Natasha McKay

Natasha McKay (born 14 January 1995) is a Scottish figure skater who competes in ladies' singles for the United Kingdom. She is the 2018 Golden Bear of Zagreb champion, the 2017 Skate Helena champion, the 2017 Open d'Andorra champion, and a four-time British national champion (2017–2020). She has competed in the final segment at three ISU Championships.

Personal life

McKay was born on 14 January 1995 in Dundee, Scotland. She attended St John's School in Dundee before moving, around 2008, to Coventry, England. She returned to Dundee by 2012.

Career

McKay began learning to skate in 2002. In a 2018 interview, she recalled, "I begged my mum for skates for a whole year [...] until she gave in."

McKay won the junior bronze medal at the British Championships in the 2009–10 season. In February 2011, she placed 22nd at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Liberec, Czech Republic. She was coached by Yuri Bureiko in Coventry, England.

In the 2012–13 season, McKay made her only appearance on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, placing 24th in Bled, Slovenia, and won her second junior national bronze medal. She was coached by Debi and Simon Briggs in Dundee, Scotland.

She won the senior bronze medal at the British Championships in the 2014–15 season and finished 5th the next year.

McKay won gold at the Open d'Andorra in November 2016 and became the British national champion the following month. In January 2017, she took gold at Skate Helena. She was named in the British team to the 2017 European Championships in Ostrava. In the Czech Republic, she ranked 24th in the short program, giving her the final qualifying spot, and then rose to 18th overall by placing 16th in the free skate.

In December 2018, McKay won her third consecutive national title.

At the 2019 World Championships, McKay qualified for the free skate for the first time, and placed twenty-first overall.

Programs

Competitive highlights

CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix