|
Browning's skating draws spectators into ice shows
| Source: |
Press & Sun - Bulletin |
| Date: |
April 1998 |
| Author: |
Sean Mayer |
Whether he's practicing or performing, whether he's on the ice or
off, it's obvious that Kurt Browning loves putting on a show.
And why not? For Browning a four-time world champion in figure
skating and native of Caroline, Alberta the sport provides him with
wonderful opportunities.
"This is a tough life," Browning, 31, said with mock seriousness
before The Ultimate Four figure skating competition Thursday at the
Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena. "Do you know how many people
would love my lifestyle? The monetary reward is great, and the
environment, with these beautiful, young athletes these are my
co-workers, some of the most talented people in the world. This is a
great job, why shouldn't I be happy?"
Browning's glee seemed to effervesce as he took the Arena
ice to warm up for his short program. He bantered with several
spectators, slapping hands with folks in the front rows of
sections 13 and 14, and offering hugs to a group of women in
Section 28.
His competitors Todd Eldredge, Ilia Kulik and Alexei Urmanov were
more reserved, perhaps more focused. Then again, they aren't the ones
who consider Lassie their favorite actress, and they're not the ones who
list pretending how to work a laptop, leather tooling and cheating at
golf as hobbies. Browning is. "The last four years, every night I'm
trying to be off the ice and in to the audience as much as I'm trying to
be inside myself," Browning said. "It's hard to stop that when I go to a
competition. I've done 100 shows for the last four years, and every
night is for them, not for us. So when I go to a competition, I can't
just all of a sudden say, 'OK, I've got to focus'. Anybody can skate,
but not everyone can entertain. And sometimes, I can't skate, so by God,
I'd better be able to entertain."
He did a fine job of it Thursday, dazzling the crowd
with his unique footwork and expressive nature. In the short
program, his required elements marks ranged from 5.3 to 5.5 out
of a possible 6.0 because of an over-rotation on a combination
jump that forced him to skip a required triple toe loop. But he
received 5.9's from all five judges for presentation.
Browning, fourth after the short program, ended up second behind
Eldredge. He delighted his audience by executing the riskiest of jumps a
quadruple toe loop in his freeskate. "I was in fourth place, I couldn't
win," he said. "If I was in first place, I would have done it
anyway. Why not?"
|
