Content provided in partnership with
Figure skaters end event with empty feeling
Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Feb 12, 2007 by SORAYA NADIA McDONALD THE GAZETTE
Figure skating is losing some of its luster in Colorado Springs.
International skaters such as China's Pang Qing and Tong Jian weren't the only ones who noticed the large number of empty seats in World Arena last week during the International Skating Union's Four Continents championships.
Local skaters such as Jeremy Abbott, who won a bronze medal in the men's free skate, and Ryan Bradley, who finished fourth, noticed too.
More than 19,000 tickets were sold for the fourday event, but the majority of seats remained unfilled despite the presence of skating stars such as national champion Evan Lysacek and world champion Kimmie Meissner.
- Most Popular Articles in News
- The Ten Best Laptop bags
- Tata plans cheapest-ever car for Indian market
- GLOBALIZATION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF UNDERDEVELOPMENT OF THE THIRD WORLD
- Corn is good for you; Corn is not only a tasty treat, but also a cereal that ...
- THE 50 BEST STYLISH HANDBAGS TO CARRY
- More »
Most of the events, including ice dancing and pairs skating, occurred before 6 p.m. on weekdays, which was one reason Abbott cited for the poor attendance.
The men's and women's short program and the men's final were after 6 p.m.
"The fact the Olympic Training Center is here and there are so many unique sporting events here very frequently, might be a reason why there weren't more people," Bradley said. "They're used to it."
Colorado Springs is a hub for figure skaters because of the facilities and coaching at the Ice Hall and World Arena. Parents, such as those of national novice dance champions Alex and Maia Shibutani, still make the sacrifice of splitting the family to pursue a future in the sport. The Shibutanis' father continues to live and work on the East Coast while their mother lives in Colorado Springs so the two can train here.
But the empty seats might be symptomatic of a bigger problem -- that Colorado Springs' interest in figure skating is dissolving.
Officials with the World Figure Skating Museum and Hall of Fame are looking to move the organization -- most likely to a different city -- because it's not attracting enough visitors at its current location near The Broadmoor hotel.
Bradley also noted the caliber of senior skaters hasn't been at the level for which Colorado Springs and The Broadmoor Skating Club used to be known.
Former stars Peggy Fleming, Jill Trenary, Todd Eldredge and Hayes Alan Jenkins were all products of The Broadmoor Skating Club.
"Jeremy and I, and Rachael Flatt as well, did a good job of putting Colorado Springs back on the map on the national scene and hopefully, in a month, I'll put it back on the map on the world scene, but we've had a lapse," Bradley said. "We've had a lot of great juniors, but no one has stepped up in senior. Hopefully, they'll get into it, and the crowds will keep building. But that's kind of our job. We've got to put the butts in the seats."
Four Continents had its best crowd Saturday night for the exhibition. More than 4,000 tickets were sold for that event.
Meissner's coach, Pam Gregory, estimated that Four Continents fell in the shadows of last month's national championships in Spokane, Wash.
"I was a little bit surprised, but I'm not sure how they promoted the event," Gregory said of the crowds. "Also, right after nationals, maybe a lot of those people spent time and money to go to the national championships, so it's hard to say."
Most of the American skaters at Four Continents didn't realize they were competing until shortly after the national championships.
"It's better to know in advance what we're doing, to have a plan for training," Gregory said. "But I still think we would have kept our focus on the national championships."
CONTACT THE WRITER: 476-4807 or soraya.mcdonald@gazette.com
Copyright 2007
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.
