Evgenia Lopareva and Geoffrey Brissaud: “We knew we needed to prove ourselves in the pre-Olympic season. We knew it was possible, and we did everything to achieve that.”
Interview with Evgenia Lopareva and Geoffrey Brissaud.
original source: MatchTV dd. 3d January 2025 by Veronika Gibadieva
In the interview with MatchTV, French ice dancers Evgenia Lopareva and Geoffrey Brissaud spoke about their style, motivation, differences in temperament and Olympics. Here’s a translation.
“Geoffrey Brissaud: I think we started this season very well; we had clear goals, we knew we needed to prove ourselves in the pre-Olympic season. We knew it was possible, and we did everything to achieve that.
Evgenia Lopareva: Until the Grand Prix Final, we had a medal at every competition, which is already good.
Q: Were you surprised by your win at the Grand Prix in Angers?
Geoffrey Brissaud: Yes, it was a big surprise for us. But that’s sports. Everyone just does what they can, someone performs better at some moments, worse at others. In Angers, the situation worked out in our favor, but we also performed well ourselves. There was a chance to win, and we took it.
Evgenia Lopareva: Agree. In figure skating, mistakes happen, to you and to your competitiors. You just perform your best, and then it’s up to the judges.
Q: What language did you speak when you first started working together?
Evgenia Lopareva: The language of the body (laughs).
Geoffrey Brissaud: And in English. Now, Evgenia speaks French well. Sometimes, we switch to English.
Evgenia Lopareva: When it’s something really specific, I switch to English.
Q: Was French difficult to learn? Did you quickly get the hang of the numbers?
Evgenia Lopareva: Oh yes, numbers in French are not easy. My first year in France was very difficult in terms of speaking and understanding. It took six months to learn the basics of the language, and I passed the basic level exam needed for the passport. After that, it picked up; I started to understand more, but only began speaking last season.
Q: Your style differs from other pairs; how would you describe these differences?
Geoffrey Brissaud: Yes, our story isn’t classic in this sense. And I can’t say that we intentionally devised it. Naturally, it began with a classical understanding, as it had been established before in figure skating, a story of a man and a woman… We have fundamentally different personalities. This style just emerged on its own. It seems that when you skate together, it kind of takes shape.
Q: Evgenia, you changed your image at one point, got a haircut. How did you come to that decision?
Evgenia Lopareva: When I got into dancing, I wasn’t like this, you know, vibrant and expressive. Honestly, I don’t remember any particular moment, but I think it was partly encouraged by the federation to try something new with my image. I went to the salon and said, “Just suggest something new.” In the end, my hair first became shorter, and now it’s very short. Overall, it was a completely natural process, because, as I said, I too felt like I needed a change. It turned into a mix of what was expected, my feelings, and desires.
Q: Which of you has a more reserved personality?
Geoffrey Brissaud: We’re different. Evgenia is calmer.
Evgenia Lopareva: I preserve energy that way. If you stress, you lose energy. Often, people stress over things out of their control. And that’s absolutely pointless; I try not to do that.
Q: There was the Olympics in Paris in 2024. Did you follow the summer sports?
Geoffrey Brissaud: Yes, of course. My hero is Leon Marchand. A true champion! And the Olympics themselves were amazing. I think the Games in Milan and Nice will be interesting too.
Q: Do you feel that figure skating is gaining popularity in France?
Geoffrey Brissaud: I think figure skating is becoming more popular in general. Thanks also to social networks.
Evgenia Lopareva: There are countries — like Japan, Russia, for example — where figure skating is super popular. In other countries, the popularity of our sport is not as high. When we travel to Asia, the stands are always full and there’s a lot of fan attention.
Q: Are the home Games in France an added motivation for you?
Geoffrey Brissaud: Of course, it only adds to the desire to keep working.
Q: But a home Olympics also means additional pressure.
Evgenia Lopareva: Why? I think performing in front of a home crowd is always better.
Q: Expectations, attention, including from the media.
Evgenia Lopareva: But the support from the public at the home Games is tremendous, which is the most important factor.
Geoffrey Brissaud: And it’s just an unreal dream. It’s a wonderful story — to compete at a home Olympics.”
Related topics: Evgenia Lopareva, Geoffrey Brissaud
Wow. I’m rooting for them.