Wednesday’s fundraising gala to help send the Wight Jewels to train in Sweden with top synchro coach Andrea Dohany gave the Jewels one last opportunity – again! – to skate their popular old short programme to Jai Ho by the Pussycat Dolls. The performance is viewable at the bottom of this item.
Attendees also saw the Jewels put their new short through its paces for the first time in public and performances of the coming season’s routines for novice team Wight Crystals and elementary team Wight Sparkles. Newly formed adults synchro team Wight Fossils were also in action, showing that synchronized skating isn’t just for the young, but for anyone who is young at heart.
The gala was also another chance to see the IW’s young skaters in action after their recent club competition, including some of the IW’s top level skaters at present, including Archie Bicknell, Nikita Heathfield and Maggie Read.
Guest skater for the evening was Danielle Harrison, who not only has her own website but was an Olympic torchbearer in Andover this year. Danielle is a fantastically gifted young skater, who divides her skating time between Basingstoke and Dundee; she is coached in Scotland by top British coaches Debi and Simon Briggs, who recently put IW skaters through their paces at the IW club’s training camp. Danielle, bronze medallist at advanced novice level at the 2011 British championships and a member of NISA’s international development team for 2012-2013, also recently delighted the audience at the Pursuit of Passion charity gala in Basingstoke.
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