Lies told by Didier Gailhaguet about Surya Bonaly

[Mafke]

Comments on another thread reminded me of some of the delightful stories (ie baldfaced lies) told by Didier Gailhaguet about Surya Bonaly starting in 1989 (born on Reunion, never cut her hair, only ate seeds and nuts etc etc etc).

With that in mind I decided to start a thread compiling other lies told by him about Surya. In the true Gailhaguet spirit, these don't actually have to correspond with anything he ever said.

nb, no hating! I'm a big Bonaly fan from way back so these are offered in affection

I'll start off:

She sleeps hangng upside down like a bat.

She would never take a car to a competition and would hitchhike instead.

Is both colorblind and synesthesic = so that orange sounds just like green to her.

She once received a marriage proposal from Gerard Depardieu.

She briefly ran a walnut orchard.

She loved skating figures but unfortunately was not allowed to practice them by her religion.

She could benchpress 350 pounds.

[Taso]

In another vein entirely, which things are true? I read this Sports Illustrated article about her earlier this week, from just before Worlds in 1995. Totally interesting and a very different picture of Surya and Suzanne Bonaly than normally portrayed.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vau...93/1/index.htm

[essence_of_soy]

A friend told me that at Birmingham Worlds, room was always set aside in the Kiss and Cry for Madame Bonaly's broomstick.

[Quintuple]

She was actually singing live, while skating, for her exhibition performance at 1994 Worlds.

That back flip at the 1998 Olympics was actually a double-layout, but the networks were told to edit it at once before the time-delayed broadcast to a single so people's heads wouldn't explode.

She actually made her own first pair of skates, out of mountain goat dung and diamonds from her native land of Reunion.

Because she had so many artistic ideas but each competition allowed her to compete only one SP and one LP, she actually donned heavy make-up and *also* appeared as a skater named "Olga Markova" during the 1994 and 1995 seasons.

[Taso]

She was actually singing live, while skating, for her exhibition performance at 1994 Worlds.

Because she had so many artistic ideas but each competition allowed her to compete only one SP and one LP, she actually donned heavy make-up and *also* appeared as a skater named "Olga Markova" during the 1994 and 1995 seasons.

These two!!!

[snoopysnake]

One of my skating encyclopedia books states that she was born in 1964! It was also way off on Sasha Fadeev's birth year, making him about 11 years old when he won Worlds!

[gkelly]

Did they just switch the birthdates for Sasha and Surya?

[Morry Stillwell]

Comments on another thread reminded me of some of the delightful stories (ie baldfaced lies) told by Didier Gailhaguet about Surya Bonaly starting in 1989 (born on Reunion, never cut her hair, only ate seeds and nuts etc etc etc).

With that in mind I decided to start a thread compiling other lies told by him about Surya. In the true Gailhaguet spirit, these don't actually have to correspond with anything he ever said.

nb, no hating! I'm a big Bonaly fan from way back so these are offered in affection

I'll start off:

She sleeps hangng upside down like a bat.

She would never take a car to a competition and would hitchhike instead.

Is both colorblind and synesthesic = so that orange sounds just like green to her.

She once received a marriage proposal from Gerard Depardieu.

She briefly ran a walnut orchard.

She loved skating figures but unfortunately was not allowed to practice them by her religion.

She could benchpress 350 pounds.

Please, cite your written sources for the lies you attribuet to Didier. BTW are you Marie LeGougne in drag?

[Mafke]

Please, cite your written sources for the lies you attribuet to Didier. BTW are you Marie LeGougne in drag?

It's a conspiracy! I will not put up with these accusations and insinuations! Calumny!

[falling_dance]

Surya Bonaly is training for Sochi.

[MR-FAN]

Surya Bonaly is training for Sochi.

It's true

[Aussie Willy]

That back flip at the 1998 Olympics was actually a double-layout, but the networks were told to edit it at once before the time-delayed broadcast to a single so people's heads wouldn't explode.

You mean I missed that. I feel so robbed.

She actually made her own first pair of skates, out of mountain goat dung and diamonds from her native land of Reunion.

They must have been a pretty sh*tty pair of skates.

Because she had so many artistic ideas but each competition allowed her to compete only one SP and one LP, she actually donned heavy make-up and *also* appeared as a skater named "Olga Markova" during the 1994 and 1995 seasons.

[seaner00]

In another vein entirely, which things are true? I read this Sports Illustrated article about her earlier this week, from just before Worlds in 1995. Totally interesting and a very different picture of Surya and Suzanne Bonaly than normally portrayed.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vau...93/1/index.htm

thx for the archived article!

[Jarrett]

That article is a great read. I wish Hersh would like stories like that...

[Ozzisk8tr]

Surya Bonaly is training for Sochi.

Yes and she's perfected every jump take off on the correct edge, but she's also thrown a backflip in on every one of those jumps. Yes she has a 7 backflip program. She also finishes doing a spiral where she shoots streamers and confetti at the audience from her lady garden. That get's a 9 for pc's in my book any day.

[antmanb]

Yes and she's perfected every jump take off on the correct edge, but she's also thrown a backflip in on every one of those jumps. Yes she has a 7 backflip program. She also finishes doing a spiral where she shoots streamers and confetti at the audience from her lady garden. That get's a 9 for pc's in my book any day.

[falling_dance]

Yes and she's perfected every jump take off on the correct edge, but she's also thrown a backflip in on every one of those jumps.

And so, we'll soon see the Bonaly toe loop, Bonaly salchow, Bonaly loop, etc., or else the Bonaloop, Bonaflip, Bonalutz, etc. etc...

[BigB08822]

Her edges were so deep that they went back on a flat. Some weird fluke in the law of physics...

[Frau Muller]

Surya Bonaly is practising a new competitive routine to "East of Eden."

[briancoogaert]

Surya Bonaly is practising a new competitive routine to "East of Eden."

And a LP to Lyra Angelica !