Left Coast Chronicles

Onward To The Prairies

2008-01-21T17:59:00.000-08:00

The bone-chilling temperatures offer a rather blunt reminder, as do the patches of white as my plane descends back to earth.
We're not in Vancouver anymore, Toto.
With apologies to Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz, it's my way of saying our West Coast adventure has reached its end after six fabulous days in what is surely one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
It took until the last day we were there, but finally we were given a true glimpse of the majestic Coast Mountains that look down upon one of our favourite places in Canada to visit. Just for the views alone, which are nothing short of stunning.
But as I discover with each stop along the figure skating trail, there are wonderful, amazing people wherever you turn in this land of ours. People who are fiercely proud of where they're from, yet welcoming as can be to a visitor from far, far away.
It is one of the joys of being a part of all of this, the special people that are a part of the journey each year. The many friends I've made along the way in nearly 20 years of being associated with this sport, with whom I will always cherish this annual reunion known as the BMO Canadian figure skating championships.
I can't imagine going through any year without it.
But there are also the new people you meet, like Ally, Rosa, Kevin and the rest of the gang at Earls Paramount, who made their restaurant a favourite stop of mine during this particular trek (and reminded me, once again, why Earls is must-visit anytime I'm west of Ontario).
And, of course, the friendly volunteers at Pacific Coliseum, who gave me every reason to believe the world will get the warmest of receptions when the Winter Olympics come to this city in two year's time.
And so, with those thoughts, we close the book at the Left Coast Chronicles with this final chapter.
Thanks, too, to all of you who took the time to follow along with our 'alternative' view of this event. We don't profess to be 'seriously West Coast,' as one of the Vancouver dailies bills itself, but we do our level best to share the personal stories of the best group of young athletes you'd ever want to meet (and thanks to all who shared theirs).
So now it's bon voyage, B.C.
Next stop, Saskatoon, and the 2009 BMO Canadian championships (with a little pit stop right in my backyard at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa for HomeSense Skate Canada in the fall).
See you all again soon.

A Vancouver High Five

2008-01-20T17:33:00.000-08:00

And so, the lights have been dimmed for another year.
One more Canadian figure skating championships in the book.
Another set of memories to savour.
We've all got 'em, many of them pretty much the same. None of us will soon forget the Saturday afternoon 17-year-old Patrick Chan announced he's not just the future of men's skating in Canada, he's very much a part of its present. He's a refreshing young guy and his remarkable free skate might well have been the performance of the week.
If not, that distinction had to go to ice dance prodigies Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, whose Umbrellas of Cherbourg free program already has plenty of tongues wagging about just how far they might climb at the world championships in Sweden a couple of months from now.
On a weekend of newness, Joannie Rochette had what it took to stay on top of the senior women's class for a fourth straight year. Say what you will about the state of what's below her, but that kind of a run of sustained excellence isn't anything to be taken lightly.
These are but a handful of things we'll remember, and some might suggest we're merely just stating the obvious.
Point well taken, I suppose.
But, following along with the 'alternative' theme that drives the blog, a few memories of my own, a personal 'high five' if you will:
1) When you're in the newspaper business, as I was for so many years, you hear all the time about the detachment we're supposed to feel towards it all. That we're not supposed invest ourselves emotionally in the people and the things we cover. But sometimes, it's much easier said than done and you can't help but care. And there's nobody I felt happier for this weekend than Anabelle Langlois, the fiery little pairs skater from Gatineau, Que. I've watched her show up at this event for so many years, a national title all but within her grasp more than once. As the crushing disappointments began to add up, Langlois began to wonder if she'd ever win. But as she bounded up to the stop of podium Sunday afternoon with Cody Hay, the young buck from Alberta she always believed was exactly the right partner, Langlois finally knew. That yes, it was true: Finally, she is a Canadian champion.
2) We crossed paths so many times this week that 'you again?' became almost a running joke between us. But truth be told, I can never see enough of folks like Shae-Lynn Bourne. She's one of those quality people who have more than anything to do with why I continue to cherish the time I spend around this sport. Bourne and Victor Kraatz were the honorary chairs for this week's nationals, and seeing them together brought to mind so many of the great memories they gave us all during their remarkable career. Especially when they Riverdanced onto the ice for the Parade of Champions, and later gave us a further glimpse of some of the trademark moves we remember so well. If they're getting a thought in their head that they might like to perform again together on the ice, well, count me among the first to say I'm there to watch.
3) The folks from Skate Canada talked a lot at the outset of this week about bringing their 'alumni' back into the fold, to re-establish that link to a vibrant past. And why should they not? I'm all for seeing plenty more of Jamie Sale and David Pelletier, who were front and centre during an emotional Hall of Fame induction ceremony today. Kurt Browning, Brian Orser, Tracy Wilson, Bourne and Kraatz ... just to name a few. They've all played a major hand in crafting the rich history of this sport in our country. And it is a history we should celebrate whenever we can, and a past we should work overtime to pass along to the next generation coming down the pipe.
4) Often, when we're looking back like this, the winners are the first to come to mind. But sometimes, if you look beyond the podium, you'll find a moment that has nothing to do with winning a medal. Lesley Hawker reminded us once again, as she often does, that there is only one best reason for doing any sport. That if you don't love pretty much every second of it, you shouldn't even be there. Hawker dissolved into tears at the end of a special free skate Sunday afternoon that, at the end of the day, mattered nothing to the final medal standings. But it meant everything to her. She wondered aloud later why the tears came, but when you care as much as Hawker does, well, these things happen. We should all have that kind of passion somewhere in our lives.
5) I've often said events like this can offer up quite the geography lesson. Maybe never more than this year, when we saw great stories authored by young athletes with addresses such as Wawota, Sask., and Salisbury, N.B. Small towns that are an integral part of the fabric of this country we call Canada. In these burgs, we find skating clubs that make up in energy what they lack in numbers. A Kelsey McNeil, Paige Lawrence or Rudi Swiegers is celebrated like perhaps nowhere else, living proof that dreams can indeed come true, no matter where you're from. And really, isn't that, when you get right down to it, the essence of that thing we love called sport?

Forever A Love Story

2008-01-20T15:15:00.000-08:00

Almost from the moment the first notes began to play, that melody we all know so well, the love fest began anew.
And Jamie Sale and David Pelletier knew, as they listened to the piece of music that changed their life, why it means so much to be remembered this way.
Why the tears would flow, and so uncontrollably at times.
But in the end, the world and Olympic pairs champions had their day, exactly the way they wanted it. In front of people who meant to much to them in their careers. And with adoring the fans, with whom they've always savoured a special connection, looking upon it all.
Powerful stuff, both admitted later, about their official induction into Skate Canada's Hall of Fame on the final day of the 2008 BMO Canadian figure skating championships at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.
"At home, when we’re watching an induction or a tribute or retirement, they start crying and we always say ‘why are they crying?’ ” said Sale after the emotional on-ice ceremony. "It’s a happy thing and they’ve had a great career. We never feel like it’s an emotional thing.
"But you know what it is? You have to be in that moment, and you don’t really understand until you’re in that moment. It’s powerful. And you start reflecting and thinking about what you’ve really done together. So yeah, it is emotional and we really get it now."
And the reminder was right there for everyone to see. A tribute video, with words from people who mattered the most in their skating lives — coach Jan Ullmark, choreographer Lori Nichol (who crafted the brilliant Love Story free program that will be linked to these two forever), Skate Canada president Benoit Lavoie and Debbi Wilkes, the former Olympic pairs silver medallist.
The memories? They've had a few. Most notably the unveiling of Love Story, and the first Canadian title it brought Sale and Pelletier in Calgary in 2000. The world title a year later, right here in Vancouver. And of course, Olympic glory in Salt Lake City in 2002.
Given that remarkable moment at General Motors Place seven years ago, perhaps this was exactly the right city for their induction to happen. But Pelletier went one step further.
"I think it’s the right country," he said. "Canadian fans are just the best and even when Skate Canada asked us, how would you like to have it ... I said I wanted it among the fans.
"The best part for me was to do it in front of the fans. And to share it with the fans. Without them, there’s no skating."
And without each other, there would have been none of this. Yes, we were all reminded, by one poignant photo (with a lovely child) and their words, that this is indeed a real-life love story. One that will last long beyond their skating days.
"The best part? I was being inducted with him," Sale said with a loving glance toward Pelletier, the love of her life. "Everything was great. It’s hard to pick one thing that was the best. But I’m just so grateful that I’ve had the career I’ve had with David.
"At the end, he’s been a great partner, he’s a great husband and a great father. I couldn’t ask for a better person to spend my life with and have a career with."
For those of us who have been so fortunate, what a privilege it has been to be a part of it all. And one more time on this special days of theirs.

How Swede It Is

2008-01-20T14:42:00.000-08:00

So the last chapter has finally been written.
The book closed on another Canadian figure skating championships.
For 16 of the best this week in Vancouver, it's just the next step, though, on a journey that will hit its final stop in March in Gothenburg, Sweden — site of the 2008 world championships.
No surprises in the Canadian world team announced today:
Men — Patrick Chan, Toronto; Jeff Buttle, Smooth Rock Falls, Ont.
Women — Joannie Rochette, Ile-Dupas, Que.; Mira Leung, Vancouver.
Pairs — Anabelle Langlois, Gatineau, Que., and Cody Hay, Grande Prairie, Alta.; Jessica Dube, St. Cyrille de Wendover, Que., and Bryce Davison, Cambridge, Ont.; Megan Duhamel, Lively, Ont., and Craig Buntin, Kelowna, B.C.
Dance — Tessa Virtue, London, Ont., and Scott Moir, Ilderton, Ont.; Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje, Waterloo, Ont.; Allie Hann-McCurdy, Orleans, Ont., and Michael Coreno, Delhi, Ont.
The same team heads to the Four Continents Championship, Feb. 11-17 in Goyang City, Korea, with two exceptions: Chan and Dube/Davison. Shawn Sawyer of Edmundston, N.B., and Edmonton's Vaughn Chipeur are the additions to the men's team; Cynthia Phaneuf of Contrecoeur, Que., gets a women's trip, and Jessica Miller of Villa Hills, Ky., and Montreal's Ian Moram are replacements in pairs.
***
The team for the world junior championships, Feb. 25-March 2 in Sofia, Bulgaria, was also named today. It consists of the following:
Men — Kevin Reynolds, Coquitlam, B.C.; Elladj Balde, Pierrefonds, Que., and Jeremy Ten, Vancouver.
Women — Myriane Samson, St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que.
Pairs — Amanda Velenosi, Laval, Que., and Mark Fernandez, Brossard, Que.; Monica Pisotta, Barrie, Ont., and Michael Stewart, Mississauga, Ont.
Dance — Vanessa Crone, Aurora, Ont., and Paul Poirier, Unionville, Ont.; Joanna Lenko and Mitchell Islam, Barrie, Ont.; Kharis Ralph and Asher Hill, Toronto.

Rise (And Shine) Back To The Top

2008-01-20T12:40:00.000-08:00

Joannie Rochette admits she isn't a morning person.
Being on the ice before noon? Not exactly her cup of tea.
But there it was, loud and clear on the schedule for the BMO Canadian figure skating championships in Vancouver.
Women's free skate. 8:45 a.m. Pacific Coliseum.
“This was a tough test this week," Rochette admitted Sunday after putting on lock on her fourth straight Canadian women's crown. "Sunday morning, 8:45. I’m not a morning person, I hate mornings.
"But I was still able to come here with a smile this morning. My coach (Manon Perron) was impressed with that. But it’s good practice. You have to be ready to do your job any time, any hour of the day.”
Rochette did it much better than the rest on Sunday and, because of that, became the only defending champion in the senior events to walk out of the building with that standing still intact. New champs emerged in the other three events. That hasn't happened at Canadians since 1995.
Needless to say, Rochette was happy she was able to prevent the complete sweep (that last occurred in 1989). And with six family members in the house, all of whom made the long trip across the country from Ile-Dupas, Que., it was an emotional occasion for the 22-year-old queen of Canadian skating.
“It’s nationals, it’s in front of your friends," she said. "It’s great that (my family) came and supported me and I wanted to skate up to my potential in front of them.”
Perfectionist that she is, Rochette would be the first to tell you that didn't quite happen. She felt her free programs during the Grand Prix season were stronger, and believes there's plenty of room for improvement before the world championships in Sweden in March.
“I really liked what Jeff (Buttle) said. It’s better to come second with a good performance than to come first with a bad one," said Rochette. "Even though this wasn’t my best, I still felt it was a good program. That’s all that matters.”
Rochette's grip on the national title was a little bit tenuous after the short program — her lead over Vancouver's Mira Leung was a mere 1.08 points. But when Leung had a sub-par performance, it pretty much lifted all the heat off Rochette.
The final totals: Rochette, 175.76; Leung, 162.10.
"“I am very disappointed, and I really hate that I made those mistakes," said Leung afterward. Especially the second flip, I felt like I was too close to the boards ... It was horrible."
Cynthia Phaneuf, meanwhile, was all smiles after returning to the podium at Canadians for the first time since 2005. With a 158.10 total, she just held of Lesley Hawker of Barrie, Ont. (155.61), who turned in the day's second-best free skate in nearly winning her third straight bronze after placing seventh in the short.
"I was very happy to be back on ice," said Phaneuf, 19, the 2004 Canadian champ from Contrecoeur, Que. "This year, I was a lot more stronger. I wasn't as nervous as I was last year.
"It was more fun to skate in this competition than last year."
It's fun — and good — to be the queen, too. For the fourth straight year, that's the petite champion from the little village east of Montreal.
"Oh yes, it feels really good," Rochette said about retaining her crown.
No small feat. Not in Vancouver, not this year.

Now That's More Like It

2008-01-20T10:48:00.000-08:00

So the question was posed once more, as it almost inevitably is, whenever Lesley Hawker puts a wrap on her skating duties at the Canadian championships.
What's next in the future for you?
Mrs. Doherty, who is neither shy nor retiring, didn't hesitate.
"Triple Axel and a triple-triple (combination) is probably in my mind," said Hawker, who made it clear she'll continue her quest to keep on being like that proverbial bottle of wine, getting finer with age.
Oh yes, age. What's that thing they say about it? That it's all relative.
This, you see, is one of those classic late bloomers. And while so many folks see the 26 by her name and want to break out the rocking chair for her, Hawker would rather throw on a pair of skates and find new ways to launch herself into the air.
Doesn't exactly sound like a golden oldie to you, does it?
Hawker came to Vancouver with the biggest of dreams and goals at these Canadian figure skating championships. This was the year, she figured, that she could make a run for the top of the podium. Especially after she came oh so close to landing herself on Canada's world team a year ago in Halifax (where the legend of Mrs. Doherty, you might recall, first sprang to life along with the blog. Coincidence? I think not).
Anyways, Hawker pretty much put herself out of the running for the big prize with one critical mistake (a triple flip that was doubled) in the short program. She seemed in decent spirits afterwards but if you know anything about this spunky young (yes, I said it) lady, you know this had to hurt big-time inside.
"Sometimes, I try way too hard because I really like what I do," Hawker admitted Sunday.
And see, that's the thing right there. Most people involved in this sport have a true passion for it. But you won't meet many who outwardly express such a love for skating as much as Mrs. D.
So there she was Sunday morning — her spirits no doubt pumped up by Jamie Doherty, her (not anywhere-near-mad) scientist husband — laying down one of those special free skates (the second-best on the day) that had 'em on their feet at Pacific Coliseum. And Mrs. Doherty gushing a river of tears that just made her all the more endearing (if that's possible) to this crowd.
Sweet vindication? You betcha.
"I just went out there today and said 'you know what, this crowd's great, I really like doing this, and I'm just going to enjoy myself,' ” she said.
Those tears? Oh, they were very good ones.
"I don't know why I'm crying," Mrs. D, who wound up fourth — and, most importantly, back on the national team — said afterward. "It's stressful, this skating thing."
But Hawker wouldn't give it up for the world. She's already indicated she wants to stay around through the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, chasing the biggest dream of them all. Even if lots of other folks think she shouldn't be so forward thinking.
"Seeing as I'm so ancient, everybody, I take it one day at a time because I'm practically in the geriatric ward," Hawker said playfully in front of a group of reporters (and how could the blog, which lives for this kind of stuff, pass on posting a line like that).
"I train with Todd Eldredge (in suburban Detroit), who didn't land his first quad until he was 30. Elvis (Stojko) was 30-plus and contending at world championships, so I really don't think age is an issue at all."
And yes, she's very aware of the story authored Saturday by 26-year-old Anabelle Langlois of Gatineau, Que., who finally won her first Canadian senior pairs title after so many years of trying.
Funny, too, that Hawker got just about as many hugs as Langlois from people who were just genuinely happy for the little lady from Barrie, Ont. All of them knowing how much it meant to Hawker to leave this place with a big smile on her face.
And while we all love seeing young stars such as Patrick Chan, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir grab the torch for Canadian skating and run with it, shouldn't there be room, too, for people like Langlois and Hawker, both still very much young at heart?
Maybe it's just me, but I find their stories make figure skating more compelling, and you can't help wanting to cheer for them both. You might even say that, for some of us, it's one more reason to watch.
Leave it to Mrs. D, though, to come up with another one.
A couple of nights ago, I'm standing there while she's talking to a TV producer who used to work on hockey but was now part of the figure skating crew. And quite liking it.
Hawker — and her quick wit — couldn't resist this gem.
"Well, we do smell better," she said (oh sure, bring the olfactory senses — now there's a good science word — into it).
Hey, whatever works for you.

One More To Go

2008-01-20T08:22:00.001-08:00

So the women's free skate is about to begin.
One more set of medals to hand out before we call it a Canadian figure skating championships for another year. Normally, we're writing about ice dance at this point but this hasn't been your average schedule for this event (CBC's needs and the fact we're in the Pacific time zone are said to be the reasons).
Anyways, it's the first time in a long time (I'm guessing 1995) since we've anything other than dance on the final day. But we'll adapt.
Interesting storyline here, as Joannie Rochette of Ile-Dupas, Que., tries to avoid being another defending champion to fall (after Jeffrey Buttle and Jessica Dube/Bryce Davison lost their crowns on Saturday). She'll have to hold off Vancouver's Mira Leung and vastly improved Myriane Samson of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., to make it four straight Canadian titles.
The women haven't skated since Friday, which partly explains why we haven't provided much to read about the life and times of the blog's biggest fan/avid reader, Lesley Hawker (a.k.a. Mrs. Doherty), in this space. Mrs. D put herself in a bit of pickle in the short program by finishing seventh and has some major work to do to get herself back on the podium for a third straight year.
But she was in good spirits on Friday night, saying she planned to "show 'em what I've got" in today's free skate. We tried to help by offering up some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies — which are in abundance in the media room and, you might recall from last year, a Mrs. D favourite — but she politely passed. Competition mode, you know.
Besides, she said (in reference to her big mistake Friday) "girls who don't land triple flips don't get chocolate chip cookies."
Ah, that's our girl, that Lesley.
The blog just wouldn't be the blog without her.
***
A 'how the other half lives' anecdote ...
Four of us went off to Morton's steak house (a favoured playground of the upper crust) for a late-night dinner Friday. And what a fine meal they lay out, indeed.
As we were walking out, noticed what appeared to be a bunch of storage cabinets filled with bottles of wine, each of them with a personal nameplate. Apparently, they're used by some to stock their favourite wines so they're right their waiting for them the next time they're in for dinner (why waste time on a wine list, right?).
Yeah, that's not your average restaurant, is it?

Can You Feel The Magic?

2008-01-19T20:49:00.000-08:00

Their inevitable coronation finally complete, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir quickly turned their gaze toward bigger and better things.
And they were far from alone.
First, the formalities. Virtue and Moir closed the deal on their first national senior ice dance title Saturday night at Pacific Coliseum, weaving a special brand of magic that entranced the audience at the BMO Canadian figure skating championships.
With a final total of 209.09 points — including a personal best of 103.76 for their Umbrellas of Cherbourg free dance — Virtue and Moir overwhelmed the rest of the field. Last year's bronze medallists, Kaitlyn Weaver of Houston, Tex., and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont., upgraded themselves to silver this time (175.61). Allie Hann-McCurdy of Orleans, Ont., and Michael Coreno of Delhi, Ont., took the bronze (173.86) and round out the team which will represent Canada at the world championships in Sweden.
Sure, Virtue and Moir are happy and proud to lay claim to their first national crown. But already, they are clearly looking beyond this latest milestone in a still very young career.
"It means a lot," said Moir, 20, of Ilderton, Ont. "It’s definitely a huge goal of ours, I don’t know if it’s sunk in yet. We’re hoping to take this momentum and use it at Four Continents and worlds, and hopefully be best in the world one day soon."
Already, that question is being asked about these two young virtuosos of ice dance. And it's not if, but when.
"I think they’re world class, really," said former world champion Shae-Lynn Bourne, who coaches Weaver and Poje. "Actually, I thought that from a young age when I first saw them in junior when they won (in 2004). I was very impressed at their poise and control then.
"But now, they’ve matured so much and for sure, they could win worlds and win Olympics. How could they not?"
Others already dare to put them in the company of legends.
"For me, it’s like (Jayne) Torvill and (Christopher) Dean," CBC analyst Tracy Wilson, a former Olympic bronze medallist said, invoking the names of the Olympic and world champion greats from Britain. "That’s how I felt watching Torvill and Dean. I’m seeing something that’s magical. That’s what I see when I watch them. And they’re kids."
Added Bourne: "They look like a magic team. They create magic on the ice, that’s what’s special. Tonight, when they stepped on the ice, they didn’t hold back and they take you into a trance and take you into their little world. And it’s beautiful, it really is."
Moir called it their best performance "emotionally" of the year, but allowed that there's still room to get better yet.
"We’ve trained hard so that every competition we do has been getting better and (we want to) use that to still climb at Four Continents and worlds," he said.
They certainly could get used to this kind of success in the city in which they hope to realize their Olympic dream.
"Any chance we have to skate here is just a bonus and we’re getting so much exposure in Vancouver, which is great," said Virtue, 18, of London, Ont. "Being in this venue, this city, it’s great. It’s nothing but a confidence booster leading up to the Olympics."

The Great Leap Forward

2008-01-19T20:02:00.000-08:00

It is a mighty jump, to be sure, and one that Allie Hann-McCurdy and Michael Coreno themselves might not have dared contemplate at the outset of what his quickly become the season of their young lives.
But here they are on a Saturday night in Vancouver, their adopted home, with tickets to the world figure skating championships firmly in hand, fully punched and good to go.
"It's absolutely amazing," Hann-McCurdy, 20, of Orleans, Ont., said Saturday night in the moments after she and Coreno had put a lock on the third-place finish they needed in the senior ice dance final at the Canadian figure skating championships.
"That was our goal this week. We had personal bests in the (original dance) and free dance. I don't think we could have done any more."
Understand, now, that Hann-McCurdy and Coreno were eighth in this event a year ago. And even though five of the top seven teams from that competition in Halifax weren't here (for a variety of reasons), they modestly targeted a top-five finish here, which meant a spot on the national team.
All that changed, however, at HomeSense Skate Canada in Quebec City. Hann-McCurdy and Coreno finished fourth that weekend at the Pepsi Colisee, two spots in front of Kaitlyn Weaver of Houston, Tex., and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont. — the senior dance bronze medallists in Halifax.
Suddenly, the wheels — and the goals — began to turn a lot faster in their heads. Maybe a world team berth wasn't such a long shot after all.
"That was when we thought we had a shot at top three and not just top five," said Hann-McCurdy.
Coaches Victor Kraatz, the former world champion (with Shae-Lynn Bourne) and Maikki Uotila-Kraatz noticed a distinct rise in their proteges' confidence level.
"(Quebec City) was the turning point of the career so far," said Uotila.
Saturday night at Pacific Coliseum, the crowd of 5,273 saw a confident, faster duo put on a fabulous display.
"The biggest difference for them is speed, velocity, execution of elements," said Kraatz. "It's become obvious."
Said Coreno: "You can be really good at elements and from the start, we've been good at elements. But you have to look good and look confident, and I think that's what this year was about. Going out there and saying 'this is our place, this is where we want to be, and we're going to skate up to that.' ”
Though Hann-McCurdy and Coreno finished fifth in the free dance, their overall total of 173.86 points was just good enough to hold off 2007 national junior champions Vanessa Crone of Aurora, Ont., and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont. (172.95) for the third and final world team berth. Mylene Girard of Repentigny, Que., and Liam Dougherty of Whitehorse (172.28) weren't far off in a photo finish, either.
"We went for it and didn't hold anything back," said Hann-McCurdy. "We said let's do this and if it gets us to worlds, all the better."
Added Coreno, 23, of Delhi, Ont.: "It was tough. Everybody was separated by half a point. It's tough to compete like that."
Now they can see, perhaps more than ever, that their biggest goal — the Vancouver 2010 Olympics — is very real and very possible.
"We're going to be there," Hann-McCurdy said.
And we don't think she meant just as spectators.

Chan's The New Man

2008-01-19T16:29:00.000-08:00

It's right there in Patrick Chan's biographical sketch, the one in the media book Skate Canada hands out before every Canadian figure skating championships.
Long-term skating goals: Senior Champion of Canada.
Like a lot of things with this young skating prodigy, though, phrases like "long-term" earn themselves a completely new definition.
"I've learned I should set my goals high," Chan said when asked if that part of his bio might be in need of a major rewrite. "There's no reason why I shouldn't."
No reason, indeed.
Pre-novice national champion, 2003.
Novice national champion, 2004.
Junior national champion, 2005.
Given that history, one might be tempted to ask Chan what took him so long to complete the grand slam of Canadian figure skating (and he's undoubtedly the first). But then you tell yourself, the kid's barely 17.
Yes, the Patrick Chan era has officially arrived, about as impressively as everything else this Ottawa-born skater has ever done. Eight clean triple jumps later, in a performance that had just about everyone at Pacific Coliseum on their feet long before it was done, and Chan had dethroned Jeffrey Buttle as Canadian champion.
The score for his free skate (159.26) was the highest ever posted at a Canadian championships. His total of 232.68 was just enough to squeeze by Buttle (229.85), who held a 7.58-point lead after Friday's short program.
"Obviously, the marks speak for themselves," said Buttle of Chan's effort. "They (say) he had an amazing skate. He’s a great skater. There’s definitely no weakness to his skating."
Chan, perfectionist that he (or any champion) can be, would probably beg to differ. But in the moments after his latest breakthrough triumph, the Toronto resident wanted to soak in what he had just accomplished.
"I don’t know yet (how it feels)," he said. "It’s just like when I won the Grand Prix in Paris (in November). I did not expect it. This whole season has been like a dream. I’m still kind of in a trance right now. I guess that’s the beginning of a feeling of a national champion."
He better get used to all of this. Now, with the title in hand, expectations on Chan will grow in March, when he heads off to Sweden for his first world championship. While he admits he's "uneasy" about it, he quickly reveals a big goal for himself.
"I want to try to bring (Canada) three spots for worlds next year," he said. "That’s my goal, actually, for worlds. Two spots is too hard because we’ve got so many good Canadian guys. We need a lot of room for them. We need the extra seat on the plane."
Shawn Sawyer of Edmundston, N.B., who battled his way back onto the podium here (197.48), would certainly appreciate that. So would any others who were within hailing distance of that bronze-medal spot.
But the question now is whether Chan, who pumped his fists with glee amidst the din of the crowd, might be jumping into a fast lane of his own. He admitted once he landed his opening triple Axel — the jump that messed up his short program — "I was on cruising speed after that." And now he's overtaken 1963 world champion Donald McPherson as the youngest king of Canadian figure skating.
"I’ve been setting records," said Chan. "At junior words, I was the first (Canadian) in 23 years to get a (men's) medal. Paris, I think I’m the youngest to win a gold medal there. This is just adding to the record book. That’s great, that’s just icing on the cake."
But we're thinking today is truly the day we saw the dawning of the Patrick Chan era. And soon, the 'remember when' stories will start flowing. Come to think of it, they already have.
Former Canadian women's multi-medallist Annie Bellemare, now Skate Canada's marketing and communications co-ordinator, relates a tale of the time she crossed paths with Chan at a youth camp in Toronto "six or seven years ago." Even then, she said, you could see the talent. And the thirst for knowledge, for anything that might help him along the way.
"He wouldn't stop asking me questions," said Bellemare, an instructor at the camp. "He wouldn't leave me alone."
Now, he's alone at the top. With a wide-open world of possibilities — and worlds to conquer — very much right in front of him.

Holding His Head High

2008-01-19T15:54:00.000-08:00

If Jeffrey Buttle was going to go down — and lose his crown — he wanted it to be this way.
Knowing he'd fought the good fight. That it wasn't total surrender.
Buttle's run as the king of men's skating didn't make it to a fourth year at the BMO Canadian figure skating championships, his reign unable to survive the sheer brilliance delivered by one Patrick Chan — the future star whose time has clearly arrived.
At a competition which is proving to be a minefield for defending champions (just ask Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison), Buttle didn't merely settle for a silver medal. He battled hard for the gold, turning in a free skate that would have been a winner on many other nights.
"I’d rather lose my title this way than to lose it having a bad skate and not ever knowing," Buttle, 25, of Smooth Rock Falls, Ont., admitted afterward.
And yes, he said, he really meant that. Or maybe it was just the classy way to respond. But Buttle and Chan are friends, and while the now-former champ didn't watch his new rival skate, the raucous reaction from the Pacific Coliseum audience told him everything he needed to know. Fired him up, too.
"The energy was awesome," said Buttle. "I know they were cheering for Patrick’s marks, but it really got me going. Before the music started, I said ‘you know, I’m going to fight through this.’ That's what I did."
Buttle entered the free skate with an 7.58-point working margin, courtesy of the fabulous short program (worth 80.80) he skated the night before. But after Chan's display, nothing less than perfection would do. And while Buttle was very good, he wasn't that good.
A planned triple lutz became a double. He fell on his second triple Axel.
It left Buttle waiting for more than his marks. A little divine intervention, maybe, judging by his prayerful pose.
"I knew (the result) automatically as soon as the technical marks went up," he said. "I was really disappointed that I didn’t get the fourth title. But you know what, I’ve won the title skating worse than that. I’ll take a good skate with second-place than a bad skate with first place.
"Now I feel a lot better going into Four Continents and worlds than I have in the past. Nothing wrong with that."
Nope, nothing at all.

She's A Bridesmaid No More

2008-01-19T15:15:00.000-08:00

We're betting that somewhere in Vancouver, there's a good chance Anabelle Langlois is finding one more person to hug.
Or, more precisely, somebody's offering her a warm, knowing embrace.
This much is oh so true about figure skating. Everyone, it seems, has a story about some sort of adversity to share. And, in this tight-knit little community, everyone, it seems, knows everybody else's story.
Which explains, for the most part, why lots of people are happy for Langlois today. She has been to the ball — the BMO Canadian figure skating championships — more times than she'd probably care to remember. Not once did she find herself standing on top of the podium.
Always a bridesmaid, never the bride, as the saying goes.
But the 26-old-native of Gatineau, Que., a barmaid in Barrie, Ont., when she's not training on the ice, is the toast of Canadian pairs skating today. Or rather, she and her leading man Cody Hay, a reserved young guy from Dawson Creek, Alta., who proved to be the perfect match for the fiery Langlois after all.
Langlois and Hay, Canadian pairs champions.
How good does that sound?
"Amazing. I’m not going to lie," said Langlois. "Amazing. Fantastic."
They couldn't have cut it any closer, though. Langlois and Hay finished with 175.01 points; defending champions Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison a scant 0.15 behind (174.86).
No wonder Langlois' jaw dropped, almost in disbelief, when their victory was finally confirmed. It couldn't have been any more dramatic.
"Cody told me ‘we’re first’ and I kind of looked at him at said ‘whaat?’ " said Langlois.
Then again, she's been down this road before, only to have it end in bitter disappointment. Especially in 2003 and 2004, when Langlois and former partner Patrice Archetto led after the short program, only to implode in the free.
"It’s almost surreal," she said of finally winding up on top. "I was always wanting to win, obviously, but I think I’d almost given up on ever being Canadian champion."
Everyone, as we've said, knows all about Langlois' struggles. When Craig Buntin — who authored quite a story himself this week with new partner Meagan Duhamel — heard the final result, he immediately started clapping in the media mixed zone.
"Good for them," he said. "It's been awhile."
Nobody knows that better than Hay, who shared training ice with Langlois at the Royal Glenora Skating Club in Edmonton for a few years before they became a team (they're now based at the Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie with coach Lee Barkell).
"I’ve known Anabelle for years, going back to when she was skating with Patrice," said Hay, 24, who believes he's taken the "express route" by comparison. "I know the highs and the lows they had, especially at nationals. Now winning the national championship … to see the excitement and the relief on Anabelle’s face, that was an even bigger (thrill) for me."
But even in her happiest moment, Langlois shared in the joy of others. She talked about how happy she was for Duhamel, who has had her own rocky road at Canadians — a thought that had the little skater from Lively, Ont., nearly in tears as she contemplated a bronze medal and a trip to the world championships in Sweden. Yes, it's her first.
"It’s been like an unbelievable journey," Duhamel, 22, said as her voice began to break. "I’m so thankful that I’ve had this opportunity. I’ve had a really bad run of Canadian championships, so this feels really good. It started in 2005 and didn’t end.
"I just had this big fear of Canadians, I guess. It’s gone."
Buntin had almost given up on finding the ideal partner after Valerie Marcoux of Gatineau, Que., the skater with whom he won three Canadian crowns, retired after last season. But here were he and Duhamel, almost pulling off a remarkable title run themselves before winding up with the bronze (170.28).
"We’ve put in 14 months of work in the past seven months," he said. "My last worlds (in 2007 with Marcoux) could have been 10 years ago. It’s been such a journey ever since."
Another story, no doubt, that everyone here knows.
And, given the happy ending, has a lot of folks smiling on this day.

Heart Of A Champion

2008-01-19T12:28:00.000-08:00

I've always considered David Pelletier a bit of a wise guy.
In the best way possible, that is.
So my ears perked up when I heard the former world pairs champion, who's here in Vancouver with partner and wife Jamie Sale, working the 2008 BMO Canadian figure skating championships for CBC, talk about the difference between winning a title and defending one.
Winning your first national crown? Pure joy, he said.
Trying to defend it? Pure hell.
Let's just say Pelletier has much fonder memories of the day he and Sale used their famous Love Story program to win in Calgary in 2000 than he does of going back-to-back a year later in Winnipeg.
Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison, no doubt, know exactly what Pelletier — who's now one of their mentors — was talking about. Though they rallied big time at Pacific Coliseum on Saturday morning to win the senior pairs silver medal, it's the lesson they're taking back to Montreal that might be much more valuable.
"If we sit down and actually think about it and talk about it, I think it could really help our career. It can help us grow," Davison said of having to rebound from a disastrous short program that left he and Dube mired in fifth place and wondering whether they'd even make Canada's team for the world championships in Sweden.
Both admitted that the pressure to defend the crown they won a year ago in Halifax pretty much blindsided them this week. It was liking plowing into a brick wall.
"A couple of weeks ago, we didn’t see it (as being) that big," said Dube, 20, of St. Cyrille de Wendover, Que. "We were really confident and even coming here this week, all our practices were good."
Added Davison, 21, of Cambridge, Ont.: "We took it a little too lightly in our preparation. I know sometimes we like being the underdog. I think what happened here is, we were a little bit too relaxed. It’s good to be relaxed, but it’s good to have the little extra fire in your stomach."
They had it when they needed it Saturday morning. Dube and Davison blew by almost everybody in the field, handily winning the free program with 120.54 points. But their 174.86 overall total was just a hair shy of overhauling the new champs, Anabelle Langlois of Hull, Que., and Cody Hay of Dawson Creek, B.C. (175.01).
But even before they knew their eventual fate, Dube and Davison talked about how vital it was for them to rebound from the messy short.
"We were really happy with winning the free after a short like that," said Davison. "It shows what we’re really made of, and I think we’re going to learn more from this than going out and having two clean performances. It’s going to help us grow as a team and that’s the way we’re looking at it now."
Dube agreed "it was very big for our confidence. We did win the long and that’s good for us. It shows that we can do it."

Rochette Rolls The Dice

2008-01-18T23:21:00.000-08:00

It's a tumble that loosened her grip — at least for one night — on the Canadian women's title.
But Joannie Rochette, taking that half glass full approach, sees it as a mistake that might pay big dividends when the stakes are even higher.
Rochette, the three-time defending national women's queen, is the leader after the short programs were presented Friday night at the BMO Canadian figure skating championships at Pacific Coliseum. But hometown favourite Mira Leung appears set to push the champ after a wonderful short program performance.
The margin between the two is a mere 1.08 points heading into Sunday's free skate final. Rochette owns 59.32 points; Leung 58.24. Lurking in third place is Rochette's new training partner, Myriane Samson of St-Jean-sur-Richilieu, Que. (54.88), who's followed closely by former Canadian champion Cynthia Phaneuf of Contrecoeur, Que. (53.49).
While Rochette did tumble to the ice on the back end of her combination, this was no ordinary fall. She made a serious go at a triple flip-triple toe combo, something Rochette knows she has to have to take a major step toward the elite at the international level.
"I could have went the easy way and done a nice double after the triple, but I knew I really had to try it," said Rochette, 22. "That fall really is going to pay off in the future ... it takes a weight off my shoulders going to 2010 (the Vancouver Winter Olympics).
"I’m happy I tried it tonight. It’s the first time I tried it in a big competition, so it’s a big step forward for me. It know it sounds silly to say that about a mistake, but I’m glad I made it."
It also was a lucrative decision, too. All season long, Rochette and coach Manon Perron have had a standing bet about the combination. If she doesn't try it in combination, Rochette forks over $100 to her coach. But she was on the receiving end this night.
"She likes to shop and she likes to win, so she really likes it," Perron said of their little arrangement.
And Rochette knows she's in a shopper's paradise.
"Robson Street, it’s great," she said with enthusiasm about the renowned row of posh stores in downtown Vancouver.
Leung's reward, meanwhile, came on the ice.
"That was a really, really good program," said the 17-year-old from Vancouver. "It was the best short (program) I've ever done in competition."
A bigger one might await her Sunday, if Leung can overhaul Rochette.
"That would be awesome," she said of possibly winning her first Canadian title. "But what matters to me is I had the best short program skate I’ve had ever.
"I feel very confident going into the long program and I hope to do just as well as I did tonight."
Rochette knows how tight the battle will be.
"I’m not allowed to make too many mistakes (Sunday)," she said. "I was allowed (to take) a risk tonight but for the free program, I know I have to skate a really strong program to stay on top."

Lady And The Champ

2008-01-18T21:31:00.000-08:00

With each passing day, the influence of a three-time champion rubs off a bit more on Myriane Samson.
And it just might be the little extra the former national junior women's champion needs to finally lay claim to her first senior medal at the BMO Canadian figure skating championships.
Samson wore the biggest of smiles Friday night at Pacific Coliseum after the best short program she's ever laid down, punctuated by a triple lutz-double loop combination that was a thing of beauty.
With 54.88 points, the 19-year-old from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., finds herself sitting in the bronze-medal position, just ahead of former Canadian champion Cynthia Phaneuf of Contrecoeur, Que. (53.49).
"Last year was good (at Canadians)," said Samson, still smiling after she was done. "But I had more fun this year because I know that I can do it, and I'm more (well) trained."
The boost in confidence came, in great part, when Samson and coach Maryse Gauthier moved their training base to St. Leonard, Que., and the camp of Manon Perron. It put Samson on the ice every day with three-time Canadian champion Joannie Rochette of Ile-Dupas, Que., the leader after Friday night's short program.
"Myriane is a real good person. And she has a lot of talent," said Perron. "Her and Joannie can push each other and I like it. Myriane had a big lack of confidence, but she’s so good and she's trained harder and harder, and now she sees Joannie (train beside her).
"It's getting better and better every day. She's such a nice skater and she has a lot of potential."
Rochette's passion is there for Samson to see as well. And Perron said it can be a big difference maker in the end.
"We talked a lot about what she should express, what she should present," said Perron. "(Samson) can do the triple Lutz by the rest is really important, too. With the passion, you can make mistakes sometimes. Passion pays."
Samson is still age-eligible for the world junior championships. But she's clearly in the hunt for one of the two available Canadian berths for the senior worlds in Gothenburg, Sweden, though she's got 3.36 points to make up on Vancouver's Mira Leung to get there.
"We don't think about that now," said Samson. "We just want to do what I do in practice. That's the best way I can think now."

Here We Go Again

2008-01-18T21:03:00.000-08:00

Anabelle Langlois knows this story all too well.
First after the short program in a senior pairs event at the Canadian figure skating championships. With a national crown so close she can taste it.
Twice, the 26-year-old from Hull, Que., found herself in that position with former partner Patrice Archetto. Both times she went home with something less than gold.
But one gets the very clear sense that none of that will be in Langlois' mind when she and Hay, her partner of three years, hit the ice for Saturday's free skate final at Pacific Coliseum.
"The plan stays the same," said Langlois. "It doesn't matter what the marks are, we came here with a plan and we'll stick to it.
"(We want to) stay focused and aggressive. Sometimes we get so high, we start backing off. But what really works for us is when we stay aggressive and together. So that's what we want to do, keep our focus."
Added Hay, 24, of Dawson Creek, B.C.: "It's exciting to be on top of the board like that, but we've got to keep ourselves grounded and do the same thing (Saturday)."
Langlois and Hay found themselves on top of the leaderboard after defending champions Jessica Dube of St. Cyrille de Wendover, Que., and Bryce Davison of Cambridge, Ont., had a disastrous short program and wound up fifth with 54.52 points.
That meant the 62.73-point total posted by Langlois and Hay held up as the top score, just a hair ahead of Meagan Duhamel of Lively, Ont., and Craig Buntin of Kelowna, B.C. (61.48). They're followed by Toronto's Kyra and Dylan Moscovitch (57.01) and Montreal-based Jessica Miller and Ian Moram (55.61), who represent the Vancouver Skating Club.
Both Langlois and Hay hope that if they prevail, it's on a day when everyone lays down their best programs.
"You want to win with everyone skating their best," said Hay.
"That's when you really know you're the best," Langlois said, concluding the thought.

Happy New Year, Indeed

2008-01-18T20:17:00.000-08:00

Craig Buntin might have been about the happiest guy out there to see the calendar finally roll over to 2008 a few weeks back.
Consider what's gone on in his life since the Canadian figure skating championships were held last January in Halifax. First his longtime partner and girlfriend Valerie Marcoux — the woman he'd won three straight national titles with from 2004-06 — decided it was time to move on with life and retired from the sport.
That left Buntin, who would dearly love to represent Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in the city and province of his birth, without someone to get him there. And just beginning to think about an agonizing search that, months later, would finally lead him to Meagan Duhamel, whose hometown of Lively, Ont., is an appropriate match for her personality.
Then, a month after Marcoux's retirement, Buntin learned that his mother, Jan, had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. It has been become a cause and a crusade of the highest order for him ever since.
"I'm in the process of trying to organize a show to raise money and awareness for Parkinson's research," said Buntin, 27, who was born in North Vancouver, B.C. "I'm getting artists, I'm getting venues, I'm just out trying to get something together."
Buntin isn't sure yet where the show will be held — he says a small venue in Montreal is "gung-ho" to be a part of it, but he might also consider something in Toronto, where Jan Buntin lives.
"Right now, I'm looking at Montreal," he said. "But if Toronto is something that's going to raise more money or more awareness, then that's where it will be.
"But everything's still up in the air."
That might describe life in general. At least until he found Duhamel, who was so enthused about the prospects for their partnership that she's almost instantly packed her bags and moved to Montreal, where the duo is now based.
It's been a major race against the clock ever since.
"We haven't had a minute to waste, and have been taking advantage of every day and every hour we have together," said Buntin. "And finally it's coming together right now."
They finished sixth (and last) at HomeSense Skate Canada last November in Quebec City. But it's been leaps and bounds ever since.
"Oh my God, you can't even compare," said Duhamel, 22.
Now here they are, after a fine Canadian figure skating championships debut Friday night at Pacific Coliseum, sitting in second place after the short program, a mere 1.25 points behind first-place Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay.
"When we holds hands and we step now, we're stepping in the same direction without even thinking about it. It's great," said Buntin. "But what you see right now is just a shadow of what we're going to be. Even tonight wasn't as good as we can be. It was very good and we're happy to come out at our first national championships like that. But we have a lot of potential. We've worked so hard and just being here is an accomplishment in itself."
Buntin admits he's sees a lot of himself in Duhamel, who had never lived away from home and family but didn't think twice about making the big move to chase her dreams.
"It's not home and I don't have my friends there and family," she said. "But the skating aspect of it I enjoy. The training centre is a lot different than I'm used to and I think it's been a really positive change."
Her partner might look at the end of 2007 the same way.
"Honestly, this past 12 months has been the most trying, difficult 12 months of my life," said Buntin. "But just to be here ... I haven't felt this appreciative for what I do. I haven't loved doing what I do like this in a long time."

Champs Face A Test

2008-01-18T19:49:00.000-08:00

They say life is never easy at the top. Right about now, Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison might be inclined to agree.
The defending national senior pairs champions, so wildly successful during the fall Grand Prix season, have some serious work ahead of them at the BMO Canadian figure skating championships. And not just to retain their crown.
After an error-filled short program on Friday night at Pacific Coliseum, Dube and Davison stand a shocking fifth — two places below where they need to be just to make the Canadian team for the world championships in March in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The mountain isn't overly steep, mind you. With 54.32 points, Dube and Davison are 2.69 back of the couple who currently hold third, Toronto's Kyra and Dylan Moscovitch (57.01). In between are Montreal-based Jessica Miller and Ian Moram (55.61).
"We can still make it," said Davison, 21, of Cambridge, Ont. "There's still room for us to come up. We're going to need to skate really well but we're still confident."
The Canadian title? That'll involve a much heftier climb. Anabelle Langlois of Hull, Que., and Cody Hay of Dawson Creek, B.C. hold the lead at 62.73 points.
"That's going to be a little tougher," Davison said about retaining their national crown. "We're going to worry about world team first and then go from there."
Trouble started for the champs when Dube doubled her half of their side-by-side triple Salchows. Later, she fell on a throw triple loop.
"I usually land (the throw) with no problem, so I have no idea what happened there," said Dube, 20, of St. Cyrille de Wendover, Que. "I found myself on the ice."
Added Davison: "Really, the big surprise was more what happened on the throw because that doesn't happen too often. But that's okay. It's an experience and we've got to learn from it. Just move forward."
There isn't much time to recover. The pairs free program goes Saturday morning. And for the first time in awhile, Dube and Davison won't skate in the final group.
"It was a rough skate tonight," said Davison. "That's all I can say. We didn't skate our best. We've been practising well all week. We've just got to look forward to (Saturday) and hope we can put a really, really good skate out there."

The Best Of The Best

2008-01-18T17:08:00.000-08:00

One by one, they hit the ice at Pacific Coliseum on Friday night and played that old game of "can you top this?"
But it's going to take some doing to top the kind of game Jeffrey Buttle appears to have brought in spades to the 2008 BMO Canadian figure skating championships.
For the first time, the 25-year-old native of Smooth Rock Falls, Ont. cracked the 80-point barrier in a senior men's short program (80.80 to be exact). That gave him a commanding lead over Toronto's Patrick Chan (73.42) and Christopher Mabee of Tillsonburg, Ont. (70.46) heading into Saturday night's short program.
While it's not exactly game, set and match just yet, Buttle sent a rather powerful message to the rest of the field.
"I knew I was capable of an 80," said Buttle, who was the last to skate. "I couldn’t help but hear the other skaters' marks when I was getting ready to go on and I thought 'I can beat that, I know I can beat that.'
"I’m here to defend my title. I’m not here just to have a good time. I want to enjoy myself but I’m here to defend my title and I don’t want anyone else to take it from me."
Chan, the 16-year-old whiz kid who's widely believed to be the next great Canadian men's skater, called Buttle's performance "jaw dropping." But, despite losing the edge on the landing of his triple Axel, Chan is right where he wants to be — leading the way in the race for Canada's second men's team before for the world championships in Sweden.
"I didn’t come here thinking I would win," he said. "I just came here to make it on the world team and give a positive skate for the audience and show that I’m a new (contender) on the block.
"It’s a good start. My previous nationals in senior, the short wasn’t good. So I got this one out, got the good program done in the beginning. It’s a good start for (Saturday)."
Mission accomplished so far for Chan, whose short program score was 16 points higher than the one he produced at the 2007 Halifax nationals. But Mabee, who didn't have the best of seasons internationally, showed he's not ready to surrender the world team berth he earned a year ago.
"I’m really proud of myself," said Mabee. "The warmup felt like garbage — my jumps were all over the place. But I was happy I was able to refocus and get done what I needed to do."
If either Chan or Mabee falter, there's a group right behind ready to pounce: Edmonton's Vaughn Chipeur (69.10), Fedor Andreev of Ottawa (67.16) and Shawn Sawyer of Edmundston, N.B. (64.00) are all within striking distance.
But Buttle might already have the kind of working margin that has put the gold nearly out of reach for the rest.
"I’m still getting better and I’m so much stronger than I was, even a year ago or two years ago," said the three-time defending champ. "As long as I keep that improvement, there’s no reason for me to doubt myself or come in thinking I’m not as strong as the others. I came in here with more confidence than I had in the past. I think that showed."

Back Where He Belongs

2008-01-18T16:10:00.000-08:00

Fedor Andreev clasped his hands together and smiled widely as he thanked the adoring crowd at Pacific Coliseum.
Three years away, it's mighty clear, has been much too long an absence from the BMO Canadian figure skating championships.
"It's great," an enthused Andreev said of his welcome back moment to the biggest show in Canadian skating on Friday afternoon. "I got a standing O in the short, my first one ever, I think. It felt amazing. I didn't even know what to do with myself after I finished."
What's the old saying about not really knowing what you've missed until it's gone? Or absence making the heart grow fonder? It's been a little bit of both for the 25-year-old from Ottawa, who was in Hong Kong a year ago at this time, devoting almost all of his energy to a couple of his other interests (modelling and auto racing).
But figure skating has won his heart back. And in a big, big way.
"Right now, there's nothing I can picture myself doing other than this," Andreev said after a short program that landed him in fifth place in the senior men's competition. "I'm teaching and skating, that's it. I don't have the time or the desire to do anything else right now."
It might be said, too, that he's never enjoyed skating as much as he does right now. He credits rising Canadian ice dance stars Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir — who are coached by Andreev's mother, Marina Zoueva, and Igor Shpilband at the Arctic Edge Arena in Canton, Mich. — with rejuvenating his love for the sport.
"I felt that I was done (as a skater). Blame Tessa and Scott for this," he said. "They're the biggest part of it, but there are other teams and skaters at the Arctic Edge that give me inspiration.
"It's a great, great atmosphere (at the rink) and hard to resist."
Virtue even played a big hand in revamping the free program that Andreev will present on Saturday afternoon. He'll be in the final group with all the big guns, but he'll likely be the most relaxed of the bunch. And it might not even be close.
"I wasn't even an ounce nervous, not at all," Andreev said after Friday's short program. "Just really excited, really exhilarated. I really wanted to be out there. For the past two days, I've been raring to go
"I absolutely love skating. I'm enjoying every moment that I'm on the ice. The ups and the downs, I can take them. I've got a little bit more maturity now. It's just a lot more enjoyable for me."
Gone are the days when he came to see skating as a job. And gone is the sore back which, perhaps more than anything, was in need of a break from competitive skating.
No longer, too, is he the hotshot kid, fresh off winning a Canadian junior title in 1999 and being looked upon as the next big thing. Andreev is genuinely enthused when it's pointed out to him that, at 25, he's now the grand old man of this event.
But he's never felt so good, both mentally and physically.
"I'm just in my prime," he said. "I feel younger than I've ever felt. This is good. You can teach an old dog new tricks."
One thing hasn't changed, though. The performer that eagerly wants to leap onto the stage every chance he gets.
"It's part of why I'm here," said Andreev. "I love to perform, it's what's inside me. I absolutely love to perform in front of an audience. It makes me feel good and if I'm making the audience enjoy it, then my goal is accomplished."

Deja Vu All Over Again

2008-01-18T13:57:00.000-08:00

Stop me if you've heard this one before.
Wide-eyed 15-year-old girl shows up at the Canadian figure skating championships for the first time, just hoping to perform well and maybe make a bit of a name for herself in the junior women's field.
But by the end of it all, she's not only made that mark, she's saying 'oh my God, I just won' (or words to that effect).
Dana Zhalko-Tytarenko of Ottawa authored that rather fairytale ending a year ago in Halifax, skyrocketing to the top of the podium after finishing 14th as a novice at the Skate Canada Junior Nationals the year before.
Now wouldn't you know it, the Maritimes played a hand in lightning striking twice, so to speak. This time it was a sweet teen from Salisbury, N.B., absolutely beside herself after claiming the 2008 national junior women's crown at Pacific Coliseum on Friday.
You'll forgive Kelsey McNeil, of course, if she's still smiling for a few days yet.
"It feels so amazing, because it's my first year in junior and coming to this competition with famous people," said McNeil, who's a big fan of three-time Canadian senior champ Joannie Rochette (growing up, she admired U.S. star Michelle Kwan).
Now McNeil isn't arriving quite as out of the blue as Zhalko-Tytarenko. She was seventh as a novice a year ago, and won the Canadian pre-novice women's title in 2006. So she had a bit of pedigree.
But even then, McNeil arrived in Vancouver thinking of nothing more than every skater's favourite mantra.
"I felt like I could do clean programs before I came here," she said. "I just wanted to skate my best, but (winning) was in the back of my head."
It moved very much to the front when McNeil found herself second after the short program (the top four were less than a point apart at that point). Though she did her best to push those thoughts to the background.
"I just had to stay relaxed," she said. "I had a bit of trouble sleeping last night."
The toughest part, though, might have been the wait for the final result. McNeil skated first in the last flight, posted a 120.85-point total and then had to watch five other skaters — almost every one of them with a chance to win — hit the ice after her.
"It was very nerve-wracking, especially when the last skater was on the ice and I was thinking I could win," said McNeil.
But none of them could top the little girl from New Brunswick, though a pair of Quebecers — Vanessa Grenier (119.80) and Amanda Velenosi (117.33) — came close.
Then the shock really began to set in.
"I was like 'oh my God. Wow. It was amazing," said McNeil.
And hasn't it been quite the week for the small-town kids already. Thursday, it was Paige Lawrence and Rudi Swiegers letting us all know about Wawota, Saskatchewan, population 620, after winning the junior pairs silver medal.
Now it's a day for the 2,036 residents of Salisbury, New Brunswick, to smile. A Maritime village — it's 25 kilometres from Moncton — that has much more than silver fox farming as its claim to fame today.
They're also pretty proud at the nearby Petitcodiac & District Figure Skating Club, where McNeil says "there's maybe three seniors and a couple of juniors."
She figures she'll be one of those seniors next year. And we're betting McNeil just became pretty famous herself in the eyes of her skating club and her home town.
That wow feeling here, though, isn't going away just yet.
McNeil grinned the widest of grins as four-time world champion Kurt Browning — about as famous a Canadian skater as you'll find out there — posed for a photo with her.
Maybe Kelsey McNeil never imagined a day quite like this.
But she's living proof that you really can accomplish anything, if only you think and believe that you really can.
"I always believed in myself growing up," she said. "I thought I could do this."

They're Larger Than Life

2008-01-18T13:29:00.000-08:00

If you've been anywhere near the intersection of Burrard and Dunsmuir streets this week, you've no doubt taken in the sight.
Then again, it's pretty hard to miss the huge poster — we're guessing 8x10. Feet that is — of soon-to-be Canadian ice dance champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir that hangs in the front window of the main Bank of Montreal branch in downtown Vancouver.
A little more attention got drawn to it late Friday morning, when the skaters themselves showed up to pose for some promotional shots with 10-time Canadian champions Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz. Naturally, the odd passer-by did a double take — had to chuckle when I saw one guy run out of the adjacent BMO tower and ask Moir "are you actually the guy in that picture?"
People were even getting cabs to pull over in front of the bank before jumping out, cameras in hand, to snap photos (okay, it turned out they were part of the Moir clan. But work with me on this, people).
Point is, Skate Canada obviously sees some star power building here and, rest assured, you'll see plenty more of Virtue and Moir in the runup to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. And if it works out they catch the fancy of Canadians the same way Bourne and Kraatz did during their heyday, well, the folks who run the sport in this country should consider themselves doubly blessed.
Nothing sells like stars, after all.
***
Question overhead on the bus ride to Pacific Coliseum today: "Do they ever get sunshine in this city?"
Beginning to wonder the same thing myself. Especially since the forecast before I came out here was for sunshine and blue skies for most the week (apparently, that's now next week's forecast).
That being said, there are two reasons not to complain: It's not raining. And there's not a snowflake to be seen on the ground anywhere. How often can you say that about a Canadian city in January?

Anyone Seen Rachel Green?

2008-01-17T22:49:00.000-08:00

It started out as just another rather uneventful bus ride back from Pacific Coliseum into downtown Vancouver.
Just a bunch of weary skaters, coaches, officials — and, oh yes, one Skate Canada blogger — anxious to get back to their hotels after another long day at the rink.
Then, as we rolled down hotel alley (a.k.a. Burrard St.), we noticed a big commotion caused by a rather large crowd that had blocked off a lane of traffic in front of the Hyatt Regency.
"Isn't Jennifer Aniston shooting a video near here?" someone asked.
Naturally, gratuitous rubber necking instantly ensued. This was, after all, Rachel Green of Friends fame we were talking about.
(and yes, she is in Vancouver for a movie shoot. So, too, apparently, is Keanu Reeves, who I'm told was at the Pacific National Exhibition grounds — where the competition and practice rinks are located — at some point in the last few days. But I digress ...).
"Is that her in the toque?" another curious voice wondered.
I must confess I thought I might have seen the back of her head.
But alas, not one of us could say they knew for sure.
Well, except this voice I heard.
"I'm telling everyone I saw her," she said, to a chorus of laughter.
Hey, that's our story and we're sticking to it.

Dance Picture Getting Clearer

2008-01-17T21:06:00.000-08:00

The last dance, you'd think, should be the decisive dance.
But original dance day might turn out to be the real "moving day," the moment went the composition of Canada's world team became almost crystal clear.
No real surprise at the top. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who came to the 2008 BMO Canadian figure skating championships as overwhelming favourites to secure their first national senior ice dance crown, pretty much made that a lock Thursday night at Pacific Coliseum. With a whopping personal best, the London, Ont. duo moved their overall total to 105.33 points — 17.19 better than second place Kaitlyn Weaver of Houston, Tex., and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont. (88.14).
It was also an especially good night for Weaver and Poje, who took a large step toward their second straight worlds appearance with a strong original dance. Their margin over fourth-place Mylene Girard of Repentigny, Que., and Liam Dougherty of Whitehorse (84.59) is nearly four points — massive ground to make up in a single free dance.
In between, in third spot, are Vancouver-based Allie Hann-McCurdy of Orleans, Ont., and Michael Coreno of Delhi, Ont. (87.22), who still have a bit of work to do to seal the third Canadian ice dance ticket to the 2008 worlds in Gothenburg, Sweden.
There's also a tight group behind Girard and Dougherty. Reigning junior national champs Vanessa Crone of Aurora, Ont. and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont. (84.35) and Ottawa's Siobhan Karam and Kevin O'Keefe of Limestone, Maine (84.11) are within a point of the fourth-place team.
Moir likes to see the level of battle going on to decide who'll join he and Virtue in Sweden.
"It's exciting to know that we have good teams coming up behind us," said Moir. "Canada's got real depth in ice dance."
We'll know for sure after Saturday's free dance final.
But when all is said and done, it just might be what went on Thursday night that goes the longest way toward telling the final tale.

The Pride of Saskatchewan

2008-01-17T18:43:00.000-08:00

It's a bitterly cold night in tiny Wawota, Sask. (minus-34 with the wind chill), and bones are no doubt shivering in this Prairie town.
We're thinking, though, that a warm breeze emanating on the West Coast might just do plenty to help its 620 residents forget about Old Man Winter's icy grip.
They're the pride of Wawota and now, on a night they'll likely never forget at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, Paige Lawrence and Rudi Swiegers became junior pairs silver medallists at the BMO Canadian figure skating championships. It capped a meteoric rise for this young duo, who placed 14th in their previous two cracks at nationals.
They almost wrote the ultimate fairytale finish, as it turns out. Lawrence and Swiegers won the free skate and finished a mere .06 points (129.07) behind the gold-medal winners, Monica Pisotta of Barrie, Ont., and Michael Stewart of Mississauga, Ont. (129.13). The bronze went to Christi Anne Steele and Adam Johnson of Chatham, Ont. But afterward, a crowd of media only had eyes and ears for the almost-Cinderellas, the couple that hails from a club that's populated with a mere 20 or so skaters.
So 14th to almost national champions in a year. What gives here?
"We were still young last year and still learning a lot," said Lawrence, 17. "We'd only been together for only a year and a half ... But we took what we learned last year and then we just went home and trained really hard. We looked at what we needed to work on and improve upon and just focused on that."
They did it so well that Skate Canada handed them a Junior Grand Prix assignment in Chemnitz, Germany. They finished fourth there and have been riding that momentum ever since, arriving in Vancouver as Western Challenge champions.
"We got some more experience in Germany, so we just know how to handle things a little better and it worked well for us," said Lawrence.
A fabulous throw triple Lutz showed the kind of potential and room to grow that they still have. And on this night, they weren't going to play the 'what if' game about that tiniest of margins that separated them from the gold.
"Nothing we can do about it now," said the 5-foot Lawrence with a smile. "We've just got to be happy with what we did, and I think we're both really happy with it.
"I was just so proud of us. Knowing the score or the what ifs or what we could have done ... that's not going to affect us."
Added Swiegers, 20: "We're just really excited about how we skated. We went out there and did what we really can do."
It's been quite the adventure already for the only pairs team in all of Saskatchewan, and for a coach (Patricia Hole) going down this road for the first time herself.
"We're her first pair team," said Lawrence. "We're all just learning together."
They'll move up to senior next year — "We just feel it was time for us to do it," said Swiegers — and they'll do it in Saskatoon, site of the 2009 BMO Canadian championships.
"That's going to be great to have it in (our) home province," said Lawrence. "I think it will be fabulous."
Folks there, too, are much more likely to have heard of Wawota (Lawrence describes its location this way: "It's in the southeast corner of Saskatchewan. Two hours southeast of Regina, two hours from U.S. border and an hour from the Manitoba border").
In the figure skating world, though, Wawota — which celebrates its centennial later this year — just got put on the map in a major way. And we can only imagine the cheers two of the town's youngest residents will receive after they make the long trip home.
Reason enough to get the big party started a little early, don't you think?

All Those Years Ago

2008-01-17T16:45:00.000-08:00

You see Jamie Sale and David Pelletier in a hallway outside the media centre at Pacific Coliseum and the thought instantly rushes to mind.
Seven years!
Has it really been that long, you wonder, since these two darlings of Canadian figure skating became world pairs champions, right in this very city on a magical March evening across town at General Motors Place?
"Makes us all feel kind of old, doesn't it?" Sale says with a grin when the same thought is thrown her way.
(ok, me definitely more than you two, I'd say)
But there it was during a video presentation here on Wednesday night, the elation in the faces of two proud young Canadians and the deafening roar that greeted the string of marks, confirming the brilliance many of us had just witnessed. That yes, we had a new set of world champions, another chapter to add to the rich figure skating lore in our land.
You all know most of what followed. The sordid saga of the Salt Lake City Olympics a year later, which finally played out with the gold medals rightfully and most deservedly around their necks.
They've since become husband and wife.
And, just a few months back, parents to a lovely young son named Jesse.
Now they're back in Vancouver. To do a little television work for CBC. To skate during Sunday's closing ceremony. And, perhaps most appropriately of all, to receive induction into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame, in the city in which they thrilled a nation with one of their greatest triumphs.
Yes, it really has been seven years.
But come Sunday, perhaps, it might just seem like yesterday again.
Hey, I'm up for turning back the clock if they are.

Ask And You Shall Receive

2008-01-17T16:34:00.000-08:00

If you were in Quebec City last fall for HomeSense Skate Canada — or followed along from afar via our Chronicles of Le Colisee — you might recall this request from one of last posts from that weekend.
Give us more Marc Ferland.
You know, that former Canadian novice champion with the fabulous pipes, who opened and closed the proceedings in Quebec with two stirring renditions of O Canada (well, I know they gave me the chills).
So guess who did the honours in tonight's official opening ceremony for the BMO Canadian figure skating championships at Pacific Coliseum? None other than Mr. Ferland himself.
Now, we'll admit the reaction to his powerful voice wasn't quite as overwhelming here — you're always appreciated more in your home province, right? — but we're certainly hoping this is the beginning of one of those new traditions Skate Canada has been introducing.
Kind of like this blogging bit, for example.
Of course, we always hoped, when this all started, that the good folks with the association with merely read this stuff.
We never thought they'd actually take our suggestions, too.
Ah, the power of the blog. Well, we can at least dream, right?

All In The Family

2008-01-17T13:55:00.000-08:00

Maybe it's something in the water at the Scarboro Figure Skating Club.
Whatever it is — and yes, it's much more than that, as you'll soon learn — the Toronto club has become quite the haven for national ice dance champions. And Kharis Ralph and Asher Hill, a very promising pair of teenagers, did their part to add to the title collection on Thursday afternoon at Pacific Coliseum.
When the first medals of these BMO Canadian figure skating championships were decided, it was Ralph and Hill seizing the junior dance crown, which kept a couple of rather impressive streaks going.
It was merely the third national title in a row for these two. They were tops in novice dance a year ago, and in pre-novice dance in 2006. But a triple crown? Yes, they're a little surprised by it all, given that their goal coming in was a top-three finish.
"It definitely was a surprise," said Ralph. "It's highly unlikely that anyone who's won two (prior) years in a row would place first. But we worked really hard, so we're really happy."
Ralph and Hill had an inkling something special might be in the cards when they won the compulsory dance. As it turned out, they swept all three phases of the competition and posted a 145.64 point total to outdistance silver medallists Karen Routhier of Stoneham, Que., and Eric Saucke-Lacelle of Pierrefonds, Que. (141.36), and Ottawa-born Sophie Knippel and Andrew Britten of Dundas, Ont., a new team who took the bronze (135.69).
Perhaps just as stressful for Ralph: The media interviews afterward. She had to fly solo while her partner headed back out to the ice to compete in the junior men's short program.
"He's normally the one who talks, and I'm the one who just smiles and nods," said Ralph (who did just fine on her own, by the way). "But we've done this for a long time. Ever since we started skating together (six years ago), he's done two disciplines so I'm used to it now."
The victory by Ralph and Hill also kept the national junior dance crown at Scarboro FSC. Their training mates, Vanessa Crone of Aurora, Ont., and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont., did the honours a year ago in Halifax (they're skating senior in Vancouver this week).
So what's behind the Scarboro success?
"Our coaches are amazing," said Ralph. "There's a team of four — Carol (Lane), Juris (Razgulajevs), Jon (Lane) and Donna (Iijima) — and they each specialize in different things. Together, they work very well."
And yes, it was nice to keep the title in the club.
"Our club is like a big family," said Ralph. "It's just a nice feeling to win."

That Hit The Spot

2008-01-17T12:47:00.000-08:00

It's been a Vancouver tradition for some 80 years and still counting. And what better way to start my day, I thought, than with a hearty breakfast at the famed White Spot restaurant.
The chain, which is no doubt well doubt known to every Vancouverite, was birthed back in 1928 by Nat Bailey, a U.S.-born restaurateur who's also well known to many in local minor baseball circles here (perhaps you've heard of Nat Bailey Stadium?).
Anyways, a friend who's a Vancouver native recommended the White Spot breakfast and it didn't disappoint (I hit the West Georgia St. location, a brisk morning's walk away from the Sheraton Wall Street). But the chain is perhaps best known for its Triple O burgers, which apparently are even sold in Hong Kong and Bangkok these days (they're also dishing them out in steady numbers here at Pacific Coliseum).
I'm told it's the sauce — a combination of mayonaisse and red relish — that makes a Triple O, well, a Triple O. And that there's just nothing like it, especially to anyone who calls this city home.
***
Signs of the 2010 Olympics are in evidence everywhere you look here.
Of course, there's the countdown clock in from of the Vancouver Art Gallery (785 days away, if you're wondering). And, as I've learned, that big hole in the ground on Granville St. next door to the big Sears store is part of the deal, too.
It's supposed to be the site of the main station for the expanded SkyTrain rapid transit system that will service, among other things, the Vancouver airport and the Olympic venues in the Richmond area.
Which explains a lot to me. Kinda figured right away, though, that there was a whole lot more than sewer replacement going on there.

Dancing Side By Side

2008-01-16T22:31:00.000-08:00

It's a whole new game in the senior ice dance event at these Canadian figure skating championships.
You've probably heard the story. Five of the top seven teams from last year's nationals in Halifax aren't here this go round, either through retirements, sabbaticals (defending champs Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon) or partnerships that dissolved during the off-season.
So, with a whole whack of new teams showing up in Vancouver — and three world team berths up for grabs — a dogfight for those tickets to Gothenburg, Sweden, figured to ensue. Beyond the top spot, that is. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who are ascending in a major way on the global scene, already hold a commanding lead (with 40.04 points) after tonight's compulsory dances.
But it's game on below them, now that the Yankee Polkas are all in the books. The big movers this season have been Allie Hann-McCurdy and Michael Coreno, two Ontario kids who headed west to Vancouver a few years back and hit the ice at Pacific Coliseum as the hometown team.
They're in second spot with 32.62 points, just a hair ahead of Houston-born Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont. (32.54), who surprised everyone by grabbing that precious third worlds ticket a year ago.
Two of those new teams are right in the mix, too. Ottawa's Siobhan Karam and Kevin O'Keefe of Limestone, Maine, who represent the Minto Skating Club, stand fourth (31.26). Then it's Montreal-based Mylene Girard and Liam Dougherty (30.70), followed by last year's national junior champs, Vanessa Crone of Aurora, Ont., and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont. (30.22).
That's a mere 2.40 points separating second through sixth, with two phases of the competition still to go. Game on, indeed.
For Hann-McCurdy and Coreno, the former national junior champions who were eighth in their senior debut a year ago in Halifax, the result tonight couldn't have been any better.
"We went to Skate Canada (in November in Quebec City) and we did very well there (fourth)," said Coreno, 23, of Delhi, Ont. "This is where we wanted to be so far."
Both agree a ticket to worlds this year would be a vital step toward their ultimate goal — the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, about as hometown a Winter Games as it could get for a Canadian couple.
"That was our goal this year," said Hann-McCurdy, 20, of Orleans, Ont., who continues to represent the Gloucester Figure Skating Club back in Ottawa. "We want to take it one year at a time but obviously, this is a good start."
Added Coreno: "I think it's one of the most important events (for us) right now, because this is a stepping stone to worlds, Four Continents ... to get on that team would be huge."
As tight as this competition is, though, it's a story that still has a few more twists and turns yet to come. The next chapter: Thursday night's original dance. Stay tuned.

Back In The Game Again

2008-01-16T18:01:00.000-08:00

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."

Preserving A Proud Tradition

2008-01-16T15:38:00.000-08:00

They are a link to Canadian figure skating's proudest moments of the past. And becoming more visible than ever around the sport today.
To hear Skate Canada CEO William Thompson tell it, none of this is an accident. More than perhaps ever before, the association is turning toward some of its most famous alumni and asking them to play a hand in inspiring the stars of tomorrow.
"We're making a concerted effort to reconnect with our alumni," said Thompson. "They're our link to a tradition of excellence."
So it is that you will see some of these famous alumni presenting the medals Sunday to all the podium finishers at these Canadian figure skating championships. Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz will be there. So will Jamie Sale and David Pelletier. And a few other "special guests" who'll make their appearance on the ice at Pacific Coliseum.
Looking on as Thompson and others spoke — and no doubt nodding their approval — were Kurt Browning and Brian Orser, a pair of former world champions who are still very much involved in the sport they love.
It is a vast departure from the days, Debbi Wilkes says, when retired champions were all but put out to pasture and pretty much forgotten.
"As long as you were current, as long as you were on the podium and winning medals, everyone was anxious to talk to you," said Wilkes, a 1964 Olympic pairs silver medallist who has brought her boundless energy to Skate Canada as its director of marketing and sponsorship. "Once you became a 'was' skater, nobody wanted to talk to you anymore."
Given the way other sports find ways to keep their greatest heroes alive in the hearts of the generations that follow, it only makes sense that figure skating do the same. Few sports in this country have produced such a line of world and Olympic champions. Why not invite those people to be a part of extending that lineage into the foreseeable future?
Bourne spoke passionately about the contributions and "giving back" that such alumni can make. She has returned to Canada and spends lots of her time these days at the Granite Club in Toronto, where young skaters there can feed off her championship experience.
"Even seeing each other is motivational," she said. "It keeps that spirit alive. (The alumni) have so much experience we can share."
No time like the present to mine it for all it's worth.

Who's That Girl?

2008-01-16T14:09:00.000-08:00

You never know where you're going to spot a famous figure skater.
Take, for example, the group of Ottawa Senators fans who spilled into a bar across from the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., after Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final last June. Apparently, they'd had a few pops, spotted a rather striking blonde sitting by herself in said watering hole, and did what a lot of guys do in said situation.
Started chatting up the pretty blonde.
They didn't have a clue who was sitting across from them. It was only when she offered up this tidbit of information — "I'm a figure skater" — that it began to dawn on a few of them that this wasn't just any skater.
She's Canadian. A former world champion. Ten times a Canadian champ.
Say hello, guys, to Shae-Lynn Bourne, who's relating this tale to me. And clearly just as amused about it now as she was that night.
Of course, once they'd figured it all out, this red-clad group of Sens fans just had to get a picture with Bourne, who happily obliged. Not exactly the scene she had in mind, we're pretty sure, when she and U.S. skating star Sasha Cohen (a huge Ducks fan) decided to go the game together (Bourne was in Anaheim on a skating tour).
Small world, as the old saying goes.
And a fun memory for all involved, no doubt.

Blast From The Past

2008-01-16T13:43:00.000-08:00

Depending on your perspective, 11 years can seem like one heckuva long time. Or just like yesterday.
Took a quick tour through the results from the 1997 Canadian figure skating championships — the last time nationals were held in Vancouver — and noticed a few names who still have a very strong connection to this event. And that's not even counting the rather large group of '97 'grads' (so to speak) who are on the other side of the boards as coaches these days (like Vancouver natives Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe, senior ice dance bronze medallists back then, who are finally home to stay after all those years in Windsor and Detroit).
Of course, there's Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz, who won their fifth Canadian ice dance crown 11 years ago at General Motors Place (High Society was their free dance back then, Shae tells me, if you're wondering). They're the honorary co-chairs of the 2008 nationals, which are being held at Pacific Coliseum.
Check the senior pairs results, you'll find the name David Pelletier, who finished sixth with former partner Allison Gaylor. Now, we all know Pelletier went on to his greatest fame with the young woman who'd become his wife, Jamie Sale: They became world champions in the same GM Place in 2001, Olympic gold medallists a year later in Salt Lake City.
On Sunday, they'll be inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame, and skate a special performance during the parade of champions.
Take a closer look at the novice men's event in '97. In seventh place, you'd have found a young up-and-comer named Jeffrey Buttle. He arrived in Vancouver this week as three-time defending senior men's champion.
Who knew back then that B.C. native Craig Buntin, who finished 14th in novice pairs with Chantal Chailler, would go on to win three senior national pairs crowns (with now-retired Valerie Marcoux). He's here with new partner Meagan Duhamel this week.
Oh, and last (but certainly not least) ... Annie Bellemare, eighth in the senior women's event in 1997 (her first nationals, she just told me). Today, we hear she's doing a bang-up job as Skate Canada's marketing and communications co-ordinator. And from what we've noticed, she's still rather busy around the rink.
Funny how some things just never change.

Better Later Than Never

2008-01-16T13:04:00.001-08:00

The folks at Skate Canada are trying all kinds of things to rekindle interest in the Canadian championships.
You'll notice, for example, that there's nothing random about the starting order for the free skates in senior events. It's simply the reverse order of the finish in the short program.
More exciting for fans. Makes for some dramatic television, too.
One heck of a great idea, if you ask me (some might even suggest it's something that's long overdue).
Here's another thing you'll notice — it's Wednesday, and we're just getting started into the competition. Gone are those qualifying rounds for senior men and women that used to turn the week into a bit of a marathon for those involved.
But, as three-time Canadian women's champion Joannie Rochette points out, the qualifying rounds have been dumped at the world championships. Might as well do the same here, then, right?
"i didn't mind the qualifying rounds," said Rochette, a bright young woman who celebrated her 22nd birthday on Sunday. "It was a good warmup for the competition.
"But actually, it's more like worlds now. It makes sense that they follow what they're doing. When we used to have qualifying at worlds, it made sense to have qualifying here."
Makes sense to me, too.
***
I've learned my first bit of useful directions around Pacific Coliseum.
The mountains, they tell me, are north of the building. So if you want or need to head south ... well, you know the rest.
I suppose that's also why they're referred to as the North Shore Mountains. Gee, something else that makes sense.
***
Mrs. Doherty was spotted in the house today.
Guess these championships can now officially begin.

A Worlds Of Relief

2008-01-16T12:37:00.001-08:00

So Canadian figure skating fans aren't going to be denied television coverage of the world championships after all.
In what can probably be rightly (and fairly) called a last-ditch negotiation, CBC Sports has reached agreement with the International Skating Union for coverage of the 2008 worlds in Gothenburg, Sweden, and 2009 worlds in Los Angeles.
That erases the fears of skating fans in the Great White North that they'd be shut out when the planet's best convene in Sweden in March. Granted, you'll need to pony up a few bucks to subscribe to digital CBC Country Canada, which has all the live coverage and prime-time repeats (CBC's airtime is mainly slotted in at midnight). But given the other option, I'd say most skating fans won't object to the rather neglible extra cost.
The two-year deal also gives CBC multimedia rights, meaning you'll have the same live and on-demand options at www.cbcsports.ca that you'd got for this week's nationals in Vancouver.
CBC also gets rights to the 2009 Four Continents Championship — the test event for the 2010 Winter Olympics — and has an option for coverage of fall Grand Prix competitions (not including HomeSense Skate Canada, which is covered in a separate CBC agreement with Skate Canada).
Needless to say, there's a sense of true relief among the folks who govern the sport's fortunes in this country.
"I can't even explain to you how thrilled I am," Skate Canada CEO William Thompson said Wednesday morning during the opening press conference for the BMO Canadian figure skating championships. "It's important for us that our world championships gets strong television coverage.
"This is fantastic news and good for the sport in Canada."

From Sea To Sea

2008-01-15T23:58:00.001-08:00

You know it's that time again when I'm at an airport mid-January.
Pretty sure it's gotta be that time again when, just ahead of me in line, is none other than Colleen Karam, the friendly voice you'll hear whenever you put a call into the Minto Skating Club (oh, and rather proud mom of senior ice dancer Siobhan Karam, too).
And if it is indeed Canadian figure skating championships time — and it most definitely is — then that's why we're in Vancouver, sharpening up the blogging touch for another go at this favourite event of mine.
It's a week to be happy that the first person you see when you check into the Sheraton Wall Centre is none other than Shae-Lynn Bourne, one of this blogger's all-time favourites in this sport. I said it a year ago in Halifax, when this blogging thing first came to life, but Canadians is like old home week. A once a year reunion of sorts, with athletes and coaches and parents and fans renewing so many friendships and acquaintances — and making a whole bunch of new ones.
Like a delightful young girl named Rosa, with dimples to die for, who made a visitor from another province feel oh so welcome at Earls (a personal favourite eatery whenever I'm in western Canada) on his first night in Vancouver in seven years (and after a long flight from Ottawa, it was much, much appreciated, let me tell you).
Yes, it's been way too long since we all visited the gorgeous part of our fair land, a whole country away from where we were at this time a year ago. How long? Well, the Sheraton Wall Centre, which is our home away from home this week, didn't even exist the last time we were here, way back in 2001 for the world figure skating championships (still one of the best sports events I've ever covered, you should know).
And isn't it fitting that Jamie Sale and David Pelletier, who were on top of the world on a magical night seven years ago at General Motors Place, will be inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame on Sunday at old Pacific Coliseum, which will be the 2010 Winter Olympics venue.
While this week isn't quite an Olympic preview — we're still two years out from that mega-affair — it'll be an interesting stepping stone on the road to Vancouver 2010.
Best of all, it's great to be back on the Left Coast.
Now, on with the show ...