NOTTINGHAM figure skaters Olivia Smart and Joe Buckland will be hoping to claim title success at the 2014 British Figure Skating Championships this week at iceSheffield.
Smart and Buckland, the 2013 Junior National Ice Dance champions, have had a successful year after claiming first place in the senior dance at the National Ice Skating Association (NISA) August IJS and finishing in the top ten at the 2014 World Junior Championships.
The pair will compete as seniors in the British Championships for the first time, following in the footsteps of Joe's brother Nick.
The Buckland brothers are no strangers to competing against one another, but, on this occasion, Nick Buckland will be absent as he is competing with his two-time Olympic partner, Penny Coomes, in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Japan from tomorrow.
Alistair Wilson, the event's technical director, said: "With the absence of reigning National Senior Ice Dance champions, Penny Coomes and Nick Buckland, Olivia Smart and Joe Buckland (pictured) have a good chance at claiming this year's National title.
"The British Figure Skating Championships is one of the most exciting events in our calendar and the level of talent competing this year is fantastic.
"We are glad that we introduced the new events to the Championships this year. We have some superb talent here in the UK and most competitions are wide open which makes them even more gripping, and I'm looking forward to seeing who will come out on top."
The British Figure Skating Championships will see skaters from all over the UK compete for the national titles. This year, NISA have introduced the Basic Novice Ladies and Men's Singles programmes to the event for the first time.
