日前，加拿大冰舞组合Weaver/Poje接受了意大利artonice.it的采访，谈到了他们生活和训练的点点滴滴......
http://www.artonice.it/?q=en/node/12009
 
Weaver and Poje, our turning point
Submitted on Tue, 15/05/2012 - 13:15.
Let's go back to the 2012 World Championships in Nice with Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje, who earned a 4th place in that competition and ended the season as some of the crowd's favourites.
This is a chance to know better these canadian ice dancers, who had a lovely chat in the French city with our correspondents.
Can you tell us about the expectations you had for this competition, were they fulfilled, are you happy with your result?
Andrew: We are definitely happy with the way we performed out there, we were coming into this competition hoping to bring a special feeling to both programs, especially in the Free Dance as we knew it would be special here because of the French background of it. We were happy to be able to perform two great programs and two emotional performances as well.
After last year's World Championships did you feel that maybe you had to prove that your fifth place in Moscow was deserved, or did you just want to show what you were able to do?
Kaitlyn: Honestly after the World Championships last year we gained new confidence, a new motivation. We believed in ourselves and we haven't looked back since. It felt like a turning point in our career, to know that we deserved to be in that last group, we deserved to be fighting for a medal. And we haven't doubted ourselves since. That means everything and I think that is what helped us having such a great season. We didn't feel like we had anything to prove because we felt like we belonged there. We didn't need to tell anybody that we belonged there because we knew we did, so it wasn't a surprise for us to be in the last warm-up group or to be fighting for the bronze medal. It was normal because that is what we expected from ourselves.
What do you think was the thing that started the turning point in your careers?
Andrew: We had a national training camp (High Performance Camp) at the beginning of the last season – we have it every year – to show our programs and get feedbacks. We had done our Short Dance there and it didn't go too well...(laughs)
Kaitlyn: ... it was really bad!! (laughs)
Andrew: Afterwards we had a discussion with Pasquale and he said that in order for us to be something for the sport and for ourselves, we had to go out there and perform, and show what we could do, what we did in practice every day. That set an emotion on our whole year and how we progressed throughout the year, and I think we finally grasped that mentality of competing and going out there and truly performing without just getting through each element step by step.
Kaitlyn: I think that in the past we held back, we were afraid of making mistakes, we wanted to make sure we were perfect in every way. But that's not the way to compete. The way to compete is to go and show everything and give every ounce of energy you have, and not being worried about mistakes or being tired or being perfect. Pasquale scared us at that training camp, he said: “You are not going to be anywhere, you are not going anywhere unless you skate, unless you don't hold back.” We were thinking: “We don't want to stay at the bottom!” That was a huge moment for us (we understood that). Even if we fall on our faces we are going out and skate the best we can. Since then it has been like that.
When you decided to move from Toronto to Detroit, at that moment the top coaches in ice dance were Shpilband and Zueva. Why did you decide to go to Krylova/Camerlengo?
Andrew: When that time came we trusted Shae-Lynn (Bourne) to give us the direction that she thought was the best for us because we trusted her, she was our main coach, she was the one that brought up the idea to go to a different facility in order to get the atmosphere that we need to be skating in every day. She loved Pasquale and Anjelika and how they are as people, and she wanted to see how they would fit with us as coaches . So we went there to try them out - and we had other options to think about - but after being there first we knew that it was the spot for us and that it would fit perfectly.
So you didn't try to go to Canton.
Kaitlyn: We didn't need to, it was an option of course, she (Shae-Lynn) said “These are the places I want you to try, but I think Pasquale is going to be the best. Anyway we will try and we'll do wherever we need to do to find the best option”. As soon as we went with Pasquale and Anjelika we thought “No, this is where we need to be”. We didn't want to move from Toronto, we thought that everything was great as it was, but we knew that she had the best idea for us and she knew where we needed to go so we listened to her, and of course she was right (smiles).
In your opinion, what do you think the Detroit Skating Club has that the Arctic Edge Club doesn't have?
Kaitlyn: Magic!
Andrew: I think it is the whole atmosphere of the rink, we are all friends, we all look out for each other. That shows not only the friendships we have off the ice but also the atmosphere that we have on the ice to drive and push each other everyday to be the best skaters we can be. I think it's paying off in terms of all the success the club has had.
So when Nathalie and Fabian went to the Detroit Skating Club you were not scared of having another top team training alongside with you.
Kaitlyn: On the contrary we were thrilled because to train with someone who is better than us pushes us ten times more. We have never had problems with motivation, we always can wake up everyday and push ourselves as hard as we need to. But having the biggest competition right there was the best thing that could have happened: last season they were light years away from us, and this season we're very close. I think that shows how far we've come, and we still have some way to go. We were very happy when they came, we knew that that was going to help our skills.
So do you think that next season you will be able to catch the French or have a higher placement?
Andrew: That's our hope, we want to get on the podium next year at the World Championships, and in order to do that we have to push people... aside! (laughs) We want to be at the top so we want to aim at the top.
Now I am asking you the same question about the Canadians, because at the National Championships, especially in the Short Dance, your scores were very close. They had done a mistake, but usually the gap between you and them is quite consistent...
Kaitlyn: We were completely shocked when we saw that. We knew we had a great skate, but we didn't know what they did and what happened and when we saw how close they were we thought “This is not real life, how could this ever happen?” But we are beginning to realize that it is not that far away and that we want to be neck on neck with them. I think that's wonderful for Canada, it's wonderful for ice dance to have two teams (representing the same country) on the podium. That's our top goal of course, but we don't want to always stay behind them. We are closing the gap and we are going to keep closing it and see what happens, because it is still a long road to the Olympics.
So one of your goals for the Olympics is to become the number one team in Canada?
Andrew: We want to be the number one team, period!
Kaitlyn: ... and that's a long way we have come this far in one year, think of what we can do in two years. I think our possibilities are endless. We are going to keep our minds open, keep our goals really high, and, why not go for it and see what happens?
Talking about the past Olympic Games, you didn't qualify for them. Thinking back now, do you think you needed that experience for becoming what you are now, or do you still wish you would have competed there?
Andrew: We didn't want to go through that but it was definitely beneficial to us and to who we are as skaters now. It motivated us and showed to the world that we aren't easily defeated, that we won't give up because we wanted to be there. Getting the experience to be in the Olympics is one thing, but going there to compete for the absolute top spot is what we are aiming for. That was just a small stepping stone in our career.
Kaitlyn: Of course when that happened we thought that the world was going to end. We pictured ourselves there since we were kids, and when we didn't qualify it was heartbreaking, horrible. But we wouldn't be here without that moment. I think we needed that, and the public can see that, but most of all we know that, we remember that moment, and we don't want to be in that place again. We want to put it all out there. It's something that we will always remember and learn from.
Let's talk a bit about your programs. Your Free Dance this year is about a love story, Moulin Rouge last season portrayed a love story as well, and the Phantom of the Opera tells about a love story too. Are you afraid that maybe someone could say that you are always portraying the same characters?
Kaitlyn: I think that our Free Dances couldn't be more different between last year and this year. Of course when you put a men and a woman on the ice you want to see a relationships, something happening between them. In this season our program was about tragedy, Moulin Rouge was more showy and different. I don't think we are boxing ourselves in. I think we can do anything on the ice. We can portray any story, maybe people will remember “Je Suis Malade” for certain reasons, but certainly don't feel like we will repeat the same emotion. We are going to explore and see what else we can do.
What do you think about the Polka, which will be the Short Dance for the next season? During the press conference the skaters were asked if they were ready to polka, so I am asking the same question to you.
Andrew: No, we aren't right now, but during the summer we will work on it. It is definitely a different feeling than this year, and it is going to be interesting to see what kind of diversity people can bring to the polka, what are people's different spins on the dance, because it's a very unique dance in terms of interpretation. We're excited to start a new season and hopefully we can find something that is exciting.
Some skaters said they were not very happy about this choice.
Kaitlyn: Of course we are going to master the dance and do the best program we can do, however it's not our favorite dance. To me it's not the most beautiful or the most entertaining dance that they could choose, or the genre. I feel like if they want to make ice dance more popular and more appealing to different audiences they can pick something a little more modern, something with a broader range of music, so that people can try different things. For example, with the Waltz last year we skated to a Blues Waltz, and that is different from a Masquerade Waltz, for example. Polka is very narrow, you can't do anything else but Polka. We are going to do our very best and put a different spin on it. It's not our top choice, but what can you do? It's our job.
Actually I was hoping for a tango or something similar.
Kaitlyn: Yes, that would have been a good idea! I was hoping for Midnight Blues, because it's a Junior Dance, why not using this rhythm, you can pick any music, it's a beautiful dance. Maybe someday we will skate to it!
What about the Olympic season, the Short Dance there will be the Finnstep.
Andrew: It's something that we're not excited for, as it is a new dance and there is little knowledge of it, especially for an Olympic year, when you have a dance that has only been performed once. That dance will determine the Olympic champions.
Kaitlyn: The good news for us is that we can do that style very easily, but like Andrew said, it's a bit of a gamble to put something so new out there for such an important year. Anyway we are going to master it and do the best we can. Of course we were hoping maybe for something like Tango, but when it comes down to it, the best skaters in the world are going to the best programs, and of course that's where we want to be.
Do you like the Short Dance format, or do you prefer the Original Dance, or the Compulsory and Original?
Andrew: We've always enjoyed doing Compulsory Dances when they were around. It is definitely different competing the two programs and having that compulsory aspect inside the program, because it doesn't have the same feeling as a regular Compulsory Dance, the same attention to some of the details or the steps. Everything is focused on the Key Points of the Pattern as opposed to the whole Pattern itself. Sometimes it's not the best expression of the Compulsory Dance. But the sport has to evolve, and we have to evolve with it. We have learned ways to enjoy it during the program and for the past two years we've enjoyed doing our Short Dances. Hopefully when they figure out the details to make it better we'll enjoy it even more.
Kaitlyn: We've had two very successful Short Dances, since it started. I think we always find a different way to approach it and bring something new to it. We want what is best for ice dance as a whole, and whatever we have to do, we'll do.
Why do you think they were successful? Maybe because your coaches understood very well what was the meaning of this dance, or because you understood what the judges wanted to see?
Kaitlyn: I thin that can be completely attributed to Pasquale. We had no idea what the judges wanted or in what direction he wanted to go, but he had a vision and we just did his work. I can't say what they were expecting or what they want or will want in the future, but whatever he says to do, we'll do. And hopefully that will be what the judges want.
What do you think about the Team Event?
Kaitlyn: It's a completely new idea, I think it will be exciting for the audience and it gives us another opportunity to get out there and practice, and have a trial run for the Olympics. I don't know how important it will be, if it will be at the top of our list of priorities, but I think it's going to be exciting.
Are you not concerned about having to prepare more, as it is an additional competition to the ones you will already be doing?
Andrew: I think it will feel like the qualifying round did feel for us last year at the World Championships in Moscow. It was great to get a feeling of the arena and the atmosphere, so that when we had our main competition we were prepared. It felt like it gave us extra confidence and security, to know that we knew how it was going to feel to be in that atmosphere, in that arena. I think we can treat the Team Even tin the same way. We can go out there and put a strong performance, but also use that as a building to our main goal.
What can you tell us about Pasquale Camerlengo and Massimo Scali, how do you approach to them, as their culture is different from yours?
Kaitlyn: Although they are both Italians, Pasquale and Massimo are very different. They bring a certain kind of energy. Pasquale is a brilliant artist and a brilliant thinker, and he inspires us everyday. Not only as a coach, but as a person as well. He is not just a coach, he is family to us, he will stay in our lives forever. We learn something new from him everyday, not only on the ice. Massimo is a big ball of energy, he's always like: “Come on, guys, come on!!! Come on!! Come on!!!” It's hard, it's hard to work with Massimo!! He kicks our butts, but he is wonderful, he has the fresh experience, as he has just retired. So he knows what it takes right now, how much training it takes, what it feels like, because he has done it, and he has got wonderful experience, so he brings something very important to our team. We love working with him.
We asked Massimo which kind of coach he thinks to be, and he said in his opinion he is the right combination between strict and supportive.
Kaitlyn: I think it's a very accurate description.
Andrew: He will be strict when he needs you to do your staff, but he will also know when enough is enough, and he will support you to show that he is just doing that for your best interest.
Kaitlyn: He will push us, but he has heart. You can always count on him to tell you the truth, to tell you that you are not doing well, but you can talk to him. He understands and he's a very loving person and I think he has the best of both roles.
And what about Pasquale?
Kaitlyn: He is equally supportive, you can say “Pasquale, I really feel horrible today” and he will inspire you to do your very best, no matter how you feel, if you're having a right day, if you're having a horrible day. He is different than Massimo. The scariest thing is disappointing Pasquale. We always thrive to make him happy. If he is happy, than everyone is happy. All our coaches have a very high standard. I would not say one is more strict than the other, they all want perfection.
Andrew: They are always looking at different things. So you can accomplish one thing and make one person happy, and the other one is like “Yes, that was nice, but...”.
Kaitlyn: We get different feedbacks from them, we work with all of them every day, in different times, but they all bring something special.
Are they teaching you some words in Italian, or maybe something about our culture?
Kaitlyn: (picking up the voice recorder) Can we turn this off? (laughs) Simone, Lorenza and Valentina teach us more...
Andrew: We try to learn some new words, but actually she (Kaitlyn) is learning more Russian than Italian. We know how to say “Hello”, “Goodbye” and all these things.
Kaitlyn: Anjelika sometimes would teach us in Russian, because we can understand a lot of the tings that she says, and she teaches us something new every day. Pasquale doesn't really teach us in Italian, but we have the Italian team there and we pick up things here and there. Our rink is very international, so you hear a million different languages: Japanese, French, Italian, English, Russian... I'd say that Russian is the second language we understand.
Did you study it?
Kaitlyn: Yes, I did. We have two Russian coaches, Anjelika and Natalia Annenko. Both of them teach us a little bit in Russian and will give us little things to work on every day, little words or phrases. Italian can be the next language we'll try to learn!
Some skaters watch their competitors' performances, some don't. What about you?
Andrew: If we are supporting one of our team mates or a person that we are close with as friends, we will watch the competition, but we don't study other people's programs to see what they are doing and what they are up to. We just enjoy skating and watching the sport once in a while.
Kaitlyn: We will be interested to see what everyone brings each year. For example we watched the Finlandia Trophy to see what the other teams were bringing. But that's it, we'll never study anything, that's not our job. We need to stay focused on ourselves and we've learned that's the best way to be successful for us. We prefer to know what people are doing, so we can do something better.
What do you think about the situation of the Canadian ice dance?
Kaitlyn: I think the state of Canadian ice dance now is brilliant. To have contenders for two medals on the world stage is amazing and that's what we want, we want Canada to be the strongest it could possibly be, and I think it's the strongest country right now for ice dance. To know that we are part of that is the best feeling, and we are pushing and hoping to make a name for our country. For the next season there is going to be a battle for sure for the third spot, especially with Worlds in Ontario, it is going to be an extra motivation. Hopefully the best team will win. We have our favorites but it is really good for our country and we hope to keep pushing that until the next Olympics.
What do you think about 2013 World Championships being in Canada?
Andrew: We are excited! To see the way the French audience reacted to the French team, to know that we could have that reaction next year in London, and to feel the warmth of the arena...We've skated in that arena before (at the National Championships in 2010), so we can know what it feels like to be in that rink, in that atmosphere. We know how intimate it is, how great Canadian fans are. Having all that gets us excited to get started for the next season, so that we can look forward to London.
Kaitlyn: I feel like it's almost going to be our mini-Olympics. It's the biggest event of the year and that's where we had our moment, we didn't qualify for the Olympics, in that very arena. It is going to be making new memories for that place and I think it's time for the spotlight to be put back on Canada and it is going to be a great experience.
We have some off ice questions now. What do you do in your free time?
Andrew: (sarcastically) We don't have free time... I sleep... I eat... and that's it.
Kaitlyn: The great thing about our arena is that we all hang out together and we are all friends. Besides being team mates on the ice we are really good friends. We hang out together, we do things together. In the summer we have beach volleyball contests, because we have a court by our house. So we'll be out playing beach volleyball, we'll go to the pool, we'll hang out together. It's something really special that we can share with all those people. As of now there's not a lot of free time and we usually spend it... sleeping! But during the summer we are pretty busy outdoor.
Who won the beach volleyball tournament last year?
Kaitlyn: Not me! (laughs)
Andrew: She'll get better! But not her...
Kaitlyn: It's wasn't something official, but... who was good last year?
Andrew: I was good!
Kaitlyn: Andrew is good at every sport...
Andrew: Ondrej was really good.
Kaitlyn: Yes, he knows actually how to play it.
What's your favorite movie? Why?
Kaitlyn: That's a hard question... The first one which comes to my mind is Moulin Rouge. I love it, I can never get bored of it, I watch it all the time. It's brilliant, the creativity in the music, in the actors, is wonderful. I have it on my i-pad and whenever I'm bored I'll just put it on. I love the classics too like Doctor Zhivago, Gone With The Wind.
Did it become your favorite movie before your Free Dance?
Kaitlyn: I don't know if it was already my favorite, but (for preparing the Free dance) we studied it in detail to make sure that we portrayed each character perfectly, and I think that's when I fell in love with it more. I never get tired of it.
What about you, Andrew?
Andrew: The first one I can think of now is Rudy. It's an inspirational movie to watch. It's about the underdog working for his goal and getting what he wants.
We want to thank Kaitlyn and Andrew for their time and enthusiasm for this sport. We wish them all the best for a great season next year.
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三个教练不是白请哒