There is also figure skating in Moldova! It is represented by Lilian Binzari – a 15-year-old figure skater, who moved to Canada for the sake of his dream and trains at the famous «Cricket club» under the guidance of Brian Orser. Lilian was in the top-10 at the European youth Olympic winter sports festival, and I am sure that this talented, purposeful guy has everything ahead of him. After all, he is a nugget in his native country. I decided to learn more about the skater Binzari, his path to the dream, famous teachers and colleagues. Lillian turned out to be a very thoughtful conversationalist, meet him!
- When and why did you become interested in figure skating?
- I actually didn’t know anything about figure skating until when I was 9 years old, that’s when I started skating. But I truly became interested when I was about 11 and I knew that this could be a future career. The main reason I became interested is – because I knew I could become someone important in my country by doing this sport and later in the future my voice would be a big influence in my country or even in the figure skating world.
- Tell us about your family – what do your parents do?
- At the moment my family lives in Chisinau (Moldova), both my mom and dad are CEO’s of companies in Moldova. I also have a sister that currently lives in Los Angeles and is working as a manager.
- Is it true that your parents have sold the flat to let you train in Canada?
- The apartment was bought for me by my parents, when I was younger. But seeing as how expensive it is to train in Canada at the TCS&CC, we have decided to sell it and cover some of the costs that involve skating. Let’s be honest: apartments can be bought at a later time, but for right now skating comes first.
- You’ve been training at the «Cricket club» for a few years. Tell us about your coaches – what are they in the work? Your impressions and the brightest memories are interesting.
- I am going to be honest with you. When I first came here it was very hard for me to adjust with the Canadian mentality, but through out the years I have really changed for the better and it has made me a better person! My team is Ernest Prykhita, Paige Aistrop and Karen Preston, but of course Brian Orser is the manager of the team and the head of this operation along side Tracy Wilson.
- How did you work with choreographers Jeffrey Buttle and Misha Ge? How did they make your programs (creative process)?
- It was a very different situation working with Canadian choreographers rather than European ones. It’s more care put into the programs, rather than just focusing on where to place jump passes and spins. For me personally it is all about artistry, and I think I made the right call to have my programs made by them.
- What are your most valuable medals and competitions that you participated in?
- Probably my first competition here in Canada, which was 2 years ago. I won, by a big margin in points, and that’s when I and my team have realized, that I have a lot of potential and just have to work hard towards my goals. From this year I think JGP Russia was my favorite competition, because of my experience there and just the crowd being so supportive. But most importantly the organization was top notch and everything was planned so well.
- What are your plans for this sport season?
- I am planning on doing my JGP, but I will start doing some Senior B competitions as well, because 2022 Olympics are so close. We have decided that it’s time to get my name out there in the Senior World of Figure Skating and make a path towards the Olympics. But also Europeans and JW’s are on the line up for this season as well, and I am hoping I can land my quad.
- Which skater do you like best and inspire you to win?
- I think mostly Javier Fernandez, because our situation is kind of similar: both come out of a country that figure skating has not really evolved yet, but I definitely want to change that. And he also came to Brian at a young age and started a life here in Canada at the TCS&CC. Of course at competition I always have me in my mind set, but if there are some really big nerves going one, I just think about him and that he also had to go through this.
- You worked on one rink with Yuzuru Hanu. What do you think is the secret of his talent and success?
- It was really scary, when I got moved up to the Senior session. But now I know, that we are all equal and that we all have to respect each-other, no matter of our titles. At the end of the day we are all people and we would all the same mutual respect for ourselves. I think his secret is just like all of ours: if you want to get somewhere, work you ass off! There will be a lot of sweat tears and blood lost through this, but the feeling of when you go to a competition and achieve your goals – it’s the best feeling ever.
- You also train with Russian figure skaters Evgenia Medvedeva and Ekaterina Kurakova. Are you friends with them? How do you spend time together?
- Well, as I said in my many interviews, Evgenia is like a sister to me and it has always felt that ways since she came. Yes, we had our ups and down, but that’s what everybody has going through their personal lives. With Ekaterina it’s a bit different. We have been best friends for such a good amount of time and I think that she really is like the person to go and talk about something that you can’t hold in yourself anymore.
- Do you often visit your homeland? Do you practice Moldovan language in Canada?
- I usually get to go after mid-season, meaning Christmas holidays, but mostly I get to visit my family twice a years, or they come to me sometimes. But only for short periods of time, because of their work. I actually am fluent in Romanian, but I don’t get to speak it here, just when I spend time with my family. But yeah it’s really hard, because when I go home it’s so hard speaking perfect Romanian, it’s almost like you want to speak English with them.
@ Interview by Marina Chernyshova-Melnik
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Read the Russian version of the interview with Lilian Binzari here