‘REFILLING THE TANK’
Nicks selected king of coaches at PSA Conference by LIZ LEAMY
pions from Peggy Fleming through Ash- ley Wagner, accepted the 2012 Profes- sional Skaters Association (PSA) EDI Award for coach of the year with a heavy dose of dry British wit, tempered by gratitude. “You young coaches, you had better
A
try harder,” Nicks told a crowd of almost 600 of his fellow skating professionals at the 2012 PSA Conference, held at Bos- ton’s Park Plaza Hotel in late May. It wasn’t all fun and games; Nicks thanked his mentor, the late Frank Zam- boni, inventor of the ice-resurfacing ma- chine. Zamboni invited the 1953 Brit- ish World pairs champion to his rink in Paramount, Calif., to replace a coach who had been lost in the plane crash that claimed the 1961 U.S. World team. “He taught me everything about the rink business,” Nicks said. He also acknowledged the many skaters who have shaped his career, a long list that included Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner, Tiffany Chin, Jenni Meno and Todd Sand, and Sasha Co- hen, as well as his current star Wagner, the U.S. ladies champion. “Ashley is a complete scatterbrain; she listens to half of what I say,” he said. “She says my hairstyle doesn’t hack it, my clothes are too old-fashioned. Re- cently she said I was her Yoda. Some- one had to tell me Yoda was a character from Star Wars. If it wasn’t for Ashley, I wouldn’t be here.” Te evening’s other honorees in-
cluded Pasquale Camerlengo, who accepted the Paul McGrath Choreog- rapher of the Year Award for his work with U.S. competitors including Alissa Czisny and Adam Rippon. “I would like to thank everybody
for welcoming me to this country,” said Camerlengo, a former Italian ice dance competitor who trains his skaters at the Detroit Skating Club. “I work with so many talented skaters who give me the inspiration and quality.” Tammy Gambill, coach of U.S.
10 AUG./SEPT. 2012
s usual, John Nicks brought the house down. Te 83-year-old Californian, who has trained U.S. cham-
novice champion Vincent Zhou, was named Developmental Coach of the Year.
Te awards capped off a three-day
conference, the sport’s largest education- al forum devoted to inspiring and guid- ing coaches to cultivate skaters from the grassroots through the elite levels. “We’re doing this to take the in-
dustry to a higher level of quality and to ensure that it is all about upholding the professional image,” said Jimmie San- tee, the PSA’s executive director.” “We want to support the coaches and sport as much as we can.” It seems to be working; attendance was nearly double that of the 2011 event. Paul Wylie, the 1992 Olympic sil-
ver medalist; five-time U.S. pairs cham- pion Todd Sand; Kathy Casey, U.S. Figure Skating director of performance enhancement and tracking for elite ath- letes; Christy Krall, who coached Cana- da’s Patrick Chan to the 2011 and 2012 World titles; and Dr. Mahlon Bradley, a former U.S. contender and U.S. Figure Skating medical advisor, were just some of the skating luminaries who shared their experience and expertise to inspire their fellow pros.
“Tis has been a great conference,”
Santee said. “It’s all about refilling the emotional tank of the coaches.” Amidst the usual clamor of catch- ing up with one another, coaches seemed genuinely happy at the prospect of being further educated. “Every time I come I’m always ex-
cited and rejuvenated; I hear somebody say something in a different way,” Gam- bill said. “Te PSA is such a great tool to keep on learning.” Wylie, who now coaches in Char- lotte, N.C., kicked things off with a key- note address that emphasized the impor- tance of accepting the ups and downs of the sport, starting with a major turning point in his life: his disastrous short pro- gram at the 1991 World Championships in Munich. After missing all three of his jumps, he barely qualified for the free skate.
“Although I managed to skate lights
Veteran coach John Nicks kept things light and fun during his acceptance speech for PSA Coach of the Year.
Hundreds of coaches from throughout the country gathered in Boston in late May for the annual PSA Conference.
Pasquale Camerlengo was honored at the PSA Conference for his outstanding choreography this past season.
PHOTO BY LIZ LEAMY
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE PSA
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