SISA Seminar Series

Essential advice for young figure skaters

Focus on achievement, not winning or losing

As a rising, young skater star in Canada, Sherri Fergus once gave a brilliantly concise explanation of why she loved the sport: “Skating gives me something to work for and a wonderful feeling when I achieve it.” She was only 10 years old at the time.

Fergus is a long way from her days as a young figure skater in Nova Scotia, Canada. However, as she spoke to a gathering of skaters from the Singapore Ice Skating Association in mid January, it was clear that she still carries some strong feelings about the sport.

“Skating has a natural divinity to it,” said the 37 year old blonde who came to Singapore with her family last August. Many sports can teach you life lessons, “but there’s something that makes our sport special. Skating becomes a part of you. It’s you, the music and what your body can do.”

Fergus didn’t shy away from talking about the more complex elements of being a competitive figure skater. With lively perspective, she talked about dealing with the monotony of training, the pressure of competing, the need to develop strength and good technique, and the importance of becoming good sportsmen.

“You have a small community here, so you can really make a difference to each other,” said Fergus. She advised the skaters to be friendly and supportive to each other, even if they didn’t share a coach. “Competitions are the only places you should be competing with each other.”

Drawing on her background as a competitive skater, Fergus used several personal memories to illustrate her points. As a 10 year old competing in Juvenile, Fergus surprised herself and her family when she came third in the onerous ‘Figures’ segment of the competition. Until then, she had always shone as a free skater. (Figures were finally and completely removed from all competitions in 1990.) Thanks to her strong performance in figures, people began saying: “You’re going to win this competition.”

And suddenly for the first time, she stopped thinking about the skating and started thinking about whether she would win or lose. “I fell on an easy double loop,” she recalls dryly, and it was only the beginning. By the end of the program, she could barely hold onto her sit spin. When her music ended, she simply fled the ice in silence.

The experience was an important life lesson. Stay focused on your goals. The best thing she learned from skating was how to set and achieve goals, Fergus says. Skaters should set achievable goals for competitions, instead of focusing on winning. It may be landing a clean double jump, or doing faster footwork or something as simple as remembering to smile.

Skaters should also set goals for training so that they can get the most of virtually every moment they spend on the ice. The only way to develop good technique is through practice and training.

Even as a 10 year old, she was training three hours a day, five days a week. She typically only had a single 15-minute lesson so it became her responsibility to work on the things that needed improvement. “You know whether your leg is in the right position when you’re landing,” she says. “And you know what you need to do to build up the quality of your skating.”

She cautioned skaters about “goofing around” on the ice when the coach or Mom is away. “That’s when injuries happen,” she said solemnly. A toe pick and a back blade can do a lot of damage in very little time. So, skate responsibly.

More than anything else, though, Fergus wanted the skaters to enjoy their moments on the ice. Fergus hung up her competitive skates when she turned 13, tired of the pressure and ready for life outside the rink. “Everyone is a winner when they love what they do, when they aim for their personal best,” she said.

However, once a rink rat, always a rink rat. Some 20 years later, Fergus finds herself on the other side of the world but back on the ice, coaching power stroking—for the hockey association. Quoting American runner Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Fergus said quietly: “The medals don’t matter, and the glory doesn’t last. It’s all about your happiness.”

Singapore skaters deliver dazzling debut
at Holiday on Ice

Through sheer determination, raw courage and less than three weeks of preparation, 12 local skaters were centre ice on the opening night performance of Holiday on Ice's production of Hollywood on December 9th.

Holiday on Ice and its Singapore promoter Quest Vacation International took a huge leap of faith when they invited the local skaters to perform four numbers at the end of Hollywood's first act. It was the first time that Holiday on Ice had welcomed local skaters to appear at one of their productions.

Prior to the event, Hollywood's co-choreographer Robin Cousins explained why Holiday on Ice agreed to the suggestion by the All Stars Figure Skating Club. "Holiday on Ice is a professional company of skaters, but we were so impressed with the stories of these kids," said Cousins, the 1980 Olympic gold medallist in men's figure skating. "They are young but so earnest and hard working. We wanted to give them a chance to show Singapore why they love skating so much."

For the All Stars Club, it was an opportunity to promote the sport of ice skating as a co-curricular activity to a large Singapore audience. Most local skaters do not receive CCA points for their skating and are required by their schools to join other school sports or activities. Carrying two sports and a full academic load is a heavy burden for the skaters.

The All Stars executive committee hoped the different level of performances at Holiday on Ice would demonstrate the viability of ice skating as a co-curricular activity. "We wanted to show Singapore that ice skating is a technically demanding and physically challenging sport, with a clear path of progression towards competitive excellence," said Raymond Cheah, president of the ASFSC. However, it also has room for skaters of all levels, he added.

And the kids delivered the message loud and clear, from the new skaters in the Henry Park Primary School enrichment CCA class to the gold medalists from the 2005 National Figure Skating Championships. "We were really pleased with how well the kids skated," said Sharon Wong, from Quest Vacation International.

The program was put together on a short lead time. As representative for HOI in Singapore, Ms Wong confirmed on November 20th the company's willingness to let the skaters perform. "We know the kids didn't have a lot of time to prepare, but we could not have been happier with the results," she said. "Even the Holiday on Ice cast commented on the kids' professionalism. Just dealing with the pressure of skating in front of all those people cannot have been easy, but they really came through for us."

The audience emphatically agreed, cheering and whooping as Sabrina Wong, the compere for this section of the show, introduced the local performers as some of Singapore's newest and finest young skaters. "They are as young as 7 and no older than 13," Ms Wong said. "Some of the skaters have been skating for half of their young lives."

With emotion in her voice, Ms Wong said: "they got here tonight on that Team Singapore fighting spirit and the hard work of their coaches at Fuji Ice Palace - Raymond Cheah, Sunnie Man and Jonnansical Boo."

All three coaches scrambled to help the skaters fine-tune existing programs for their debut at Holiday on Ice. Working with the co-curricular class from Henry Park Primary School, Raymond Cheah had to cut back the Interschool production team for Grease to 10 skaters from the original 30. He also rechoreographed the program to fit music, which had been shortened to 2.5 minutes from 4.5. When some of the original skaters were forced to withdraw from the production due to conflicting commitments, he recruited skaters of similar sizes and skill levels as members of the chorus.

Coach Sunnie Man revamped the Popeye program skated by Max Ko and Dominic Soh, originally at the Interschool Competition in June 2005. He also completely rechoreographed Saki Jimbo's program to The Mummy, following her competition at Skate Singapore.

And one week before the performance, Holiday on Ice asked Alexandria Wong to use her new short program, planned for the Singapore National Figure Skating Championships in March, instead of her original selection from Mulan. With Alexandria's coach away on leave, Jonnansical Boo stepped up to help prepare her for the performance.

The skaters' final preparations could not take place until the Holiday on Ice team arrived in Singapore, and the ice surface was fully installed. Unfortunately, the installation of the ice was delayed by a day, pushing back the kids' rehearsal as well as the Holiday on Ice workshop for 20 members of the All Stars.

At about 4:30 pm on Friday December 9th, the performance team had their first and only rehearsal on the new ice. But by show time at 8:45, the kids were more than ready to show Singapore that it could be proud of its skaters.

Lights, camera, action!

photo gallery

3 ASFSC members win tickets to "Hollywood'

November 27, 2005, Singapore: ASFSC members Melissa Leow, Bramina Braet and Raymond Cheah each won a pair of tickets to the December 9th opening show of Holiday on Ice's Hollywood production at Singapore Expo Hall 3.

The front row tickets were donated to the All Stars Figure Skating Club by QuestVacation International, the local promoter of the Hollywood show. ASFSC adult member Carol Tan drew the tickets at 11:30 on Saturday at Fuji Ice Palace with fellow member Tomoko Jimbo, verifying the results. The results were officially announced by Celia Lim from Fuji Ice Palace.

Nine year old Melissa Leow had planned to get tickets for Hollywood so she was thrilled to learn that she did not have to queue up. "We love to see the skating, but we also like the love stories and the beautiful costumes," Melissa said. Over the weekend, she competed in several events at Fuji Ice Palace's regional Skate Singapore Competition. Melissa also is on the youth development team of the Singapore Ice Skating Association. Mom Shirley Tay added emphatically: "I'm going to the show for the love stories."

Hollywood is bringing tinsel town's best love stories and hottest action numbers to Singapore. Olympic gold medallist Robin Cousins was co-choreographer for the show, and Hollywood promises to entertain and thrill Singapore's skating fans. To help promote the show, QuestVacation International is offering a special discount of "buy two tickets at full price and get 50% off the third ticket.'

Two of the principal skaters will be in Singapore ahead of opening night to talk about the joys of performing around the world with Holiday on Ice and the creative challenges and special effects of Hollywood.

American Ryan Mackinnon, who cuts a debonair figure as an ice-skating action hero, will be interviewed on Channel NewsAsia while in Singapore. He has been featured in one of Hollywood's signature stunts for the past three years. Ryan will be joined by Ashley Clark, another former competitive figure skater from the United States, who joined the production in May this year.

The growing population of local skating aficionados can hardly wait for the complete Holiday on Ice company to arrive. "I go ice skating almost every day, but we rarely get professional skating shows in Singapore,' said Annika Nyberg, 11 years old. "At shows like Holiday on Ice, the music is wonderful, the jumps are fantastic, and the spins are graceful."

However, as much as Annika loves the beauty of skating, she also will be coming for the action in Hollywood. Annika is a big fan of James Bond, says her mother Jackie Tan. Mom's reasons for attending the ice show: "I will be coming for Moulin Rouge and Casablanca!"

Hollywood is guaranteed to have something for everyone. Singaporeans can look forward to 50 international skaters from 15 countries, 350 costumes, unforgettable music, breathtaking aerial acrobatics incredible special effects and, of course, figure skating of the highest calibre. Through the magic of light, sound and figure skating, the ice surface is transformed into a Hollywood movie set.

Renowned as an Olympic and 3-time world champion in figure skating, Robin Cousins shared the choreography duties with artistic director Anthony van Laast, MBE. van Laast recently choreographed Bombay Dreams and Mamma Mia for London's West End. Together, Cousins and van Laast have crafted an ice show that will move seamlessly from action thriller to touching love story to exciting space odyssey.

Not surprisingly, 12 year old Benjamin Soh and his brother Dominic, 8, have no interest in the romantic side of Hollywood. The brothers are going for the special effects, the thrills and, of course, the well-known entertainment icon known as "Bond, James Bond".

"I like the stunts and the action. All the fast stuff," Benjamin said. Given that Hollywood opens with some high-tech gadgetry, gravity-defying stunts and an explosive ring-of-fire, Benjamin isn't going to be disappointed.

Hollywood is a fast, spectacular show that captures the magic, feelings and emotions of the movies and their music. Not only will Hollywood conjure up countless film memories, fans will leave the show with brand new memories.
Lights, camera, action!

5 cool reasons to become an ice skater

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Need musical inspiration?
Go see West Side Story with 10% discount

With the Interschool Ice Skating Competition set for the first weekend in June, many skaters already have begun working on music and choreography for new programs. Finding the right music is never easy. Not only do you have to connect with the music, the music needs to connect with your audience.

Few musicals have made as great a connection with their audiences as West Side Story, a gritty retelling of the heartbreaking story of Romeo & Juliet in 1950s New York. Thus, the All Stars Figure Skating Club is happy to announce that Citystate Arts Management (S) Pte Ltd is offering a 10% discount on ticket prices for West Side Story to ASFSC members. West Side Story will be performed at the Esplanade from April 7th. If you haven’t already bought your tickets, here’s a chance to see one of the most moving musicals at a discount.

Almost 50 years after West Side Story premiered in 1957 at New York’s Winter Garden Theater, the opening three notes to the song Maria still resonate with the aching dreaminess of young love. “Ma-ri-ah. I just met a girl named Maria.” Although Leonard Bernstein wrote the music for a stage production, he easily could have presented this masterpiece on ice.

The new ISU judging system has made it clear that the judges are looking for creative storytelling in addition to fine technical skills in skating programs. Here’s an opportunity to be inspired by one of the most compelling musical stories ever written. Virtually every number in West Side Story could be incorporated into a skating program: Maria, Tonight, One Hand One Heart could provide an emotional anchor to any free or artistic program while the edgy beats of America, Cool and Jet would showcase any footwork program. And don’t forget about “I Feel Pretty”, “The Rumble” or any of the “Dance at the Gym” numbers.

Please check your email for this notice and the order form. Fax your order directly to 6224-6880 or email it to darryl@citystategroup.com.sg. Please do not send your orders to the All Stars Club. Your ticket orders for West Side Story must be submitted to Citystate Arts by March 30th.

Details are as follows:

Last Order Date: Until 31 March 2006

All show dates are available from 7-30 April 2006

Discount: 10% of CAT 1,2,3 and 4 only (Not valid with any other promotion, excludes SISTIC $2 ticket charge)

Delivery of Tickets: By mail ($1 will be charged to credit card payable to SISTIC)

Order Collation: Fax or Email to Citystate Arts Management by 30 March 2006

The Wild, Wacky & Super Cool are back!
GREASE IS THE WORD!
Win two tickets to GREASE in All Stars lucky draw!

Turn back the clock to 1959 as GREASE the Musical slides into Singapore in a brand new show in May.

Grab your favorite Pink Lady and travel back in time to when beehives (it’s a hairstyle!) were in and coifs were cool. GREASE takes a loving look at growing up in the super-cool 1950s, when hot-rod-loving boys in black-leather jackets chased boy-crazy girls in white bobby socks and pedal pushers.

So, put on your high-heeled sneakers, crank up your doo-wops and dance your feet off at GREASE!

And if you’re lucky, you can see GREASE for free!

The show’s Singapore promoters, Quest Entertainment and TES Entertainment have graciously donated three pairs of tickets for a Grease lucky draw to the All Stars Figure Skating Club. (The Quest group also donated tickets to Holiday on Ice in December 2005.) If you wish to participate in this lucky draw, please send an email confirming your interest to: lereid@pacific.net.sg.

The draw will be held on April 30 at 7 pm, the final deadline for you to renew your membership in the All Stars Figure Skating Club.

If you don’t win, you can still take advantage of a special offer: buy four tickets and get 15% off the ticket price. Or put together a group of 20 people and get 20% off. To take advantage of this special offer, please email lereid@pacific.net.sg. Do not go through SISTIC.

GREASE brings back the classic rock ‘n’ roll sounds of the 1950s with songs including “We Go Together,” “Summer Nights”, “Beauty School Dropout” and “Born to Hand Jive.” And for those of you who cannot get enough of GREASE, special arrangements have been made to include three hit songs from the movie: “Hopelessly Devoted to You” and “You’re The One That I Want” and Barry Gibb’s “Grease”. And don’t forget about “Summer Loving’’ and “Greased Lightning”.

The original production of GREASE put on 3,388 performances during almost 8 years in its first run on Broadway! Grease (the original production) was nominated for seven Tony Awards including “Best Musical”. The revival production was nominated for three Tony Awards, including “Best Revival”. Since opening in 1972, Grease has played with enormous success throughout the United States, in Mexico, Australia, Europe and South America.

In the current GREASE tour, Jamey Isenor plays King of the Burger Palace Boys, Danny Zuko and Hanna-Liina Vosa plays wholesome, naďve transfer student Sandy Dumbrowski. Both are experienced and dynamic main leads with theatrical credits and both played the same roles for the American tour.

GREASE was written by Warren Casey and Jim Jacobs. Direction is by Ray DeMattis; choreography by Christopher Gattelli; set design by James Youmans; costumes by Wendall Goings; lighting design by Mike Baldassari; and sound design and musical direction by Steve Bishop.

GREASE, Broadway’s record-breaking sensation, promises to be the hottest ride in Singapore!

TES Entertainment and Quest Entertainment are proud to be the organizers of GREASE The Musical.

GREASE THE MUSICAL – Information
Date & Time: 26, 27, 28, 30 May 2006, 8pm
28 May 2006, 3pm
Venue: Singapore Indoor Stadium
Ticket Prices: 8pm - $145, $130, $95, $70
3pm - $135, $120, $85, $60
(Prices exclude Booking Charges)

QVI Main line: 6491-0900
Websites: http://www.qe-ltd.com