November 20th ... 25 years later

[Sylvia]

Katia Gordeeva's message today, along with 3 photos remembering Sergei Grinkov: https://www.instagram.com/p/CH0YIwlgEZu/

(I'm ashamed to admit I can't recall which program G&G skated in the 2nd photo - anyone? @Amy L?)

 

[Amy L]

Katia Gordeeva's message today, along with 3 photos remembering Sergei Grinkov: https://www.instagram.com/p/CH0YIwlgEZu/

(I'm ashamed to admit I can't recall which program G&G skated in the 2nd photo - anyone? @Amy L?)

Jesus Christ Superstar from the Trophee Lalique gala, I think. 1991ish??

 

[Jeanine]

That third picture is one of my all time favourites of the three of them.
I can’t believe it’s been 25 years since he passed away - it’s still as unbelievable now as it was then.

 

[Sylvia]

Skating colleagues remember Sergei Grinkov, 25 years after his death (includes quotes from IMG's Byron Allen, Scott Hamilton, Paul Wylie, Elena Bechke and Marina Zoueva) by Lynn Rutherford:

Skating colleagues remember Sergei Grinkov, 25 years after his death

On Nov. 20, 1995, two-time Olympic pairs champion Sergei Grinkov, aged 28, died of a heart attack in Lake Placid, New York.

olympics.nbcsports.com

Excerpts:

Paul Wylie, the 1992 Olympic silver medalist, remembers the impact Grinkov’s passing had on his own life.
“I was kind of undone by the specter of death, the possibility of death at that stage of your life,” he said. “It made me want to maximize everything. At that time, I was thinking about continuing pro skating or going back to graduate school.”
Wylie continued performing for several more years before enrolling in Harvard Business School, earning his MBA in 2000.
“And I never regretted the decision,” he said. “I remember thinking, ‘[Performing] is the calling for you, at this moment of your life.’ … In a way, Sergei led me to that.”

“All of Katia and Sergei was a love story,” Zoueva said. “They started skating (together) when they were around 11 and 14. First, they were very friendly like brother and sister, then they fell in love, then they were married and had a baby. It was always about their love… Sergei was very, very happy. Always laughing, had lots of friends, loved to skate, loved to perform, loved Katia and loved his daughter. There was a lot of love.”

 

[skatesindreams]

Never forgotten...

Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov 1994 Vocalise - The Art of Russian Skating

Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov / Екатерина Гордеева и Сергей Гриньков / エカテリーナ・ゴルデーワ, セルゲイ・グリンコフ Music: Vocalise by Rachmaninoff / ヴォカリーズ (ラフマニノフ) htt...

www.youtube.com

 

[Susan1]

I always remember the date because it was my mom's birthday. I heard them say something about a skater who died on the radio while I was getting ready for work and I called them. The lady who answered told me who and she was crying.

 

[Wyliefan]

Skating colleagues remember Sergei Grinkov, 25 years after his death (includes quotes from IMG's Byron Allen, Scott Hamilton, Paul Wylie, Elena Bechke and Marina Zoueva) by Lynn Rutherford:

Skating colleagues remember Sergei Grinkov, 25 years after his death

On Nov. 20, 1995, two-time Olympic pairs champion Sergei Grinkov, aged 28, died of a heart attack in Lake Placid, New York.

olympics.nbcsports.com

Excerpts:

Shoot, I apologize for starting a new thread for that. I did a search but somehow didn't see it.

 

[valenc]

I don’t think this has been shared yet. Published on RT yesterday, here’s Elena Vaitsekhovskaya remembering Sergei: https://russian.rt.com/sport/article/804742-grinkov-smert-figurist

 

[Sylvia]

Shoot, I apologize for starting a new thread for that. I did a search but somehow didn't see it.

No need to apologize @Wyliefan since I deliberately chose a rather cryptic thread title and started this thread well before the article was published online. IMO, Lynn Rutherford's article deserves to have its own thread in GSD for higher visibility.

 

[briancoogaert]

I remember that day so well. Can't believe it was 25 years ago.

 

[Vash01]

I love the third picture the most.
Can’t believe it has been 25 years. I remember the moment I saw the news on the cover of USA Today in the cafeteria at work while picking up breakfast. I can hear my gasp.

 

[Sylvia]

It is hard to believe. I remember it clearly. I had seen them in SOI back in the spring so a few months before he passed. ?

Replying to @Judy here... I feel so lucky to have watched them perform live/in person one time -- February 1995 Stars on Ice show in St. Louis, MO -- 9 months before he passed. I was inspired to start adult skating group lessons not long after that show.

 

[Judy]

Replying to @Judy here... I feel so lucky to have watched them perform live/in person one time -- February 1995 Stars on Ice show in St. Louis, MO -- 9 months before he passed. I was inspired to start adult skating group lessons not long after that show.

I remember seeing their programs at Skate Canada before the Olympics. I was never a typical fan like nowadays with internet, more tv coverage etc .. but their skating was gorgeous. They received standing ovations immediately.

 

[Vash01]

I watched them skate live two or three times. I still have some of the photos. They were taken with a film - not a digital Camera. I found an enlarged print copy of one just yesterday. They were skating to Vocalise in that photo. May be I could take its photo with my cell and post it on my facebook page.

 

[myhoneyhoney]

G&G are the reason I fell in love with skating. I still recall a friend called me and gave me the news. I cried. I then thought of Katia and cried some more.

 

[Vash01]

I fell in love with them while watching the 1988 Olympics and started taking recreational skating lessons for the next 20 something years. To be fair, Midori Ito was also a reason for my getting into skating. I became a fan of figure skating in 1988, and still am, obviously.

I recorded every competition and show on TV that G&G skated in. Whatever I didn’t have, I obtained from other fans. Katia was just 24 when Sergei died. Tough at any age, but given their story, it must have been beyond imagination. In her book she described the day it happened, and how she felt. Heartbreaking.

 

[Sylvia]

I was just a casual skating fan when I first saw G&G on TV at 1986 Worlds -- gold in their debut appearance! -- and was captivated... John Tesh was the commentator on CBS as an excerpt (middle section to "Send in the Clowns") of their winning free skate was shown, and that was one of the first VCR tapes I ever made - hey, I found the clip! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9ldMxmT33M&t=2m

 

[love skating]

I too saw them skate live in the 1995 SOI tour (in Anaheim). Later I felt so grateful to have seen them in person, not knowing it would be the one and only time.

Back then I didn't have internet yet, so I remember hearing about Sergei on the evening news - I was shocked beyond belief! Still so sad

 

[Ananas Astra]

I was just a kid back then, not even remotely interested in figure skating, but my mom told me about it and showed me some Russian newspaper with Katia and Daria on the front page, she got from a Russian shop here. I remember she was very sad about Sergei's passing.

 

[Sylvia]

28 years ago now ... Clip posted today (November 20, 2023) by the gordeeva.ru fan account of Sergei Grinkov's grave in snowy Vagankovo Cemetery (Ваганьковское кладбище) in Moscow, as well as photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cz3D4KUo9Om/?img_index=2

Machine translation of the caption:
“When leaving, leave the Light. It's more than staying."
They remember you... We remember...