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Local South Pasadenan, Jonathan Henry Privett-Mendoza has secured the bronze medal at the recent British Figure Skating Championships. Privett-Mendoza is a 2nd year student at University of Sheffield and this is his first season competing in the senior men division. The championships were held last weekend, December 1-4, at IceSheffield. Privett-Mendoza’s performances earned him season’s best and personal scores to land on the podium. His combined score of 165.17 earned him the Bronze behind Graham Newberry, whose score of 215.32 earned him his 4th Championship crown, and Edward Appleby who scored 182.29 to win silver.
For his short program, Privett-Mendoza skated to Sting’s song “Fragile”. For his free skate, he skated to the music of Japanese composer, Joe Hisaishi, renowned for his work with Studio Gibly.
“I’m very happy and excited to win my first medal at Championships,” Privett-Mendoza tells us. “And I’m really pleased to do it here at my home rink.”
Privett-Mendoza trains at IceSheffield and his coaching team is lead by head coach, Yebin Mok. His on-ice coaches include Helen James-Green and Mark Hanretty from IceSheffield, and off-ice he is coached by former Olympian Bobsledder, Ben Simons. His choreographer for his current program is Jonathan Cassar and he does additional jumps training with Devin Matthews.
Coach Mok, who also coached the senior dance silver medalists and the junior dance bronze medalists, said, “through their highs and lows, as coaches we have the pleasure to guide and witness them grow. So proud of all of them for achieving their individual goals. I’m most proud of their work ethic and watching their mental ability to overcome pressure and daily effort in training.”
In addition to his skating, Privett-Mendoza is studying History with a keen interest in the era of Great Migration while also producing/hosting a podcast on classic movies and culture. His hobbies include cooking, music and languages – he is currently learning Welsh and Korean, having studied Mandarin and Spanish in high school. “It’s been a real challenge going to school full-time and training,” he says. “I’m glad I was able to perform well enough and I hope to improve as the season moves on.”
Privett-Mendoza will soon be returning to South Pasadena to train for his next competition, the 2023 World University Games in Lake Placid, New York January 10-24, 2023.
