Figure Skating in
Northern Ontario
Hats Off To Wendy!
The level of training
available to young skaters in the Sudbury area is impressive to put it
moderately. Over a few months surrounding the turn of 2003-2004 the
skaters at the Sudbury Skating Club have had help and guidance from the
likes of Doug Leigh, Michelle Leigh, Lee Barkell, Robert Tebby,
and Jeffery Buttle (see their highlights below).
Doug Leigh, considered by many to be not
only Canada's best coach, but one of the world's best, has a coaching
schedule that reads like an international travel brochure; Berlin,
Japan, China, Montreal, Stockholm, Colorado, New Jersey, Philadelphia,
and oh yeah, Sudbury, Ontario. This month! Here's a man that finds
himself heading for his 24th World Championships and when I asked him
why he was in Sudbury today coaching a few of our rising stars says "I
just love being part of other people's dreams - to grab people and pull
out what's inside of them. Life is just.... give a kid a chance."
Wow. And after watching him a couple of
hours and chatting a bit it was apparent... this man just means it. But
how did he get here?
Now anyone who has read anything I've
ever written knows I have a pride and patriotism for Northern Ontario
that some find 'rather enthusiastic'. Having said that, even I have to
admit, when forced, that we are not quite along a main route to....
well, much of anywhere at all. I have found it delightful, but
surprising, to have had an opportunity to watch both Jeffery Buttle and
Doug Leigh coaching here in the last few weeks. I've asked them both
just what it was that we did that got their attention and brought them
here. Their answers were simple, and the same. Wendy Philion, the
Sudbury Skating Club's head coach.
It is Wendy's friendship and mutual
respect with these awesome talents in the figure skating world that
allows our youngsters the opportunity to breathe and absorb World
Championship Atmosphere on a regular basis.
And who is Wendy
Philion? She won't say. She smiles and glides off to the other end of
the ice surface when asked. I have learned though that she met Doug
Leigh as a child when they skated together in Schumacher Ontario and
they have worked together and been friends ever since. I have learned
that she has coached Jeffery Buttle since he was much shorter than he is
now, and while they may not have started out fast friends (she's been
quoted elsewhere as saying they started out "rocky") they certainly are
close friends now, his admiration for her is easily seen. I have learned
that she is well respected and liked tremendously by those at the top of
Canada's figure skating world. And I know she hates green.
The most important thing that I have
learned about Wendy Philion is that she is a very talented woman who
obviously loves what she does and who works tirelessly to offer every
possible opportunity to the young skaters in her charge. Because of
her, and her alone it seems, young skaters in the North are blessed
with a level of training, insight, talent and opportunity that they
simply would not have access to otherwise.
Some future day when you have traveled to
an exciting city to watch one of our Northern Ontario youngsters stand
on a podium and bend their head to accept a world class medal, look
around and I expect you'll see a small quiet dark haired woman not far
away. She'll be there, and she won't be dressed in green.
- Mona
- Doug Leigh
- Coached World Champions and Olympic
Medalists Brian Orser and Elvis Stojko
- Coach of 2-time World Bronze
Medalist Takeshi Honda
- Coached at 23 World Championships
- Coached at 6 Winter Olympic Games
- Coached over 50 Canadian National
Medalists including 6-time Canadian Ladies Champion Jennifer
Robinson
- His skaters have received 17 World
and Olympic Medals
- Doug is also one of the the coaches
of Jeff Buttle and Ben Ferierra of Canada
- Michelle Leigh
- 1977 Canadian Novice Bronze
Medallist of Canada
- Has coached at 3 olympic games:
Albertville (1992), Nagano (1998), and Salt Lake City (2002)
- Coached athletes at 14 World
Championships
- Coached athletes at 20 Canadian
Championships
- Coached skaters at over 55
international events
- Coached at 4 European Championships
- Former and Present Students include:
Jennifer Robinson, Jeff Langdon, Elvis Stojko, Takeshi Honda (JPN),
Steven Cousins (GBR), Oula Jaaskelainen (FIN), Peter Johannson (SWE),
Alice Sue Claeys (BEL), Helen Persson (SWE), Jan Erik Degernes (NOR)
- Lee Barkell
- Former National team member 1986 -
1990
- Former National and International
Champion
- Skating qualifications: Gold
Figures, Free, Pair, Dance, Skills
- Junior and Senior National Team
coach
- Coach and Trainer of 45 National and
International medalists, including National Champions and World
Competitors
- Coached at four World Championships
- Coached at 2002 Winter Olympics
- Coached at 11 consecutive Junior
World Championships
- Coach of 2003 Canadian Pair
Champions Jacinthe Lariviere and Lenny Faustino and 2003 Canadian
Men’s Silver Medalist Jeff Buttle
- Robert Tebby
- Gold Figures, Free Skating, Dance
and Competitive Singles
- Experience at all levels from basic
skills to World and Olympic athletes
- Specializing in technical aspects of
singles skating as well as athlete management and overall packaging
for individual skaters.
- International level coach for 10
years, including: 14 Canadian Championships, 10 World Championships,
and 3 Olympic Games
- Seminar Co-ordinator for Mariposa's
Seminars abroad
- Jeff Buttle
- 2nd Canadians 2003
- 4th Four Continents 2003
- 15th Worlds 2003
- 7th Skate Canada 2002
- 5th NHK Trophy 2002
- 3rd Sears Open 2002
- 3rd Canadians 2002
- 1st Four Continents 2002
