LAKE PLACID – Caley Vangelis loves to teach. Christina and Stephanie Lombardi love to skate.

The sisters with their coach took part in the Empire State Games figure-skating competition this past weekend.

The Lombardi family – Christina, 14; Stephanie, 12; Isabelle, 10; and their parents, Tom and Laurie – live in Slingerlands, and traveled north to Lake Placid for the festivities.

Vangelis, who lives in Guilderland, has been coaching the Lombardi sisters since the learn-to-skate lessons Christina first started about nine years ago, she said.

Christina and Stephanie wore blue and red Empire State Games athletic suits, and bright smiles, as they spoke with The Enterprise before their Saturday-night competitions.
"I want to just skate my best and have fun," Stephanie said.
"I really want to land my double-double" I don’t want to fall," Christina said.
We’re hoping for "clean skating," Vangelis chipped in.
All three Lombardi girls were excited to be at the games. "It’s been really fun," Mrs. Lombardi said.
Isabelle also skates, and is coached by Vangelis. "She’s ready now," Mr. Lombardi said of his youngest daughter’s eagerness to participate in the games. Athletes must be at least 12 years old to qualify, he said, so she’ll have to wait two years.
The girls have "worked very hard and come a long way in the field," Vangelis said. "I’m really excited about these guys."
Vangelis had accompanied her students to the winter games previously, but it’s been a few years since she’s been, she said. "It was fun for me to get back out there."
Vangelis was herself a figure skater. She said she reached a point where "my body couldn’t handle it anymore."
She really enjoys choreography, and, about 10 years ago, she "decided to start learn-to-skate lessons," she said. People then started to request private lessons, she said.

She currently has four skating students, three of whom are the Lombardi sisters.
The Lombardis "are an extremely dedicated family," Vangelis said. "It’s great to see all three of them have such a passion for skating."

Vangelis has a close relationship with the girls. They generally practice about seven hours a week, and she is with them at competitions, and supports them in their various extracurricular school activities.
The girls are "very active in school," Vangelis said. "They’re multi-talented."

They attend the Academy of Holy Names in Albany.

"Best of both worlds"

Vangelis teaches eighth-grade math at Farnsworth Middle School in Guilderland.
"It’s the best of both worlds," she said of her two teaching jobs. "I love teaching."
During the day, Vangelis teaches her favorite subject, and, in the evening, she teaches her favorite sport, she said. "I really enjoy it."

Stephanie and Christina competed at the intermediate level, the lowest level of the games. They usually compete at a lower level, Vangelis said.
It’s "wonderful" that they competed at a higher level than they are used to, she told The Enterprise.

Christina’s stage presentation and her artistic ability are her strong points; Stephanie is always very steady, with no nerves, Vangelis said of her students.
Christina placed seventh out of 14 skaters. Vangelis said her performance was "very respectable."
"Stephanie went out there and held her own," she said. She placed 12th out of 13.

Gina DiNapoli, also of Slingerlands, competed in the Intermediate Ladies C figure skating competition. She placed 12th out of 15.
"I think it was definitely an adrenaline rush," Vangelis said of the experience.
"They represented New York State" It was definitely a confidence boost," she said.
Christina said that her performance "went really well" It was really fun."

"A lot of fun"

Christina remembers the first time she went skating, at the Empire State Plaza. She said she skated with double-runner skates – skates with two blades that act like training wheels.
"I couldn’t get off the ice, I liked it so much," Christina told The Enterprise.
Stephanie said that she started skating because Christina "really liked it."
"It’s one of my biggest activities," Stephanie said of figure-skating. "I always look forward to it."
"I liked the whole experience," Stephanie said of the Empire State Games. "It was really big and fun."
She said she is proud of her performance. "I skated pretty good."

All three Lombardi sisters thought that the opening ceremony was one of the most exciting parts of the weekend.
The ceremony, modeled after that of the Olympics, gathered together the 1,100 athletes with around 2,000 spectators. Isabelle’s favorite part "was the lighting of the torch."
"It was a lot of fun to walk in with all the other skaters and athletes," Christina said.