Fic: Starlit Spirits - Chapter 6
Mar. 18th, 2014 10:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ladytaurielDianne de Leeuw is a Dutch silver Olympic medalist for figure skating. Sjoukje Dijkstra is a gold Olympic medalist, a five-time European Championship gold medalist, and a three-time World Championship gold medalist.
Thanks so much to my beta, StarlitTauriel, for reading my work and supporting it!
[Transcript of preliminary commentary of the Dutch Figure Skating Championships by veteran Dutch Olympic figure skaters, Dianne de Leeuw and Sjoukje Dijkstra on NOS Studio Sport on January 23, 2014.]
Dianne de Leeuw: It's been quite an eventful year for the Netherlands in terms of figure skating. The ISU reports that there will be three competitors per category of figure skating, which competed at the 2013 World Figure Skating Championship. That includes the three medalists of the Dutch National Championships for each of the following categories: men's single skating, women's single skating, and ice racing. That is more Olympians sent from the Netherlands in one go than in the whole history of our country!
Sjoukje Dijkstra: If I recall correctly, you were the last Dutch Olympic figure skater who placed?
Dianne de Leeuw: My silver compares marginally to your gold, ma'am! I am proud to be here with you tonight, and for the following few days here on NOS Studio Sport.
Sjoukje Dijkstra: Let's take a look at what exactly opened the gateway to Olympic competition for the Netherlands.
[A video of the award ceremony at the 2013 World Figure Skating Championships is played. In ladies' single skating, Carolina Krostner from Italy stands with bronze; Galadriel Alatáriel from the Netherlands stands with silver; and Yuna Kim from South Korean stands with gold. In men's single skating, Kíli Durinson from the Netherlands stands with bronze; Denis Ten from Kazakhstan stands with silver; Patrick Chan from Canada stands with gold. In ice dancing, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir from Canada stand with bronze; Meryl Davis and Charlie White from the United States stand with silver; and Aragorn Arathornson and Arwen Undomiél from the Netherlands stand with gold.]
Dianne de Leeuw: Let's take some time to appreciate our country's new heroic generation of Dutch figure skaters! While skating myself, I had never expected this to happen. However, now that it has, how can I be anything but pleased?
Sjoukje Dijkstra: The rules of ISU, or the International Skating Union, dictates that if one skating individual or team is sent from a country to the World Figure Skating Championships, then it takes receiving either a silver or gold medal for the country to receive three spots for that same division in the Olympics. You can see this in the results of Galadriel Alatáriel, and Arathornson and Undomiél.
Dianne de Leeuw: In the case of Durinson, who only placed third at Worlds, it took the most recent competition, the Grand Prix Final in December, to secure a third spot in men's singles. Had he not placed, having won bronze at bronze would have allowed only two men to compete at the Olympics.
Sjoukje Dijkstra: In the ladies and ice dancing divisions, our winning Dutch competitors do not have extreme competition: the other two teams and individuals from each division are rookies, some previously junior skaters, and others who did qualify for Worlds.
Dianne de Leeuw: However, Kíli Durinson, nineteen and from Amsterdam, originally from Erebor, has competition. It is a Dutch figure skater Azog de Moria, twenty-five, who is an Olympic veteran. However, he only placed sixth at World's.
[A clip of de Moria's performance from the 2013 World Figure Skating Championships short program is shown. He falls on a quadruple toe-loop, but lands combination of a quadruple salchow into a triple toe-loop. Later in the performance, he falls on a triple axel.]
Sjoukje Dijkstra: He is a very technical yet very emotional skater, as you can see from the execution of every movement. However, his excess muscle, in comparison to other, slimmer skaters, is factor of his body that often plays against him.
Dianne de Leeuw: He won second place at the Nebelhorn Trophy, too, I believe?
Sjoukje Dijkstra: He did. Durinson did not perform in it, because of his Olympics spot already becoming practically secure at World's.
Dianne de Leeuw: De Moria's coach is Saruman Maia, who also trains a handful of junior competition winners, including Bolg de Moria, a distant relative of Azog de Moria, and Shagrat de Mordor, two competitors at the national competition, which begins tomorrow with the men's short program. The two both placed at the Junior Grand Prix Final, silver and bronze, respectively, making them eligible for national championships, that will determine who will Holland send to the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
Sjoukje Dijkstra: In men's singles, that makes the competitors Kíli Durinson, Azog de Moria, Bolg de Moria, and Shagrat de Mordor. One will not qualify to the Olympic Games. Let's take a look at the performances of our best bet, Durinson.
[A clip of Durinson's performance at the 2013 World Figure Skating Championship short program is shown. He performs a quadruple toe-loop, triple toe-loop, double toe-loop combination, a triple axel, double axed combination, and a quadruple jump into a butterfly aerial kick. His motions are visibly executed with stability, but are also pushing on the level of comfort. He lands his jumps with minimal error. They are repeated twice in slow motion.]
Dianne de Leeuw: Perfect posture, flawless jumps, everything completely rotated. Everything is precise, and even his quads aren't messy. In the axel combination, you can see him come close to a fall, but he pulls through on a wobbly leg. A hand stabilises his drift.
Sjoukje Dijkstra: However, as someone who has been skating and coaching for many years...
Dianne de Leeuw: [laughs] Your utmost professional opinion, ma'am?
Sjoukje Dijkstra: My thoughts? The pure emotion written on his face, derived from the music, is what takes him through the motions. They're not just motions, they’re a dance, a flight. He's obviously competing because of his own passion for skating. If he didn't want to be there, in that moment, he wouldn't be there.
Dianne de Leeuw: Let's take a look at some of his more recreational performances.
[A clip of Durinson's performance at Leidseplein in Amsterdam on Christmas Eve to "Time to Say Goodbye, the pieces for his free skate performance for the 2013-2014 season, is shown. He stops halfway through the performance and pulls a member of the crowd out into the centre of the ring. He skates around her and pulls her with him during random motions, and ends the performance with an embrace.]
Dianne de Leeuw: Wow, what a lucky young woman. Who wouldn't give to have the affections of a young gentleman aspiring to be an Olympic medalist?
Sjoukje Dijkstra: Indeed, an aspiring Olympic medalist. We will all be rooting for him tomorrow, and if fate so dictates, in Sochi.
Dianne de Leeuw: After the commercial break, we will be back with more on the flying success of our starstruck ice dancing team, Aragorn Arathornson and Arwen Undomiél.