Lewis Gibson (figure skater)

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Lewis Gibson
Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson - 2019 Skate Canada - 1.jpg
Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson at the 2019 Skate Canada
Personal information
Country represented Great Britain
Born (1994-05-01) 1 May 1994 (age 27)
Prestwick, Scotland
Height1.72 m (5 ft 7+1⁄2 in)
PartnerLilah Fear
Former partnerHeather Murdoch
CoachRomain Haguenauer, Patrice Lauzon, Marie-France Dubreuil
Former coachLeanne Collins, Jennifer Holmes, Karen Quinn
ChoreographerRomain Haguenauer
Skating clubAlexandra Palace London
Former skating clubMagnum Ice Dance and Figure Skating Club
Training locationsMontreal, Quebec, Canada
Former training locationsEast Kilbride, Scotland
ISU personal best scores
Combined total196.92
2021 Worlds
Short dance79.97
2022 Europeans
Free dance119.50
2021 Worlds

Lewis Gibson (born 1 May 1994) is a Scottish ice dancer who represents Great Britain. With his skating partner, Lilah Fear, he is a two-time Grand Prix bronze medalist, a three-time Challenger medalist, the 2018 Bavarian Open champion, and a four-time British national champion (2017, 2019–2020, 2022).

Personal life[]

Gibson was born on 1 May 1994 in Prestwick, Scotland.[1] He was raised in Prestwick and played football before becoming interested in skating.[2]

Gibson identifies as gay, and is married to Joshua Walsh. For some time he was reluctant to publicly discuss his sexuality due to concerns about homophobia within the judged sport of figure skating, but subsequently said "I can't live never sharing who I am and sharing who I love."[3]

Career[]

Early career[]

Gibson began skating in 2006 in Scotland, training at Ayr Ice Rink and Stevenston's Auchenharvie Leisure Centre.[4] He cited the first series of Dancing on Ice, hosted by British ice dance champions Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, as his initial inspiration to begin skating.[5] In addition to his career in men's singles, he competed in pairs for two seasons. In 2010–11, he and Heather Murdoch won the novice pairs title at the British Championships.[6] They received the bronze medal the following season.

As a single skater, Gibson was coached by Jennifer Holmes at Ayr and Auchenharvie rinks before moving up to the junior international level. He then went on to train under Leanne Collins in East Kilbride, Scotland.[7] Competing on the senior level, he won silver at the British Championships in November 2013. In the 2014–15 season, he appeared at two Challenger Series competitions, placing thirteenth at the Lombardia Trophy and Volvo Open Cup, and took the silver medal at the Hamar Trophy in Norway. He ended his singles' career in December 2015.[8]

2016–2017 season: Debut of Fear/Gibson[]

Gibson began a partnership with Lilah Fear, coached by Karen Quinn at the Alexandra Palace Ice Rink in London, England,[9] and by Romain Haguenauer in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.[8] The duo made their international debut in late July 2016 at the Lake Placid Ice Dance International, finishing eleventh. Ranked second in both segments, they received the silver medal at a Challenger Series event, the Lombardia Trophy in September. They placed fifth at the International Cup of Nice and fourth at the Open d'Andorra. In December, they won the British national title, in the absence of longtime champions Coomes/Buckland, and silver at the Santa Claus Cup in Hungary.

In January 2017, Fear/Gibson qualified to the final segment at the European Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic; they ranked nineteenth in the short dance, fourteenth in the free dance, and fifteenth overall. They made their World Championship debut later that season, placing twenty-second.

2017–2018 season[]

Beginning their second season together, Fear/Gibson placed sixth at the International Cup of Nice and won silver medals at the Open d'Andorra and the Ice Challenge. They competed in three Challenger events that season, placing ninth at both the 2017 CS Finlandia Trophy and 2017 CS Lombardia Trophy and fourth at the 2017 CS Warsaw Cup. Competing at the British Championships, they won the silver medal, this time behind a returning Coomes/Buckland. They subsequently competed at the Santa Claus Cup again, placing fourth.

At the end of the season, they were again sent as Great Britain's representation to the 2018 World Championships, placing twenty-fourth.

2018–2019 season: "Disco Brits"[]

Fear & Gibson perform their trademark disco free dance at the 2018 Skate America

Wanting to challenge themselves, Fear/Gibson selected for their free dance a disco medley of songs by Donna Summer and Earth, Wind and Fire. Both professed as well to be fans of the genre.[5] Gibson said, "A lot of the routines of recent times have been very slow and lyrical, but we wanted to do something fun and something that would stand out to help us make a name for ourselves."[2] The free dance proved to be a huge success with audiences, facilitating what would be a dramatic rise up the international standings, and the team was nicknamed the "Disco Brits" by skating fans.[10] Fear later credited the music selection as "a lucky choice, and from there it completely redirected us to where we see ourselves going, what we feel is our style and what makes us unique."[11]

Fear/Gibson began their season with two Challenger assignments, placing fourth at the 2018 CS Nebelhorn Trophy and fifth at the 2018 CS Ondrej Nepela Trophy. In October 2018, the two finished fifth at the 2018 Skate America – their Grand Prix debut. A month later, they improved their placement by finishing fourth at the 2018 NHK Trophy, achieving new personal bests in the free dance and overall score, and ranking second in the free dance.

After winning their second British national title, Fear/Gibson next competed at the 2019 European Championships, placing seventh in the rhythm dance and sixth in the free, for sixth place overall. They were pleased with the result, Gibson commenting that they "came in with the goal of a top-ten finish after we came 15th two years ago. Now we’ve managed to get two spots for Great Britain next year which is really exciting."[12] At the 2019 World Championships they placed thirteenth, having made the free dance for the first time.

2019–2020 season: First Grand Prix medal[]

After the success of their disco free dance the previous season, Fear and Gibson chose a Madonna medley for their new free dance, aiming to continue the momentum of past success with audience-pleasing choices. For the rhythm dance, required to be musical-themed, Gibson identified tracks from The Blues Brothers. Fear remarked that they "knew that could get the crowd on its feet, hopefully, and people would be tapping their toes."[11]

Fear/Gibson began the season on the Challenger series, winning the silver medal at the 2019 CS Autumn Classic International after placing fifth in the rhythm dance and second in the free dance. At their second Challenger, the 2019 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, they placed sixth in the rhythm dance and third in the free, for fourth place overall. Assigned to two Grand Prix events, they began at 2019 Skate Canada International, where they placed fourth in the rhythm dance and third in the free skate, taking the bronze medal. This was the team's first Grand Prix medal, and the first for a British team since 2014. Gibson remarked: "For us, this is huge. We didn't expect it."[13][14] Competing again at the NHK Trophy, they were fourth in the rhythm dance, earning a perfect score on the Finnstep pattern dance for the first time.[15] They were third in the free dance, remaining in fourth place overall.[16]

At the 2020 British Championships, Fear/Gibson placed first in the rhythm dance even though Fear had fallen out of the twizzles, and placed first in the free winning their third national title by 73.37 points.[17] In what proved to be their final event of the season, they competed at the 2020 European Championships and placed sixth in the rhythm dance, with Fear losing a twizzle level and them getting only one of the four keypoints on the Finnstepp pattern dance.[18] Fifth in the free dance, they rose to fifth place overall.[19] They had been assigned to compete at the World Championships in Montreal, but these were cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.[20]

2020–2021 season[]

Fear/Gibson were assigned to the 2020 Skate Canada International, but this event was also cancelled as a result of the pandemic.[21] As there were no British championships for the season as a result of the pandemic, on December 3 they were named to Britain's team for the European Championships, alongside Fear's younger sister Sasha.[22] The competition was cancelled on December 10.[23]

Fear/Gibson were again named to represent Britain at the 2021 World Championships in Stockholm, where they placed eighth in the rhythm dance before moving up to seventh place in the free dance, surpassing the Canadian team Fournier Beaudry/Sørensen by 0.04 points. Their results qualified a second dance berth for Great Britain at the following year's World Championships, and the possibility of a second place at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.[24]

2021–2022 season: Beijing Olympics[]

For their new free dance for the season, Fear/Gibson chose Hans Zimmer's soundtrack from The Lion King, citing it as a "universal" story about "finding your inner strength."[25] They selected a medley of KISS songs for the rhythm dance, which Gibson attributed to "nostalgia and the want to entertain. That’s what we love to do."[26]

Fear/Gibson began the season at the 2021 CS Finlandia Trophy, winning the bronze medal.[27] At their first Grand Prix assignment, the 2021 Skate Canada International, Fear/Gibson made errors in both segments of the competition, ending up in an unexpectedly low seventh place. Gibson said it was "not what we wanted to do, but we felt strong and connected in the free dance."[25] Following this, they dedicated intensive training time in the short interval before their second event, the 2021 NHK Trophy. Third in both segments there despite a twizzle error from Gibson in the free dance, they won the bronze medal after finishing fourth in two prior appearances at the Japanese Grand Prix. Fear said "we were really hungry to come out here to make progress and I feel like we did that."[28]

After winning the Open d'Andorra and their fourth British national title, Fear/Gibson were assigned to the British Olympic team. Gibson remarked "to feel like years and years of hard work and dedication have paid off is truly one of the most satisfying things."[29] At the 2022 European Championships, Fear/Gibson were fourth in the rhythm dance, but fell to fifth place after a twizzle error from Gibson in the free dance.[30]

Competing at the 2022 Winter Olympics in the dance event, Fear/Gibson were tenth in the rhythm dance.[26]

Programs[]

Ice dance with Fear[]

Season Short dance Free dance Exhibition
2021–2022
[31]
2019–2021
[32][33]
2018–2019
[1]
2017–2018
[34]
2016–2017
[8]
  • Blues: Save My Soul
    performed by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
  • Swing: Diga Diga Doo
    performed by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

Men's singles[]

Season Short program Free skating
2014–2015
[7]

Competitive highlights[]

GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series

Ice dance with Fear[]

International[27]
Event 16–17 17–18 18–19 19–20 20–21 21–22
Olympics 10th
Worlds 22nd 24th 13th C 7th
Europeans 15th 6th 5th C 5th
GP NHK Trophy 4th 4th 3rd
GP Skate America 5th
GP Skate Canada 3rd C 7th
CS Autumn Classic 2nd WD
CS Cup of Tyrol C
CS Finlandia 9th 3rd
CS Golden Spin WD
CS Lombardia 2nd 9th
CS Nebelhorn 4th 4th
CS Ondrej Nepela 5th
CS Warsaw Cup 4th
Bavarian Open 1st
Cup of Nice 5th 6th
Ice Challenge 2nd
Lake Placid IDI 11th
Open d'Andorra 4th 2nd 1st
Santa Claus Cup 2nd 4th
Shanghai Trophy 2nd
National[27]
British Champ. 1st 2nd 1st 1st C 1st
TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew; C = Event cancelled

Men's singles[]

International[35]
Event 11–12 12–13 13–14 14–15 15–16
CS Lombardia Trophy 13th
CS Volvo Open Cup 13th
Hamar Trophy 2nd
NRW Trophy 12th
Triglav Trophy 10th J 4th J
National[35]
British Champ. 5th J 4th J 2nd 4th 5th
J = Junior level

Pairs with Murdoch[]

National
Event 2010–11 2011–12
British Championships 1st N 3rd N
N = Advanced novice level

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON: 2018/2019". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 1 December 2018.
  2. ^ a b Falkingham, Katie (30 November 2018). "British Figure Skating Championships: Lewis Gibson & Lilah Fear on Olympic ambitions". BBC News.
  3. ^ Zeigler, Cyd (26 January 2022). "Lewis Gibson talks for the first time about being gay and married, on eve of the Olympics". Outsports.
  4. ^ Wilson, Mike (27 January 2017). "Skaters Lewis Gibson and Lilah Fear head to European Championships". Daily Record (Scotland).
  5. ^ a b "Getting to know Great Britain's Fear and Gibson". Ice-Dance.com. 20 September 2018.
  6. ^ "2010–2011 British Figure Skating & Synchro Championships". National Ice Skating Association. November 2010. Archived from the original on 1 November 2013. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Lewis GIBSON: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 23 May 2015.
  8. ^ a b c "Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON: 2016/2017". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 31 May 2017.
  9. ^ Corbett, Charlie (15 December 2016). "Ice dance sisters are set to take on the world". Camden New Journal. Archived from the original on 24 January 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  10. ^ Wein, Aly Leia. "Meet Lewis Gibson". Edges of Glory.
  11. ^ a b Brodie, Robert (12 March 2020). "LILAH FEAR & LEWIS GIBSON DANCING UP A STORM". International Figure Skating.
  12. ^ Slater, Paula (26 January 2019). "Papadakis and Cizeron defend European title; pockets fifth consecutive gold". Golden Skate.
  13. ^ Slater, Paula (26 October 2019). "Hubbell and Donohue dance to lead at 2019 Skate Canada". Golden Skate.
  14. ^ Slater, Paula (27 October 2019). "Canada's Gilles and Poirier snag Skate Canada title". Golden Skate.
  15. ^ Slater, Paula (22 November 2019). "Papadakis and Cizeron grab lead in Sapporo with record score". Golden Skate.
  16. ^ Slater, Paula (23 November 2019). "Papadakis and Cizeron take NHK Trophy gold with record scores". Golden Skate.
  17. ^ Bradley, Jane (1 December 2019). "Medal haul for Scottish skaters at British championships". The Scotsman.
  18. ^ Slater, Paula (23 January 2020). "Papadakis and Cizeron take narrow lead at Europeans". Golden Skate.
  19. ^ Slater, Paula (25 January 2020). "Sinitsina and Katsalapov edge out French for European title". Golden Skate.
  20. ^ Ewing, Lori (11 March 2020). "World figure skating championships cancelled in Montreal". CBC Sports.
  21. ^ "Skate Canada International in Ottawa cancelled as COVID-19 cases rise". CBC Sports. 14 October 2020.
  22. ^ "European Figure Skating Championships 2021 – GBR team announced". British Ice Skating. 3 December 2020.
  23. ^ "Update on ISU Event Calender season 2020/21". ISU. 10 December 2020.
  24. ^ Bradley, Jane (27 March 2021). "World Figure Skating Championships: Fear and Gibson smash expectations with seventh place finish". The Scotsman.
  25. ^ a b Slater, Paula (31 October 2021). "Gilles and Poirier win second consecutive Skate Canada title". Golden Skate.
  26. ^ a b Mason, Lewis (12 February 2022). "'Proud' Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson qualify for the next round of Beijing ice dance". Eurosport.
  27. ^ a b c "Competition Results: Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 1 December 2018.
  28. ^ Bradley, Jane (13 November 2021). "Scots ice dancer Lewis Gibson and partner Lilah Fear win bronze at Grand Prix in Japan". The Scotsman.
  29. ^ Behan, Paul (5 January 2022). "Beijing Winter Olympics beckons for talented Ayrshire figure skater". Daily Record.
  30. ^ Slater, Paula (15 January 2022). "Sinitsina and Katsalapov defend European title". Golden Skate.
  31. ^ "Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON: 2021/2022". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 3 October 2021.
  32. ^ "Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 17 September 2019.
  33. ^ "Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON: 2020/2021". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 27 March 2021.
  34. ^ "Lilah FEAR / Lewis GIBSON: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 29 May 2018.
  35. ^ a b "Competition Results: Lewis GIBSON". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 28 January 2017.

External links[]

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