[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 47 (Monday, March 16, 2026)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E216]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE U.S. FIGURE SKATING COMMUNITY AND AMERICAN AIRLINES 
                              FLIGHT 5342

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. JEFF CRANK

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 16, 2026

  Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 67 lives that 
were lost on the tragic flight last year on American Airlines Flight 
5342. Amongst the 67 lives lost, 28 of them were members of the U.S. 
Figure skating community, many of them calling my district of Colorado 
Springs their training ground. These skaters were some of the brightest 
in their sport, returning from the U.S. Championships and National 
Development Team Camp in Wichita, Kansas.
  They had spent nearly a week with their training mates on the 
National Development Team, training mates who had built a bond, many 
over several years, a bond that was extremely close due to the nature 
of their training. When they said goodbye, they said goodbye knowing 
that they would soon all meet again in Colorado Springs for another 
training opportunity.
  The United States and the international skating community had 
suffered a great loss, and the surviving members of the United States 
skating community had suffered a great trauma.
  When the news of Flight 5342 broke, the skaters on the National 
Development Team knew exactly who was on that flight. They sent 
countless group messages begging for responses, but all their responses 
went unanswered. A tertiary trauma to that of the incident and the 
survivor's guilt many of them hold.
  On that flight were Alydia Livingston, Olivia Eve Ter, Everly 
Livingston, Brielle Beyer, Jinna Han, Cory Haynos, Edward Zhou, Angela 
Yang, Lily Li, Sean Kay, Spencer Lane, Alexandr Kirsanov, Vadim Naumov, 
Evgenia Shiskova, Inna Volyanskaya, Peter and Donna Livingston, Luciano 
Aparicio, Franco Aparicio, Justyna Magdalena Beyer, Jin Hee Han, Roger 
Haynos, Stephanie Haynos, Julia Kay, Christine Lane, Olesya Taylor, 
Kaiyan Mao, and Yu Zhou, all members of the U.S. Figure Skating 
community.
  They were the United States' world-class coaches, dedicated loving 
parents, and the next generation of elite Olympian athletes, who we 
will never forget. I thank Candence Floyd for being a shining light in 
a moment of tragedy and for helping honor her lost teammates.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that you join me in praying for the families and 
friends of all these lives lost during this tragic flight.

                          ____________________