Faith, discipline keep skater upright

BY MAUREEN MCGUINNESS

Two-time World Silver medalist and five-time Canadian National Ice Dance Champion Marie-France Dubreuil is enjoying her tour with Smucker's Stars on Ice.

But she has something else on her mind a lot of the time: She and her skating partner, Patrice Lauzon, are getting married in August.

Meanwhile, they are experiencing the relatively low-key demands of being a part of a performing skating community. Compared to competitive skating, touring is easy, she told The Evangelist.

"We would train for six hours a day when we were in competition," Miss Dubreuil said. "Now we practice 45 minutes a day. It's less demanding on your body."

Olympics

During the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy, Miss Dubreuil slipped from an intricate moving lift and crashed on the ice, injuring her hip. The fall prevented the couple from completing the competition.

"I think the fall was harder on my partner and coach than for me," she said.

For four years prior to the Olympics, Miss Dubreuil worked on what she described as her "inner self." That and her faith allowed her to put the Olympics into perspective.

"I made a promise to God and myself that I would win the World [competition], and that's what I did," she said.

Faith amid disappointment

The skater's Catholic faith also sustained her during her recovery.

"My body was in pain, and I had to stay focused on healing," she said.

Prayer has played a role in her skating career. Praying "is something I've done every time I've competed," she said. "It's a good way to align."

Wedding ahead

The skating partners are planning a wedding at Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel in Montreal. The historic site was built by St. Marguerite Bourgeois, foundress of the religious order the Congregation of Notre Dame.

"It's very beautiful," Miss Dubreuil said. "I was always attracted to it."

She also has family connections to the church: It's where her mother attended religious education classes as a child.

New sites

While on tour, Miss Dubreuil is enjoying the opportunity to visit different parts of the United States. "We have not been to many places in the U.S., so we are excited to see as much of America as possible," she said.

She plans to continue with Stars on Ice and is considering competing in the Vancouver Olympics in 2010.

"We want to feel very complete with our career before we move onto something else," she said. "It's a big chance to have the Olympics in our home country in 2010. If we're on top of our game and competitive, I say, 'Why not?'"

Future

When they are ready to retire from skating, Miss Dubreuil and her future husband hope to open a skating school and start a family.

She advises young people who want to skate competitively to make long-term plans.

"Set goals," she said. "Also, it is important not to give up -- even when it seems the hardest."

(Smucker's Stars on Ice will be at the Times Union Center on March 30 at 4 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the Times Union Center Box Office and certain Price Chopper stores, or by logging onto www.timesunion.com. Also, see ad on page 5.)

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