Duchesnay & Duchesnay (FRA) - 1988 Calgary, Ice Dancing, Free Dance (US ABC)

Calgary, Alberta, CANADA - 1988 Winter Games, Ice Dancing, Free Dance - Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay of France wowed the audience and some of the judges (judges' placements in the Long Program ranged from 4th through 10th Place), but in the end, they would finish in 8th Place overall.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

I remember them back then. They were phenomenally great but the judges were old-fashioned. It was of the greatest performances of that time :)))) Standing ovations !!!

[@anitac4]

I saw this performance on TV in 1988, and it has stayed in my mind all these years. Thanks to You Tube I can relive the power of it again and again.

[@masterimaginations207]

35 years later and I keep coming back to these uniquely innovative and controversial ice dancers. They are still loved and appreciated for what they created for the world to enjoy!

[@3l3llala13]

It was Chris Dean's creation.

[@daybreak74]

I will never ever get tired of watching these two. Amazing 👏

[@joanross853]

I will NEVER forget this performance. 👏👏👏 it was wonderful to watch it again. ❤❤

[@MiddleEarthGirl75]

I remember the frustration at the corrupt judges as I watched these two skate incredible programs. But what I like to keep with me is the intense thrill I felt every time they stepped on the ice because I knew I was going to be watching something exciting.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

Yes, I have really enough of coruption in f... every area of life... The judges should be kicked on their asses and trown away.

[@TinaR39]

I remember watching this all those years ago and loving it. My reaction today is the same. I LOVE IT!

[@172sylvan]

This performance has stayed with me all these years. I was so angry at the judges!

[@magorzatamargaret294]

Exactly.

[@dawnvalentine74]

Same here.

[@pasqualinateti8478]

Simply fantastic!

[@cynthiagraff8373]

I remember watching them live.

[@summit9681]

Visionary brilliance only has one problem and that is that others often have to catch up. Never get tired of watching this routine since 1988. It is now 2024! Victus!

[@msodaro]

Absolutely the best ever

[@alwaysblake148]

It is 2024 and we are watching great skaters and pioneering artists. We remember them and forget the corrupt, thick-headed judges.

[@sallydaniel1023]

It's sad the judges were such sticks in the mud.. This was so different and unique. It wasn't the usual ballroom dance. I think k they were so caught off guard by it that they didn't know what to do. You see it all the time when something new catches people by surprise. I remember this this performance and have rediscovered it ❤❤❤❤

[@cak813]

D&D were always great to watch. Innovative and risk-takers.

[@ServandoIV]

u dont need a gold medal, u need a solid performance to be remembered forever....

[@magorzatamargaret294]

YES, YES, YES !!

[@kaigeddes]

Amazing!

[@MrNRMurray]

I’ve been quite a bit of time trying to find this music either on streaming or to purchase. Grrr

[@susanv.7540]

You can almost hear peoples' jaws hitting the floor from astonishment as they watch this wildly innovative and entertaining routine- NOTHING like this in ice dancing had been seen prior to 1988. The audience loved it, the judges not so much.

[@dariatrucko-stochmal3915]

From 1988 to 1992, Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay were the world's best-driving ice dance couple. Unfortunately, the Russian figure dance lobby was so strong that the judges, under great pressure, judged the French pair wrong. The programs of the French were revolutionary. They gave freshness to this ossified discipline. And coming back to the Olympics in Albertville, we saw the hypocrisy of both the judges and the Klimova/Ponomarenko couple. Their arrangement was a modified arrangement of Torvill/Dean and the Duchesnay siblings. While the couple from France was criticized for being too innovative in choreography, in the case of the Russian couple this novelty was no longer a problem. Moreover, Duchesnay's artistic expression was honest, complementing both the music and the choreography. The Russian "experience", facial expressions and gestures were so artificial that they hurt. And finally, the dance of all time was Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay's free routine at the World Figure Skating Championships in Halifax, Nova Scotia, CANADA - 1990. I think even better than Bolero Torvill/Dean in Sarajevo.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

I remember Bestiemianova and Bukin Russian couple and I always loved them but I dont tolerate stupid corrupted judges evaluating someone better because they are from THIS country and not THAT country. At the end of the day they deceive only themselves....because I cant remember Klimova/Ponomarenko performance at all (I remember their surnames) but DUCHESNAY I remember until today and they were the greatest ones !!!

[@ohhiitsjustme3445]

I remember this exact moment like it was yesterday!! I’m not sure people realize what a cataclysmic wrench this program threw into the ice dance world! NOBODY was doing this back then! It was so innovative and unique, and captivated young audiences! But, as you can see by the “presentation” marks, most judges weren’t sure what to do with it or if they liked/hated it! To me, this program was everything! I loved the Duchenays!

[@magorzatamargaret294]

Exactly. I remember them back then - they were great and for that time the greatest performers !!

[@terrib627]

Most of those judges look like were sucking on prune juice while watching this performance.

[@thesovgc]

Going from getting 5.0s at the Olympics to winning the World Title in three years is INSANE.

[@Eishockeyfledermaus]

🔥 Great ((👏))

[@user-uh1mm6fo8t]

Everybody remembers this special Couple at these Olympics. And thats more worth as another Russian Medal. 8:37

[@matthewjameshall2145]

Brilliant

[@hayleyandrews8086]

Smashing watched them when I was uou ger, still do now

[@jamesdavid9664]

5.2 Wow Jealous much ??? 5.8 was more like it Very gutsy performance !

[@jevrosimajelisaveta5932]

They were so fun, so fresh, that's true. But, how comes that no one remembers genius Bestemianova/ Bukin pair??? Come on guys!!! In those years, BB were as fresh, innovative, interesting and kinda wild (in a positive way) as DD, but their technique was miles away from DD and they really deserved all their gold medals. They were really amazing in all segments.

[@SarahB1863]

Why? Basically...because they did the same old stuff. Yes, they did it very well, but it's all stuff we've seen before. Flowy costumes, the same choreographed lifts and swirls, all the same. DD were different. They were exciting. It's too bad more skaters don't experiment with the form. We need it.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

I remember Bestiemianova/Bukin and they were great. Always loved them. Today I would put them all on the FIRST place - BB and DD :)))))

[@user-gp8xy1tr3l]

Оценки 5,0 и 5,8 такой разброс .мне очень понравилось.

[@novascotiaskater1868]

Technically this program wasn’t actually great… but- the innovation and excitement and athleticism of this was ground breaking- ice dancing was always stagnant with all classical music and traditional costumes and typical moves. Comparing this program to Virtue and Moir for example- you can see how ice dancing has evolved. The first Ice Dance program to be truly memorable was Torvil and Dean’s Bolero which to this day is probably the most incredible program in Ice Dancing period but this program is second in terms of pure enjoyment and of course Virtue and Moir’s Moulin Rouge… but I also remember the awesomeness of Bestemianova and Bukin and Klimova and Ponomarenko ( his son is competing in ice dancing now for the US) …

[@helenewashington8017]

Usova anf Zhulin were spectacular as well.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

Of course it was technically not perfect because it was extremely difficult and you need to be physically very strong to be perfect techniically in so difficult dance ON ICE....

[@3l3llala13]

The Duchesney didn't have the skating skills to effortlessly pull of Chris Dean's choreography. They looked uncomfortable, almost sloppy in portions of the dance.

[@PrimaDonnas1]

I am still watching this nearly 30 years later and they remain one of the few totally original highlights of skating I have ever seen. Christopher Dean is a genius and their execution casts all caution to the winds. As below comment "ahead of their time" and still true today really.

[@BarbaraT.]

Agree completely!!

[@marinagamm1951]

Bien❤❤❤

[@Dansktex]

This was the greatest ice dancing performance ever! Even though I was at home, I jumped up hooting and clapping after having seen it. I was so disappointed when the federation changed the rules because they were too conservative to accept such modern ideas and trends. I tried watching ice dancing through the next couple of years after that, but I have to tell you that I never found it entertaining enough after having seen this performance!! Thank you Duchesnays and Dean!!!!!!

[@PrimaDonnas1]

I agree totally with the comment below that long after these competitions, the only performance you remember are the Duchesnay's. I have been following ice skating since I was a child, and they are one of the 3 teams I will remember for ever. Their music and whole approach was ahead of it's time. Christopher Dean was ahead of his time. Full marks to them and to his choreography. Wonderful.

[@QueenVelveeta]

This is one of the most exciting ice dancing programs ever.

[@Volvican]

They were always undermarked. They were so new...so fresh, I loved them. It must have been very frustrating for them, but I hope they find some comfort in the fact that I (and others) have long forgotten other competitors but I will always remember them.

[@mysticalmargaret6105]

They were 8th at the 1988 Olympics and this is the only program I remember. I don't remember that of the medallists or the others that finished ahead of the Duchesnays AT ALL.

[@theafitzpatrick8415]

I agree concerning the magnetism of Paul Duchesnay...I am glad that these two never skated with anyone else but each other...their talent levels were different but they complimented each other and their bond and connection was very strong. My favorite pair of all time!

[@martineaube4342]

Christopher Dean is a genious!

[@geoboe84]

That was fun! Stands out from all the other performances.

[@ancamg]

Holly moly, the judges had a long time recovering and could not find the right marks. This dance was awesome.

[@matthewjameshall2970]

Brilliant.

[@drguffey]

I remember watching this live. Awesome. Thanks for posting !

[@debraenderle4737]

This reminds me of when skating was actually fun and innovative and told a story instead of the overly technical spectacle it has become.

[@rowbom]

Agree - it was much more fun to watch. So much room for creativity and individuality.

[@laurafinkelstein9181]

Too bad she was not as good a dancer as he was.

[@TheFachnir]

since then I think I never have seen Ice dancing that fresh and innovative anymore, what a pity.

[@53lanka]

je to už 30 let ... od té doby jsem neviděla vystoupení, které by mě. jako nadšnou divačku, tak uchvátila, jako kterékoliv vystoupení Isabelle a Paula. Pastva pro oči, nádhera, ani jedna nudná vteřina. I zásluhou našeho Martina Skotnického, který jim dělal choreografii. I po třiceti letech si jejich vystoupení pouštím a jsem nadšená. Otevřeli jste novou kapitolu KRASOBRUSLENI.

[@rossanaiannarelli8791]

La prima volta che li ho visti ne sono rimasta affascinata e dopo tanti anni continuo a vederli nei video e mi emozione sempre!

[@jafalad]

Says as much that T and D apart, the only ice skating performance I ever remembered was this one. Although it wasn't reflected in the marks, the Ds created a whole new boundary for ice skating. It was more than edgy and different: it was what the future of ice dance could become. Still infuriates me years later that the judges' marks failed to recognise their performance that day.

[@sickofbeingsick3358]

This was by far the best!

[@Hemiauchenia]

Ice dance trailblazers for their time! Absolutely brilliant and so difficult!!! Chuck in a few twizzles and a midline step sequence and this would be up there with the best in the world nowadays! Wouldn't suffer from a bunch of 1980's relic judges.

[@53lanka]

úchvatné i po tolika letech, je škoda, že tenkrát nebyli rozhodčí na takovou nádheru připravení... skvělý Skotnický...

[@lorib9500]

Bravo...Bravissimi Verament Bellissimo!

[@jafalad]

@accw Well of course-it still has to be skated well but many professionals expressed their bewilderment at the marks awarded. The width and polarisation of the judges' marks reveals all: brilliant for some; skating anathema for others. A seminal moment in the sports' history.

[@iiiphoto]

They was robbed by da judges! One of my all time favorites. Especially for artistic merit.

[@deboraalfa327]

PIONEERS FOR EVER!!!!!!!

[@CarlyLynda]

I *SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO* agree!!!

[@operagirl84]

I miss Dick Buton's commentary.

[@felicitousfeline9956]

One of most memorable ice dancing routines along with Torvill and Dean's Bolero and Bourne & Kraatz' Michael Jackson Medley. I don't think I've seen it since it was broadcast 30 years ago but still remember the impact.

[@floben2039]

Famous Feline OK for them. But Bourne K.... So ugly quick yes but ugly

[@MsRumex]

I guess one have to be a real Bourne and Kraatz fan to put them in this company)) But it's great that they have people that loved them so much ))

[@cman80]

The real shame to me was Paul doing all this real skating and Isabelle was just there little more than a prop. He truly is an amazing technical dancer; smooth and fluid even in unorthodox moves. She never could hold a position of any type and is always stumbling through programs.

[@marianne4884]

Where can I buy the music?

[@Anna54181]

5.1 5.8 5. 0 lol whats that??

[@amandabenger]

I absolutely agree. Watching a lot of these 2010 Olympics and just can't get into it. The sport seems too stuffy and void of true expression like there was in the days of the Duchesnays.

[@Chatten93]

Figure skating really took a dive when they started allowing vocals in the music to which the skaters performed. Having words really limits the amount of artistic interpretation.

[@chrisgatchalian3725]

Powerful, memorable choreography, no question. But he was a far stronger skater than she, and on balance their Russian rivals from 89-92 - namely Klimova/Ponomarenko, Usova/Zhulin and even the then up-and-coming Grishuk/Platov - were technically superior.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

Technically superior with so much easier programss I would add.

[@10Dec1971]

@quafer YES indeed! So sexy!!

[@EEDiazL]

I think had they been Canadians skating for Canada, their marks would have been higher.

[@grantnoroyan9275]

they left Canada because they didn't feel supported by them so not sure if that would have happened......they skated for Canada in the mid 80s and didn't feel like they got what they wanted.

[@steve-hm1wn]

from what I heard, they felt like their was this other brother/sister pair, I forget their names, that the Canadian figure skating was going to favor over them, that's why they left for France.

[@3Axel1996]

Garossinos were favored by the Canadian Skating Association then, so the Duchesnays left for greener pastures...

[@MsRumex]

@@3Axel1996 and in was a right decision. Sometimes federations really do make a wrong choices (imho)

[@CoCoNuTsiopatHic]

I've always loved this dance, but looking at it now... It's kind of racist. Was the music actually called "Savage Rites" or is that just what they titled this dance?

[@xuarxu]

That was the title of their program.The music actually was Mandingo III / War Dance

[@QueenVelveeta]

Oh, please. No one wants to hear bunk like that.

[@kirkenes]

He was incredible. But she looked like a novice ice dancer. Horrible posture, two-footed skating. They had some great choreo which she could never do justice to

[@kamwrites]

You know....if it weren't for Christopher Dean they wouldn't have got as far as they did. They don't even skate that close together. They look like two singles skaters paired together. Good ice dance shows tight steps that are a threat to trip each other up. No such thing here.

[@grantnoroyan9275]

different time different style.....they didn't have the elegance and grace and style of usova/zhulin or klimova ponamarenko but they had speed power and attack and original material from Christopher that nobody else had so it just depended on what style people liked personally.

[@MsRumex]

there were a lot of teams, that did not skate close together (and not all russian teams did skate close together or demonstrate very difficult steps in their FD). And choreography always played a huge role in ice dancing

[@marinagamm1951]

@@MsRumex🧑🏿‍🔧🧑🏿‍🔧🧑🏿‍🔧

[@bikerguy5944]

I didn't like the music. But the choreography was great. However, I don't think they executed it well. Their exits and entrances aren't good. Nothing is precise. But they gave it a go. I don't know where the 5.0 came from. That's awful to score them that low.

[@magorzatamargaret294]

Try such a physically difficult program ON ICE and you will see how hard it is... It was much, much harder than programs of Russians couples. But I remember Duchesnays until TODAY...and Russian are now like all of them were the same... SO ??