Sheffield skater Luke Digby targeting Olympics and European Championships on home ice in huge 2026

The 11-year-old just had to cross the road from his training base at iceSheffield to the Sheffield Arena, which in February of that golden Olympic year, staged the European Figure Skating Championships.

For an impressionable, budding skater who was already training daily to improve at his hobby, it was a seminal moment.

“I was there every day, either as a fan or as a volunteer,” Digby, now 23, tells The Yorkshire Post from his training base in Dundee. “I was as involved as much as I could be as a young person. I thought it was just amazing.

“The big arena, the huge event, lots of spectators, TV coverage – it was a big deal.

“I was actually one of the flower boys that go onto the ice after a skater has performed. The tradition in the sport is that spectators will throw flowers or teddies onto the ice after a routine, so when the skater finishes I had to go on and pick them up and clear the ice ready for the next skater.

“It was an amazing experience and one I always look back on fondly on. It helped inspire me on my journey.”

Emboldened by the experience and the glimpse into what he hoped would be his future, Digby redoubled his efforts to try and get to that level. One training session a day would soon become two, his mum negotiating rush hour traffic to get him from Fulwood across the Steel City to ice Sheffield for a 7am-8am session, then taking him to Tapton School, before doing it all again in the late afternoon.

There have been plenty of occasions in the subsequent years when the long hours were worth it, but over the next year there might be a few life-changing moments.

For Digby and his pairs skating partner Anastasia Vaipan-Law, with whom he is a reigning four-time British champion, have the World Championships to look forward to in Boston in March, a Winter Olympics to try and qualify for next February, and a month before that the European Championships, which are coming back to Sheffield.

“It’s hard to put it into words how big this event will be,” says Digby. “It’s a dream come true to potentially have the chance to compete at a European Championships in my home town.”

Sheffield will host the ISU European Figure Skating Championships 2026 from January 12-18 at the Utilita Arena.

It is well within reach for Digby and Vaipan-Law, who tomorrow head out to Tallinn to compete in this year’s continental showpiece. “We placed 10th and ninth consecutively the last two years so a top-eight finish would continue that progression,” says Digby. “The Europeans are an extremely strong field but we know we’ve made improvements and if we continue to skate to our potential we can achieve those goals.”

As exciting as the thought of performing on home ice is next January for Digby, it is just one major event in what could be a landmark year.

Together with Vaipan-Law they have already qualified for the worlds in Boston, an event this year that comes with the greater significance of being the first and most important of Olympic qualifiers.

Dominant in Britain since teaming up just before the first Covid lockdown of 2020, their appearances on the global stage have been restricted by Britain’s place in the figure skating hierarchy. Torvill and Dean might have captured the nation’s hearts with their Bolero in 1984 but there was little or no legacy, and GB has been left behind by the likes of USA, Canada, Japan, Korea, Italy and Germany, countries that put lots of money into their figure skating programmes. While their global rivals are full-time, Digby has to work two twilight shifts at a Tesco’s to pay his bills.

They have a good skating community around them in Dundee and financial support from private backers and the British federation, but every opportunity they get to perform on the global stage is a prized one in which they hope to make incremental gains. They have done that at the Europeans, but on the world stage they went backwards last year, putting their chances of qualifying for the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina on a knife-edge.

“Our first world championships were in Japan two years ago and was really great,” says Digby. “We didn’t have too much expectation so 16th was a good finish. Last year wasn’t our best performance, we didn’t skate to our full potential and finished 20th, so it was really disappointing.”

They have had successes since, most notably a silver medal at the Warsaw Cup in November which preceded them winning a fourth British title in Sheffield before Christmas. But with only 19 pairs advancing to next year’s Olympics and one more chance to make up the numbers at the start of next season in the autumn, it places greater emphasis on this year’s worlds for a pair that are right on the bubble.

“A massive competition for us being that first opportunity for Olympic qualification which is obviously the huge goal,” explains Digby. “It’s another big step on our journey.

“With the Olympics on the horizon I’m trying not to get carried away or ahead of myself. I think about the Olympics, it’s the dream, but we know how difficult and how important it is at that first qualifying event, so we’re just focused on entering that competition and performing to our best levels.”

Digby first got into the sport aged six on a Learn to Skate programme at iceSheffield, dragged there by his older sister who had been beguiled watching Dancing on Ice. Then came those daily double sessions on the ice around school, before in 2019 he faced a decision.

A singles skater then, but one rehabilitating an injury, the opportunity came to join forces with Vaipan-Law in the pairs, but he would have to relocate to Scotland.

“The coaching set-up and facilities were a big reason why I chose Dundee,” says Digby. “Ana was already up there, plus the coaches Simon and Debi Briggs run the whole skating programme there.”

In between eight sessions on the ice over five days, Digby works two shifts at the local supermarket and teaches skating to children and adults. “Busy days, but I like to be busy,” he says.

The rewards come at the international events, particularly those on home ice.

“I’ve got a photo from the World Grand Prix event in Sheffield in 2022,” he smiles. “We’ve just finished and there’s us with all the crowd in the background, the GB flags and you can just see my family at the top. That’s a special photo. I hope to replicate that next year.”

All-event tickets for next year’s European Championships go on sale on Tuesday.