Sofja Stepčenko

Sofja Stepčenko (born 21 December 2006) is a Latvian figure skater. She is a two-time Latvian national champion (2022-23) and 2023 Volvo Open Cup champion. She placed eleventh at the 2023 European Championships.

Career Early years Stepčenko began figure skating in 2010. She competed in the advanced novice category for two seasons and then moved up to the junior ranks in 2020.

She subsequently won silver on the junior level at the 2021 Victor Petrenko Cup, at the 2021 Volvo Open Cup, and at the 2022 Kurbada Cup. Competing at the 2024 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, Stepčenko finished twelfth. Debuting on the 2024–25 Grand Prix circuit, Stepčenko finished twelfth at 2024 Skate America. She then went on to finish ninth at the 2024 CS Tallinn Trophy and at the 2024 Santa Claus Cup. She subsequently finished sixth at the 2025 Bavarian Open and won the bronze medal at the 2025 Skate Helena. Although she completed the short program at the 2025 Dragon Trophy, she withdrew before the event's free skate.

Scandals and controversies In August, Stepčenko became one of several skaters to accuse the leaders of her former training base, Kristal Ice in Riga, of abuse, namely her longtime coaches, Olga Kovalkova and Raimo Reinsalu. She said that she had been through several stays in mental hospitals to deal with the effects of the training under them, which caused her to become suicidal, and their comments had exacerbated an eating disorder she had struggled with for years. She alleged that she had been pushed to train and compete on severe injuries, that she was told that she was lying when she said she was in pain, and that her injuries were blamed on her weight. The coaches denied encouraging her to compete while injured and accused of her being manipulative and lying to gain donations. In late September, it was reported that the Latvian Skating Association had not yet reimbursed her for her travel expenses for her Grand Prix series events in the 2024–25 season; these expenses are paid by the competition organizers to the national federations, which are supposed to then disburse the funds to the skaters.

Programs Season Short program Free skating Exhibition 2024–2025