Denis Ten

Denis Yuryevich Ten (Денис Юрьевич Тен; 13 June 1993 – 19 July 2018) was a Kazakh figure skater.  

He was the 2014 Olympic bronze medalist, a two-time World medalist (silver in 2013, bronze in 2015), the 2015 Four Continents champion, the 2017 Winter Universiade champion, and a five-time national champion of Kazakhstan.

Ten was the first skater from Kazakhstan to stand on the podium at the World Championships, Four Continents Championships, Asian Winter Games, and Olympic Games. At the 2008–09 ISU Junior Grand Prix event in Belarus, he became the first skater from Kazakhstan to win an International Skating Union competition. His other accomplishments include qualifying two spots for his country in the men's event at the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics.

Ten was the official ambassador for the Olympic Bidding Committee "Almaty 2022". He was a member of the Astana Presidential Sports Club and the political party "Nur Otan". In 2013, he began producing his own ice show, "Denis Ten and Friends". In summer 2014, he announced his co-operation with All That Sports management company established by Yuna Kim.

Personal life

Ten was born on 13 June 1993 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. He was a member of the Korean minority in Kazakhstan. His great-great-grandfather, Min Geung-ho, was a famous Korean independence fighter general during the time of the Korean Empire when Korea fought for independence from Japan.

Ten attended music school for five years and competed as part of a choir. In 2002, his team won the silver medal at the World Choir Games, held in Busan, South Korea. This was Ten's first trip to that country. He also tried taekwando, karate, tennis, swimming and acrobatics.

Ten moved with his mother to Moscow, Russia, in 2004 while his father and older brother, Alexei, remained in Kazakhstan. Ten already knew Russian — it is co-official in Kazakhstan and Ten's first language. In 2010, he moved with his mother to California.

In May 2014, Ten graduated from the Kazakh Academy of Sports and Tourism with a Red Diploma. By 2015, he began working on his MBA program (Oil and Gas) at the Business School of the Kazakh-British Technical University.

In July 2015, the media reported on Ten's interest in photography. There is a separate social media page where he posted he photos he took. Celebrities who have modeled for or collaborated with him include Dinara Baktybayeva, Aissulu Azimbayeva, Aliya Telebarisova (Kazakhstani actresses), Sabina Altynbekova, and Serik Sapiyev.

Death

On 19 July 2018, Ten was stabbed in the thigh by two men who were attempting to steal his car mirrors. Ten suffered significant blood loss and died in the Central Clinical Hospital in Almaty, three hours after being admitted.

The Kazakhstan Minister of Culture and Sport Arystanbek Mukhamediuly paid tribute to Ten, saying "Denis Ten was an incredible figure skater, the legend of our sport, our pride." US figure skaters Adam Rippon, Gracie Gold and Mirai Nagasu, who used to train with Ten, also paid tribute to him, along with several other figure skaters. IOC president Thomas Bach stated, "Denis Ten was a great athlete and a great ambassador for his sport. A warm personality and a charming man. Such a tragedy to lose him at such a young age."

Career

Ten began skating at an open-air rink in Almaty in winter and later practiced at an indoor rink in a shopping mall. In 2003, he traveled to Omsk in southwest Siberia, Russia, for a skating competition which he won. The head judge, Alexander Kogan, invited him to another competition in Odintsovo, Moscow region, where Ten met coach Elena Buianova (Vodorezova). Ten began training camp with her at CSKA Moscow and was later invited to join her group full-time.