Narumi Takahashi and Mervin Tran

Japan is attempting to improve its prospects in pairs skating with the new team of Narumi Takahashi and Mervin Tran. The couple finished 15th at their first ISU championship, the 2008 World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. Earlier in the season, they placed 12th at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Tallinn, Estonia and sixth at the JGP in Chemnitz, Germany.

Tran, who was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, started skating when he was four. “My parents came to Canada from Vietnam and Cambodia as refugees,” he explained. “They wanted us to have something to do in Canada so they threw me into hockey camp. I had all my equipment and would skate around dragging my stick behind me. When I took CanSkate, the class was taught by figure skaters so instead of hockey I got into figure skating instead.”

The 17-year-old competed in singles until 2007, finishing as high as ninth in novice men at Canadian Nationals. He landed his first triple salchow at 13 and has landed up to a triple lutz.

Takahashi, who is now 16, began skating when she was five. “My sister was a skater and I followed her on to the ice,” she remembered, “but she quit a little later.” Takahashi landed her first triple salchow when she was seven or eight and has landed up to a triple lutz. She competed in singles until she was 12, placing as high as third in novice ladies at Japanese Nationals.

“I started pairs when I was 13 with a Chinese guy, Yu Gao,” Takahashi said. “We only skated together for a year but we were sixth in seniors in China in 2004. I lived there for five years because my father was transferred there.”

When coach Richard Gauthier was in China for a competition, Takahashi approached him looking for a partner. “Narumi came up to me and told me she had a DVD that she wanted me to watch,” Gauthier recalled. “She told me that she wanted to leave China and skate pairs for Japan. She asked the Japanese federation to find a partner in Japan, but the boy was too short and it didn’t work out. So she wrote to me again and after about two years of corresponding, I told her to come and see me in Montreal.”

“I started looking for a partner who was Asian,” Gauthier continued, “but there was no one I could find. Then Bruno Marcotte decided to move back from Vancouver to work with me. I called him and asked if he knew of any Asian partners and he recommended Mervin. Then Bruno called Mervin’s coach and asked him to do a tryout. He told him that he would have to represent Japan and Mervin agreed to come to Montreal.”

The couple began training with Gauthier and Marcotte in July 2007 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They work on ice for about two and a half hours a day, five days a week. In addition, both skaters work on their jumps and singles skating with other coaches.

In their short program, they used side-by-side double axels and a throw triple toe loop. In the long, they included a throw triple toe loop and double flip and side-by-side triple salchows and a double axel-double toe loop combination.

“Both of them can do all the triples with no problem,” Gauthier stated. “Next year, I hope to have both a side by side triple loop and triple toe loop in the program. They’ll still compete as juniors next season, I want to keep them there as long as I can to get experience.”

Julie Marcotte choreographed their programs for the 2007-08 season. Gauthier chose the music for both programs. For the short program, they used “Shout and Feel It” by James Horner. “Mervin’s got a great persona,” Gauthier said. “He’s kind of a clown so he needs something more bubbly. For the long, I wanted something more Oriental for Narumi.” For the long program, they skated to “Samurai” from “La Reve” and “Banquine” from “Journey of Man” by Benoit Jutras.

Off ice, Takahashi listens to Japanese pop music and some rock and classical. Tran prefers rap, hip-hop and indie rock. He also plays the guitar and the piano.

Both skaters have been involved in other sports. “I played soccer for six years on a city team,” Takahashi said, “usually on offense.” Tran participated in track and field, competing in the 100-meter hurdles, the high jump and the triple jump for his high school. He made it to the provincial championships in both the high jump and the hurdles, finishing fifth in the hurdles. He also plays hockey, basketball, and volleyball for fun.

To relax, Takahashi enjoys rollerblading, swimming, and shopping with friends. Tran likes to hang out with friends and watch movies, especially thrillers, action films, and comedies. He also collects coins from other countries.

Takahashi attended high school in Japan, where she has two years to go to finish, and in Montreal, where she has one year to go for her Canadian diploma. Tran is home schooled and will graduate this summer. He plans to study mechanical engineering in college. “I like physics and science a lot,” he said. “There were several kinds of engineering to pick from but I didn’t want to go into chemical engineering and mix chemicals. Mechanical engineering is safer.”