Evgenia Lopareva

Evgenia Aleksandrovna Lopareva (Евгения Александровна Лопарёва, born 5 May 2000) is a Russian-French ice dancer who competes for France. With her partner, Geoffrey Brissaud, she is a two-time French national champion, a three-time Grand Prix bronze medalist, the 2023 CS Warsaw Cup champion, a two-time ISU Challenger Series silver medalist, and a two-time International Challenge Cup champion (2021 and 2023). Earlier in their career they finished in the top ten at the 2019 World Junior Championships.

Personal life
Lopareva was born on 30 May 2000 in Moscow, Russia. She received her French citizenship in May 2022.

Early years
Lopareva began learning how to skate as a four-year-old in 2004. She competed with her first partner, Alexey Karpushov, for five seasons. The two debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix (JGP) series in September 2016, placing fourth in Ostrava, Czech Republic. They had the same overall result at 2018 JGP Austria but did not compete again for the rest of the season. The team ended their partnership before the start of the 2018–19 figure skating season.

2018–19 season
Before the start of the 2018–19 season, Lopareva teamed up with French ice dancer Geoffrey Brissaud to compete for France. The new team received two international assignments - the 2019 Egna Dance Trophy, where they took silver in the junior division, and the 2019 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, where they placed tenth.

2019–20 season: Senior international debut
Lopareva/Brissaud made their senior international debut in September at their first assignment of the 2019–20 season, the 2019 CS Nepela Memorial Trophy. Here, the team placed eighth in the rhythm dance but made a comeback in the free dance (fourth) to finish sixth overall. The pair also set new personal bests in all three segments at the event.

At their next Challenger Series assignment, 2019 CS Warsaw Cup, Lopareva/Brissaud again set another personal best in the rhythm dance. After taking the bronze medal at the senior French championships, they competed at the European Championships for the first time, placing fifteenth.

2020–21 season: World Championship debut
Lopareva/Brissaud were scheduled to make their Grand Prix debut at the 2020 Internationaux de France, but the event was cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. They made their World Championship debut at the 2021 World Championships in Stockholm, placing seventeenth. Their placement combined with the sixteenth-place finish of the other French dance team competing at the championships qualified a single berth for France at the 2022 Winter Olympics, as well as the following year's world championships.

2021–22 season
Lopareva/Brissaud made their seasonal Challenger debut at the 2021 CS Lombardia Trophy, placing eighth. They were initially assigned to make their Grand Prix debut at the 2021 Cup of China, but following its cancellation, they were reassigned to the 2021 Gran Premio d'Italia. They placed sixth at the event, setting new personal bests in the free dance and total score. They went on to finish in fourth place at the 2021 Internationaux de France, setting new personal bests in the rhythm dance and total score. Lopareva said they were "very happy with the result" of their first Grand Prix season.

After winning a silver medal at the International Cup of Nice, Lopareva/Brissaud won their second consecutive national silver medal. They were assigned to the 2022 European Championships in Tallinn, where they finished ninth.

2022–23 season: Challenger and Grand Prix medals
Lopareva/Brissaud won the silver medal at the 2022 CS Budapest Trophy in their first international appearance of the season. With Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron sitting out at least the season, Lopareva/Brissaud, were the most senior French team assigned to compete at the 2022 Grand Prix de France, where they won the bronze medal, their first on the Grand Prix. They finished fifth at the 2022 NHK Trophy.

At the French championships in Rouen, Lopareva/Brissaud won the national title for the first time in their career. At the 2023 European Championships in Espoo, they finished sixth in the rhythm dance, missing the final flight of the free dance by 0.42 behind Czechs Taschlerová/Taschler. They overtook the Czechs in the free dance, finishing fifth overall. They finished twelfth at the 2023 World Championships. Lopareva/Brissaud then joined Team France for the 2023 World Team Trophy, finishing fifth in the rhythm dance and fourth in the free dance. Team France finished in fifth place.

2023–24 season
For the 1980s-themed rhythm dance, Lopareva and Brissaud desired to skate to a less conventional choice, and took their coach's recommendation of the work of French synth-pop singer Mylène Farmer. Their free program was a "biographical" story using the music of Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, with Brissaud playing Rachmaninoff and Lopareva his "muse and inspiration." Lopareva/Brissaud began the season at the 2023 CS Autumn Classic International, winning the silver medal. They were invited to participate in the Shanghai Trophy, earning a second silver medal. They started on the Grand Prix at the 2023 Skate America, where they finished third in the rhythm dance, only 0.60 points behind Canadian training mates Lajoie/Lagha. They were third in the free dance as well, albeit slightly further behind second-place, and won the bronze medal. Lopareva called the result "very, very special" given the strong field. With their home Grand Prix de France as their second event, Lopareva/Brissaud finished third in both segments to take the bronze medal. They noted some technical issues, particularly lost levels on their free program dance spin, they said they had felt they had improved their performance elements, with Brissaud saying "we feel like we are improving little by little, step by step." The podium of gold medalists Guignard/Fabbri, silver medalists Fournier Beaudry/Sørensen, and bronze medalists Lopareva/Brissaud was the same as the previous year. Following the Grand Prix, the duo won gold at the 2023 CS Warsaw Cup.

After retaining their French national title, Lopareva/Brissaud competed at the 2024 European Championships, where they placed fourth in both segments and fourth overall, 6.20 points back of bronze medalists Reed/Ambrulevičius of Lithuania.

Lopareva/Brissaud concluded the season at the 2024 World Championships in Montreal, where they finished seventh in the rhythm dance, breaking the 80-point threshold. They dropped to eighth after the free dance, but broke the 200-point threshold overall, which Brissaud called a "gift", noting that the free dance occurred on his birthday.

Competitive highlights
GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix