![]() ![]() Il est très chic, la patinoire – I put my French skills to a test while waiting for the magic to begin, while noticing the rows of chairs on my left, installed on the surface of the ice covered with a dark moquette this particular area will host the fans of the fans, those holding banners supporting Daisuke Takahashi (“D1SK”) and enjoying Brian Joubert’s full attention – including a kiss on a lady’s hand – during his James Bond routine. And because some stories simply sound better in French, Stéphane chose Vernets to host Ice Legends “parce que c’est ma maison. And 10 minutes before the due hour, a happy, noisy razzle-dazzle takes over Patinoire des Vernets, this Genevese spot connected with Stéphane Lambiel through thousands and thousands of invisible threads: he entered the rink when he was 10, a young boy coming from the Swiss city of Saxon, looking for Monsieur Grütter, Peter Grütter, his future coach. Not to sound exaggerate or anything, but a banner as big as the People’s House in Bucharest – and that’s the second largest administrative building in the world – might have been the appropriate size for the amount of jewels inside.Īnd then I’m in – and this parallel universe embraces me, as if it were a cocoon. We already are.Ĭircling Patinoire des Vernets in the evening, while searching for the entrance, I can’t help but wondering: does Geneva know how lucky she is – in my mind, Geneva is a coquettish lady, with her jewels in plain sight – does she know how lucky she is to gather some of the biggest names of figure skating under her hat? Well, I’m sure she’s proud to have them, but I would’ve definitely put a bigger banner at the entrance of the rink, announcing the event. And I do know one: a couple of hours later we’ll share the joy. Among the many enjoying the sun and the view, some Japanese ladies with backpacks and cameras – I recognize myself in them and as we pass each other, I smile to myself, as if I knew a secret. It’s a wonderful Spring day in Geneva, on April 22nd, and, shortly before noon, around Bains de Pâquis, people are strolling, sun-bathing, and some of them are swimming, troubling the white swans’ lazy floating on the Lac Léman. And if my fingers had the liberty to write what my mind had felt during the show, this story would be nothing but a long, long queue of exclamation points. ![]() ![]() Take Stéphane’s awe, multiply it by a thousand, and you might get a sense of what this second edition of Ice Legends meant to everyone’s attending. “ Ice Legends’ concept is to make us relive programs that left their mark upon the history of skating, but, more importantly, changed the lives of those performing them”, he said, two days before the show – and then, with D-day getting nearer, his enthusiasm was almost palpable: “They’re all the most incredible skaters – I’m so glad this is the group of Ice Legends 2016, and I wish we could keep this group together and go on tour everywhere in the world”. Because the Swiss really acted like a figure skating lover when choosing the cast and putting together the overall content. But then again, it was a dream: one of Stéphane Lambiel’s dreams, turned into reality, for him, his friends, and figure skating fans from all around the world. It sure looked like a dream – all these beautiful people, skating all these beautiful programs, the magic, the aura, the emotions, and then, in complete darkness, the overwhelming joy of witnessing it all. A full month has passed – and I still don’t know whether Ice Legends was a dream or not. ![]()
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