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“When you lose coaches like this, you lose the future of the sport, as well,” Zeghibe told reporters.
Another well-known Russian figure skater, Inna Volyanskaya, was also among the dead, her former husband, Ross Lansel, told NBC Washington.
Before becoming a skating coach in 2002 in Virginia, she wowed audiences around the world playing Ariel in Disney on Ice’s “The Little Mermaid,” Lansel said.
“She was one of the best skaters I’ve ever seen, honestly,” he said.
Natalya Gudin told ABC News that she and her husband, Alexandr Kirsanov, decided he would accompany the two of the skaters they coached to the National Development Camp in Wichita.
They last spoke Wednesday before Kirsanov boarded the plane to Reagan National. Now, Gudin is awaiting more information about her husband’s remains, she said.
“I lost everything. I lost my husband. I lost my students. I lost my friends,” she told ABC News.
Roger Haynos, his wife, Stephanie, and their son Cory were headed back from the skating competition, two of Roger Haynos’ cousins, Matthew LaRaviere and Leah Bucher, confirmed.
The couple were incredible parents who created a loving home for their two children, the cousins said. Roger Haynos had retired early to support Cory in his figure skating career and the family was so proud of him and his talent, they said.
Labor union members were also on board
Also aboard the plane were five members of Plumbers, Pipefitters and Steamfitters Local 602, which is based in the Washington area, the union said in a statement.
Union President Mark McManus and business manager Chris Madello did not identify them by name or explain why they were traveling together.
“These members will be forever in our hearts, and may God bless them and their loved ones,” they said.
Another labor union, the Communication Workers of America, posted on X that two members of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA were aboard the America Eagle plane.
“Our union is grieving along with all those affected,” the post read.
Mikey Stovall, a steamfitter in Maryland, was on the flight with seven of his friends, his mother, Christina Stovall, told NBC Washington.
Stovall, 40, and his friends were returning home from a duck hunting trip in Kansas. He is survived by his wife of 11 years and an 11-year-old son, the station reported.
Crash shatters families
The victims also included a law professor, beloved family members and an attorney who fully embraced life.
Kiah Duggins, a professor at Howard University School of Law, was on the flight, the university’s president, Ben Vinson III, said in a post on X. Her death was confirmed by her parents.
“We are coming to terms with the grief associated with the loss of our beautiful and accomplished firstborn,” they said in a statement.
Wendy Jo Shaffer, a wife and mother of two boys, ages 3 and 1, was also killed, according to a verified online fundraiser.
“I’m still waiting to wake up from this nightmare, but I fear this is the truth. Wendy was not just beautiful on the outside, but was a truly amazing woman through and through,” Wendy’s husband, Nate Shaffer, said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
Elizabeth Keys, who turned 33 on Wednesday, was strong, fearless and deeply loved, her mother, Mary Keys, said.
She worked as an attorney for Wilkinson Stekloff in Washington, where she and the “love of her life” lived and enjoyed hosting people at their home, her mother said.
“Liz was a warm, generous woman. She was so fun — and funny! Liz had a sharp wit and appreciated it in others,” Mary Keys said. “Gatherings were always better when Liz was there; she was filled with light and joy.”
“Words cannot express how deeply Elizabeth, my Bitsy, will be missed. We are filled with unbearable sorrow and despair at our loss”
Asra Hussain had been texting her husband, Hamaad Raza, throughout her flight home from a routine business trip. While Raza waited at the airport for her to land, EMS sped past him and his texts to his wife stopped going through, he said.
The couple, both consultants who met in college, were married for 2 ½ years. Raza said his wife was “such a giver” and made him feel loved.
“She truly cared about our relationship and about me, and it made me feel like the luckiest husband alive,” he said.
A day after the crash, Raza said he has not come to grips with what happened and has been thinking about his wife and what she was thinking while onboard.
“I always pick her up from departures, and I always help her load the bag into the car and give her a big hug and a kiss and, and, then off we go,” he said. “I had dinner waiting at home.”
