skatewind]

Another article:

Nikodinov grieves instead of skating (http://www.dailybreeze.com/sports/articles/1349581.html)
Instead of competing in the short program, Angela Nikodinov spent Thursday making funeral arrangements for her mother.

Updating with another article:

Skater spins into tragedy again (http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/story/271287p-232325c.html)
Tcherkasskaia once called Nikodinov "my little angel." In 2001, Nikodinov wrote that she could never live without three people: her coach, her mother or her father. Now she has to live without two of them.

[kurtfan]

<<I had posted this in the USA forum, but whatever<<

Are you serious Lise??? Grow up... This isn't the thread to give *you* pitty!

[Nicki]

Thank You for the article links Skatewind. I'm glad to hear that she has such a strong support group to see her through the difficult days ahead.

[sjames59]

http://www.katu.com/news/story.asp?ID=74135

This is a link to the local Portland tv station website. There's a video link on it titled "None Were Wearing Seatbelts", and in it one of the officers states that Angela's mom was in the back seat on the passenger's side. Thus the huge hole in the windshield wasn't a factor.

The contact info again for those wanting to send messages to Angela and her family is:

"Please send all snail mail to the U.S. Figure Skating headquarters. They will forward all mail to Angela."

U.S. Figure Skating
20 First Street
Colorado Springs, CO 80906

This is so sad.

Sharon J.

[iceskaterdawn]

http://www.katu.com/news/story.asp?ID=74135

This is a link to the local Portland tv station website. There's a video link on it titled "None Were Wearing Seatbelts", and in it one of the officers states that Angela's mom was in the back seat on the passenger's side. Thus the huge hole in the windshield wasn't a factor.



I'm guessing that since Igor needed over 4 dozen stitches in his face and head and has a broken bone in his neck, he might have been the one in the front seat.

[PAskate]

From an article last week in the Portland newspaper, no one was sitting in the front except the taxi driver. Angela and her coach were in the back seat and her parents were in the far back seats (the van had 3 sets of seats.).

[iceskaterdawn]

Thanks for that info. An article I read said that Angela was sitting next to her mother when her mom died, so I had assumed the placements were a little bit different. I'm not sure how accurate my article was, so I would tend to think yours was correct.