Sasha Cohen leads the US ladies preparing to train for the upcoming season and embraces her newly-cemented celebrity.
It's official: Sasha Cohen is a starlet - as if we didn't know that already. While her journal on SashaCohen.com doesn't reveal its title, her first movie is in the works. She has learned to ride a horse for the roll, but that's the only preview we get for now.
She spent May touring with Champions on Ice, traveling to Washington, DC with her Olympic teammates to see the president, and shopping in New York City. Her travel plans also extend four years into the future. Sasha announced in April her intentions to compete for a spot on the 2010 Vancouver-bound Olympic team.
Sasha recently managed to spend a day or two away from her tour with Champions on Ice to relax with friends and family. She and her much-mentioned sister, Natasha, enjoyed watching American Idol live. (Not that I care, but many of you will want to know: She liked Chris, wanted Katharine to do well, and was impressed by Taylor... blah, blah, blah.) She says: "During the commercials and breaks a guy would pump up the crowd. I wore Jean Capris and a black top with metal sequins." Did we mention that focus is not her strong suit?
Her strengths need no spotlight on the ice, though. The Ladies Figure Skating Olympic Bronze Medalist is best known for her unparalleled spiral extensions and even more powerful emotional roller coaster she takes her fans on at major competitions.
No one can say she hasn't arrived, hasn't collected a satisfactory array of dust-collecting trophies and medals and accolades. But we want so badly to see Sasha pull up to the World Champion level we know she is capable of. And another thing: we want her to earn it.
Secretly, I'm a closet judging softy. I wouldn't mind seeing the scores be generous to Michelle Kwan at an Olympics if she skated a clean and competitive program. With her resume - and an elusive Olympic Gold Medal - fairytales are proven real. On the other hand, I, like many of her fans, want so desperately to see Sasha succeed at the next Worlds - but I want her to earn it; I want her to work for it, not be given any breaks so that there is finally no evidence to allow her mind to doubt her ability.
It's a mental game, we've heard too often. There aren't enough sports therapists in America to help her overcome her inability to focus and come through and skate a clean free program when it counts. Sasha has to figure this one out on her own now. Nothing else has worked.
If they're anything like me, skating fans can hardly breathe when she takes the ice in the lead. My brow is furrowed, my buns are clinched, and I'm leaning forward toward my TV. with my elbows on my knees and my stomach in a knot... until that first inevitable bobble. Somehow, despite the let-down, we start breathing again, and she manages to mesmerize us with enchanting artistry and world-class technique.
Sasha - We are visualizing that perfect program with you before you take the ice and while you skate. We KNOW you can do it! Here's to a sensational up-coming competitive season!
