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Kurt Browning Profile
- Name: Kurt Browning (no middle name)
- DOB: June 18, 1966
- Height: 5'7"
- Marital status: married (6/30/96)
- Spouse: Sonia
Rodriguez
- Spouse's Occupation: Principal dancer in the National Ballet of Canada
- Children: Gabriel Browning Rodriguez, born July 12, 2003. Dillon Browning Rodriguez, born August 14, 2007.
- Citizenship: Canadian
- Birthplace: Rocky Mountain House, Alberta
- Hometown: Caroline, Alberta
- Current Residence: Toronto, Ontario
- Other known residences: Edmonton, Alberta; also known to travel
extensively
- Father: Dewey (Arnold) Browning
- Mother: Neva Browning (d. June 4, 2000)
- Sister: Dena Miller
- Brother: Wade Browning
- Occupation: Figure Skater
- Previous employment: Waiter
- Other interests: ice hockey, golf, choreography
- Coaches:
- Karen McLean - Rocky Mountain House, ~1976-1981
- Michael Jiranek
- Louis Stong - The Granite
Club, 1993-1997
- Partners: Michelle Pollitt, Kurt's only competitive skating partner. Won the pre-juvenile dance championship in Alberta in 1978 at the age of 12 to "The Mickey Mouse Club".
- Other known associates (choreographers):
- Gary Beacom - For Gabriel (A Child's Rhythm Basket)
- Sandra Bezic - Antares, Are You Lonesome Tonight
(co-choreographed), Can't Help Falling in Love (co-choreographed),
Casablanca, Colour My World (co-choreographed), Crash Into Me, Don't
Fence Me In (co-choreographed), Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me, Grand
Canyon Suite (1987-88 LP), Hey Pachuco, How Do You Keep The Music
Playing?, I Did It, Rag-GIDON-Time (co-choreographed), Serenade to
Sonia, Slippery Side Up (co-choreographed), St. Louis Blues, Tequila,
That's Entertainment, Time in a Bottle
- Shae-Lynn Bourne - Motown Philly
- Kurt Browning - An American in Paris, Bedlam Ballroom,
Can't Help Falling in Love (co-choreographed), Don't Fence Me In
(co-choreographed), Easy, Expectation and the Blues, Hall of the Mountain King, If I Only Had a Brain, Masks and Morning Dance, Meditation from Thais, Mr. Bojangles, Monster Mash (with Sonia), My Favorite Things (?), Peace Frog, Rag-GIDON-Time (co-choreographed), Rebel Child, Slippery Side Up (co-choreographed), Triptico (with Shin Amano)
- Roberto Campanella - Elevation, Guitar, Nyah, Play That
Funky Music, Ding Dong Daddy
- Kevin Cottam - Cotton Club (1988-89 SP), Sign Your Name/Dance
Little Sister, Gaiete Parisienne/Le Cid/Can Can (1988-90 LP), Here I
Am/She's Hot to Go, Johnny Guitar, Lone Bank Blues/Toast of the
Town/Speedway (1989-90 SP)
- Christopher Dean - Ain't No Sunshine, Elite Syncopations (Red Hat)
- Clarence Ford - Bonzo's Montreux (1992-93 SP), Brickhouse
(co-choreographed)
- Tiffany Gibb - Am I the Only One, O Little Town of Bethlehem
- Doug Ladret - Radar Love
- Lea Ann Miller - Lightning Crashes, Moondance
- Lori Nichol - Jitterbug, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
- Louis Oya - Passion
- Brian Powers - Firebird Suite (1991-92 SP), Hindu War God (1990-91
SP), Sons of Italy (1990-91 LP)
- Michael Seibert - All Alone, Are You Lonesone Tonight
(co-choreographed), Blues Berry Hill, Brickhouse (co-choreographed),
Colour My World (co-choreographed)
- David Wilson - Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
- Alexander Zhulin - I'm Not Sleeping, Summertime
- Known first offenses:
- Quadruple toe-loop (Worlds, Budapest, Hungary; March 25, 1988)
- Two triple axels in the same original program (Worlds, Paris,
France; 1989)
- Triple-salchow/triple-loop combo (Nations Cup, Belsenkirchen, West
Germany; 1990)
- Three triple-triple combinations in one program (triple
axel/triple toe loop, triple salchow/triple loop, triple flip/triple
toe loop) (Worlds, Munich, Germany; 1991)
- First to win Novice, Juniors, and Senior Canadian championships.
- First Canadian to win three consecutive Worlds.
- Only person to win Worlds with and without figures.
- Repeat offenses:
- Four-time World Champion
- Four-time Canadian Champion
- Three-time Olympian
- Three-time World Professional Champion
- Four-time Canadian Professional/Open Champion
- Two-time US Professional Champion
- Special skills: fast footwork, showmanship, charisma, artistry,
technical ability
- Weaknesses: triple lutz (Kurt went to the hospital four times for
impaling himself in the foot with his skate blade on this jump),
backflip (injured a shoulder while practicing this). Does not perform
either of these jumps any longer.
- Priors:
- 2008 Professional Skaters' Association Gustave Lussi Award
- 2006 World Figure Skating Hall of Fame inductee (ceremony March 23, 2006 at Worlds in Calgary)
- 2001 Professional Skaters' Association Gustave Lussi Award
- 2001 Canada's Walk of Fame inductee (ceremony June 1, 2001)
- 2000 Canadian Figure Skating Hall of Fame
- 1999 ASW Professional Skater of the Year (award presented in Dec. 1998)
- 1998 Jacques Favart Trophy (awarded by ISU)
- 1996 First Canadian featured on Kelloggs Special K Cereal Box
- 1994 You Must Remember This - Winner of 5 Gemini Awards
- 1994 Canadian Sports Hall of Fame inductee
- 1994 Canadian Flag Bearer at the 1994 Winter Olympics
- 1993 Sports Federation of Canada - Top Male Athlete
- 1991 Sports Federation of Canada - Top Male Athlete
- 1991 Lionel Conacher Award - the Canadian Press Male Athlete of the
Year
- 1990 Lou Marsh Award - Canada's Outstanding Athlete
- 1990 Lionel Conacher Award - the Canadian Press Male Athlete of the
Year
- 1990 Recipient of the "Order of Canada," the
country's most prestigious civilian award
- 1990 Sports Federation of Canada - Top Male Athlete
- Off-ice activities:
- Choreographer (technically, this is on-ice):
- "Night on Bald Mountain" by Mussorgsky - Brandon Mroz's 2007-08 SP
- "Treat" by Carlos Santana - Jeremy Abbott's 2007-08 SP
- Ocean's Thirteen OST - Tugba Karademir's 2007-08 SP
- Music unknown - Brian Joubert's 2007-08 SP
- Music unknown - Alissa Czisny's 2007-08 exhibition
- "Clocks" by Coldplay - Brian Joubert's 2007-08 exhibition
- Music from "The Late Temptation of Christ" soundtrack - Evan Lysacek 2006-2007 SP
- Music from Metallica and Romeo & Juliet - Brian Joubert 2006-07 LP, 2007-08 LP
- Music from Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and "Summertime" - Marc-Andre Craig 2006-2007 LP (worked with Brian Orser on the footwork for the program)
- Don Quixote - Alissa Czisny 2006-2007 show program
- Crabbuckit from K-OS - Celebration on Ice 2005 group number with Kurt, Brian Orser, Elvis Stojko, and Shawn Sawyer
- Winter by Vivaldi - Carolina Kostner's 2005-2006 LP (w/ Lori Nichol)
- Wine Safari - Yuka Sato (2005-2006 program)
- Piano Concerto No 1 and 3 by Sergei Prokofiev - Carolina Kostner's 2004-2005 LP
- Techno version of Warsaw Concert - Takeshi Honda's 2004-2005 SP
- Kill Bill 2 - Vaughn Chipeur's 2004-2005 LP
- Leyenda (Vanessa Mae) - Takeshi Honda's 2002-2003 SP
- Think (Aretha Franklin) - Lucinda Ruh 2001-2002 program
- Jalousie - Sale & Pelletier's 2001-2002 SP (worked with Lea Ann
Miller on the comic touches of the choreography)
- American Tribute - Tara Lipinski 2001-2002 program (footwork
sequence)
- Sin Wagon (Dixie Chicks) - SOI 2000-2001 group number
- Commentator:
- 1994 Gold Championships (NBC)
- 1994 Worlds (NBC)
- 1994 Fox Rock 'n Roll Skating Championships (FOX)
- 1995 Fox Rock 'n Roll Skating Championships (FOX) (backstage interviewer)
- 2005 Campbell's International Figure Skating Classic (ABC)
- 2005 Skate America (ESPN)
- 2005 Marshalls U.S. Figure Skating Showcase (ABC) (on-ice interviewer/introductions, also skated to "Brickhouse")
- 2006 U.S. Nationals (ABC/ESPN)
- 2006 Olympics prime-time men's figure skating analyst (CBC)
- 2006 Worlds (ESPN)
- 2006 Skate America (ABC/ESPN)
- 2006 Marshall's US Figure Skating Showcase (ABC)
- 2007 U.S. National Championships (ABC/ESPN)
- 2007 World Championships (ESPN)
- 2007 Skate Canada (CBC)
- 2008 Canadian National Championships (CBC)
- 2008 World Championships (CBC)
- Actor starring as Peter Pan, "Peter Pan, the Family Musical that's Silly, Very Silly!" (late Nov 2007 - early Jan 2008)
- Team Visa Mentor for athletes training for the 2006 Torino Olympics
- Skating Consultant, The Granite Club
- Author, A is for Axel: An Ice Skating Alphabet and Kurt Browning: Forcing the Edge (with Neil Stevens)
- Regular host, Biography Channel (Canada). (Debut: Apr. 14-18, 2003)
- Creator and sponsor, Kurt Browning Junior Skating Awards, awarded annually to the Novice Men's Champion, Novice Ladies Champion, Junior Pair Champions, and Junior Dance Champions. Additional awards may also be granted.
- Honorary Campaign Chair, Muscular Dystrophy Association of
Canada
(Co-hosted Muscular Dystrophy Telethon 1993, 1994, 1995)
- Host of Canada's Walk of Fame Tribute Gala (2000, 2002)
- 1991 Honorary Captain of the Edmonton Oilers
- Spokesperson Riedell
Skates, AOL Canada, Ultra Wheels, Pedigree Pet Adoption Campaign, My Organic Baby.
- On-Ice Appearances
- Off-Ice Appearances
- Print Media (books and magazines)
- Competitive Record
- Memory Lane (detailed review of Kurt's childhood and eligible career)
I'd like to thank everyone who's contributed
information to this profile and its subpages. Thanks to everyone on
the Kurt List, particularly Kirsten and Gerry for their transcripts,
listings of events, media, etc. Also, thanks to all the contributors
to the now-defunct Kurt Klub and its webmaster, Christie in PA, for
allowing me to use the content from that site. I've no doubt missed
someone in these acknowledgments, and I apologize if I didn't mention
someone who should have been mentioned. Thanks for your help!
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