As the sport is not very well-known in Portugal, only fans of this beautiful sport had heard about this competition.

Interestingly, an Algarve resident participated and won gold in the category of intermediary (adults)! Congratulations to Caroline Grégoire for this accomplishment! We were curious about how she got there and met with her for an interview.

When did you start skating?

I’m originally from Canada, where you’ll find an ice rink in every small town. When I was 5 years old, they built one where I lived. As it was located 5 minutes from my place, it was easy to go there and skate. I started to take lessons from the beginning, first in small groups, and later as private lessons.

I took part in many competitions over the years, at regional and provincial levels, sometimes with good results, sometimes with not-so-good ones! I also passed different levels of tests in compulsory figures, free style and ice dance.

And you continued to skate over the years?

More or less. I’ve been living in Europe for 30 years: Germany, Sweden and now Portugal. My skates followed me everywhere, even if there were years when I didn’t skate at all. I had to buy a new pair last year because those I had had for 40 years (!) couldn’t hold my ankles properly anymore.

Why did you participate in this year’s Portuguese Championships?

I participated in the Championships last year, won silver and had so much fun! I wore a 31-year-old dress, skated with my 40-year-old skates and my 50+ body. I had found again the atmosphere of competition, a mix of stress, excitement, performance and also camaraderie. For sure, I wanted to repeat it this year: this time with a new dress, new skates and the same body!

As the sport is quite young in Portugal, I hope that I can inspire the younger generation of skaters. As an adult practicing a hobby that I love, maybe I can also inspire people to just start or continue doing something they love.

How do you train?

Finding ice in the Algarve is very difficult! I’m always happy when I can skate on the ice rink at the Christmas market in Lagoa. Otherwise, I need to drive to Viseu or Covilhã… 500 km away from the Algarve. So, training for a competition is a real challenge because not only do you need to be able to execute the technical elements, but you also need to prepare and rehearse a choreography.

To stay strong, I train with a personal trainer twice a week. Closer to the competition, the training gets more intensive with exercises that support the execution of jumps and spins, e.g., explosiveness, landing, spin position, etc. Also, I like to do some breathing exercises to make sure that I can perform non-stop for the 2:30 minutes of the performance.


And, last but not least, the program. With a choreographer, I get ideas that I try in my living room, and later on the ice. Usually, I get to do the full program with the whole rink to myself a few hours before the competition. During my performance, a few things get improvised as well!

What do you love about this sport?

I love to feel the wind on my face when I’m on the ice and skate fast. I love leaning on one edge and moving to music. I feel free.

What fascinates me about this sport is the combination of technical abilities and artistry: strength and elegance, speed and musicality, power and storytelling. In my eyes, it’s the full package!

What are your plans for the future?

There are training camps and figure skating competitions for adults that take place in other countries during the year. I’d like to participate in a few of them. This way, I can learn new skills and get inspired by other adults who practice something that they love.

I understand that figure skating is a very dear hobby of yours. What do you work with?

I work as a coach, mentor and keynote speaker and love helping driven leaders in the areas of leadership, communication and resilience. Having a hobby like this one is a perfect complement to what I teach.