Bio:
Born – October 1st, 1997
Started skating at the age of 3
Coach – Elena Zaretsky
Occupation – school student, 6th grade
Hobbies – figure skating, listening to music

Competitive history
2004-2007 National Champion in respective age categories
2008 National silver medalist, girls ages 8-10
International Competitions
Tivoli Cup, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Jan 2006 – 20th place (28 entries), Cubs 97 category

2008/09 music selections
SP – soundtrack from "Mr. and Mrs. Smith"
LP – selections from "Juno and Avos" ("Yunona I Avos") by A.Rybnikov

Dana's voice immediately livens up when our conversation amiably veers towards Lena Zaretsky, her coach. "Have you seen the wonderful dresses Lena makes for my performances?" the 10-year old confides to me with apparent and avid enthusiasm. I do remember the strikingly beautiful sequined black dress Dana was wearing at previous Israel Nationals. I thought it was designer-made. It turned out that the designer also  happens to coach  Dana and host her at summer vacations and holidays so that she would be able to take a proper rest before he morning training and in the evening since Lena lives within two minutes walk from the rink. There is also the right eating regime crucial for the growing body of the fledgling athlete. "She is my second mother", Dana continues enthusiastically. It is already an achievement of sorts.

-Dana, since you have such a close bond with your coach, does it give you an extra boost of confidence when you are competing?
-Of course. And basically I love competing because I can perform for the audience, and that's the most important part of the performance. And it's great to get applause when the routine is over.
-What jumps are you working on now?
-I have been consistently landing double salchow, and working on double loop and double flip.
-Are jumps your favourite elements?
-I don't have any problem working on jumps but still like spins and step sequences more. I also like the choreography of my programs and working on expressing the music. (At this point I am really surprised by the maturity of expression coming from a 10-year old. Sports make you grow up faster with their discipline and strenuous workouts).
- Any goals for this season?
-To perform well at the Nationals and to go to a competition abroad. I went to competition abroad once. It was Dragon Cup in Ljubljana in January 2005. Competing abroad is a real test of what you can do.

Coach Lena Zaretsky comments:
-Dana is very athletic, mature, and incredibly hardworking for her age.  She is determined to train sometimes having to fight off fatigue and even pain.  It's just amazing.