Quebec Dancers Make International Team

Catherine Provost-Savaria and Kevin Bisson

June 16, 2005
Article and Photo © Barry Mittan 

Quebec ice dancers Catherine Provost-Savaria and Kevin Bisson achieved their goals for the 2004-05 season by making the top five in junior dance at the Canadian Nationals to make the international team. They finished fifth, up from 18th in 2004, the first season in which they competed together. The dancers also reached another goal when they competed in a Junior Grand Prix in Chemnitz, Germany, where they finished 13th. Next season, Provost-Savaria and Bisson will compete as seniors at Canadians.

The dancers, who are 15 and 21 respectively, only started training together in September 2003. "We were each alone at a bad time of year," Bisson stated. "We did a tryout and it worked. It sounds tragic but not really. Catherine is young and has lots of potential. She has very good work habits." "Kevin is always in a good mood and treats me well," Provost-Savaria added.

Bisson didn't start out as a figure skater. He began playing hockey when he was five and played until he was 13. "I took some power skating classes to improve my skills for hockey," Bisson recalled. "I liked to play defense, but my coach wanted me to play center and forward. He wanted me to score more and I didn't like that. I liked figure skating but I wasn't a good jumper. When I was 14, a dance coach asked me to try out and I loved dance. It's a more complete form of skating with deep edges and more difficult footwork, spins and lifts. It's more beautiful to watch."

"My mother told me I had to do a sport," Provost-Savaria related. "I could do either karate, gymnastics or skating. I liked to watch skating on television because I thought it was beautiful so I chose skating. My coach said I would be a better dancer than a figure skater. It's more fun when you have a partner."

Bruno Yvars is the couple's primary coach, assisted by Aime Leblanc. They train at the Centre …lite de MontrÈal five days a week for three and a half hours a day, plus another two hours of off ice work, primarily Pilates and ballet. This summer, the couple will also spend some time training with Muriel Boucher-Zazoui in Lyon, France.

Yvars usually selects the music for their programs. For the 2004-05 season, they used "Orange Colored Sky" and "Move On" for the rhythm combination original dance and three songs from "The Gladiator" soundtrack for the free dance. That included "The Protector of Rome", "The General Who Became a Slave", and "All That Remains." "We used last year's free dance music again because we had only used it for three months before," Bisson said. "We hadn't used the music to its full potential. Our coach picked it for us because he considered us to be a couple with a lot of power. He thought the style of the music fitted us well. We like to skate to powerful music with character." Yvars, Martine Patenaude and Ginette Cournoyer developed the choreography of their programs.

For the 2005-06 season, the couple will be using "Danse Macabre" for their free dance and "On the Run", a samba, for their original dance. Stefano Atti is choreographing their original dance while Pasquale Camerlengo is doing the free.

Off ice, Bisson likes to listen to alternative, punk and ska, while Provost-Savaria prefers hip-hop. Both of the skaters like to hang out with their friends in their free time, but neither has any serious hobbies or collects anything. She keeps some of the stuffed toys she receives but gives many to her sister, while he donates his to children's hospitals. As for traveling, they both enjoyed Germany, their first time in Europe, and hope to visit China.

Provost-Savaria spends much of her non-skating time studying as she is still in ninth grade in school. Bisson is also a student, majoring in health sciences in CEGEP with plans to become a doctor. He is also teaching skating for about ten hours a week. But for now, they plan to focus on skating. "I want to skate forever," Bisson said. "Until I die," echoed Provost-Savaria.