Our Life On Ice The Autobiography by Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean

Author:Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean [Torvill, Jayne and Dean, Christopher]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster

9

The Russians

CHRIS:

If you were to evaluate our relationship with the Russians so far you’d probably say something along the lines of mutual respect and frustration at the same time – and you’d be about right.

In the past we’ve made no secret of our admiration for their ice dancers and choreographers, who, back in the 1970s, completely dominated the sport. But we’ve certainly had our battles with them over the years, not to mention the odd adventure.

In the 1960s and 70s I was actually rather afraid of Russia, or the USSR, as it was then. This was during the Cold War and every time you turned on the TV there were reports about the number of missiles or tanks they had over there, and I remember as a child being quite worried about it all. But there was a real mystique about the place, and especially the people, not least the skaters. You’d see them compete on TV and then you wouldn’t hear from them again until the following year. No TV interviews or press reports, nothing. They just seemed to disappear.

Watching them on television was always an event for me. I loved to see their fantastic abilities and the marks they received. When the Russians were on the ice it was all about the movement. I was transfixed.

They made skating look artistic. They made it look complete. Not just in the way they danced but in the way they were dressed. Their costumes were made by the Kirov and always looked magnificent. Even the manner in which they skated on to the ice prior to a performance could be commanding – all confidence and nobility. They were the leaders and they dominated.

Moiseeva and Minenkov in particular were the ones Jayne and I both really admired. They were the most artistic couple, not simply relying on high-energy routines, which the majority of skaters did at the time. They were the ones who began turning ice dancing into more of an art form, which – later on – was precisely what we strived to do. They were the pioneers, though; the ones who first dared to be overtly expressive.

Their look was also amazing, like nothing we’d ever seen before. They were both tall and elegant, with a majestic air about them. More classical ballet dancers than ice skaters. To us they seemed almost exotic.

When we eventually became their competitors, the mystique that had surrounded them previously multiplied tenfold. They were impossible to actually befriend. The best you could ever realistically hope for was a quick nod as you passed them in the locker room during a competition. Minders, too, were a permanent fixture in the Russian camp, and they took their roles very seriously indeed. It was their job to make sure the skaters didn’t try to defect! At least that was our impression.

When we first began competing internationally it always felt like it was the Russians versus the rest of the world – a kind of ‘Cold War’ on ice – and in many ways it was just that.

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