Back In The Game Again

One year ago, he was in Hong Kong, racing cars, modelling and acting. And teaching a bit of skating on the side.
In other words, Fedor Andreev was about as far away from the Canadian figure skating championships as a guy could possibly be. And probably not imagining he'd be back anytime soon.
But the 25-year-old from Ottawa has arrived in Vancouver and is already causing a bit of a buzz, with one newspaper declaring he's one of 'five to watch' at this week's nationals.
"It's fun," Andreev said Wednesday about his first appearance at the Canadian championships since 2005, when he finished sixth in the senior men's event in London, Ont.
He'd more or less put the competitive skating bug aside in recent years, deciding to pursue some of his other interests. But toward the end of the summer, the environment at the Arctic Edge Arena in Canton, Mich. — where his mother Marina Zoueva coaches rising Canadian ice dance stars Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, among others — finally got to him.
"The whole atmosphere at the rink, with Scott and Tessa ... it really inspired me," said Andreev, once again under the tutelage of coach Richard Callaghan (Zoueva and Virtue share the choreography credits).
A resounding triumph at the Senior Challenge in December in Mississauga, Ont., has fuelled thoughts in some eyes that he might make some real noise this week in Vancouver. But Andreev's relaxed mood, and the pure enjoyment he shows at just being back here, makes it clear those kinds of pressure and expectations are far from his mind.
"I just want to perform my programs here, that's all I want to do," he said. "And I hope the people who are watching enjoy them. That would be perfect."
Oh, and if you think his passion for auto racing of various kinds has waned because of his revived interest in skating well, guess again.
"Whatever I can do," he said when asked about the thrills of the four-wheeled world. "As long as I can bash the daylights out of a car."