Selin’s skating career a ‘golden’ one

When Carrie Selin laces up her skates this weekend for the annual ice show, it will be for the very last time as a member of the Border Figure Skating Club.
It will mark an end to a 16-year stint that has seen the personable young skater excite crowds year and after year with heart-stopping performances.
Now 18 and the oldest member of the club, Selin will give her last performance when she plays “Rizzo” in “Grease,” which goes Friday at 7 p.m. and again Saturday at 1 p.m. at Memorial Arena.
Admission is $10 for a weekend pass, $7 for a day pass, and $4 for seniors and children 12 and under.
Selin certainly has accomplished many things on and off the ice over the years. But perhaps the biggest came in January when she became a “Triple Gold” skater–meaning she passed a combination of seven tests in the skills category (the highest achievement in figure skating).
As she passed each level on her way to her final goal, Selin admitted each level became increasingly more difficult and so much harder to pass.
Along the way, she also had to pass 21 tests in dance and six more in free skate for a total of 34 tests in her career.
Still, she said the final skills stage, which included tests that gauged her edges and turns, was not all that difficult in the end.
“I have worked extremely hard to become a ‘Triple Gold’ skater,” said Selin, who will be attending the University of Manitoba this fall.
“Since I was nine years old, I have been skating four mornings a week at 4:45 a.m. before school and every other day after school–not to mention the extra practice time put in before competitions,” she noted.
“People don’t realize how difficult it is with school, trying to get into university, and working at a job,” she added.
Tanis Mann, who has coached Selin for the past four years, had nothing but high praise for her talented skater.
“She is very dedicated to her sport and she enjoys what she is doing,” said Mann. “She is the only one in the club ever to pass as a ‘Triple Gold’ skater.
“[Selin] is so graceful, she can tell you a story on the ice and make you feel the music,” she enthused.
While figure skating may look rather simple to the naked eye, that’s not the case, said Selin.
“What makes skating so difficult is that it is an individual sport and you are constantly competing not only with other skaters but you are also competing with yourself,” she explained.
Although Selin took a break from regular competition this year, she is ready to make the transition from student to teacher–a change she said she’s eagerly looking forward to.
“I really do want to coach. I enjoy helping with the younger skaters and I love helping kids because I have learned so much over the years,” she said.
“I can often see things that kids are doing wrong that I used to do.”
Mann agreed Selin has the special qualities needed to be a coach on the ice, and Selin stressed she is willing to transform the hard work she put into her skating into her new role as instructor.
“Skating has taught me how to be a dedicated and devoted individual,” she said. “Whether it was skating, school, or any other sport, I am willing to put forth my best effort with the best of my abilities.
“I have learned that anything is possible if you are willing to work hard to earn it,’ she added.