Monday 4 April 2016

What is Finnstep?

Finnstep is a blog that has been planned long before a web blog as a medium was invented. It was maybe 1984, Sarajevo Olympics and I am a kid watching YLE's (Finland Public Broadcast) coverage for Olympic Figure Skating.

It is Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean dancing their out of the box Bolero and earning their clean row of 6,0s from artistic impression. It is Katarina Witt and her legendary coach Jutta Müller on the screen. It is Valova and Vasiljev in pairs and Scott Hamilton in men. They were crowned as Olympic Champions but I was bit by a figure skating buzz.

Ever since I have followed figure skating. I have had my favorites and my opinions on the judges' favorites. This is a blog that reaches to history to embrace current skaters. This is about my reflections on this ever so interesting sport. On my behalf I want to be building a great momentum for Helsinki World Figure Skating Championships 2017 and hopefully long after that.

And myself. In the 80's I was a lot on skates but unfortunately I wasn't put on a figure skating club. Luckily it is never too late. I skate in an adult synchronized skating team and slowly start learning my individuals. There is a lot to gain on that area :)

But what Finnstep really is despite my figure skating blog nowadays. It is maybe the most recently invented compulsory dance in ice dancing. Yes - we don’t have compulsory discipline in ice dance any more - but in the short dance there are always compulsory rhythms embedded to program. Finnstep was one of the rhythms in Vancouver Olympics. The dance is created by Finnish ice dance heroes Susanna Rahkamo and Petri Kokko. It is a variation of quick step which was their short dance on the golden season of 1994-1995. 


What a delightful dance that is. That was the ultimate gift to the judges who were begging for ballroom dance in the early 90's and Rahkamo-Kokko kept on delivering theatrical un-ball-room-like performances. But this is ballroom dance, you can almost feel the bounce from floor! 

P.S. More about Finnstep from a fellow blogger The Wrong Edge

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