Paul Duchesnay

Paul Duchesnay (born 31 July 1961) is a retired ice dancer who represented France for most of his career. With his sister Isabelle Duchesnay, he is the 1991 World champion and the 1992 Olympic silver medalist.

Career

The Duchesnays started skating at an early age in Canada in pairs. Their first major success came at the 1982 Canadian Nationals, where they placed second in the junior competition. After a serious accident where Isabelle hit her head, they switched to ice dancing. Over time, the Duchesnays’ skating became more innovative and revolutionary with help from 1984 Olympic champion Christopher Dean. After Skate Canada criticized their skating, they decided to leave the Canadian team. Writer Ellyn Kestnbaum states, about Dean's choreography of the Duchesnays' programs: "Once Dean began to choreograph their programs in 1988, they introduced a whole new range of meanings to the issue of a man and woman skating together on the ice".

The Duchesnays’ 1988 Winter Olympics programs were considered unusual. Their free dance, a jungle-inspired dance set to drums, was not well received by judges and they finished eighth overall. It was reported that the spectators in Calgary enjoyed the free skating program, which was described as a "comedic, melodramatic tango", as well as "percussive" and "tribal", the judges' disparate scores, however, demonstrated that they did not know what to make of the program. They both wore blue-violet trousers and shirts; Isabelle Duchesnay wore her hair french-braided against her head, which emulated Paul Duchesnay's shorter curls. The choreography was focused on the theme of mirror images. As Kestnbaum states, "It was not always possible to distinguish which skater was Paul and which was Isabelle". According to Kestnbaum, the Duchesnays' experimentation influenced other ice dancers, which resisted the ballroom origins of ice dancing. The gender dynamics in their programs, due to their status as siblings, also resisted the "traditional clichés" of the sport. Kestnbaum also states that the fast section of their free dance, which occurred at the end of the program, "becomes a symbolic victory over oppression and an actual victory for the Duchesnays".

The Duchesnays then retired from amateur competition and competed professionally until Paul suffered a serious rollerblading accident in 1996. In 1996, the Duchesnays were nominated for a Gemini Award in Best Performance - Performing Arts Program or Series for their performance in “The Planets”. Paul Duchesnay is now a coach in the United States.

Personal life Duchesnay was born to a French mother and Canadian father.

Results (ice dance with Isabelle Duchesnay)

International Event 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 Olympics 8th 2nd Worlds 12th 9th 6th 3rd 2nd 1st Europeans 8th 5th 3rd 3rd 2nd Skate America 1st Nebelhorn 2nd National French 1st 1st 1st 1st Canadian 2nd J 4th 4th 3rd J = Junior

Amateur career programs

Reflections - Ocean Waves by George Winston Choreographed by Christopher Dean Tango

Blues1989-1990 Samba - Instrumental version of Late in the Evening by Paul Simon Choreographed by Christopher Dean Missing I - Dolencias and Sikuriades by Inti Illimani Choreographed by Christopher Dean Malaguena by Ernesto Lecuona