http://www.absoluteskating.com/interviews/2005isa&oli.htm

Russian Olympic Ice Dance Champions played matchmaker for
Delobel&Schoenfelder

by Susanne Kempf
Photos © Susanne Kempf

After their fabulous third place at the recent European
Championships in Torino, Isabel Delobel found some time for a long
chat with AbsoluteSkating, to talk amongst other things about their
experiences in Torino and their season so far.


How do you rate your performance here in Torino and are you happy
with it?

Well, when we came here we sort of hoped for a medal but of course
we didn't know what would happen here. But our practices went always
really well. The compulsory was good and we have given the best
performance of our Original Dance so far, I think.



But particularly for the OD you didn't get the marks you
deserved.... many observers agree on this.

After the OD the French media asked us: "Why aren't you more unhappy
about it?" But well, we did our job, we can't be disappointed
because we skated so well. Of course we would have been more pleased
if the marks had been higher but we couldn't really blame our
skating for it, so we were still very happy.


After the Original Dance did you still think you could take a medal?

Yes, we knew we had to skate well in the free dance and then we
would see. On Friday I was very excited and thought to myself "Maybe
tonight I will have a medal, maybe I will cry..."! When I started
the Free Dance, I ONLY thought: "Okay, don't think about the medal
now, just think about who is Frida, what does she feel..."


I saw you behind the Kiss and Cry when you saw you got the Bronze
and you were crying...

Yes... (laughs) I was so happy. We had already beaten
Grushina&Goncharov in the Free Dance. Many people came to us
afterwards and told us "You skated so great".


So, what does this medal mean to you?

Well, we knew we "had" to get a medal here before the Olympics next
year. It had to be this year or never, you know? (smiles) I still
haven't realized that we got a medal!
My father who stayed at home called me and said: "You are on tv
everywhere, on the first channel, on the second channel..." People
know us, they know we have been like 5th or 6th at Europeans before –
and now the bronze...





What do you think about the rink and the audience?

When I had the first practice here, I immediately loved this rink.
It is so "refreshing" and relieving and not as oppressing as in Salt
Lake City. The rink is also very bright. I liked the audience.


But I noticed people were booing when French skaters took the ice...

Yes, that's because of the football rivalry between French and
Italian fans I think... But in the Free Dance we still got a good
reaction. We started with a spin and lift and when we crossed the
ice, people were already clapping. We heard it. For Olivier and me,
the dance didn't last four minutes. We started and suddenly we were
already finished - time passed so quickly!


Was this the best you have ever skated?

Yes, I guess. At the Cup of China we had skated really good already.
We changed some transitions afterwards so that the Free Dance would
become even more flowy.


This year really seems like a breakthrough for you. Suddenly it
seems to have "clicked". You have been always good but this year
many people say: "I really like them!" What happened, did you do
anything differently in the preparation for the season?

Not much, actually. We decided to have a personal trainer for off-
ice training. We were much more confident and we realized we had to
work even harder. Somehow we have a different attitude this year.


You and Olivier also had some unfortunate falls in the previous
seasons, e.g. in the side-by-side step sequence. But not anymore so
it seems...? How come?

I don't know. We used to be very nervous. But since last summer I
think we realized that there is much more in life than just skating,
so maybe that's why we have a more relaxed attitude now which
reduces the mistakes. For me, skating is everything - but I know
that after my career I have to go on with my life. So maybe it helps
that we didn't put so much pressure on ourselves anymore. We already
knew we can be really good from our practices. Last year our
practices weren't always good but this year everything suddenly
seems to "fit" and all our practices go really well. We just feel
more confident!






What do you expect from Worlds in Moscow?

We will practice a lot and we have to work even harder because now
everybody is waiting for us even more (laughs). We will also go to
Berlin in February to do some polishing of our programs with
Anjelica Krylova&Pasquale Camerlengo.
There will be Belbin&Agosto among others of course, who we will
fight for a medal with certainly.


What do you think of the COP?

It is better because you can move up more easily now from second to
first place. Earlier it was more like: When you were first after the
CD or OD, you usually stayed first overall when you didn't make any
major mistakes. Now, with all the single elements which count, you
can really make a difference when you skate wonderfully in the Free
Dance and you are still able to overtake the first-placed couple.


But a lot of people criticize that there are many restrictions now
and that the free dances more and more look alike.

Yes, but I think the system has been installed only very recently
and it can still be adjusted better. I think the couple who still
has the most originality, who combines technique and originality the
best, will win. Maybe one could reduce the sets of twizzles to get
some more choreography into the programs.


So, next Europeans will be in Lyon, an homecrowd. What do you
expect?

The best! (smiles) We will fight very hard for another medal and
maybe even the gold. We feel we are also able to do what the couples
who are placed ahead of us can do. We are not afraid.




Now let's talk a bit about your background because I am sure many
people are interested to know... how and when did you team up with
Olivier?

Well, I am from Clermont-Ferrand and Olivier is from Belfort. I
started skating at six years old and Olivier at eight. I was skating
with my brother and he was skating with another partner. In 1990 I
did a skating course in Lyon and so did Olivier. The former Russian
Olympic champions Moiseva&Minenkov were there too with a team and
they said: "Oh, this blonde guy and this dark-haired girl... those
two could be really good together!" So my mother asked me: "You want
to skate here in Lyon?" And I said "Yes!". Olivier did the same, so
we became a team... Lyon has always been very famous for coaching,
so I wanted to go there very badly! For the first month we had
another coach but then it became Muriel.
When I arrived I was 12 years old and lived by myself already. We
had our own room but had to share the kitchen with other students. I
had to cook by myself too (laughs).


Did you feel alone or did you miss your parents? You were still so
young...!


Of course but not so much. I wanted to do it, it was my life. So,
all started from there. We even became Olympic Junior Champions in
1995. So we got the Marseillaise! We were also silver medallist in
Brisbane at the Junior Wold Championships in 1996. We were leading
after the Compulsories and the Original Dance - that was the first
time ever for a French couple in junior ranks! But we were only
second in the free... and Roman Kostomarov won with his former
partner Katerina Davydova... now it is still the same! (laughs)


Do you still remember your first competition with Olivier?

Yes, it was one month after we teamed up. It took place in Belford.
We did really good, we got second place. I still remember the
program and that I thought "Okay, this is my first competition with
Olivier"....and now we are still skating together.. after 15 years!


You have skated so many programs with Olivier during all those
years. Do you have a favourite?

The Johnny Hallyday program "Vivre pour le meilleur." It was from
the 2000/2001 season. I love the music and I always felt really good
when we skated it. Somebody had played the music during a practice
session and Muriel happened to put it on for ours. I immediately
knew... "That's for us! That's our music!" (smiles)






How do you pick your music in general? Do you, Olivier and Muriel
sit together and choose?

No. Whoever likes a music plays it for the others and then it gets
decided. We always agree on a music....


You trained with Tatiana Tarasova for a year but came back to
Muriel . Can you tell us a bit about that?

Well, she had asked to be our coach. She is a legend, so we felt
very honoured, of course. We had already done some training with her
in the USA. It was also because Muriel spent so much time with
Anissina&Peizerat prior to the Olympics, so we decided to make a
move.
The life there wasn't very good, with no money and nothing to do in
Simsbury, really. It was just skate and sleep and eat and skate...
(laughs). I also missed my sister a lot. It was much different than
when I had left home at 12. Now there was a whole ocean between me
and my family!
And if you are not happy, you can't produce anything good because
you do skate with your heart. Even though I loved Tatiana and
skating, something was missing.
By the way, Tatiana came to me after the free dance and told me: "I
knew you would be able to skate so well.. now everybody knows!"
(smiles)


So then you went back to France... how did Muriel react?

Good! She saw what a bad mental condition we were in and wanted to
help us of course. We like each other very much! But still, the
first year it was a bit difficult... we had to learn to trust each
other again.


How did you decide on the "Frida" music?

Muriel suggested to us: "Let's watch that movie!" When I listened to
the music, I said: "This music is for us!" I was impressed by this
woman who saw the good things in life, who still went on in her
life, trusting it, despite all the tragedy that happened to her.
We took the music and put it together like a mosaic. We decided to
end the Free Dance with a slow part even though that is not very
popular with the audience or judges - but we wanted to do something
different, more emotional.
It is a very intimate music, it comes from very deep. Probably next
year will be a very different music.





What is your favourite program ever? Who do you look up to as
skaters?

Grishuk&Platov. Their "The Passion of Christ" program from 1997. For
me, that's like a reference, like "Bolero". It is the best ever.
When I see it, I can watch it over and over again. If I can be like
them at some point, it will be the best moment ever for me. I would
like to be remembered like them in the future.. that people don't
talk about Delobel&Schoenfelder.. but about THEM (laughs). This
recognition by people would be even more worth than a gold medal for
me...


You have skated with Olivier for 15 years now. Was there ever a
point in your career where you thought it was better to part ways,
to change partners, or did you always know you were right for each
other on the ice?

No, we never thought of breaking up ever...


How is your relationship with each other? Do you sometimes argue? Do
you generally get along well? Are you very different personality-
wise (like Marina and Gwendal for example?)

Well, Olivier is very stoic and isn't shocked easily whereas I am
more out-going and excited. So I think we complete each other very
well. We trust in each other very much too, there is a lot of
respect and confidence between us. We are friends but we don't go to
movies together or something like that.


What are your future plans? How long do you plan to keep on skating?

We will certainly go on after Torino 2006 and then we will see, if
we are injury-free probably until the Olympic Games 2010.

Thanks for the interview and good luck for Worlds!

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