Torch passes to worthy hands

It's often been said that the days and months that follow an Olympic Games offer figure skating a chance for renewal, a time to inject some new blood into the game.

And so it is with even the most popular ice shows.

Yes, even tours such as Chrysler Stars on Ice get their own bit of retooling and reshaping, as new cast members breathe a different kind of life into the proceedings.

Stars, though, faces a double whammy -- how to get by, as well, without its founder and driving force, Scott Hamilton, who said farewell to the touring life in an emotional ride across North America last spring.

Judging by the sights and sounds at the Corel Centre Wednesday night -- and the accompanying batch of standing ovations from the crowd of 12,000 or so -- it's safe to proclaim this skating troupe remains in mighty good hands.

They belong to reigning Olympic champion Alexei Yagudin, a 22-year-old from St. Petersburg, Russia, who seems destined to be a darling of Canadian audiences for years to come.

BOUNTIFUL TALENT

Yagudin's bountiful talent and oh-so-fast feet were on display for all to see in Winter, the brilliant piece of work that started him on his way to gold in Salt Lake City.

Gold was also the colour Kristi Yamaguchi wore 10 years ago in Albertville and, in her return to the Canadian Stars tour, she offered plenty of reminders of the classy style and grace that have been her trademark

There were even more Olympic touches. Like, for example, the Michael Jackson medley of Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz, who can hydroblade until they're 80 and still bring a Canadian crowd out of its seats.

Some familiar blood will always remain in style. Seems like Kurt Browning will never stop being the star of the show, and why not? No skater knows how to work a crowd better.

There's always a lot to like, too, about what Brian Orser brings to the ice. His wonderfully choreographed Somewhere In Time number never fails to captivate an audience.

The tour founder may be gone, but there were several bits of the old Hamilton whimsy in evidence last night. Like seeing Browning, Kraatz, Todd Sand and Lloyd Eisler strutting around the ice in tank-style swimsuits and feather boas (okay, so you had to be there).

But perhaps the most heartening part of the night, given the sorry state figure skating has fallen into since the Salt Lake Games mess, was seeing another kind of renewal.

About the connection that remains very much alive between skater and spectator. A bond that even the sleaziest underside of the sport has no chance of breaking.

CHRYSLER STARS ON ICE

At: The Corel Centre

When: Wednesday night

'TALENTED NEW BLOOD!'

-- ROB BRODIE, SUN