Tanith began her skating career in Canada at the age of 3, and won her first freestyle competition in Lake Placid, N.Y., within two years. It was the first of many medals to come. By the age of 8, Tanith was showing a special talent for ice dance, and she began training with her first dance partner.

By the time she reached 11, Tanith's dance ability had exceeded that of available dance partners close to her age. Since Tanith was still too young to leave home in search of a new partner, her manager at the time, World and Olympic coach, Paul Wirtz, proposed an interim solution - switch to freestyle pairs skating until the opportunity would come to return to dance.

Ice dancing is where Tanith's heart lies, so after two successful years of competitive experience in the pairs discipline of figure skating, she returned to dance and was matched with a new partner. Tanith's return to dance after two successful years in pairs, resulted in a new coach -- renowned Russian ice dance coach Natalia Dubova, coach to Canadian dance champions Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kratz. During the 1997-98 fall and winter, Tanith trained weekdays with Paul Wirtz in Montreal, and weekends in Lake Placid with Natalia Dubova. In the end, the new skating partnership proved to be a disappointment, and in the spring of 1998, Tanith dissolved her partnership with her partner. Although Tanith was still a few months away from her 14th birthday, it was clear that the time had come to get serious about her dance career. It was necessary to widen the search for a new partner and face the possibility of moving away from home. The search began again, but this time the net was cast wider.

In the summer of 1998, both Tanith and Ben traveled to Detroit to train for the summer at the famous Detroit Skating Club (home of 5-time U.S. Ice Dance Champions Elizabeth Punsalan & Jerod Swallow). This was a trial period for both Tanith and Ben while they skated as potential partners. Under the guidance of the top U.S. Ice Dance coaches, Elizabeth Coates and Igor Shpilband (1998 U.S. Olympic Coach of the Year), the team blossomed, and a promising partnership was formed.

In the words of Coach Shpilband, "Tanith and Ben are one of the most talented and well-matched teams I have ever coached. I believe that they can become one of the best North American teams ever."

In the summer of 1999, Tanith and Ben launched an impressive return to the competitive circuit. In their first U.S. competition together, they swept the field, winning first place marks from every judge in every event and creating a buzz in U.S. skating circles. The USFSA was so impressed by their performance that it took the unusual step of immediately asking the couple to represent the U.S. on the international Junior Grand Prix circuit - the world's highest level of junior international competition.

In their first Junior Grand Prix, in Montreal, Canada, Tanith and Ben again dominated the competition and won the gold medal. Later in 1999, they travelled to Japan for another Grand Prix event, where they narrowly lost to the Italian Junior National Champions, earning a silver medal. These two strong performances earned them a spot in the Junior Grand Prix Final in Poland, where they battled some of the world's best teams to finish in 4th place - an impressive result for a new team.

In 2000, Tanith and Ben carried their international success into the U.S. National Figure Skating Championships and emerged as National Junior Ice Dance Champions. Following that accomplishment they carried the U.S. flag to Germany for the Junior World Figure Skating Championships where they clearly established themselves as one of the top contenders, bringing home a bronze medal - a notable and rare achievement for such a new team. This served as a promise of great things to come.

After being named to Team Envelope A for the 2001 season, Tanith and Ben welcomed the daunting challenge of competing on both the junior and senior competitive circuits. Sweeping their Junior Grand Prix Events and winning two gold medals, Tanith and Ben followed through to win the series final.

Entering the US Championships with considerable momentum, Tanith and Ben fought back from a fourth place finish after the compulsary dances to win a silver medal after an entertaining original dance and inspired free skate.

"Ben and I really put our hearts into each of our performances," recalled Tanith.

"I think knowing that we had nothing to lose out there really put us in the right mind frame."

Demonstrating maturity, a polished effort and originality, Tanith and Ben were justly awarded a spot on the 2001 World Championships team, an honor that Ben recounts as, "almost overwhelming, but I wouldn't have changed it for anything."

The following season, they continued to gain attention and respect with solid 5th and 6th place finishes at both Skate America and Trophee Lalique in their first year on the Senior Grand Prix circuit. Using the confidence gained by their success, Tanith and Ben went on to defend their silver medal at the US National championships, and earned themselves a spot on three coveted international teams: the Four Continents Championships, the World Junior Championships and Senior World Championships.

Winning their first senior international medal, they finished second at the Four Continents event in Korea and shortly thereafter, headed to Norway to claim their long-awaited title of World Junior Champions. Next, Tanith and Ben dove straight into the World Championships where they gained 4 placements from the previous year, finishing 13th overall.

The young team of Belbin and Agosto turned heads in 2002, and are now anxious to take advantage of being in the spotlight heading into the new season. With their unique chemistry, skill, and love for the sport, they are bound to continue on the path of success for years to come.

--The Official Site