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USICERINKS.COM NOVEMBER.DECEMBER.2020 / 19 Boston. The majority of the facility's ice sheets are set up for figure skating. While there is some hockey that takes place, the focus remains on figure skating. Someone who understands that first- hand is CEO and Executive Director Doug Zeghibe. He grew up going to this club, has worked events, and spent countless hours at the facility. "Our core business is getting people to join the club and practice and compete as figure skaters," Zeghibe said. There is a wide range in skill level and interest in figure skaters who are part of the club. There are those who are just looking for the sport to be something fun that he or she does at the recreational level. However, there are some aspiring to Olympic dreams, too. "Whatever type of skating you want to do, you can do it here," Zeghibe said. "We have those who are doing it recre- ationally and 10-12 who are looking to do this at an Olympic level." As for Olympians, Skating Club of Boston alumni include 1956 Olympic champion Tenley Albright, 1992 Olympic silver medalist Paul Wylie and the duo of Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir. Castelli and Shnapir are two- time U.S. national champions and helped Team USA to a bronze finish in the team event at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. Taking Things Up a Notch In the midst of the club's success, there started to be calls for a new, modern Skating Club of Boston. Zeghibe said these conversations go back nearly 20 years. In the past five years, the push for this new version of the club really began to go. It started with bringing Zeghibe on in a professional role and surrounding him with professional staff, such as club director Jon Jepson. Previously, the facil- ity relied mostly upon volunteers. "We're a non-profit that had a board that used to be more focused on the operation," Zeghibe said. "Now, with the staff we brought in, our board is more strategic." After many starts and stops, the project got underway on May 13, 2019. Thus, began the building of a facility esti- mated to cost more than $30 million in Norwood, Massachusetts, a suburb out- side of Boston. In just more than a year, this three- sheet facility was built with plenty of bells and whistles. Beyond just the ice sheets, there are other parts that make this facility a head-turner. It starts with an open lobby concept that allows users to see into the rinks. The main sheet is the performance center. It's an Olympic-sized sheet that WHAT'S UNIQUE ABOUT OUR FACILITY IS IT'S A FACILITY PUT TOGETHER FOR FIGURE SKATERS. IT'S BUILT AROUND FIGURE SKATING WITH A LITTLE BIT OF HOCKEY MIXED IN.