Glimpses from last year: Stéphane Lambiel and some of the participants at the first edition of the Summer Camp in Champéry. © Pierre Quentin
Founded by Stéphane Lambiel in 2014 as a year-round training center, the Skating School of Switzerland – also known as the 3S – opens its doors for the second edition of its Summer Camp, starting today at Palladium de Champéry. Till August 13th, students coming from China, Latvia, Russia, Sweden, South Africa, Italy, Ukraine, Switzerland and Netherlands will learn from the best, during an intensive program that combines on & off-ice training, private, semi-private and specific group lessons, under the thorough guidance of Stéphane Lambiel and the team that brought him to the amazing results of his career: coach Peter Grütter, choreographer Salome Brunner, ballet teacher Lesli Wiesner. Other 3S specialists are joining the students, in a collective effort to make them as ready as possible for the forthcoming season.
by Florentina Tone
After two weeks working with the Japanese Senior national team in Karuizawa, Stéphane Lambiel is back in Switzerland – or, more accurately, at his skating school in Champéry – for this year’s edition of his summer camp, a two-week training process tailored for elite skaters at Novice, Junior and Senior levels.
Skaters coming from nine countries will be spending a week or two in Champéry, according to Anne-Sophie Thilo, Director of Communications at 3S: „There are 40 participants in total. 30 in the first week and 29 in the second week – some of them are doing both weeks”. Inside the group there are a few skaters already competing at international level: 18-year-old Lukas Britschgi of Switzerland – Lukas is the current Swiss junior champion; 15-year-old Anastasia Schneider of Sweden – a member of the Swedish National Team; China’s Yudong Chen – 13th place in the men’s event at the 2016 Chinese Figure Skating Championships in Harbin; 18-year-old Matilda Algotsson of Sweden –2016 Swedish national bronze medalist, she was sent to this year’s edition of the Europeans in Bratislava, where she placed 13th.
Deniss Vasiljevs resumes skating in Champéry
Among the participants, and already a traditional guest of Skating School of Switzerland, is Latvia’s Deniss Vasiljevs. Turning 17 during the camp in Champéry (on August 9th), Deniss is currently in a rehabilitation process after discovering a tear in his left adductor muscle – he spent some time in Toronto, at the end of July, getting physiotherapy treatments and training off-ice. As Anne-Sophie Thilo from Skating School of Switzerland points out, „he will start skating again during the Summer Camp, with a soft training and no jumps”. Through his facebook page, Deniss let his fans know he’s attempting a full recovery before anything: „Unfortunately, I cannot jump for the next few weeks, so I will be late on my preparations for the upcoming season. The most important thing for me is to get completely healthy again and ready for my next challenge”.
As a reminder, during 2015-2016 season, this young talent from Latvia won two medals at 2016 Youth Olympics in Lillehammer (silver in the men’s event and bronze in the team event), two silver medals on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, in Riga and Toruń, and, in his first season in Seniors, he placed 12th at the Europeans and 14th at Worlds. In late April, he was one of Ice Legends’ guests, only to come back to Switzerland on more than one occasion, to have both his short and free programs for next season choreographed by Stéphane Lambiel.
Learning from the best – Stéphane Lambiel is a two-time World Champion, the 2006 Olympic silver medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Champion and a nine-time Swiss national champion; here you have him, alongside participants at last year’s edition of the 3S Summer Camp. © Pierre Quentin
„We’re just like a family”
Aged 9 to 19, the students attending the summer camp in Champéry will work under the careful eyes of Stéphane Lambiel and his dream team, consisting of: Peter Grütter (skating technique), Salome Brunner (choreography), Lesli Wiesner (dance, Pilates, artistic expression), Anna Bernauer, Robert Dierking, Nicolas Fischer. „For me it’s a great joy to work with people that I’m so fond of and that I so much admire. We’re just like a family”, says Stéphane Lambiel, adding: „Apart from assembling a team of extraordinary teachers, the biggest strength of this camp is to provide a 360° guidance to the young athletes, so they can grow at their own pace and according to their own needs”.
Each skater will benefit from a daily private lesson with one of the 3S world-class skating coaches who will rotate through the students during the week; in addition to that, skaters will develop specific skills such as steps, spins, and musicality, in small groups, based on their abilities, so that they can absorb the most out of every lesson. Add here ballet, Pilates, musical comedy, conferences on nutrition or career management – and you’ll understand what Skating School of Switzerland Summer Camp 2016 is about.