Karl Schäfer: Vienna's Golden Boy

Photo courtesy United Archives

Hailing from Vienna, Austria, Karl Schäfer remains to this day one of the most accomplished male athletes figure skating has ever seen. Along with Gillis Grafström and Dick Button, he is one of only three skaters to win an Olympic men's title more than once (not counting Evgeni Plushenko who won an Olympic men's and team gold medal). He won a whopping seven consecutive World titles from 1930 to 1936 and eight consecutive European titles from 1929 to 1936. However, the story of Karl Schäfer is so much more than trophies and medals and through a little research, I'm excited to be able to share a bit more of that story with you than you might have previously known.

Photos courtesy German Federal Archive, Bildarchiv Austria

Karl Schäfer was born on May 17, 1909 and like most who make it to the top took up skating at a young age. He was discovered by coach Rudolf Kutzer at eleven years of age and trained at the Eduard Engelmann Sr.'s rink in Hernals and Wiener Eislaufverein in Vienna.

Although Karl was well known as a master of the school figures, he was quite an athlete for the time and as early as 1925 in his mid-teens was practicing double loops and double Lutzes at events, long before anyone had officially landed either in competition. He was an unconventional competitor in that while most skaters of the era designed their programs without music and asked an on-site orchestra to play a waltz or a ten-step as a simple backdrop to the steps, spins and jumps in their free skating routine, he created actual choreography on the fly that properly interpreted the music played. He was in this way seemingly much like master improviser Gary Beacom. In his book "Figure Skating's Greatest Stars", Steve Milton shared U.S. judge Joel Liberman's impression of Karl's free skating: "Schäfer says he has no real program. He introduces elements from his vast pool of them, as the music allows. His rather casual program depends upon execution and surprise more than pattern. Every move with Schäfer must be a novelty." Among his trademarks were his Axel, spread eagle and sit spin.

Not only a strong skater, Karl found success as a swimmer, winning the Austrian breaststroke title seven times. At the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, he competed in the two hundred meter breaststroke. After qualifying from the first heat with a time of 2:56.6, he was unfortunately eliminated in the second semi-final of the event. He and Eduard Engelmann Jr. also won three Austrian titles in motorboating (Peter Griffin laugh) in the 750 cm3 class.

Top: Karl Schäfer and EWASK swimmer Herr Jahn. Photo courtesy Bildarchiv Austria.. Bottom: Karl playing table tennis with Cecilia Colledge in Lugano.

Karl was also a very talented musician as well. He played both the saxophone and violin and later in life had his very own dance band. One might say that his understanding of music while playing it contributed to his ability to so expertly improvise to and interpret it. The versatile Austrian also excelled as tennis.

Karl's career wasn't without controversy, and the biggest one was through absolutely no fault of his own. At the 1930 European Championships, the referee and Yugoslavian judge both were not certified by the ISU. This fact wasn't discovered until after the competition. Czechoslovakian Jozef Sliva (who had never placed higher than fourth at an international competition) won, defeating Karl, and the ISU ended up ordering the competition to be reskated a month later in Berlin. Karl won; Sliva did not attend. Gotta love judging funny business. It's been around since the beginning and still goes on...

Okay, back! Just had to get a quick hug from Alla Shekhovtsova. We'll carry on with Karl Schäfer!

Photo courtesy Bildarchiv Austria

After defeating a who's who of skating during that era to win his seven World titles and two Olympic gold medals including three time and reigning Olympic men's champion Gillis Grafström at the 1932 Games, Karl retired from competition in 1936. He married fellow skater Christine Engelmann and skated professionally in U.S. club carnivals, on Crystal Lake in West Orange, New Jersey and on his Gay Blades tour with 1932 Olympic Bronze Medallist Maribel Vinson (where she met her future husband Guy Owen).

Left: Karl Schäfer and his wife Christine Engelmann. Photo courtesy National Archives of Poland. Right: Karl Schäfer and a group of young German skaters prior to World War II. Photo courtesy United Archives.

In 1938, he returned to Vienna and opened a sports store. He also worked with skating coach Herta Wachter and formed the Karl-Schäfer-Eisrevue, which was a forerunner to the popular Vienna Ice Revue. In 1943, Karl and Olly Holzmann starred in the film "Der weiße Traum" (The White Dream), which was produced on Engelmann's ice rink.

Photos courtesy United Archives

By the end of World War II, Eduard Engelmann Sr. had passed away and the rink had been damaged badly by bombings. Karl worked with the family both physically and financially to help rebuild it. He stayed and taught skating at the rink for ten years before moving to the U.S. to teach skaters there until 1962. He then returned to his beloved Vienna where he lived and taught skating until his death on April 23, 1976 at the age of only sixty six. He was buried in the Hernalser cemetery in Vienna in the Engelmann family tomb.

Karl Schäfer, Sepp and Josef Staudinger. Photo courtesy Bildarchiv Austria.

According to Siegfried Neuhold, "Schäfer received the large gold medal for services to the Republic of Austria and the large golden Medal of the Province of Vienna. In the foyer, the stairway to the ice skating rink in the Syring 6-8 in 1988 unveiled a plaque commemorating Karl. A street in Vienna was named after him." Within the figure skating community, he was remembered with the annual Karl Schäfer Memorial competition, which was held annually from 1974 to 2008. Winners over the years included fantastic skaters like Brian Orser, Nancy Kerrigan, Lu Chen, Carolina Kostner, Tatiana Volosozhar, Margarita Drobiazko and Povilas Vanagas, Laetitia Hubert, Rudy Galindo, Nicole Bobek, Michael Chack, Kyoko Ina and Jason Dungjen, Tomáš Verner, Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin and Krisztina Czako, In 1997 and 2005 the event served as an Olympic qualifying competition for countries who had not previously qualified spots for skaters through the World Championships process.

Karl Schäfer presenting a young skater to Prince Bernhard at the Wiener Stadthalle in 1962. Photo courtesy Dutch National Archives. 

Karl  not only made it through seven years on the top undefeated with the exception of that hullabaloo in 1930, but also went on to do a really good thing for skating. He personally helped rebuild the rink that he trained on after World War II, which provided a training space for a whole new generation of talented skaters in his country to succeed and carry on where he'd finished... and Austrian skaters did continue to succeed! I also love that he shared his knowledge in the U.S. as well. We owe a lot of gratitude for this man's contributions to skating.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Amélie Lacoste

Canadian Champion Amélie Lacoste not only accumulated 6.0 medals on the novice, junior and senior levels at the Canadian Championships and 6.0 top ten finishes at the Four Continents Championships during the course of her career which spanned more than a decade, but she mesmerized audiences with her passion and athleticism in every performance. Turning to professional skating last year, she is currently taking the high seas by storm performing aboard cruise ships! By way of the sunny Caribbean, Amélie took the time to talk to me about her competitive career including her favourite memories, the disappointment of missing the Sochi Olympic team by one spot, her decision to train in Colorado Springs during her final season competing, her present life as a professional skater and future goals. You are NOT going to want to miss this one!:

Q: You've had some wonderful successes in your career! For starters, Canadian titles on the novice, junior AND senior levels. You've also made trips to the World Junior Championships, Four Continents Championships and World Championships and won the bronze medal at Skate Canada International in 2010. Reflecting on your competitive career, what moments or memories will always stand out to you as the most special?

A: Of course, winning the National Championships was a dream come true and the goal of the season. I always had big goals and worked extra hard to achieve them. Getting my ticket for the World Championships in Nice and the chance to compete in the team event for the World Team Trophy in Japan were two amazing experiences. I will never forget theses great moments. Also, not to forget my clean short program at Skate Canada 2013 and at the last Nationals. I was able to do exactly what I was doing the past few months in practice in Colorado Springs. It was an incredible feeling.

Q: Last season, you moved to Colorado Springs to work with Damon Allen and Christy Krall. Why did you decide to make this change and what did you take from the experience?

A: My training wasn't going like I wanted. I wasn't in a good place emotionally and in my head. I knew I needed a change. After talking to my sports psychologist and my Mom, I decided I needed to move to a different training center. It wasn't easy. I knew I only had couple of months before Nationals and it was a risk. I trusted my gut and followed my heart. My family was behind me all the way. I had two option in my head, and I finally decided to go to Colorado Springs to work with Christy Krall and Damon Allen. I had to chance to work with Christy two or three times before. She came to Montreal to give seminars and I really enjoyed the way she was coaching and her approach and philosophy. It was always been a dream to go train in Colorado Springs. I knew there were some of the best coaches in the world and training in altitude was also going to help me with my skating.
It was an incredible experience. Every single day I was thankful of the change I made. I had to chance to train with many skaters with a goal that was the same as mine: a place on the Olympic Team. Christy and Damon helped me to trust my skills when it comes to competition. They also helped me to stay calm in a stressful situation. They taught me to skate with my heart and enjoy every moment.

Q: You announced your decision to retire from competitive skating in May of last year and have since starting skating professionally on a cruise ship! What has the transition from "amateur" to professional skating been like for you and what's next in your journey?

A: It's been an amazing experience so far. I really enjoy travelling in Europe (Spain, Italy and France). I had to chance to visit many places and eat the best pizza and drink the best espresso! Now we are in the Caribbean until the end of my contract. I enjoy it a lot. I plan to do an other contract after this one. I also want to start my university eventually and continue my coaching back home.

Q: I can only imagine how heartbreaking it must have been to narrowly miss spots on the Vancouver and Sochi Olympic teams after working so hard and achieving so much in your career. Were the Olympics the 'be all, end all' for you or was it more about the whole experience for you?

A: I'm not sure if I understand 'be all, end all" but the Olympics were obviously the ultimate goal. Not making the team was heartbreaking. Although, I had to keep my head up knowing I did everything in my power to achieve my goal. I took the risk to change coaches and training center just couple months before Nationals, I trained six days a week for about twenty five hours on ice and off-ice. I did everything. The day of my long program was just not my day. Of course I was nervous, but I knew I was able to control my nerves. Christy and I worked a lot of that aspect during training.
I believe, one day, I will go to the Olympics... maybe not as a skater, but maybe as a coach or team leader.

Q: Of all of the programs you've skated in your career, what was your favourite to perform?

A: It's a very difficult question. I have more than just one favourite program. I loved my "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" choreographed by Julie Marcotte. It was very special for me because I won Nationals with it. My last programs, the Peter Gabriel short and Amelie Poulin long were a "coup de coeur" for me. I loved to train them and perform them.

Q: Shae-Lynn Bourne, Jeffrey Buttle, Pasquale Camerlengo and of course Christy Krall who we talked about earlier... you've worked with a who's who of great choreographers. Is choreography ever something you'd want to get involved with yourself?

A: I am so thankful I had the chance to work with so many great choreographers in my career. I choreographed my first junior long program last June for a skater from Switzerland. It was a great experience and a lot of fun and I would like to choreograph other programs in the near future.

Q: What albums could you listen to on repeat every day?

A: Beyoncé's new album from 2013 and Jason Mraz's acoustic album.

Q; Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A: Joannie Rochette. She's a role model for me and she's a fantastic friend. She's very humble and she had every quality (the whole package) of the best skaters in the world. Sasha Cohen. Her flexibility, her spins and attitude on the ice were great. She was a very fierce skater. Michelle Kwan. Flexibility, her strong jumps, her attitude and determination on the ice. Like Sasha, she was a queen on the ice. I never got the chance to meet her. One day maybe.

Q: What's one thing most people don't know about you?

A: I'm a vegetarian, I love hot yoga and I love baking.

Q: What do you love more than anything about figure skating?

A: I love the feeling of being free on the ice. Clean edges, footwork... I actually miss training a lot. Being able to do my jumps on a big Olympic size ice rink. Also, when the season starts, I love watching the new programs and who's got the new tricks.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

The Other World Champions, Part 3

Going back a bit, I wrote a series of articles called "The Other Olympic Gold Medallists" (Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3) that shared the stories of eighteen men, ladies, pairs teams and ice dancing duos that won Olympic Gold and were lesser known to North American audiences. Their stories highlighted everything from love triangles and judging scandals to criminal convictions, a pop music career and winning an Olympic gold medal while pregnant. Prior to the 2014 World Championships in Saitama, I decided to do the same thing with some of figure skating's "lesser known" World Champions in Part 1 and Part 2 of a new series called "The Other World Champions". Why stop there, right? With the 2015 World Figure Skating Championships in Shanghai, China just around the corner, it's time for a long at more incredible World Champions you may not know:

KRISZTINA REGŐCZY AND ANDRÁS SALLAY

If many of their rivals at the time were more clinical in their approach to interpreting music, Hungary's Regőczy and Sallay were anything but. Full of vim and vigor, the duo steadily moved their way up the ranks from thirteenth in their first Worlds appearance in 1973 to third in 1978, second in 1979 and first in 1980, where they overtook Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karponosov, the Russian duo who had defeated them at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. An upset in ice dance? Say it isn't so! The team turned professional after their 1980 upset at Worlds and went on to also win that year's World Professional Championships alongside teammates Robin Cousins, Linda Fratianne and Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner. They won the 1982 World Pro title as well, skating to "Bolero" before Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean in fact did. Today, Sallay is the managing director of IMG Hungary and Regőczy is the figure skating sports director for the ISU.

FELIX KASPAR

At the age of nine in Vienna, Felix Kaspar began his figure skating career. After winning the 1937 European and World titles and the 1938 European title, Kaspar would bravely travel to the heart of Nazi Germany in 1938 (right before the onset of World War II) and take the title. This was no small feat considering he as an Austrian was competing on German soil at a politically charged time and the referee of the panel in the men's event and one of the judges were both German.

Nevertheless, Kaspar was an exceptional jumper and was able to move up from a second place finish in the school figures to win the free skate. To give you an idea about just how impressive Kaspar's jumps were, Maribel Vinson, writing in The New York Times in 1937, said his jumps measured as much as four and a half feet high and nineteen feet long. Shortly after winning his second World title, Kaspar fled the volatile region to safety in Australia where he met his wife. He took up coaching in 1940 and later moved to the U.S., where he coached skaters like Japan's Emi Watanabi and 1963 U.S. Men's Champion Tommy Litz. Kaspar later returned to Europe (even Germany in fact) to perform in shows and opted to retire from coaching in 1989. He moved with his wife June to Florida, where he enjoyed tennis and golf until his death after living with Alzheimer's Disease in 2003.

LILLY SCHOLZ AND OTTO KAISER

Perhaps best known for winning the silver medal at the 1928 Winter Olympic Games, Austria's Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser actually won five consecutive medals at the World Figure Skating Championships culminating in a gold medal in 1929 in Budapest, Hungary. Then twenty five and twenty seven, Scholz and Kaiser defeated two other Austrian teams as well as teams from Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Germany to win their World title. After winning the 1929 World title, Kaiser retired and Scholz (later Lilly Gaillard) went on to win three more medals at the European Championships with her second partner Willy Petter before retiring from competition in 1933. While Scholz' date of death is unknown, we do know that Kaiser passed away in 1977.

DIANNE DE LEEUW

Although she was born in California, Dianne de Leeuw wisely chose to take advantage of her mother's joint citizenship with the Netherlands and in doing so, still stands as the most recent Dutch skater to win a World title. Success came fast and furious for the young skater. After finishing seventeenth and fifteenth on her first two outings at the World Championships in 1972 and 1973, de Leeuw catapulted to third place at the 1974 World Championships and in 1975 in Colorado Springs (despite losing the free skate portion of the event to Dorothy Hamill) wins in both the compulsory figures and short program assured Dianne de Leeuw the World title. The following year, de Leeuw won the European title, the silver medal at the Innsbruck Olympics and a bronze medal at that year's World Championships. Following the 1976 season, de Leeuw turned professional and toured with both Holiday On Ice and Ice Follies, won the World Professional Championships in 1983 and turned to coaching.

GÖSTA SANDAHL

Sweden's Gösta Sandahl claimed the European title in 1912 and in his first trip to the World Championships in 1914, he pulled off a major upset in unseating the two time and defending World Champion Fritz Kachler... and the previous year's silver medallist Willy Böckl and bronze medallist Andor Szende to boot... as well his young teammate, as a twenty year old Gillis Grafström.

He was a strong free skater and it was his free skate that won him the title, as he'd placed third in the compulsory figures that year. World War I effectively made those World Championships the last for a while but Sandahl survived the war and came back in an effort to defend his glory at the 1923 World Championships in Vienna, however his efforts were good enough for the bronze medal as his former rivals Kachler and Böckl proved unbeatable on his second and final go at the World title.

MAXI HERBER AND ERNST BAIER

A wonderful photo of Maxi and Ernst donated to BIS by Great Britain's first ice dance champion Daphne Walker. Walker and her partner spent a lot of time training with Maxi and Ernst in Celerina, Switzerland. The original photo (scanned and provided by BIS historian Elaine Hooper) is signed in the original ink.

1936 Olympic Gold Medallists Maxi Herber (an artist who often sketched her skating competitors) and Ernst Baier (an architect) won a total of four World Championships together and seemed poised to go for a second Olympic gold had the 1940 Winter Olympics not been cancelled due to World War II, but their exceptional success together as a pairs team is often overshadowed by their tumultuous relationship off the ice.

After their "amateur" career ended in 1940, Herber and Baier married, had three children, owned their own business and toured as professional skaters. In 1963 the couple divorced and Herber was left in such a bad position by the divorce she was forced to depend on social services to even survive. She found assistance as well through the Deutsche Sporthilfe (German Sport help organization) and she moved to Oberau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria. In the interim, Baier had married Swedish professional skater Birgitta Wennström and had a fourth child. Baier and Wennström divorced as well... and incredibly even after all of this, Herber and Baier chose to remarry in 1973. They later divorced a second time. Later in life, Herber suffered from Parkinson's Disease and moved to a retirement home where she took up watercolor painting and even gave an exhibit of her work. Baier passed away in 2001 and Herber in 2006. At the time of Maxi Herber's death, she was the oldest surviving German Olympic Champion.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Nineteenth Century Muslim Figure Skaters: Yes, You Read That Right

The exploration of skating's rich history has taken me down some pretty unexpected 'corridors' but perhaps few as unanticipated as this particular tale. Muslim people ice skating in the nineteenth century? Yes, you read that right.

John Moyer Heathcote's wonderful 1892 book "Skating - Figure Skating" shares the following story so unbelievable I had to read it three times to wrap my pretty little head around it: "On one occasion the sport aroused the enthusiasm of the natives of what is now part of the Chinese Empire. In the winter of 1873-74 and English officer attached to Sir Douglas Forsyth's mission to Yarkand crossed the Himalayas from Cashmere, and spent four months at Kashgar, a town north of Yarkand. A lake four miles in length adjoined his residence, and being the fortunate possessor of a pair of 'Acmes,' he was accustomed to indulge daily in his favourite amusement. The Turcomans, who are of the strictest sect of Mahomedans, and who are wont to envelop their nether limbs in roomy pantaloons, were at first disposed to regard the exposition of even the male human leg encased in close-fitting integuments with feelings akin to those of the sternest of metropolitan stage-censors; but the Ameer having evinced a keen interest in the sport, curiosity after a time overcame their scruples. On one occasion, when Sir Douglas Forsyth's party were paying a visit to the Governor of Kashgar, my friend skated on the reservoir in his grounds, an object of wonder and admiration, and a ringing cheer broke from the spectators, more than two thousand in number, when accepting a cup of tea he skated away with it, taking an occasional sip without checking his career. The Ameer, on hearing of this, was so pleased that he ordered seven pairs of skates to be made forthwith. The task was entrusted to the most skillful local mechanic, who supplied a very respectable skate with a wooden foot-stock and blade of the best procurable iron. Some young athletes were told off for instruction, one of whom, a mullah (priest), proved an intelligent pupil, and a credit to his instructor." Well, how about that? Bet you didn't see that one coming!

I am all about primary sources when available so as much as I admire the research in Heathcote's book, I turned to the "Autobiography and Reminiscences of Sir Douglas Forsyth, C.B., K.C.S.I., F.R.G.S." to see if Sir Douglas Forsyth himself made any mention of ice skating with the Mohamedan people and sure enough, he did. The diplomat wrote "The intensity of the winter, with a thermometer which for many weeks descended some degrees below zero, and frequently did not mount above freezing point in the sun, prevented us from moving about very freely, but it afforded us a good opportunity of showing to the astonished inhabitants the skill of some and the clumsiness 

of others of our party in the science of skating. Our relations with our good friends the Kashgarians were of the pleasantest nature, unmoved by a single contretemps, and it is with pleasure and pride I record the fact that no single instance of altercation occurred between any of our followers and the people of the country."

In present day in the United Arab Emirates, skaters like Zahra Fadhel Lari have made headlines for figure skating in hijab in competition. Times are changing and figure skating just may be the universal language that in some way brings all citizens of our world together to enjoy the peace of cutting a beautiful edge... and it's heartening to think that skating brought just that very sense of harmony between two very different cultures back in the nineteenth century. As Bob Marley famously sang: "One love, one heart... Let's get together and feel alright..."

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Journey From The Past: Skating With The Romanov Family

The 1997 film Anastasia was loosely based on the "legend" that Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia, the youngest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra Fyodorovna (former Alix Of Hesse), in fact survived the execution of her family. I use the words "legend" in quotation as that's always going to be a hotly debated topic - look at the case of a woman who went by the name Anna Anderson who purported to be Grand Duchess Anastasia until her death in 1984. Following an exhumation and DNA testing ten years after Anderson's death, it is now widely believed by scientists and historians alike that Anderson wasn't Anastasia (or Anderson for that matter) after all but instead Franziska Schanzkowska, a Polish factory worker with a history of mental illness. At any rate, the 1997 film, the "legend" of Anna Anderson and the 1918 grisly execution of the entire Romanov family (the last sovereign rulers of Imperial Russia) have remained stories that have kept the Russia Imperial Family in our collective cultural consciousness well into the twenty first century.

Anna Anderson and Grand Duchess Anastasia (side by side comparison)

Preceeding Tsar Nicholas II as Russia's imperial ruler was Tsar Alexander III, the son of Tsar Alexander II. Like Nicholas II, Alexander II was also assassinated while in power. What does this all have to do with skating you ask? I'm getting there. On March 13, 1881, Tsar Alexander II attended a parade at the Michael Riding School and then visited his cousin Grand Duchess Catherine Michaelovna. Warned by his wife Empress Maria Alexandrovna not to follow his usual route home because of possible terrorist attacks, Alexander II took a different route but unfortunately the conspirators aiming to end his life caught on and changed their plans. The blog Unofficial Royalty explains that "Alexander II was riding in a bomb proof carriage, a gift from Emperor Napoleon III of France. As the carriage turned on to the Catherine Canal Embankment, a bomb was thrown. The carriage was damaged and several onlookers were wounded, but the tsar was unharmed. Next, Alexander II made the mistake that cost him his life. Unaware that another conspirator was leaning against a railing about six feet away, he left the carriage to inspect the damage and check on the wounded people, and a bomb was thrown directly between the tsar’s legs. The noise from the bomb was deafening, smoke filled the air, wounded people were screaming, and the snow was drenched with blood. When the smoke cleared, Tsar Alexander II lay mortally wounded, his legs crushed and torn from the blast of the bomb. Alexander asked to be taken to the Winter Palace so he could die there."

Alexander III and Dagmar Of Denmark

Still no skating? What up with that? Grab yourself a cocktail. I'm getting there sweetie. The Russian Imperial Family all poured in - in a state of shock and horror - at the Emperor's deathbed. Among those in the room was Princess Dagmar of Denmark (Nicholas II's daughter in the law), the wife of Alexander III. Dagmar was still wearing her skating costume and carrying her ice skates as she had been planning to go ice skating. After the Tsar Alexander II's tragic death, Alexander III would succeed his father and Dagmar would become Russia's new Empress. Dagmar was actually quite fond of ice skating and dancing and would take to the ice socially quite often. She also enjoyed riding and hunting which socially would have caused quite a stir at the time. It's also quite interesting to note that Dagmar wasn't the only Russian royal for whom ice skating would play an important role in their story: Alexandra Fyodorovna (former Alix Of Hesse) and Tsar Nicholas II went ice skating during the 1889 visit of Alix to St. Petersburg and it was this ice skating date that sealed the deal for the couple. Interestingly, their icy union was heavily opposed by Queen Victoria, who almost lost her beloved Prince Albert in a skating mishap over forty years previous. Was the real reason for Victoria's disapproval that she didn't like Alix going to Russia or had ice skating left a superstitious bad omen in the Queen's mouth? In the end, it didn't matter. Nicholas II and Alix married and passed on their love of skating to a third generation of Russian royals. Grand Duchesses Anastasia and Olga took to the ice themselves!

Grand Duchesses Anastasia and Olga ice skating

Less than twenty years after the execution of the Romanov family, Juri Scheljabuschski would release "Katok", a crudely animated but absolutely delightful Berlinale film that no doubt drummed up interest in ice skating amongst the Soviet people in between World War I and II. The Soviet Championships in figure skating had only been held beginning in 1920, and during that period, skaters like pairs team Maria Laskevich and Igor Vonzblein, Yuri Zel'dovich, Ivan Bogoyavlenski and Tatiana (Granatkina) Tolmachevawould hold court in skating circles. I like to think that the Romanov family that met their tragic end and the imperial rulers that preceeded them would look down on these pioneers of figure skating in their country and smile. The Soviet and Russian stronghold in skating all started somewhere... and perhaps in some small way it was all inspired by a country looking up to the example of their leadership.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Jussiville Partanen

Two time Finnish junior champion and two time Finnish senior silver medallist in ice dance Jussiville Partanen has travelled the long road but is finally hitting his stride on the ice. After ending his partnership with Canada's Sara Aghai in 2013, Partanen formed a new partnership with Cecilia Törn and it's been without question a promising one. We talked about the highs and lows of his career so far, working with skating greats like Marina Zueva and Maurizio Margaglio, his goals for the future and much more in this refreshing interview:

Q: You've had success at the national level in Finland with three different partners - Laima Krasnitskaja, Sarah Aghai and of course, your current partner Cecilia Törn, with whom you won the silver medal in the senior dance competition at Finnish Nationals both this season and last. What moments in competition have been your proudest so far and which have been the most trying?

A: I have to say there have been a couple of great moments at competitions. Skating with Sara, I'd say the Junior Worlds in Minsk were definitely a highlight of our career together. The Junior Worlds in Milan on the other hand, were a definite low point that ultimately led to a hard decision to leave Canada. With Cecilia (Cessi, we call her) I'd say each competition has been a blast. The proudest moment probably was at our first Nationals together when we won the silver medal after such a short time together.

Q: Being from Helsinki and being an ice dancer, I think it's safe to say that Susanna Rahkamo and Petri Kokko are two skaters that probably had some influence on your career. Are they a team you look up to?

A: Susanna and Petri are most certainly a team that we look up to! The way they tried to always break the norm and do something different was incredible. Getting to work with them last season and getting tips on the Finnstep was definitely inspiring. It was a great moment for us.

Q: Your free dance this season is set to the music of Pink Floyd. Who picked the music and the concept and how has this program challenged you most?

A: It was first suggested to us by Maurizio. I have to say I liked the idea immediately and luckily it grew on Cessi eventually too. He also came up with the concept of the program and how it should be like. Working with Massimo Scali in Detroit, we built a program around this initial concept and we have both loved it and gotten a lot of great feedback on it. The most challenging part about the program, or any other program I'd say, is for us to try and be even more like ice dancers - improving on the basics and the fluidity and smoothness of movements.

Q:  You are currently coached by World Champion Maurizio Margaglio. What is your relationship like with Maurizio and how has he brought out in the best in you and Cecilia as a team?

A: Working with Maurizio has been amazing. The fact that he has so much inspiration to coach and a clear idea of what he wants from us and what we need to do to achieve this is great. He listens to what we want or ideas that we might have and takes this into consideration. We have a good relationship with him. It's nice to be able to joke around with him while also maintaining the professionalism.

Q: You've also of course worked with Marina Zueva on choreography. How would you describe the process of working with Marina on a program?

A: Working with Marina has of course been quite humbling! The fact that we got to skate on the same ice with Olympians was such an honour. It's easy to see why she has had so much success. She knows what she wants from the skaters and what their strengths are and builds on that. A lot of making a program with her was throwing ideas around and then she would suddenly show us what she came up with, which was usually something very good. It's a great experience and we both definitely look up to her.

Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world you haven't visited yet, where would you go and why... and what's one place you HAVE visited you'd love to spend more time in?

A: I'd love to visit Japan as I have never been there before. Just the culture and the different atmosphere and the architecture is something I'd love to see! The place I'd like to go back to is Vancouver, for sure. After spending three years skating there, it's like a second home.

Q: What are your long term goals in the sport and what are your current focuses in training?

A: Our long term goals are to hopefully improve our rankings and make it onto the Grand Prix circuit! Also, the 2017 Worlds in Helsinki are a goal for us, and of course getting to compete at the next Olympics. We are currently just trying to improve overall - to solidify our partnership, to be able to dance closer together... Simple but important things!

Q: How would you describe your perfect day OFF the ice?

A: My perfect day off the ice would be hanging out with my family and friends and just enjoying life outside of skating. Lately, I've also started to enjoy hitting the gym, so that would probably happen at some point of the day too.

Q: Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A: Tessa and Scott definitely. His way of skating is quite flawless and their partnership and spirit are great. Also, Papadakis and Cizeron. They have that something that makes one want to watch them skate. And of course, Plushenko, with his artistry and everything.

Q: What's one thing about you most people don't know?

A: Most people don't know that I'm ultimately a huge dork! We do a lot of crazy and stupid things with Cessi and just like to have fun and keep the humor in everything. 

Q: What is the biggest lesson that figure skating has taught you about life?

A: Skating has taught me perseverance. If you want to succeed in something, you have work for it and put the time and energy needed into it.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Words Of Wisdom: Timeless Advice From Maribel Vinson Owen

In her awe inspiring career, Maribel Vinson Owen won an incredible fifteen U.S. titles, nine of them as a singles skater and the rest as a pairs skater with partners Thornton Coolidge and George 'Geddy' Hill. She also won an Olympic bronze medal behind Sonja Henie in 1932, medals at the World, North American and European Championships, wrote for "The New York Times" and embarked in one of the most successful coaching careers in U.S. figure skating history. Among her students were 1956 Olympic Gold Medallist Tenley Albright, Michelle Kwan's future coach Frank Carroll and her own daughters Maribel and Laurence, U.S. Champions both as well.

As we all know, Maribel and her daughters were among the seventy two passengers who lost their lives on the ill fated Sabena Flight 548 that killed the entire 1961 U.S. team and changed the course of figure skating history as we know it. At the time of her death, Maribel was only forty nine. As you may not know, though, during her tenure as a respected coach Maribel wrote three books about skating and it was by great luck that I happened upon a copy of her 1938 "Primer Of Figure Skating". As I leafed through the book, I was taken aback with the detailed instruction on ice dance and school figures but what got me most was the commanding and insightful voice that jumped off the pages. Rather than write a biography on Maribel's incredible career (check out Patricia Shelley Bushman's "Indelible Tracings" and "Indelible Images" for tons on Maribel) I thought it best to share Maribel's own words of wisdom about the sport and art of figure skating... all of which has bearing both to skaters and coaches today. Get yourself that hot beverage I'm always talking about and prepare to learn a thing or two from a long lost legend...

"The arched back, well-bent skating knee, nearly straight free knee, and turned-out free hip and toe, combined into the upright, easy posture of the graceful figure skater is not a natural position for anyone at first. On the other hand no matter how facile on your blades you may later become, you will never be truly graceful unless you do have a nearly straight free knee well turned out from the hip, a well-pointed free instep, and an arched back, so you might as well begin practicing them from the very first stroke."

"You must have a good opening and a good finish, in other words, a good first impression and a good last impression. That is important. Since you will be marked for difficulty and variety, you must include as many different moves of as much difficulty as you are sure of doing well; but since you are also to be marked for 'performance', you will only get demerits instead of credits for things you can't really execute properly. This is why most novices fail to remember and why a lot of them are surprised when their marks go up. 'But I did a Lutze jump, a change-of-foot spin, and tried an Axel-Paulsen,' they may say. 'Don't I get credit for that?' Yes, but look at how you did them: touched the free foot, wobbled, and almost fell after the Lutze; struggled in awkward position and traveled many feet on the spin, actually fell on the Axel, and were badly out of position on almost everything, while so-and-so who won did far less but did what he did correctly. The answer to all this is, don't do a senior program until you are a senior skater. If you are a novice you will get far more credit for doing a novice program in really good style than if you scramble untidily through a routine that is still beyond your powers."

"The main thing is to present your program and yourself as well as you can. Remember you are yourself, an individual not quite like anyone else; so your performance must be your own, individual, not quite like anyone else's."

"You should utilize the whole ice surface, neglecting neither one end nor the other nor yet the middle. Diagonal moves and center figures that move across the ice lend variety and should not be neglected. It is infinitely boring always to watch a skater moving in one direction. You can gain interest, too, by varying the tempo of your moves, some slow to contrast with the speed of most of the program, but always in time to the music. Keep all your moves within easy sight of all spectators. Don't dance too close to the sides of the rink or to the ends; that way someone is sure to miss part of what you are doing."

"Anything that doesn't contribute an impression of speed and freedom of movement is undesirable."

"I am sure you realize that everyone who takes up this beautiful, exasperating, baffling, fascinating sport of figure skating feels like that from time to time. There is nothing to do but persevere, practice, and above all think what may be the trouble. For days you may be annoyed at a stubborn figure that simply will not seem to fall in line, and then just when you are about to give it all up and present your skates to the nearest corner urchin, you get it! It all seems amazingly simple then, figure skating is the most satisfying thing in the whole world, and you begin your next figure with a burst of confidence. That is how it should be. That is how it will always be as long as you glide on steel runners."

"You may not be able to do everything; but you will surely want to know everything. There is just one rule that seems to apply to every one of us who takes up the 'art sport' (as the newspapers are wont to call it), and that is: Once a skater, always a skater."

Those final words, once a skater, always a skater... Isn't that the truth? Thank you, Maribel, for allowing me a glimpse into your perspective through your words so many decades later. It was a privilege.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Daphne Walker's Elephant

In the thirties, elephant charms were all the rage in England. A young Daphne Walker started collecting them and at age eight started wearing a small green elephant talisman for good luck. She collected over three hundred elephant ornaments over the years and the funny thing is, in learning about her story it was clearly talent and hard work - not luck - that brought her to the European and World figure skating podiums both before AND after World War II.

According to BIS historian Elaine Hooper, sport was in Daphne's blood: "Her grandfather was President of Britain's Amateur Boxing Association and her father an expert marksman."  At age ten, she competed at an international event for European junior skaters in St. Moritz, Switzerland and finished third. In 1936, a then eleven year old Daphne caused a stir in the media when her participation at the British Championships changed the event's schedule and caused London County Council lawmakers to ponder their laws. At the time, there was a section of law in England called the Young Children and Persons Act which forbade young people to give public exhibitions after 7 PM unless it was for charity. In order to circumvent the rule, organizers waited until midnight (which technically was considered the morning of the next day) to allow her to be seen by the judges. According to the May 7, 1936 edition of The Sydney Morning Herald, "The difficulty was surmounted by allowing Daphne to skate at midnight, when there were no general spectators. The orchestra, which had played for her rivals earlier in the evening, was silent, but someone was found to play the piano while the young champion performed for the judges." She finished seventh at the British Championships that year and gained a fan following in Sydney, Australia, when she travelled there on vacation and gave skating exhibitions with World Professional Champions Sadie Cambridge and Albert Embers. Daphne also travelled to South Africa, where she was the very first person to skate on the new ice rink in Johannesburg.

In 1938, Daphne made a statement at the Wembley Empire Pool and won the senior bronze medal behind Cecelia Colledge and Megan Taylor at the British Figure Skating Championships. According to an article in the January 6, 1938 edition of The Sydney Morning Herald, "The surprise of the evening was thirteen-year old Daphne Walker, who was third to Miss Colledge and Miss Megan Taylor. For free skating she obtained more marks than Miss Taylor. Following her brilliant display, Miss Walker - she was the only competitor to obtain double six (full marks) for both difficulty and execution - was chosen to represent Great Britain in the European championships at St. Moritz, in January and the world championships in February". At the time, Colledge and Taylor were 1-2 in the world, so a thirteen year old coming out of nowhere and giving them a run for their money was certainly a narrative that wasn't expected at the time. Although she wasn't able to duplicate her prodigal success at the 1938 European or World Championships (she placed tenth and seventh at those events), she did start a ball in motion that would set her up for better things the following season.

Studio portrait by Charles LTD photography of Hove Sussex

In 1939, Daphne again medalled at the British Championships. This time she was able to back up that success internationally. She won an international competition in Budapest, Hungary and  placed third behind Colledge and Taylor at the 1939 European Championships and at the 1939 World Championships (which for female skaters was held in Prague), she finished third to Taylor's first, defeating twelve other skaters from around the world in the process. In 1939 alone, she travelled to Oslo, Berlin, New York and Boston to participate in ice carnivals, an incredible feat considering the challenges in travel and the fact war broke out that year.

As expected, World War II put Daphne's skating career on hold. During the war she was a domestic science (cookery) student in Cheltenham which she followed up by taking a shorthand typing course in Kensington. For three years she worked in a clinic in Camden Town, London. We do know, however, that she did manage to get someskating in... literally while the bombs were dropping. In 1940, she participated in a charity skating gala in Scotland supporting the City Of Glasgow War Relief Fund. During this period, she trained at the Richmond Ice Rink and was a student of the late Arnold Gerschwiler. During World War II, Arnold Gerschwiler was called upon to serve in the Swiss  and he married fellow skater Violet Blundell. He undertook fire-watching duties during the war and was at the Richmond Ice Rink when a two thousand pound bomb landed in the rink's engine room. Fortunately for Gersch, Daphne and the rink, it did not explode.

After the war, Daphne returned to competitive skating with a big bang, winning her first and only British title at Wembley in 1947. Of particular note (considering the coverage that she got in Australian newspapers following her visit) is the fact by after the War Australian skaters such as her competitor Patricia Maloney were competing at the British Championships.

Daphne went on to win the bronze medal at the 1947 European Championships behind Canada's Barbara Ann Scott back when North Americans were allowed to participate and then finished second behind Scott at the 1947 World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden. She thought highly of her Canadian rival. In a 1948 edition of "World Sports", an official magazine of the British Olympic Association, she said "Personally, I rate Miss Scott's chances at St. Moritz highly. Last year, her closest competitors for the European and world titles were Gretchen Merrill of the United States and myself. Fine skater though Gretchen is, I do not expect her to reverse her position."

 

Walker and Keefe on their wedding day

Taken before Daphne and Bill married when they attended the wedding of former BBC skating commentator Alan Weeks and his bride-to-be Jane Huckle

After her dazzling comeback, Daphne retired from amateur competition and married Detroit ice comedian Bill Keefe (of the skating trio The Three Rookies) in London, England on January 17, 1948. They had met after she signed a contract and started skating professionally in Tom Arnold's "Hello, Ice" show at the Brighton Sports Stadium. She also starred in another one of Arnold's productions at the Stoll Theatre.

Daphne then came to America and toured in the road company of the Voorhees-Fleckles production of "Ice Varieties" which played at the 1950 Chicago Fair. She also skated alongside Heine Brock in Tom Arnold's production of "Dick Whittington On Ice" which toured England in the fifties.

The Three Rookies: Neil Rose, Meryl Baxter and Walker's husband Bill Keefe

Daphne was very popular and was always trying new sports. She even gave motorcycle speedway racing at Wembley a go, which was certainly not a sport women of that era generally competed in. She gave talks to children's groups and presented them with prizes for road safety. She even played tennis on ice!

Not much is known about Daphne's life following her amateur career aside from the fact she now lives in Switzerland and as recently as November lived in Durban, South Africa. We do also know that the impression that this precocious young skater made on Australian figure skating in particular after her visit at a time when skating in Australia was just growing is of particular interest, as is the story of her determination to get out there and skate in 1936, even if it was at midnight... and that her lucky elephant talisman may just have been the secret to her success.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Tuesday Double Feature: Review Time!

As the blog has grown, as have the requests. From topic ideas for blogs to events to promote, I'm always happy to weigh in on whatever is on the go in the skating world. All you have to do is ask and if I can accommodate you, I will. One thing that I've noticed happening a lot more lately are requests for me to review things like books and DVD's... so that brings me to these two reviews. From books to ballet, I decided to pull my best Leonard Maltin and offer my two cents on these two new releases:

BOOK REVIEW: ONE WISH

When I was sent an advance copy of Robyn Carr's book "One Wish" to review I vowed to myself to have an open mind. If you perused my bookshelves, you'd find two almost entirely dedicated to the "new age" and metaphysical, one full of literary greats and Giller Prize winners and another (fastly growing) full of books that have been invaluable in studying figure skating history. I'll be the first to admit that I can be a bit of a book snob and I can confidently say I have never read anything that resembled a Harlequin romance novel... until now.

Carr's book was everything you'd expect from a taudry romantic page turner... only it had a figure skating twist. The story's protagonist was 'Izzy' Grace Banks, a champion figure skater who in an effort to live of a life of obscurity took on the name Grace Dillon and moved to a small town called Thunder Point and opened a flower shop. The supporting characters were pretty much what you would expect - a handsome love interest named Troy Headly, an domineering stage mother named Winnie Dillon Banks whose own skating career hadn't resulted in gold and a tough but brilliant Russian coach named Mikhail Petrov.

My skepticism snuck in early (on page two in fact) when Grace skated to Alicia Keys' "Girl On Fire" (sound familiar anyone?) and the author described the former Olympic skater warming up with "forward and backward crossovers, backward half swizzle pumps, figure eights, scratch spins and axels". Find me an Olympic skater in 2015 who warms up with school figures so I can hug them... and swizzles? I did learn something though... apparently in the U.S. they call sculling 'swizzles' in their Basic Skills program. Who knew? Different strokes for different folks I suppose. At any rate, shaking my head on page two wasn't promising.

I pressed on, learning about Grace's virginity, hearing a man's genitalia described as "his thing" and even reading a sentence that actually said "they made love again and again. Troy knew he was screwed, and not in the usual way." I'll leave the rest of the book a bit of a mystery as the story does have some major plot twists but let it suffice to say that my first foray into the world of Harlequin paperbacks with a figure skating connection was everything I expected. I certainly applaud the creativity and challenge that comes from incorporating skating into fiction, but a Siskel and Ebert two thumbs up this story was not. Sadly, I wouldn't even give it one "swizzle". Save yourself the $9.99 and get yourself a new pair of skate guards.

DVD REVIEW: LESSONS IN BALLET FOR FIGURE SKATERS - LEVEL 1

If I wanted to watch gymnastics, I would. While I certainly appreciate the difficulty and challenge of a good triple/triple combination, skating has and always will be to me about its art. The crisp glide of an edge, the abandon of a footwork sequence perfectly timed to a piece of music, a unique spin position, a program that tells a story... Without artistry, figure skating would be nothing.

As an artistic skater myself, I can certainly appreciate the importance of an understanding of body movement and dance. I've taken ballet classes, performed as a modern dancer and even had the opportunity to experience Ecstatic Dance with the wonderful Sarah McClure. So, when Annette Thomas approached me and asked if I'd review her instructional DVD "Lessons In Ballet For The Figure Skaters: Level 1", I was of course thrilled. Thomas trained as a dancer at Carnegie Hall under the tutelage of Maria Nevelska of the Bolshoi Ballet and with Ana Garcia of the San Juan Ballet Company, Marguerite De Anguera of the Connecticut Regional Ballet Company and Mme. Alexandra Danilova and has drawn upon her own experience studying the art to produce two books on the subject: "Lessons In Classical Dance For The Figure Skater" and "Fundamentals of Alignment and Classical Movement for Figure Skaters".

Trained in the Vaganova method of ballet, which incorporates both Italian and French styles of movement, Thomas' DVD includes a video introduction, preliminary exercises, a full ballet lesson including warm-up floor exercises, barre work including demi and grand pliés, fondu par terre and rond de jamb en l'air. The most unique and effective part of the DVD in my opinion though is a "skates on" lesson of barre work presenting exercises in stance and balance that are particularly suited and well suited to figure skating posture and extension. The students demonstrating the exercises are, as Thomas attests in the DVD, not professionally trained dancers which I actually really liked. If you're trying to teach skaters without extensive dance training ballet, why not use skaters without extensive dance training? The DVD comes with an accompanying booklet that details each part of each exercise step-by-step, which I think is a fantastic teaching tool because as any skating coach or educator in any walk of life knows, people have different learning styles.

Thomas has put her instructional skills to the test with Jodi Porter's American Ice Theatre... and just look at the results in the fabulous artistic skaters with a clear understanding of body line that are coming out of the workshops and master choreography techniques classes there. You even have world renowned skaters like Caryn Kadavy participating in these master classes.

I can honestly give this DVD high praise. It's laid out and presented in such a way that any coach (at any level) can use the DVD to take their skaters back to basics and work on movement and those finishing touches themselves. It's self serve schooling and in the day and age we live in, you couldn't ask for anything better. Whether you're a skater or a coach, you're never too old or 'too good' to learn a thing or two, and hey, even if you're not a skater yourself, who wouldn't love to take a ballet class right in the comfort of their own living room? Thomas' DVD is available for purchase online at http://www.balletforfigureskaters.com directly for $59.95 USD and if you're looking for the perfect gift for that skater in your life, get yourself a copy. Not only will they thank you, the judges will too.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Christophe Belley

Danielle Earl photo

Turning many heads with his impressive final flight performance in the senior men's free skate at the Canadian Championships in Kingston, Quebec's Christophe Belley finished the competition in seventh - no small feat since he had finished only eighteenth the year before. A very stylistic skater with great attack on his jumps, he clearly made a statement that he's a name we will be hearing a lot more often in the future. Immediately following his Kingston performances, I had chance to catch up with him and talk about what made this season different, his goals, life off the ice and much more in this short but definitely sweet interview:

Q: Let's start by talking about your competitive career so far! You've represented Canada internationally on the Junior Grand Prix circuit and this year vaulted over ten places in the standings at the Canadian Championships, finishing eighteenth in 2014 and an incredible seventh this year in Kingston, Ontario. What has been different about this season?

A: Sorry if some of my answers don't make any sense, I'm French and I'm still working a lot on my English! This season, I was more prepared. I knew what to expect about being a senior men and that helped me a lot to go through the season. I also started to work with a sports mental preparer every week. She helps me with my mental weaknesses which are what hold me back from being better.

Q: You train in Drumondville with Annie Barabé, Sophie Richard and Yvan Desjardins, who also coached Shawn Sawyer when he was competing. What makes them the perfect team for you? 

A: I actually train in Contrecoeur which is closer than Drumondville from Montréal. They are the perfect team for me because they're working on the 'whole package'. They work on everything: the jumps, the spins, the choreographies, the skating skills... There are nine on-ice coaches in my team right now and I like them all.

Danielle Earl photo

Q: What's next for you? What are your goals both in skating and life in the coming months?

A: Shows are what's next for me right now. My goals for skating in the coming months are to be ready at summer competitions so I can get Challengers. I also want to work a lot more on my quads because I really need one! In my life as a young adult, my goals are to be done with college and to find a university program that I truly like.

Q: What are the strengths and weaknesses in your skating and how have you been working to improve upon your weaknesses?

A: As I said, my main weakness is my mental. I work a lot on it and I try to surround myself with lots of positive thoughts. I also have to work on the consistency of my flips and lutzes and my skating skills that are not on point yet. I'm very lucky because one of my strengths is my triple axel. Being able to perform a lot of different emotions is also a strength.

Q: What's one movie you could watch over and over again?

A: That might sound funny but I love "Project X". This is my favourite movie and I could watch it every day.

Q: If a genie could grant you three wishes, what would they be?

A: Eat whatever I want without gaining pounds, infinite bank account and unlimited plane tickets for weekend excursions.

Q: Who are your three favourite figure skaters of all time and why?

A: Alexei Yagudin is my all time favourite skater. His jumps and his ability to entertain the crowd are what makes him special to me. Michelle Kwan is my second favourite. She was such a consistent skater and could also entertain the crowd. Queen Yuna! I like her for the +3 she gets on everything she does.

Q: What's one thing most people don't know about you?

A: I work as a barman on the weekend and I love it.

Q: What makes figure skating the best sport in the world?

A: Because it combines artistry, elegance, emotions, technique, injuries and satisfaction to perfection.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.