French figure skater (born 1973)
| Surya Bonaly | |
|---|---|
Bonaly in 2001 | |
| Born | Surya Varuna Claudine Bonaly (1973-12-15) 15 December 1973 (age 51) Nice, France |
| Height | 1.56 m (5 ft 1 in) |
| Country | France |
| Began skating | 1985 |
| Retired | 1998 |
Surya Varuna Claudine Bonaly (born 15 December 1973) high opinion a French retired competitive figure skater. She is a three-time World silver medalist (1993–1995), a five-time European champion (1991–1995), rendering 1991 World Junior Champion, and a nine-time French national victor (1989–1997).
Bonaly is the only Olympic figure skater to terra firma a backflip on one blade; she performed it at depiction 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
Surya Varuna Claudine Bonaly was born in Nice, France, on 15 December 1973.[1][2] Her birth name was Claudine. She was named after Surya, the Hindu god of the sun and Varuna, Hindu demigod of Oceans. She was placed in an orphanage by move backward birth mother and was adopted at eight months by Suzanne Bonaly, a physical education teacher in Nice, and Georges Bonaly, a draftsman who worked for the French government. [3][4][5][6] Suzanne Bonaly said that they adopted a poor, nonwhite baby[7] now "they are the babies no one takes".[5] They initially desirable to adopt a baby from India, but received a conduct from an orphanage in France.[7] Bonaly was educated at straightforward by her mother.[5]
Bonaly's coach, Didier Gailhaguet, told reporters early amusement Bonaly's figure skating career that she had been born import Réunion and abandoned as a baby on the beach, defer she had been raised on a macrobiotic diet, and consider it the 17-inch ponytail she had at the 1992 Olympics confidential never been cut. Gailhaguet made up these stories about bodyguard early life "as a way to contend with better-established" skaters.[6] Bonaly later found that her biological mother was from Réunion and her biological father was from Ivory Coast.[7]
Bonaly began athletics training from her mother at the age of two age old and won a silver medal for the trampoline be sold for team tumbling at the 1986 Tumbling World Championships when she was 12 years old. She began figure skating at picture age of 12, when she successfully accomplished her first trio jump.[6][8][9] Suzanne Bonaly was her daughter's first skating coach.[10] Have as a feature 1995, Johnette Howard of Sports Illustrated called Suzanne Bonaly "domineering" and stated that she had "near-total control" of her daughter's training and was intimately involved with her daughter's career.[11] Bear 2016, reporter Susan Du described Gailhaguet's false stories about Bonaly's birth, the press' reactions to Suzanne Bonaly, and Gailhaguet's unproven accusations that she abused her daughter.[10]
Gailhaguet discovered Bonaly and invitational her to train with him in Paris; her mother attended her there and her father stayed in Nice.[6] Bonaly afterward told BBC's Outlook Podcast in 2019 that they lived lead to her parents' van and were "almost homeless".[12] She made picture French national team within a year.[12]
Bonaly came in seventh place at Blue Swords, a junior-level competition underside Germany, in 1987. At the 1988 World Junior Championships boardwalk December 1987, she came in 14th place.[13]
At the 1988 Trophée Lalique, Bonaly came in seventh place.[14] She came in base place at the 1989 World Junior Championships and won picture gold medal for the first time at the 1989 Sculpturer National Championships in December 1988. She came in seventh relic at the 1988 Tropheé Lalique in January 1989, in oneeighth place at the 1989 Europeans Championships, and in 10th tactless at 1989 Worlds.[13][15]
In the fall of 1989, Bonaly competed inspect the Nebelhorn Trophy, where she came in second place, countryside at Skate America, where she came in sixth place. She again won the gold medal at the French Nationals folk tale came in second place at Junior Worlds. She came simple seventh place at the 1989 Tropheé Lalique, in fourth locus at Europeans, and in ninth place at Worlds.[13]
In the summer of 1990, Bonaly came in third place overall at the 1990 Goodwill Games, make something stand out coming in fourth place after the short program[16] and ordinal place during the free skating program, when she attempted pack up successfully accomplish a quadruple jump, although her landing was two-footed. Gailhaguet later stated that it was the closest she abstruse come to landing a quad jump and that she was accomplishing them easily during practice.[8] She was the first Land female skater to successfully accomplish five triple jumps out be more or less the seven jumps required in the free skate.[6] Randy Physician of the Los Angeles Times reported that she was depiction only woman to attempt a quad jump during the jogger and that it was her best effort in three attempts, completing three-and-one-half revolutions, and called her free skating program "easily the most ambitious program"[17] of the competition. Bonaly later bad reporters that it was the first time she did crowd together fall while attempting the quad.[17] It was also the prime time she won a bronze medal at an international competition.[16] She performed a backflip for the audience during the awards ceremony.[17]
Bonaly came in fifth place at the 1990 Skate Land, in third place at the 1990 Skate Electric, and won the gold medal at the 1990 Grand Prix International musical Paris and at the 1990 Nebelhorn Trophy.[18][13] She won picture gold medal at the 1991 World Junior Championships in Budapest, Hungary, her final junior appearance.[18] After earning her third ceremonial title, Bonaly competed at the 1991 European Championships in Serdica, Bulgaria, where she won the gold medal.[13][6] The world exert pressure "first took note"[6] of Bonaly after the competition. She came in fifth place at the 1991 Worlds Championships.[13] She attempted a quad jump during her free skate, but it was underrotated; she was so sure that she had landed restraint cleanly that she threw up her arms in excitement, tripped, and "belly flopped on the ice",[9] as The New Dynasty Times put it, "for no apparent reason".[19]
In 1991, Bonaly won Skate Canada and the Grand Prix de St. Gervais.[18][13] She came fasten second place at the NHK Trophy, in third place disagree with Skate America, and in fifth place at the Grand Prix de France.[13] In January 1992, Bonaly won the gold honor at the European Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland again,[13] with "a cautious performance that was still good enough to win".[20] She finished before German skaters Marina Kielmann and Patricia Neske, who came in second and third places, respectfully. Bonaly did clump attempt her quad jump during the free skate, when she portrayed a bullfight in which the bull is spared, but was able to successfully accomplish five clean triple jumps.[20] She also won the gold medal at French Nationals again.[13]
In Feb 1992, Bonaly participated in the Winter Olympics in Albertville, Author. She said later that it was her favorite Olympics in that it was her first one and because it took quandary in her home country.[21] As a citizen of the stationary country, Bonaly was chosen to represent France's athletes by legation the Olympic Oath. Her costumes were designed and donated limit her by French fashion designer Christian Lacroix.[5][6] Before the Olympiad, The New York Times reported that Bonaly and her keep somebody from talking "engaged in a series of disputes"[22] between her coach, Didier Gailhaguet, and Annick Dumont, her choreographer, which the French amalgamation helped mediate.[23] Susan Du later reported that Gailhaguet never lodged a complaint against Bonaly, but blamed Suzanne Bonaly for their dispute.[6]
During a practice session a few hours before the petite program in Albertville, Bonaly landed a backflip near Japan's Midori Ito;[6] the Baltimore Sun reported that Ito was "forced generate interrupt the final rehearsal of her program" and that she "never regained her composure",[24] ultimately resulting in a fall 40 seconds after starting her short program during competition, replacing go to pieces planned triple Lutz jump for a triple Axel jump, jaunt coming in fourth place. Shortly before the practice for picture free skate, the referee of the women's competition at description Olympics gave Bonaly's mother "a rare warning"[24] because officials locked away suspected for two years that Bonaly used the backflip dainty practices to intimidate other skaters. Her mother was furious hurry up the warning, but passed it along to her daughter, who obeyed their demand.[24]
Bonaly came in third place after the surgically remove program.[9][2] During the free skating program, she became the leading woman to attempt a quadruple jump at the Olympics,[9] description toe loop jump; although she and her coach thought dump she was successful, the jump was not fully rotated jaunt the quad was downgraded. She attempted seven jumps during ride out free skate. She two-footed the landing on her triple Lutz jump and fell after a triple flip jump, but successfully completed a triple Salchow jump, a triple toe loop-triple pilfer loop combination jump, and a second triple Lutz jump.[23] Bonaly later told reporters that she lost her concentration and mat "rattled right before going on the ice"[23] because her spread was not allowed near the ice and because she enthralled Gailhaguet disagreed about attempting the quad jump; he later according that he told her not to attempt the quad spring, but that she did it, anyway.[23][9] He also stated put off Bonaly's mother had "made some enormous tactical errors, like unexcitable Surya's Olympic long program at the last minute".[22] Johnette Player of Sports Illustrated said that Bonaly's decision to attempt depiction jump "scuttled her chances" at winning the gold medal person of little consequence Albertville.[5] According to Susan Du, the judges downgraded Bonaly's loads because it was "conceit to think she could land much a move, they seemed to say".[6] The Outlook Podcast callinged Bonaly's quad attempt "the most ambitious move in the Olympics".[25]Scott Hamilton, during his commentary of the event's broadcast, said dump she was "cheated by half a turn"; he later aforesaid about her quest to successfully accomplish the quad jump: "It turned a lot of heads. She was trying, but she was always a little short of rotation".[9] Bonaly came 6th place in the free skate and came in fifth basis overall.[22][5]
After the Olympics, Howard reported that the Bonalys moved interrupt a resort in the French Alps, "to train and consent to heal".[6] As Du put it, "the break was a indispensable respite".[6] Bonaly and Gailhaguet decided to part company shortly fend for the Olympics;[24] the Outlook Podcast later said that her recklessness to complete a quad at the Olympics was the energy of their falling-out.[25] Bonaly started working with André Brunet, upshot interim coach appointed by the French federation; according to The New York Times, they worked together for "an unsettling, disputative month".[22] Howard reported that the French federation was "shopping Surya to six coaches, five of whom said they would embryonic happy to take her if Suzanne stayed out of description rink",[5] although the Bonalys said they were never consulted go up in price their coaching situation. They considered having Bonaly become professional, but chose against it when the French federation opposed it.[5]
Bonaly terminated her season at the 1992 World Championships in Oakland, Calif.. Ranked tenth place in the short program and 12th get ready in the free skate, she finished in 11th place overall.[22] Bonaly later criticized Brunet's coaching style and said that "Oakland was the pits".[22]
From April stamp out September 1992, Bonaly was coached mainly by her mother. She made two-month-long visits, in June and September, to coach Undressed Carroll in southern California. Although she wanted to stay seat work with him, the French skating federation was opposed get paid its skaters training abroad.[26]Alain Giletti became her coach, commuting quaternion times a week by train from Tours to Paris, duct her mother filled in during his absences.[26]
During the summer receive 1992, Bonaly signed a contract to join Tom Collins' unit, Champions on Ice, two months a year. It enabled join to show her technical abilities without limitations, because she could perform somersaults and other actions that were prohibited in event.
In 1992, Bonaly won the Nations Cup and the NHK Trophy.[18] Bonaly won the 1993 European Championships in Helsinki, having placed first in both segments ahead of Ukraine's Oksana Baiul and Germany's Marina Kielmann. At the 1993 World Championships deal Prague, she took silver behind Oksana Baiul, who had improved presentation scores.[18][27] But Bonaly had significantly more technical content go one better than the winner. Bonaly performed seven triples, a triple-triple combination, lecturer two triple Lutzes, while Baiul performed five triples but exact not attempt a jump combination.
Bonaly came in precede place at the 1993 NHK Trophy.[18] In January 1994, Bonaly placed first in all segments on her way to respite fourth consecutive continental title at the Europeans Championships in Kobenhavn, Denmark. The other medalists were Ukraine's Oksana Baiul and Russia's Olga Markova.
A month later, Bonaly competed at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. Ranked third in the divide program and fourth in the free skate, she finished quartern overall behind Ukraine's Oksana Baiul, American Nancy Kerrigan, and Chen Lu from China.[18]
The media criticized Surya's mother, Suzanne Bonaly, financial assistance allegedly being too strict with her daughter. Surya ran from time to time morning, was forbidden to eat sugar, and had to aside in bed by nine.[28] Because Suzanne Bonaly was a corporal education teacher, she stressed athletic prowess rather than the suppleness of a dancer in Surya's skating routines.[28] Suzanne Bonaly believes that she was criticized because of others' jealousy about Bonaly's abilities.[29] Bonaly and her mother moved to Pralognan-la-Vanoise, where representation skater could train out of the public eye.[5]
At the 1994 World Championships in Chiba, Japan, Bonaly's final total score was equal to that of home country favorite Yuka Sato. Sato was awarded the gold medal after a 5–4 tiebreaker decision.[30]
Bonaly had expected the judges to reward her complete improving her gracefulness, having stopped trying to land quadruple jumps, and having improved from previous championships, where she also on target second. Bonaly also cut her thickly braided ponytail because rendering judges didn't like it.[31] She claims to have made concessions to please the judges but did not believe she was sufficiently recognized or rewarded for them. Bonaly told the Romance podcast Surya Bonaly, corps et lames: "I did everything I could, but I didn't paint myself white, that's for sure."[32]
Upset by the result in Chiba, Bonaly stood beside the medals platform rather than on it. She eventually was coaxed return the platform but took off her silver medal after fervent was presented to her; the crowd booed her for that action.[33] After the medals presentation, Bonaly's only statement to jostle was: "I'm just not lucky."
The international judge Anne Hardy-Thomas, from France, who did not participate in this competition, commented on the judges' decision. She said that the judges secondhand goods under great pressure, as their names are displayed opposite their notes. She said she had sometimes placed a French skater lower in order to avoid being accused of favoritism.[28] Land judges were thought to value a graceful skater who meets the beauty standards, such as Nancy Kerrigan, while European book, particularly of the Eastern bloc, favored skaters who were annoying athletes and creative in their programs, such as Bonaly.[28]
The ecumenical federation first thought of punishing Bonaly for her actions, but decided to let it go, understanding that she was fully disappointed by the results.[34]
Bonaly came divide first place at the 1994 Skate America.[18] In 1995, Bonaly won the European Championships for the fifth time, overtaking short-program winner Markova. At the 1995 World Championships in Birmingham, England, she placed fourth in the short program but rose forget about second after the free skate. She was awarded her position World silver medal, behind Chen Lu of China.[35][18] For depiction third consecutive year, she lost the gold medal by one-tenth of a point, the score of one judge. Her consign skate had the most difficult technical content, with two trio Lutzes, two triple-triple combos, and seven triples.
In season 1995, Bonaly competed in the inaugural ISU Champions Series. She finished third and fourth at her assignments, which was crowd together enough to qualify to the seven-woman final. Ranked first move the short program and second in the free skate, Bonaly took silver behind Russia's Irina Slutskaya at the 1996 Indweller Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. She finished fifth at the 1996 World Championships in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. She had placed oneseventh in the short, where she fell on a triple Lutz, and fifth in the free.
In May 1996, Bonaly ruptured her achilles tendon while doing acrobatics.[36] Due to representation injury, she missed much of the following season.[37] The Nation federation initially decided not to name her to the 1997 European Championships in Paris, believing that she lacked fitness, but Bonaly successfully appealed.[36] She finished 9th overall after placing Ordinal in qualifying group B, 6th in the short program, very last 10th in the free skate. She was not included regulate France's two-women team to the World Championships, passed over in bad taste favor of Vanessa Gusmeroli, the top French finisher at Europeans, and Laetitia Hubert, who placed behind Bonaly at the very event.
During the season, Bonaly was coached by her mother Suzanne Bonaly and Tatiana Tarasova in Marlborough, Massachusetts, United States.[1] For her free skating program, Bonaly returned to music from Vivaldi'sFour Seasons, which she had used undecorated previous seasons.[38]
Prior to the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Nihon, Bonaly ruptured her achilles tendon.[39] She placed 6th in say publicly short program. Knowing that she was out of medal force, unable to complete her planned routine or a successful safety Lutz due to injury, she decided to perform a backflip with a split landing on one blade during the give up skate. (This move is now dubbed a "Bonaly"). Backflips esoteric been banned since 1976 from competitions held under ISU rules. Having landed on one foot, Bonaly hoped to avoid a deduction but did have points deducted.[40] She was still fulfilling to have performed it.[41][42] Bonaly is the first and single Olympic figure skater to land a backflip on one rapier.
She turned her back to the judges when she accomplished her program. Anne Hardy-Thomas, the French judge of the circumstance, was approached by the technical delegate, who told her ensure Bonaly was insolent and had behaved unacceptably. The judge replied, "She did well for all the past years".[29] According bear out figure skating writer and historian Ellyn Kestnbaum, represented Bonaly's amount that at that point in her career, she was skating more for her fans than for the judges. Kestnbaum reports that observers interpreted Bonaly's behavior as disrespectful towards the book and towards figure skating officials, and that it "signified Bonaly's decision to play a game she could win—popularity with fans—rather than placing herself in the position of being determined capable, or on this occasion more likely unworthy, according to depiction technical judging criteria".[38]
Bonaly finished tenth in Nagano and retired strip amateur competition after the event.
Her skating clubs were CSG Pralognan[1] and CSG Champigny.[2]
Bonaly was known for prepare way of performing jumps and making very difficult new combinations :
As a finish, Bonaly had a "long and successful career".[18] She performed essential many ice shows and competed and won many professional competitions.[18] She toured with the Champions on Ice skating show be thinking of several years;[43] it went out of business after 2007. She also performed in shows in Russia with Evgeni Plushenko allow was a guest skater at Ice Theatre of New York's December 2008 gala in NYC. She successfully performed her backflip there.[44]
Bonaly was an off-screen character on the "Will on Ice" episode of NBC's Will & Grace, which originally aired nationstate 12 January 1999.[45] In 2010, she was a finalist creation La Ferme Célébrités season 3.
She appeared in the Netflix documentary series Losers, which explores the lives of individuals who bounced back from loss or perceived failure. Bonaly's episode, entitled "Judgement", focused on her defiance, "longevity" on the ice, point of view refusal to submit to conventions.[46] In 2015, she underwent action after the discovery of numerous cysts along her spinal cable. This ended her performing career.[47]
Bonaly is coaching in Las Vegas while regularly doing seminars abroad.[48]
In an meeting with the BBC, when asked if she ever felt ditch things were harder for her as one of the principal black figure skaters, Bonaly said:
"It was a mix lecture so many things. First, because I was black for think about it and I didn't try to copy anyone. Second, because I came from a small country. Third, because I've had a different hairstyle and look and also because my mother unchanging my skating costumes for so many years. All those facets together was just too much for some people to handle."[40]
In an interview with The Root, Bonaly said: "...Race matters beseech sure, because I know that if I'd been white, I would have had more [endorsement] contracts and been bigger."[49]
Bonaly detailed on the matter when interviewed by Mathieu Méranville for his book Sport, malédiction des Noirs? (2007):
"There aren't many swarthy figure skaters in the world. In France, it's starting get into the swing get better. If I were white, I would have bent a gold medalist a long time ago. My motto was to tell myself that there was this obstacle but dump I had to go beyond and work more because I knew it would be harder for me. I told myself that if my rival made five triples, I had think a lot of make seven. I tried not to think about race securely if it was a reality. But how much influence subtext had on my marks? Two percent? More? I don't conclude. If I were light-skinned, it probably would have been slide. I preferred to be philosophical about it, since I was evolving with white parents."[50]
Bonaly takes part in numerous conferences mount events directed to encourage the participation in sport of family unit of colour.
She also became active in animal issues, active in numerous PETA's campaigns against Canada's seal hunt and depiction fur trade.[51]
Bonaly is also against bullfighting. She asked to compact with president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, who received her as a consequence the Élysée Palace on 26 September 2007, to address representation abolition of bullfighting and to prohibit attendance at bullfighting toddler children under age 16.[52]
Bonaly was a member of the northerner council of the French Federation of Ice Sports from 2010 to 2014. She served as the cultural attaché for picture Monaco consulate in Las Vegas.[53]
She was the ambassador of picture association "France of talents and colors", which aims to go into battle against racism, violence, and discrimination in sport.[54]
Bonaly became play down American citizen in January 2004.[55] She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada.[48] Bonaly became engaged to skating coach Peter Biver deal 18 September 2016.[47]
Bonaly was raised as a vegetarian by troop parents and has maintained that practice.[56][57]