Поразмыслив и посоветовавшись с товарищами
, решила выложить Селин о поездке на чемпионат мира 2004г. Думаю, новичкам будет интересно, а старичкам будет повод ностальгически вздохнуть. 
Dortmund, Stéphane and us
World Championships 2004
By Céline, adapted from the French version
Friday, March 19, 2004. Jacqueline and I arrived in Dortmund around 1pm. At that same time, Stéphane, his mom and Mr. Grütter were taking off from Geneva… The afternoon went by fast as we discovered the place of the competition. People were still working in the main arena, decorating and arranging the Kiss&Cry. "Excuse-me, can we already hang our banners or do you still have to do something here?" They didn't know what exactly we were talking about, but they soon figured out that fans never go to figure skating competitions without their banners. First one to hang in the rink: our banner for Stéphane… We then went to the other rink. Practice had started in the morning, but few skaters were already there. Around 7.30pm, who showed up? Stéphane and his mom. "We were looking for you, we saw your banners!" But there was no time to chat, they had to meet Mr. Grütter at the hotel…
Saturday, 1.40pm, first practice for Stéphane, in the main rink. The ice wasn't good: the white paint put underneath the first layer of ice (to make it look better on TV) wasn't the right one and oil had mixed with the water. "We skate on soap." Fun… And then, there was also that boot, that new boot, that hook that broke when Stéphane landed a jump. As a result, he would have to tape his boot all through the week to support the laces. Things were starting so well!… Mmmh, actually, Stéphane was quite good on the "soapy ice".
The second practice of the day, at the end of the afternoon, went even better. Very well. Stéphane was happy, and so were we. Isn't life so much nicer when everything goes the way you want?
On Sunday, Stéphane had 2 practice sessions again, the first one at 9am. Things didn't go as well as the previous day and he left the ice quite unhappy, frustrated… The draw of the starting order for the qualifications was scheduled for the beginning of the afternoon. Stéphane would be the 4th skater to take the ice. Mmmh. He was rather happy to skate early, but it could also be a disadvantage and we all knew that. But nothing could be changed anymore: when you have to do it, just do it!… At 4.50pm, Stéphane had another practice. Oy, it really wasn't his day. But we all tried to stay positive: better this happens today than tomorrow!
Monday, 6am, it was still dark, Dortmund was sleeping… Well, not quite everybody: Stéphane was stepping onto the ice, still somewhat sleepy, just like the other skaters, the coaches, just like us… Everything seemed unreal, but was there a better way to start the day than by admiring skaters? Stéphane didn't do much: if he was there, it was mostly to wake up and to put his body in motion in order to be fit 4 hours later. Some step sequences, some spins, a few jumps… As soon as he was finished, he rushed to the bus to go back to the hotel. We stayed there, in our little dream, and watched the following practice groups…
9.50am, finally! To our biggest joy, the competition was about to start. 6 minutes of warm-up, first skater, second skater, the pressure was rising. The third skater came onto the ice, Stéphane appeared a bit further. Breathe, let's not forget to breathe! Everything will be fine. Hearts were beating too fast, hands were starting to shake. And the music started… difficulties went by… Triple axel? landed! Quad toe? Landed! Pfiew! The program went on as it had started: well. GO GO GO!! Ups, little mistake on the triple salchow, not a big deal, stay concentrated! The audience wasn't big enough to carry him throughout the program, but somehow he still managed to fly… Yeah, great, continue like that Stéphane! Ending position – and a big smile! CONGRATS STEPH! What a relief!
On the way to the dressing room, everybody congratulated him, everybody was thinking that if he was to keep up this level of skating, he could be more dangerous than expected… Stéphane happily answered to the journalists, showed his "taped boot", explained what had happened and how he was feeling… A little later, totally relaxed and in a great mood, Stéphane came to the stands to watch the end of his qualifying group. His comments were hilarious, long live figure skating! The only low moment for all of us was when Patrick Meier messed up his program and ended up far behind, too far behind… Chengjiang Li skated and the group was basically over, the top spots were known. Third. Stéphane was THIRD! Wow! He had "planned" on skating the short program in the 4th or even 3rd group, he would be in the last… Stéphane went back to the hotel to eat and rest a little. We stayed for the other group and then went to the ladies practice; the group with Sarah Meier was on the ice. And who showed up all of a sudden? Stéphane, exactly! The draw for the short program had just taken place. "And guess which number I picked?!!" He didn't look happy, we knew what it meant. "Yeah, right, 30! Last to skate, once more!" Hey Stéphane, it's not the end of the world!… Tired after a long day, he went back to his hotel around 7.30pm. It didn't take much longer before we were in bed too…
After a good night of sleep, we were ready for another long day. We were hoping that Stéphane had slept just as well as we had, but since we were at the rink at 10.15am, we had to wait for another three hours before seeing him on the ice. He seemed to be in a good shape, the practice went well, which was a good sign. Stéphane, like many skaters, particularly fears the short program…
The day went by smoothly, slowly… It was eventually 6.24pm, the time for the first group of men to take the ice for their 6-minute warm-up. We enjoyed some programs and felt sorry for some "unluckier" skaters, but the main thing was that time was finally going by faster… Last group. We took a deep breath, but this time we weren't nervous. It'd be fine, we knew it. When all other skaters were finished for the day, it was Stéphane's turn to get into the spotlight. ALLEEEEEZ!!! Stéphane started his program. "Freedom", this title suited him so well! Watch out, triple axel! Yes, nailed! Quad? Utsh, get back on your feet and keep your head up! The triple flip was perfectly landed. The step sequences followed, and some incredible spins closed the program. It was over, and it had been a good performance! The marks, the rankings… Jacqueline burst into tears. "How can he be so beautiful?"
We went to congratulate our Petit Prince. The journalists were ready with their pens, papers and tape recorders, to ask some questions to Stéphane. But he first wanted to hug some people and say how happy and relieved he was, though he also was little frustrated "to have missed the easiest jump! But I enjoyed it so much, I had told myself 'have fun, enjoy every second, it's the last time you're skating this program.' I love this program so much, the whole program, each move, each element!" We didn't stay long and left him with the journalists who would finally get the answers they had been waiting for, and we went to celebrate a friend's birthday.
On Wednesday, we were at the rink at 10am to watch Sarah Meier's qualifying program. Not bad, though she later said that she wasn't happy with her performance… Between the ladies qualifications and the ice dancing practice, time flew by until 2.50pm, the beginning of the practice for the men free program. Wow! The two first groups "put us in the mood", and then it was pure bliss! 12 amazing skaters. Many journalists were there. Nobody knew where to look. 6 men on the ice at the same time, a jump here, a jump there, and spins, and step sequences… They were all flying! Stéphane was in the last group. He was singing when he arrived, when he warmed up and when he stepped onto the ice… but not when he left it! Things hadn't quite happened as he would have wanted them to. But it didn't worry us much – after two tough days of competition, he deserved to be a little less efficient for once, and we were actually happy to see it happen that day… And since it was his day off, we decided not to bother him any longer and went to watch the pairs free program…
Thursday: we knew this would be the longest day of the week, the most important maybe, and we were hoping it would end well. We arrived at the rink for the beginning of the men practice at 9.30am. Stéphane skated 2 hours later, so la la it seemed. We felt he looked a little less motivated than at the beginning of the week, probably because he was tired, and he didn't land his jump as well as he had earlier… The afternoon went by fast, thanks to the original dance: entertaining music, colorful costumes and intense programs!
6.24pm. The rink still wasn't full, though it was sold out. The first group already set the bar high. Stéphane's fan’s club arrived. After 10 hours in a bus, they were happy to finally take their seats in the Westfalenhalle. The second group skated, and it was supposed to get even better after that – but was it really possible? 15-minute break to resurface the ice for the stars who were to come: the fan's club hanged their banners, got their make-up done, opened their bottles of wine. The third group went by like in a dream. How could they do all that?… And then, and then… then it was the time to welcome the lords of the rink. The tension could be felt in the audience. The fans were encouraging their favorites. Johnny, Stéphane, Brian, Michael, Stefan, Evgeni: the 45 minutes to come were to be spectacular. Johnny Weir skated a wonderful program, and… ALLEZ STEPHANE!!!!!! Opening position. The music started. Tears were already running down my cheeks. His flamenco. THE program of the season. GO GO GO!!! We crossed our fingers, almost closed our eyes. The triple axel went fine. The quad toe – triple toe too. Just like the triple flip – triple toe. Mmmh, what the hell was he doing?!?! No way, a second quad?!?!! GO PETIT PRINCE, FLY, FLY!!!!! Stéphane was skating like in a dream. Was he still feeling the ice under his skates? All the jumps were landed, and his step sequences… oh my God, look at him! He was so happy, he looked like he wanted to scream, to sing, to kiss the judges!!! And more jumps, and… the last spins, people getting on their feet, jumping, yelling… HE HAD DONE IT!!!!! He was there, in the middle of the ice, not believing what had happened. He didn't know if he should laugh or cry, he put his hand in front of his mouth, ate his fingers. He smiled. The most genuine smile ever. He bowed – here, there, little side, journalists, fan's club… At that point, he probably couldn't remember his name, but it was clear that he didn't want to leave the ice. His ice. He had done it. The skate of his life… He reached the Kiss&Cry just in time to see his marks. Up to 5.9 for the technical mark. 5.9 IN TECHNIQUE!!! Wow! His presentation marks were lower, unbelievable! But hey, nobody will complain about that 5.9, right?!!
No time to breathe, the show had to go on… The pressure was now on the shoulders of the following skaters. Brian Joubert resisted. We couldn't stay on our seats though: sorry Mr. Weiss, we really had to go thank Stéphane! Everybody was congratulating him, he still had that beautiful smile on his face. Peter Grütter and Salomé Brunner were standing next to him, so proud, so happy, so relieved that he had been consistent all through the week. We thanked them, they thanked us, everybody thanked everyone. And then we thanked HIM, we gave him a big hug, and he explained everything: "I had been planning a second quad for a week, I only tried it at practice once though. But I didn't tell anyone about it, I didn't want someone to say 'no, don't do that, it won't work', and I'm also a bit superstitious, so I kept it for myself. And I did it! I knew I'd be fine when I stepped onto the ice, I dreamt of that last night." He's just unbelievable!… We wanted to see the end of the competition so we left him with the journalists. His coach and choreographer were still standing nearby, watching over their precious little treasure…
And what we saw were two more great performances. Stefan Lindemann let the audience carry him throughout his program: our Stéphane wouldn't get a medal, oh well. Evgeni Plushenko skated a program worth of a world champion and won once again… The competition was over. Everybody in the rink sighed, trying to come round. Just as the medal ceremony was about to start, Stéphane appeared in the stands: he went to see his fan's club, his friends, his family…
The rink was now empty. In the halls, the fan's club was patiently waiting for Stéphane who, after a live interview on a Swiss TV channel, still had to go through the doping control… Oh oh, he was coming, he opened the door… and fans assailed him with pens, pictures, magazines and cameras! Luckily he had 2 big guys around him making sure that he wouldn't suffocate, since "even Britney Spears would have been jealous!" A few minutes later, we were all in the bus of the fan's club. Stéphane was beaming with joy. He read all the texts he had received on his cell phone. "For Stéphane, hip hip hip… hurraaaaaa!" We arrived at the hotel, he went through the doors and got another ovation. He rushed to his room to take a quick shower, while people started opening bottles of Champagne. He came back, still beaming, and after a first toast, gave a little speech to thank everybody to have come to Dortmund and, more generally, to have supported him through the season… The party went by smoothly – hugs, pictures, gifts, smiles, laughs… The fan's club left, Brian Joubert arrived: and one more bottle of Champagne, one more!… And then Stéphane, in a crazy mood, started imitating other skaters. HI-LA-RIOUS!… But all good things must end, and the party was over around 3.30am. We went home, sure of having wonderful dreams, while Stéphane finished celebrating with just his best friends…
On Friday, we were still on cloud 9 when we arrived at the rink for the ladies short program. Stéphane briefly showed up among the TV commentators when Sarah Meier skated… It's the only time we saw him that day, as he then went to dinner with his fan's club and finished the evening partying with the ice dancers.
On Saturday, the ladies free program was to close the competition and again, the level was very high and it was a beautiful "fight" for the medals! Once it was over, the exhibition practice took place. All pairs were there (hard for them to improvise!) and Stéphane arrived while they were practicing. He was in a great mood: "look, I did some shopping, I bought this t-shirt, and this shirt, and also this hat! Cool, eh?!" Stéphane and shopping: a never-ending love story! He was not quite as excited when he realized that he was the only man who had showed up for practice though! All the fans present were staring at him, until Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin came back onto the ice to practice some more… Of course Stéphane hadn't prepared any exhibition program, so after a little talk with his choreographer, he decided to skate his old short program to Shakira's "Objection". He didn't need much time to put together the program again, and to the amazement of the audience, he also landed two beautiful quads! Where could he find all that energy?… After practice, he went back to the hotel to have dinner with Carolina, and then, off to the skaters' party!
On Sunday morning, there was the mandatory exhibition practice: all the skaters had to be there to rehearse the finale. And we were happy to realize that we weren't the only ones who had forgotten to change the time on their watches during the night!… As always at such rehearsals, the atmosphere was great, all the skaters totally relaxed, and the audience could therefore enjoy a very nice moment!
At 2.10pm, the lights went off in the rink, the spotlights were turned on. Daniel Weiss came onto the ice and the "warm-up" of the audience started… And here we go! The skaters followed one another, without any break between the programs. 100% pleasure, 100% emotion. Stéphane received a warm welcome and despite two falls, the crowd really seemed to enjoy his program. He's an artist, a real one, he has that in his blood!… The show went on, and we desperately tried to make time stand still, we didn't want to believe that it was almost over… it couldn't end! But there came the finale, the skaters did a last round to wave at the audience and stepped off the ice for the last time… The lights were switched on again, people left… We went to see Stéphane to wish him a nice last evening in Dortmund and a safe trip back to Switzerland. He was exhausted, but still found some time and energy to answer to an interview in English and to sign some more autographs before going to two live interviews on the French- and German-speaking Swiss channels. And then he'd go to the closing banquet… We left the rink, went to a restaurant with some friends and caught our train to Switzerland, the head full of smiles and laughs, memories forever stuck in our hearts…
Thanks to all the skaters for these unforgettable moments, thanks to all the people who turned these 10 days into a dream, and of course, thank you, a thousand times THANK YOU to you, Stéphane, for making it all even more magic! Our lives without figure skating would be dull, but figure skating without you wouldn't be that fun either!
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Если у кого-нибудь еще есть старые статьи, отчеты, т.п. - предлагаю скидывать их в эту темку. Сезон окончен, самое время предаться воспоминаниям....
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