Tanja Kolbe

Tanja Kolbe (born 7 September 1990) is a German former competitive ice dancer. With Stefano Caruso, she won seven international medals and two German national silver medals. They placed eighth at the 2013 European Championships and competed at the 2014 Winter Olympics, finishing 19th.

Tanja Kolbe
Tanja Kolbe in 2014
Born	(1990-09-07) 7 September 1990 (age 34) Berlin
Height	1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)
Figure skating career
Country	Germany
Skating club	TSC Berlin
Began skating	1994
Retired	2014

Personal life

Tanja Kolbe was born 7 September 1990 in Berlin, Germany.^[1] She studied business communication in Berlin and has worked for the Bundeswehr's sports group.^[2] She and her partner, Alexander Nissen, have a son named Moritz, born on 11 October 2015.^[3]

Career

Early career

From 2003 to 2006, Kolbe competed with Paul Boll. They won the 2006 German national junior title and were sent to the 2006 World Junior Championships where they placed 16th.

In 2006, Kolbe teamed up with Sascha Rabe. In their first season together, they competed on the junior level. They appeared at two ISU Junior Grand Prix events and took the silver medal at the German Junior Championships. The next three season, Kolbe/Rabe competed on the senior level. They took bronze at the 2009 German Championships. After Rabe decided to retire in 2010, she had a tryout with Deividas Stagniūnas of Lithuania.^[2]

Partnership with Caruso

Kolbe teamed up with Italian ice dancer Stefano Caruso in 2010.^[4] In their first season together, they took bronze at the 2010 Ice Challenge and at the 2011 German Championships.

In their second season together, Kolbe/Caruso won two international medals, gold at the 2011 NRW Trophy and bronze at the Istanbul Cup. They took the silver medal at the German Championships and were assigned to the 2012 European Championships where they finished 12th. The duo split up after the event but teamed up again in July 2012.^[5][6]

In the 2012–13 season, Kolbe/Caruso took silver again at the German Championships and earned another trip to the European Championships where they finished 8th. They won two international medals – bronze at both the New Year's Cup and Volvo Open Cup.

In the 2013–14 season, Kolbe/Caruso were invited to their first Grand Prix event, the 2013 Trophee Eric Bompard where they placed 7th. They added two more international medals to their collection – bronze at the 2013 Ondrej Nepela Trophy and Ice Challenge. In February 2014, Kolbe/Caruso competed at the Winter Olympics in Sochi and finished 19th.^[1] They announced the end of their partnership in June 2014.^[7]

Programs

With Caruso

Season	Short dance	Free dance
2013–2014 [1][8][9]	New York, New York performed by Liza Minnelli, Luciano Pavarotti Borsalino performed by Tokyo Hosei Orchestra New York, New York performed by Liza Minnelli, Luciano Pavarotti	Enchanted by Alan Menken: Narissa Arrives Storybook Ending Andalasia
2012–2013 [9][10]	La Foule by Edith Piaf French Can Can (from Gaite Parisienne) by Jacques Offenbach	Beethoven's Last Night by Trans-Siberian Orchestra: Overture – Moonlight Sonata Dream of Candlelight Moonlight Sonata
2011–2012 [9][11]	Bla Bla Cha Cha by Petty Booka Besame Mucho Give It Up by The Goodman	Love Story by Francis Lai Summer of '42 by Michel Legrand
2010–2011 [9]	Que Sera, Sera by Doris Day Sugar by Alma Cogan	Tore My Heart by Oona Man's World by Natacha Atlas

With Rabe

Season	Original dance	Free dance
2009–2010 [12]	German folk: Wir tanzen wieder Polka Amboß Polka O wie bist du schön	Come On In My House by Bella Reese Ain't No Sunshine by Bill Withers Hip Hip Chin Chin by Club des Belugas

With Boll

Season	Original dance	Free dance
2005–2006 [13]	Sway by Michael Buble Bella Maria by Michael Buble Happy Brazil by James Last	The Mask of Zorro by James Horner
2004–2005 [14]	Slow Foxtrot Quickstep	Black Machine

Competitive highlights

GP = Grand Prix; JGP = Junior Grand Prix

With Caruso

Kolbe/Caruso at the 2012 German Championships

International[15]
Event	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14
Winter Olympics				19th
World Champ.				21st
European Champ.		12th	8th	11th
GP Trophee Bompard				7th
Bavarian Open			4th
Cup of Nice		4th
Finlandia Trophy		6th
Golden Spin	7th	6th	5th
Ice Challenge	3rd			3rd
Istanbul Cup		3rd
New Year's Cup			3rd
NRW Trophy	8th	1st
Ondrej Nepela				3rd
Pavel Roman	4th
Volvo Open Cup			3rd
National[15]
German Champ.	3rd	2nd	2nd	2nd

With Rabe

Tanja Kolbe and Sascha Rabe at the 2007 German Junior Championships

International[16]
Event	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	2009–10
Golden Spin				7th
Ice Challenge				8th
Nebelhorn Trophy		13th		14th
Ondrej Nepela			5th
Pavel Roman		4th
International: Junior[16]
JGP Czech Republic	5th
JGP Netherlands	6th
Pavel Roman	1st
National[16]
German Champ.	2nd J		3rd	WD
J = Junior level; WD = Withdrew

With Boll

Tanja Kolbe and Paul Boll at the 2006 World Junior Championships

International: Junior[13]
Event	2004–05	2005–06
World Junior Champ.		16th
JGP Canada		6th
JGP Estonia		8th
JGP Germany	WD
JGP USA	8th
Nordics	2nd
National[13]
German Champ.	3rd J	1st J
J = Junior level; WD = Withdrew

References

1. "Tanja KOLBE". Organizing Committee of the XXII Olympic Winter Games. Archived from the original on 20 March 2014.
2. Wenck, Dietmar (16 February 2014). "Zwei Berliner, die ohne Liebe ihr Glück bei Olympia suchen" [Two skaters from Berlin hope for luck at the Olympics]. Berliner Morgenpost (in German).
3. "Nachwuchs für Tanja Kolbe" [Tanja Kolbe gives birth] (in German). Deutsche Eislauf-Union. 21 October 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-12-13. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
4. "Deutsch-italienische Leidenschaft" [German-Italian passion]. Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (in German). 17 February 2014.
5. "Kolbe und Caruso wieder vereint" [Kolbe and Caruso reunited]. Sport-Informations-Dienst (in German). Focus. 20 July 2012.
6. "Kolbe & Caruso REUNITE!". ice-dance.com. 20 July 2012.^{[permanent dead link]}
7. "Official statement". 25 June 2014.
8. "Tanja KOLBE / Stefano CARUSO: 2013/2014". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 19 June 2014.
9. "Programs". Official website of Kolbe/Caruso. Archived from the original on 19 June 2014.
10. "Tanja KOLBE / Stefano CARUSO: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013.
11. "Tanja KOLBE / Stefano CARUSO: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 2 October 2012.
12. "Tanja KOLBE / Sascha RABE: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 21 September 2012.
13. "Tanja KOLBE / Paul BOLL: 2005/2006". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 18 October 2006.
14. "Tanja KOLBE / Paul BOLL: 2004/2005". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 4 April 2005.
15. "Competition Results: Tanja KOLBE / Stefano CARUSO". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 23 April 2014.
16. "Competition Results: Tanja KOLBE / Sascha RABE". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012.

External links

• Tanja Kolbe / Stefano Caruso at the International Skating Union
• Tanja Kolbe / Sascha Rabe at the International Skating Union
• Tanja Kolbe / Paul Boll at the International Skating Union
• Tanja Kolbe / Stefano Caruso official website