News/Features:
The
latest on Marina and Gwendal
July
24, 2005
Marina
working with U.S. dance team
Marina
is a very busy lady this summer.
In addition to her skating, she is also doing choreography
for the American Ice Dance team of Loren Galler-Rabinowitz
& David Mitchell.They are the 2004 U.S. National
Bronze Medalists.
Marina
has already choreographed their original dance and
is coming to the United States to work with them again
in August on their freedance.
"I
really enjoy working with this team," she said.
"It has been a great experience. They work very
hard and are dedicated to improving themselves.
"Right
now, they are focusing on making the Olympic team,
and I hope our work together helps them to achieve
that."
Marina,
an Olympic Gold Medalist herself, is sure to make
an impact on the young skaters.
Gwendal
Peizerat:
Accept the dream,
then live the dream
June
5 , 2005
Olympic
Gold Medalist in ice dancing, Gwendal Peizerat, is
a dreamer. Now, you wouldn’t think a Gold Medalist
would have to be a dreamer, but a stern, set-your-goal
and achieve it type person.
He
is both.
First
the dreamer side of Peizerat. “If you don’t
accept the dream, you can’t live the dream. To
be an Olympic champion, you first have to accept the
dream, then live the dream with the Gold Medal around
your neck.
He
dreamed of winning the Gold Medal, but he lived another
dream:
“Getting a standing ovation at the 1999 World
Championships in Vancouver was a dream. That is the
moment you live for if you’re a skater.”
Peizerat
and his partner, Marina Anissina, won Silver at that
championship, coming in second to the Russians. “But
there were all these people on their feet, applauding,
saying we were the best. There were thousands of letters
saying we were the best. That was a dream to hold
close to your heart.”
Peizerat
says to become an Olympic Champion, you have to give,
you have to have the energy and give it back to the
ice, to the judges and to the crowd.
“It’s
something inside of you. I can’t tell you what
IT is because I can’t really describe it. But
some excellent skaters will never win the medal because
they don’t have IT.”
A
most interesting insight to that Olympic Medal is
how Peizerat approached the competition after he and
Anissina had skated, near the beginning.
“I
couldn’t go back and just wait to see what happened,”
he said. Instead, he pulled up a chair and sat right
where all the other ice dancers would have to pass
him as they got on the ice.
“I
wanted them to know I was still there. I didn’t
want them to forget about me. I wanted to be the last
person they saw before the took the ice. It was my
way of saying, ‘you’ve got to get by me
first.’ ”
They
didn't get by him Marina. They are Olympic Champions.
Gwendal
still "peaking", Read
more
 |
Anissina & Peizerat
skate before the Queen
Olympic ice dance Gold Medalists Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat of France skated a command performance before the Queen Elizabeth.
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| Anissina & Peizerat |
The gala , held July 31 in Nottingham, England, was part of a celebration of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.
Anissina and Peizerat are characterized by their charismatic and passionate skating. The gold medal at the Salt Lake City Games capped a stunning amateur career for the team. They have since retired from amateur skating.
This summer, they toured with Champions On Ice in selected cities.
Anissina and Peizerat were among a select group of Olympic skaters joining the British national team in the show.
The show was choreographed and produced by Christopher Dean and Jayne Torvill, who were 1984 Olympic gold medalists from Britain. However, Torvill and Dean did not skate in the show.
"What we’re trying to do is give a variety of everything on ice. It’s a one-time event that most probably will never happen again," Dean said.
The gala was also the official opening of the Nottingham Ice Arena – the first two-surface facility in Britain.
New book out on Anissina & Peizerat
A book about Olympic Ice Dance Champions Marina Anissina & Gwendal Peizerat has been released in France.
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| Marina Anissina & Gwendal Peizerat |
The book by the title "D'Or et de Feu" ("Of Gold and Fire") features color photos from their programs from 1999 to 2002 on 160 pages.
Anissina & Peizerat comment on many of the photos, revealing details on how they constructed the different elements and about their thoughts and feelings of their programs.
The book includes personal information and off-ice photos with their family, their pets and at home.
(ISBN-Number 2-911 116-01-1, price 36 Euro). Address of the publisher: Pleiades, Editions de la Voûte; 9, Villa Berthier, 75017 Paris, France.
Olympic Gold Medalists
retire from amateur competition
Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat, who won the ice dancing Gold Medal at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, have decided to retire from amateur competition.
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| Marina Anissina & Gwendal Peizerat |
Anissina and Peizerat won France’s first figure skating Gold Medal since 1932. They did not compete in the World Championships in Nagano, Japan.
"We decided not to compete in the World Championships and declare ourselves as professional skaters," Gwendal said. "We are so proud to finish our amateur career at the highest point with an Olympic Gold."
Jean-Roland Racle, the sports director of the governing body of French skating was not surprised at the skaters’ decision "They fulfilled their objective by winning the most prestigious award in skating," Racle said.
Anissina and Peizerat performed with the 2002 Champions On Ice tour in selected cities.
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