U.S. Pairs Skating Champions Separate

The much-publicized story of the waitress and truck driver who paired to skate in the Winter Olympics came to an end Wednesday when Calla Urbanski announced that she and Rocky Marval will separate later this month.

Citing incompatibility in their approaches to training, Urbanski said: “We had differences of opinion. We wasted a lot of time because of that.”

Urbanski, a waitress from Skokie, Ill., and Marval, who operates a trucking company in New Egypt, N.J., won the national figure skating championship in pairs this year to earn a berth in the Winter Olympics in France, where they finished 10th. One month later, they improved to seventh in the World Championships at Oakland.

“Our story was great, but I don’t want to be known just for the story,” Urbanski said. “I want to be known because of my skating.”

While Marval, 26, searches for a new partner, Urbanski, 31, said that she has decided to skate next season with Scott Kurttila of Colorado Springs, Colo.

It is the sixth time in her career that she has changed partners.

“You have to kiss a few toads before you find the right prince,” she said.