A typical day for Dacia Loconte begins well before sunrise, while most of her Mesa Ridge High School classmates are still asleep. A competitive figure skater, Dacia gets up at 4:30 a.m. to train at the Broadmoor World Arena Ice Hall before school. After she has completed her school day, she returns to the arena for a second training session.

This sets her apart from most competitive skaters her age, who typically spend several hours a day on the ice while homeschooling or attending school virtually, according to Beth Loconte, Dacia’s mother.

“As far as figure skating goes, Dacia’s training schedule is considered minimal,” Beth said. “Most of the kids (at the Ice Hall) are training six to eight hours a day.”

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Another thing that makes Dacia unique among figure skaters is that, at some point during her birth, she sustained a brain injury that continues to affect her coordination, information processing, and muscle control.

“We’re not sure exactly what happened,” Dacia said. “All we know is that it happened during birth.”

Driven by a love for the sport that was sparked at age 3 and continues to grow, Dacia has become one of the world’s premier athletes in inclusive skating, a program that offers recreational and competitive avenues for skaters with physical and intellectual disabilities. Inclusive skaters may skate with any disability, whether physical, emotional or intellectual.

Dacia is the 2022 and 2023 Junior Ladies Inclusive World Champion and is currently the world’s No. 1 ranked Junior Inclusive Lady.

She began figure skating when she was seven, but it was clear that she was differently-abled. When the family took her to a doctor, they were told that her coordination issues were a result of her premature birth. Dacia’s brain injury wasn’t properly diagnosed until she was 13.

“Finally, everything we saw made sense,” Beth said.

Dacia does not have a visible disability. She moves and speaks normally, and is a National Honor Society student.

“Most people don’t know (about my condition) unless I tell them,” she said.

Because she doesn’t qualify for the Special Olympics or Paralympics, for years Dacia chose to compete against able-bodied skaters.

“Her body doesn’t allow her to keep up with able-bodied competitors,” Beth said. “So for about five years, she was last in every competition, unless she was the only skater.”

In 2021, U.S. Skating introduced its adaptive skating program, called Skate United, which enables skaters to progress at their own pace and provides qualified coaches to help differently-abled athletes develop. Some adaptive skaters have a partner to assist with balance; others, like Dacia, perform independently. Adaptive skating is the U.S. version of “inclusive skating,” which has been in place in Europe for more than a decade, Beth said.

With a competitive track tailored to her unique abilities, Dacia has not only risen to the upper echelon of her sport, she has become one of its biggest advocates. As the Broadmoor Skating Club’s first adaptive athlete, she is hoping to expand the program by increasing awareness. To that end, she often shares her experiences on Facebook and Instagram, as well as official figure skating websites.

“This is a brand-new program, so not many people know about it,” Dacia said. “I want people to know that it exists.”

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“There are other athletes out there who would benefit from this program,” Beth said. “We want those people to know that there’s a place for them.”

Broadening the program would also give Dacia more chances to flex her competitive muscles. There are currently fewer than 300 adaptive/inclusive skaters competing worldwide.

“(Skate United) is a really good program, and I’d like to see it move forward,” she said. “But in order to move forward, we need more people.”

The 2024 Inclusive World Championships will hold virtual and in-person competitions. In her bid to defend her title, the No. 1-ranked Junior Inclusive Lady is currently working on a presentation for the virtual contest and is raising funds for the in-person competition, which takes place in the United Kingdom in April.

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