Grisha Fournier Online

…after another Nationals. Not much to say, other than I’m sorry I let everyone down. Don’t know what will happen next, I will concentrate on finishing school and getting a job.

Thanks to everyone who supported me and believed in me, you know who you are.

“What appears to be the end may really be a new beginning.”

-Unknown

with coach Ivan and they are settling in. Ivan thought he’d be funny and had Grisha call and tell us the airline had lost his skates! Bulgarian humor, I guess!

Kseniya and Grisha’s mom are leaving for the airport in about four hours, and coach Angela will be arriving Thursday, so we’re on the move! We’ll try to blog something about our experiences at Nationals; it is Kseniya’s first one so she might have some observations on the event. Until then, spasibo!

Grisha had the opportunity to work with Olympic medalist Tim Goebel over the last couple days. It was very helpful, and we hope to see him again at our rink!

The coaches were sick today, so it was quiet and uneventful at the rink.  Just run-throughs of the short and long and a LOT of stroking, as usual. 

Today we are starting to feel the pressure of too little time…have not bought tickets yet (there’s a good reason), still don’t have everything we need in terms of cold-weather clothes, and Grisha seriously needs a haircut!  Finally was able to get in touch with the practice ice person at the local arena, and got some ice for Wednesday.  Hopefully things will fall into place soon, it’s not like we’re traveling halfway around the world!

…a bleak orphanage in northeast Russia.  A young brother and sister are hoping for a new family, and a husband and wife looking to adopt a child.  They watched this video and made a decision to bring them home.

was just another day, although Tim Goebel was there and helped me with some stuff. Then there was stroking class, which involves Ivan chasing everyone around the rink.

New Years Eve

For New Years Eve I went to my friend Peter’s house, and of course there were a lot of other skaters there. Had a good time, since I didn’t have to skate the next day.

Happy New Year! 

No ice at the rink, so no skating today.  Tomorrow will be a big day, though, because Ivan and Angela are bringing a friend to the rink to work with Grisha.  Now to catch up on some sleep!

Since it is the first day of the New Year, here is a video of Grisha’s first public skating event:

…to get to Nationals this year!  Two years after his Nationals debut as a Novice, Grisha finally earns a ticket back to Spokane.  There were so many great memories from Spokane 2007, and we look forward to many new ones in 2010!

Grisha just missed a trip to Nationals in 2008, after an incredibly tough Pacific Coasts competition that ended up with a podium that contained three of the top five finishers in Junior Men at Nationals that year.  In 2009, a spinal stress fracture took Grisha out for the whole season, even though he made a valiant attempt to compete at Pacific Coasts, finishing sixth in another strong field. 

For the 2010 season, Grisha made some changes.  He decided to work with Ivan Dinev and Angela Nikodinov, and began making the long drive every day to their rink in Torrance.  It has been a grueling season, getting back into a competition mindset and regaining consistency after the long time off the ice, but each competition this season saw steady improvement.  It was thrilling to finally make it back to Nationals after qualifying at Coasts in Jackson Hole, WY (with the altitude adding a bit of breathlessness to the excitement!)

Nationals are two weeks away, and training continues.  This blog will document some of the training, and provide a look back at some of Grisha’s past experiences in skating, and also talk about some of the other things going on in Grisha’s life right now. 

Thanks for reading!