Evgenia Lopareva: “Over the years, a certain type of program has formed that brings results but does not convey any message to the audience. It’s just a good figure skating program, beautiful skating. There is no drama, no story.”
Interview with French ice dancer Evgenia Lopareva.
original source: sport-express.ru dd. 8th November 2024 by Rustam Imamov
In an interview with “SE”, Evgenia Lopareva shared her impressions of victory at the Grand Prix d France, their dances and training in Montreal. Here’s a translation.
“Q: Were your initial reactions after the victory somewhat shocking? Has everything settled in your mind by now?
Evgenia Lopareva: It still feels unbelievable. We skated the short program clean, but we were given a level three for our lifts, and we lost points due to exceeding the time limit. The free dance went well, but there was an unfortunate incident at the end with the choreographic sliding, where we slightly drifted apart. After the scores were announced, we realized that we at least kept the second position, and then they announced that we were first. And it felt like I was in some kind of a dream and I’m still sleeping.
Q: Skaters often discuss what is more important to them — clean performances or getting first place. What is your priority?
Evgenia Lopareva: Our task as athletes is to show the best skate possible, to perform cleanly and show everything we’ve worked on. Where we place is beyond our control. Therefore, as an athlete, it’s more important for me to perform a clean program and do our job well. The decisions then lie with the judges.
Q: You can’t control your competitors’ mistakes either. How did you emotionally react to the Italian’s fall? Clearly, no one cheers for someone else’s falls, but their mistake nonetheless means your victory.
Evgenia Lopareva: All athletes work hard to achieve the highest positions. The Italians have been showing a high level and have been at the top for a long time. I didn’t see their program, only bits during practice. When they started skating, we were in the kiss-and-cry discussing our choreo slide. I noticed how Guignard and Fabbri were performing a lift where Marco lifts his partner above his head with his hands. I saw something went wrong, I don’t know if they missed the rhythm or something else; he was holding her up with sheer strength.
At that moment, I just sat, clapped, and had great respect for him for pulling off that element. Later, I found out that Fabbri had fallen during the step sequence. Considering how experienced and consistent they are, it was hard to believe. But we are all human, and we can all have bad days. Honestly, it was very unfortunate that they had that mistake, but what happened, happened.
Q: After the victory, you made it to the Grand Prix Final. Will this change your position on the international arena?
Evgenia Lopareva: This is an important step in our career. We’ve come a long way to this medal, it’s the result of many years of work. Now it’s important to continue working, not to lower our standards. It’s nice to win, and we’ll strive to work even harder.
Q: How significant is the role of the Montreal Ice Dance Academy in your progress?
Evgenia Lopareva: It’s key. An important factor in the decision to move was the desire to train alongside the best. When you skate among the best, it influences you. It all works subconsciously. I remember our first practices when we had just arrived in Montreal; it was very exciting to skate next to such athletes. Training alongside practically all your competitors every day and arriving at competitions where all the same people surround you reduces the nerves and stress. You know them well, know their programs; it’s a big plus in many respects.
Q: What are your relationships like with other pairs in the group? When so many strong pairs gather on one rink, it can be explosive.
Evgenia Lopareva: We have healthy competition, and there are no strained relationships with anyone. I definitely don’t feel any negativity. Moreover, we work with a psychologist who holds special sessions for the group on the theme of healthy sportsmanship.
We reflect on how to behave with competitors, what you allow into your personal circle, and what, conversely, you would like to keep out. Everyone in the group is adult and motivated, they understand perfectly well what they are doing and why. Meanwhile, they support each other, wish each other luck. And at competitions, it all depends on how the judges evaluate.
Q: Did the judges’ attitude towards you change after moving to the Montreal academy? Ice dance is a subjective sport, and belonging to such a school surely plays a role.
Evgenia Lopareva: Personally, I didn’t feel any change in the judges’ attitude towards our pair right after the transfer. Just because you skate in Montreal doesn’t automatically mean you become a high-level athlete. You come to Montreal to get better, not to confirm that you’re already a perfect athlete.
Q: There was a lot of discussion about the music choice for your rhythm dance. Any regrets about deciding to go with a program related to Russia?
Evgenia Lopareva: It was hard to choose something for the short dance this season; there’s a very wide time range from the ’50s through the ’70s. Initially, we thought we’d take something from Brigitte Bardot’s repertoire, but she didn’t have any lively music to light up the crowd. Time was pressing, and then Romain Haguenauer sent us ‘Rasputin.’ He suggested we try it, of course, there were some concerns, we thought about what the reaction would be. After the first competitions — no complaints, good reviews. So, we calmly continue doing what we do.
Q: What specifically do you want to show with ‘Rasputin’?
Evgenia Lopareva: There is no deep meaning as such. At the same time, we always try to build a story in the program at Montreal, so it’s easier for us to perform. In the beginning, there’s the first track — ‘Night Flight to Venus.’ The idea is that we are like robots flying on a spaceship. And now our board has successfully landed, and we’re having a party and dancing.
Q: So, your program isn’t directly connected to the personality of Grigory Rasputin in any way?
Evgenia Lopareva: Not connected at all. Absolutely.
Q: Do you continue your signature style of fun and engaging programs?
Evgenia Lopareva: In the short program, almost everyone tries to choose something lively — it’s a more winning strategy. Of course, we shouldn’t forget about the overall integrity of the composition. There needs to be an interesting idea, a concept. To put it simply — the audience should not be bored. The best option is to energize the audience so they dance along with us. Choose something well-known, popular. ‘Rasputin’ is a song for several generations, now it has a new wave of popularity. It went viral on TikTok, other social networks, and it’s known by both older folks and the youth. We often heard comments that during our choreo sequence, the audience danced along with us — that means the concept worked.
Q: Your rhythm dance to Boney M was choreographed by Haguenauer. Are you still working with Guillaume Cizeron?
Evgenia Lopareva: This year he choreographed our free program. Guillaume is a creative person, young, and you can feel his desire to evolve and look for something new. Our free dance has a lot of innovations. We tried to step a little out of the classical, and the program turned out to be unusual.
The first piece is somewhat provocative, but it catches attention. The second is more familiar in perception. We finish it all with a techno-party. We wanted to create something in the style of our show program ‘Satisfaction’, which everyone really liked. It became the inspiration for our free program.
Q: In the free program, you have a dangerous starting position, with your skate right at your partner’s neck. Aren’t you scared?
Evgenia Lopareva: It’s more of an illusion. I place my skate on my partner’s chest, so there’s nothing dangerous. The most dangerous moment was when, at our first competition with this program, Jorik (Geoffrey – ed) started to drift away from me a bit. A few more centimeters and I would have fallen. That was the most dangerous moment. But we’ve fixed everything, worked it out, so now everything works as it should.
Q: Your exhibition performance to ‘Satisfaction’ was met with skepticism — allegedly disrespectful to the victims of the pandemic. Did these discussions affect you?
Evgenia Lopareva: Personally, I didn’t feel any negativity. I didn’t delve into the comments, and no one personally said anything to me. On the contrary, we received many compliments. When we performed it for the first time, we were told we literally blew the audience away. Any kind of criticism is very subjective. When analyzing any program, there will always be people who don’t like something.
Q: Did you hear about the incident last season when Petr Gumennik had to change the composition for his short program under pressure? Originally it was an original by Rammstein, then a cover in Russian.
Evgenia Lopareva: I didn’t even know about that. It’s unclear why the Rammstein song would be disliked, it’s hard to say anything.
Q: Are there any taboo topics that are better not to touch on in performances?
Evgenia Lopareva: There should be some boundaries, the competitions are broadcast on television to a wide audience. The operator cannot allow just anything to pass. However, I wish the boundaries were not so strict. To some extent, censorship curtails the opportunities for self-expression. It restrains artistry, presentation. Over the years, a certain type of program has formed that brings results but does not convey any message to the audience. It’s just a good figure skating program, beautiful skating. There is no drama, no story. Boundaries are necessary, but it’s hard to determine where they start and where they should end.
Q: Do you keep track of Russian competitions?
Evgenia Lopareva: I occasionally watch, but more often it’s not competitions, but test skates before the start of the season. I watched them in September.
Q: In your opinion, could the best Russian pairs pose serious competition at the international level? Are they missed?
Evgenia Lopareva: Russians are indeed missed. I was pleasantly surprised by the level of all pairs, literally everyone, who was at the test skates. It’s pleasant to watch the kids with whom I used to skate in the group. Back then, they were just little kids, and now they are grown-up athletes, showing serious stuff. So, international competitions are somewhat deprived. Russian pairs have always been at the top of the world, highly rated. Russia has always prepared and still prepares high-level pairs.
Isolation affects the perspectives, at least in terms of ranking. If you haven’t competed at the international level for a long time, then you will have a low ranking. To return to high positions, you need to overcome a certain path. But Russian ice dance has a sufficiently high level, and Russians can definitely provide decent competition.
Q: Which specific pairs from Russia are of most interest to you? Stepanova and Bukin or someone else?
Evgenia Lopareva: I saw something special in each pair — either the program set up or some individual elements, even among the young, not the most famous. The style of skating differs from the European, it was interesting to observe that. I’m used to what is shown in Europe, and here I watched Russian dances and saw that it can be different.
Q: On social media, Elizaveta Khudaiberdieva congratulated you. Were there many congratulations from Russia?
Evgenia Lopareva: One of the first congratulations was from Ekaterina Rubleva, my first coach in ice dance. Several athletes wrote, congratulated me. There were individual Russian fans who also congratulated. Many is a subjective term, but there were congratulations.
Q: Do you keep in touch with any Russian skaters?
Evgenia Lopareva: There’s no close communication, no regular calls. We tend to communicate more with those who surround us and who are closer to us. Now for me, these are athletes from Montreal and from Europe, with whom I regularly train and compete.
Q: When was the last time you were in Moscow?
Evgenia Lopareva: I try to come regularly, at least once a year in the summer, to see my family, friends, and relax.
Q: I remember your phrase that you can never fully become French. Have your views changed over the past year and a half?
Evgenia Lopareva: Over the last year, I’ve made a big step in learning French, and I can comfortably engage in conversation. I am now comfortable communicating with people both in French and English, and there’s no language barrier. I’ve adapted to the mentality, culture, and better understood the country. But still, there remains a Russian core in me, the upbringing of my family, and there are many differences from the values taught in Europe. My roots are Russian, and in this respect, living abroad is unlikely to change anything. So you could say I’ve become a Frenchwoman with Russian roots — probably like that.”
Related topics: Evgenia Lopareva, Geoffrey Brissaud
Leave a Reply