送交者: FZ 于 October 24, 2001 12:14:54:
Kwan Suddenly Fires Longtime Coach
By SELENA ROBERTS
The Associated Press
Frank Carroll had no hint that Michelle Kwan would drop him as her coach with the Olympics nearing.
In front of a monitor backstage, Frank Carroll struck the pose of a protective coach last spring as he nervously eyed the final scores of Michelle Kwan's rival at the world figure skating championships.
Unable to bear it, Kwan paced a groove in the hallway, shaking her arms like feather dusters, desperate to release the tension. Suddenly, Carroll's eyes lit up. Kwan had won. After defeating a technical tigress like Russia's Irina Slutskaya, and crushing yearlong doubts about her passion, Kwan used Carroll's shoulder to sponge her happy tears.
They looked inseparable, a coach and pupil tethered at the soul. But in a staggering announcement yesterday, Kwan severed her decade-long relationship with Carroll in a move made more unthinkable by the fact that the Winter Olympics are just four months away.
"It must be earth-breaking news, but for me, at this moment, it's the right decision," Kwan said in a conference call. "I think the person who knows best is me."
On the surface, nothing will change, neither in technique nor music. But in her Olympic preparations, Kwan wants to take charge of reinvigorating her ambitions to fulfill the one missing element of her glorious career: an Olympic gold medal.
"In any relationship, it evolves," said Kwan, whose first solo test will come when she competes this weekend at Skate America in Colorado Springs. "When I was younger, the coach was the skater. You did whatever he said. As I've gotten older, I've grown independent. You should think for yourself. You have differences along the way as to how you should go about things. And that's what Frank and I ran into."
Kwan was vague in detailing those differences. She pointed to how her opinionated personality clashed with Carroll's stubborn streak. And she laughed at how their astrological signs — both are Cancers — left the two emotional perfectionists at odds.
But there was no specific blowup, no final straw. Carroll, for one, was blindsided. Last Friday, she sat down with Carroll and wept as she discussed her decision, leaving her coach upset, nervous and dumbfounded.
"I thought there was nothing we couldn't work through," Carroll said. "I think she's having a lot of trouble with her own head. I think right now she doesn't understand herself and what's going on. I don't fully understand what is going through her head. I don't understand what is happening to her. I really, really don't."
There is a chance Kwan is just experimenting as a part of some delayed teenage rebellion. She left the door open as to whether she'd join with a different coach or even go back to Carroll.
Her decision may appear to lack logic, but those close to her believe Kwan is asserting her independence in a search for inspiration. At 21 years old, Kwan has won four world titles, five national championships, attended college and found happiness with a serious boyfriend. In her blissful discovery of a world outside of skating, Kwan has struggled for motivation.
"I've been going through a lot just thinking about where I am at this point, with school, skating and life in general," Kwan said. "You have to understand that I've been doing this for a long time. The passion is still there, but sometimes it's like you have to add a splash more flavor into it."
Last year, she went through a lull before she pulled out dazzling performances at nationals and worlds. Already this fall, Kwan has delivered a passionless display that left her a distant second to Slutskaya at the Goodwill Games, then turned in a blank effort recently in San Diego.
"I think there's the philosophy, If it ain't broke, don't fix it," Kwan said. "But if it's molding, you've got to cut off the mold or do something different. It's not to say this decision will make me a better skater, but I'm making this decision on how I feel and what is right for me at this moment."
A gold medal is on the line.
"Of course, those thoughts have gone through my head," Carroll said. "I do desperately want her to win. I think she is the best skater in the world. I think it will be a shame if she doesn't win. But I think it would be very presumptuous of me to say without me she can't win or she's somehow lessening her chance to win.
"I think she needs time to consider all of her options and how she is going to gather up the strength to go out there and do it by herself."
Kwan has shocked people before with her career decisions. In January she fired Lori Nichol, her longtime choreographer. Still, Kwan's separation from Carroll seemed unreal, even to Nichol.
"It's unbelievable," Nichol said. "I keep thinking, No way. None of us know what she is experiencing, what kind of pressures she faces. How can anyone understand what it's like to be her? But Michelle and Frank, their relationship has lasted longer than many marriages. It's devastating news.
"But I've always said this about Michelle Kwan: Never underestimate her. She's a very smart young woman. When she gets her heart and mind together, she's terrific, simply amazing."
Even with Kwan's slow start this year, Carroll had no hint of trouble. A week ago, the two met to discuss how to rekindle her skating spark after her lackluster performance in San Diego. Last Monday, Kwan said she wanted to practice alone, but Carroll wasn't alarmed.
"I said, Fine, call me when you want me to be at your side," Carroll said. "The week went by and she did not call me. Finally, on Friday, she came to me in tears. She just told me she really wanted to do this on her own, that she couldn't rely on me or her father, or anyone else."
Kwan said: "We have differences, we have issues. Maybe it's better to skate alone, listen to myself and see where it gets me."