Shall We Dance? Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” by Paul Simon

Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean from Nottingham, England revolutionized the world of ice dancing more than anyone before or after them. After finishing 5th at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, NY, Jayne and Chris gave up their jobs as an insurance clerk and a policeman to train full-time. Their efforts paid off in a big way. From 1981-1984, they won four British National Titles (they had previously won titles in 1979 and 1980), four World Championships, three European Championships (they withdrew from the event in 1983), and the Olympic gold medal in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. In Sarajevo, skating to Ravel’s “Bolero,” the British-duo earned a record nine perfect scores of 6.0 for artistic impression in the freeskate.

In the 1993-1994 season, as a result of the “Boitano Rule,” which allowed professionals to reinstate as amateurs to compete in the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, Jayne and Chris once again took a stab at amateur skating, 10 years removed from their victory in Sarajevo. They won their seventh British National Title, their fourth European Championship title, but only finished a controversial third at the Olympic Games. They had entered the games as favorites, based off their past successes and status as revolutionary skate Gods, but perhaps they underestimated the talent of their Russian competition: 1993 World Champions Maya Usova and Alexander Zhulin, and eventual 2-time Olympic Champions, Oksana Grishuk and Evgeny Platov (1994, 1995). Jayne and Chris were penalized for the judges for including an illegal skating lift at the end of their freeskate, though winners Grishuk and Platov also had illegal separations in their skate. After having the judging pendulum swing in their favor for a decade, it was strange to see Jayne and Chris finish so far from the top spot, however, it didn’t tarnish their careers in the least.

The year after their reinstatement at the Olympics, Torvill and Dean, once again skating as professionals, crafted two brilliant tribute programs to the great American musician, Paul Simon. To the delight of the crowd, and the judges, they skated to “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and “Cecilia” in professional competitions and on tour that season, time and time again drawing resounding cheers, and winning professional championships.

I hope you enjoy Jayne and Chris’ tribute to Paul Simon with their skate to “Bridge Over Troubled Water” ! It’s one of my favorites. Wonderful song, wonderful skaters!

If you liked that, check out Jayne and Chris’ “Cecilia”–the second part of their tribute to Paul Simon:http://susanfieldofgold.blogspot.com/2010/12/12-days-of-christmas-day-9-jayne.html

Click on the link to view Jayne and Chris’ extraordinary 1984 Olympic gold-medal winning performance to Ravel’s “Bolero”: http://susanfieldofgold.blogspot.com/2010/10/jayne-torvill-christopher-deans-bolero.html