Browning remains a modest star
The likable four-time world champion has his feet planted firmly on the Alberta soil of his youth.
| Source: |
Victoria Times Colonist |
| Date: |
May 3, 1996 |
| Author: |
Darron Kloster |
Kurt Browning rockets around the ice at Memorial Arena in faded
jeans, baggy sweat shirt and a ball cap pulled low to the brow.
He's twisting and turning, grooving to the music, jumping high
... and smiling every inch of the way.
It isn't the Olympics. We're far from the pressure-cooker of
nationals and world championships.
But it's a glimpse of Browning, the four-time world figure skating
champion, in his loosest state - and perhaps, at his very best.
It's early rehearsals for Skate the Nation, a cross-country
small-city tour of Canada that opens Sunday in Victoria. And it's still
a top priority for one of the greatest skaters the world has ever
known.
"It's like the skating carnivals that came through Rocky Mountain
House when I was a kid," said Browning, who grew up in nearby Caroline,
Alta. "We used to get top skaters and just watching them changed the
way I went back to the rink the next day.
"It was inspiring
"It was like, I didn't know you could do a double axel. I didn't
know you coudl do this or that ... but the next day I was out there
giving them a whirl," added Browning.
"That's what's great about [ice shows] ... you give something to the
little skaters and something back to the fans."
Enthusiasm proved to be a solid foundation for the son of an
outfitter and cowboy, who rode a blend of raw skill and desire right to
the top.
His distinction of being the first to ever successfully complete a
quadruple jump in world competition in 1988 set the stage for Browning as
an innovator. A brash confidence, tempered with folksy demeanor, made
him a favorite the world over and gave a big boost to a sport which now
fills buildings across the country and out-rates even NHL hockey in
television coverage.
Browning keeps his role in perspective. "I'm just glad I was a part
of it," he said. "Skating's a marketable commodity ... it's always been
a fabric of being Canadian. You can't really put it on one person."
Browning believes the degree of difficulty evolved naturally. "Who's
to say Brian [Orser] couldn't have done the [quadruple jump]. It just
hadn't been tried yet. I was just the right guy in the right place, in
the right pair of skates."
Browning, who turns 30 on June 18 and is skating his second season as
a professional, credits his down-to-earth parents for basic courage. He
said there were no dreams of grandeur. Persistence paid off.
"My parents kept my feet on the ground," said Browning. "My dad
liked skating, but couldn't understand why I had to skate all year
round. It was an educating process all through. That's part of the
secret to success ... We went into it with no preconceived ideas about
travelling around the world, filling buildings.
"We just went to the rink and skated. Things just started to
happen."
There is now a statue of Browning in Caroline, the small town his
folks still call home.
Canadians respect former champions like Toller Cranston and Brian
Orser, and the amateur torch has been passed to a capable Elvis
Stojko.
But Browning still remains an overwhelming favorite among fans.
More proof came pouring out earlier this year when the president of
the international skating union banned Browning (a pro) from performing
an exhibition show at the world championships in Edmonton. The
president reversed the decision after 24 hours of non-stop
criticism.
With Browning the headliner in Sunday's Skate the Nation, Victorians
responded in kind. The $34 tickets are a hot commodity here and a
sellout of 5,000-plus is forecast for a 2 p.m. show that also includes
Orser, Josee Chouinard, Jennifer Robinson, Elizabeth Manely and
others.
BROWNING BITS
- Hobbies: Golf, leather tooling and 'pretending I know how to
work my laptop'
- How would you spend your ideal day? 'Aboard the Starship
Enterprise'
- Best advice from parents: 'Make your first car a big sturdy
one so when you crash you come out OK. It worked'
- Greatest thrill: 'Carrying the flag at the Olympics'
- Favorite TV shows: Seinfeld
- Favorite actor:Tom Hanks; Actress: Lassie
- Favorite books: Catcher in the Rye, Princess Bride
- Favorite movies: Aladdin
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