One of the most anticipated sports in the 2018 Olympics is figure skating. Some local ice skaters who performed professionally are looking forward to watching the competition.
"I started skating when I was about seven years old. It was very random. We were walking around a toy store at the time and mom asked me if I wanted a pair of skates and I said yes and I have been on the ice ever since," Lucie Krausova said.
She has competed at the highest levels. As a young skater she took part in the World Junior Grand Prix Series.
"I went to the Junior Worlds multiple times. I am a three time national champion for the Check Republic not the United States. I went to European World Championships," she said.
She made her way from Europe to East Tennessee after working on cruise ships as an ice show professional.
"Absolutley different. Show? If you fall it doesn't matter. Just get up and perform. Perform your heart out. That's all it's about. It's a performance and it's something you enjoy. It was such a joy," she said.
Larry LaBorde said, "I grew up here as a young boy playing ice hockey and wanted to be a professional hockey player until I was 20. Then I hung up my skates at 20, went to UT, and Robert Unger was the head coach here and the manager and owner of the Ice Chalet."
Now Larry LaBorde owns the Ice Chalet where years ago Robert Unger prepared him for a career in figure skating.
"I asked him, I said, help me. Three years later I joined Holiday on Ice. I mean, I already knew how to skate forward and backwards from the hockey experience but I wanted to jump and spin and whirl and twirl as well," he said.
Larry toured for five years with Holidays in Ice and was a Gold Medalist in Ice Dance in the United States Figure Skating Association system.
Now he and Lucie - skaters who performed professionally - enjoy coaching.
"I get a lot of joy out of watching the little ones learn how to skate forward. And you can see that ones going to be good, that one is going to be good," he said.
Lucie said, "I would love to be the best coach there can be."
They look forward to watching Olympic figure skating next month when theyexpect to be impressed with the skills the young athletes show off.
"A double axel was just unheard of way back in the 40s and 50s and now the top notch mens skaters triple axels are a piece of cake and that's when they jump up and turn around three and a half times, quads four revolutions, that's the standard today," Larry said.
Lucie said, "Figure skating has progressed nowadays so much to where I could never imagine we could get because the little girls, the little 12-year-olds, are doing quads now which is insane."
They are good sports in a sport that has been good to them.
"I like to say it is my love which will stay with me forever," Lucie said.
Some Olympic athletes will compete February 8 in South Korea but we will see the Opening Ceremonies February 9th.