As of July 2021, are you probably excited about the big sporting events in London, such as the Wimbledon tennis tournament or the European Football Championship?
Well, personally, I’m not really… Instead, I’d like to share fresh news from another sporting genre, also related to the UK. It’s also exciting, making you proud if you’re British, but instead of heating up too much it can also chill us out by the lovely sight of an ice rink.
Lifetime Achievement Award
The International Skating Union (ISU) and Art on Ice (both based in Switzerland) presented the second edition of the ISU Skating Awards on 10th July 2021, in which they announced three winners of Lifetime Achievement Awards: Tamara Moskvina from Russia, Alexei Mishin also from Russia, and Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean from the Great Britain - yes, Jayne and Christopher you know from the TV programme ‘Dancing On Ice’.
Lifetime Achievement Award 2021 | Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean (GBR) | ISU Skating Awards 2021
Boléro - still the best
Their most famed performance is, undoubtedly, ‘Boléro’ with which they delivered a gold medal to Great Britain in the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. They legendarily received artistic impression scores of full 6.0 from all the judges. Even though quite a few younger skaters have used the same music to express their Boléro in competitions and shows since then, the version by Torvill and Dean still remains the milestone. Maybe you’ve seen it many times already, but it’s always nice to revisit this captivating programme:
Boléro (1984)
Pasodoble - a unique perspective
While there is no doubt that this Boléro is their most signature piece, as a flamenco performer I’m equally very fascinated with their ‘Pasodoble’, also performed at the same Olympics. Dean played the role of a matador, Torvill danced as his cape - yes, as a cape. What an interesting idea, don’t you think? As you watch this repetitive but creative routine, your eyes would be deceived as if Torvill actually turned to a living cape! They showcased the Spanish feel with such artistry:
Pasodoble (1984)
With their unique creativity and versatility, Torvill and Dean still remain the most famous and successful British ice dance duo till today. Huge congratulations, and thank you for your artistic contributions to the world of figure skating.
As a supplement, I’ll leave you with this humorous piece of them with Mr Bean :)
‘Torvill and Bean’ | Comic Relief
An interesting timeline of the careers of Torvill & Dean