Sam Lilley, a young fiancé awaiting his fall wedding, was piloting the American Airlines flight that was minutes away from a safe landing when a collision with an Army helicopter plunged both aircrafts and everyone on board into Virginia’s Potomac River.

Dick Button, a two-time Olympic champion in figure skating, embodied the sport. He is the 'godfather of this sport,' Tara Lipinski once said.

Those involved with the University of Delaware’s High Performance Figure Skating Center have celebrated many triumphs, including in the U.S. Nationals and Olympics. On Thursday they endured the opposite extreme,

Two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time world champ was also an influential broadcaster for more than five decades.

"Several members" of the U.S. figure skating community were on American Airlines Flight 5342, according to U.S. Figure Skating.

The European figure skating championships have carried on, even as the skating world mourned athletes who died when an American Airlines jet collided with an Army helicopter near Washington, D.C.

The U.S. Figure Skating Championships took place Jan. 21-26 in Wichita, Kansas. U.S. Figure Skating did not identify any of the members of its team that were on board. Doug Zeghib

In addition to winning two Olympic gold medals and five consecutive world championships, he helped transform a niche sport into the showpiece of every Winter Olympics.

Dick Button was the first American Olympic figure skating gold medalist in the sport back in 1948, then again in 1952.

Amber Glenn, a 25-year-old from Plano who defended her U.S. figure skating championship last week in Wichita, was also among the community within the sport devastated by the news. “I’m in complete shock. I’m sorry I don’t even know what to say,” Glenn posted to Instagram on Thursday morning.

The figure skaters who died in Wednesday’s plane crash are mourned not just because they were young and talented but because, to anyone associated with the sport, they are part of the family.