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By Anil Jhalli
Ottawa is his hometown, Montreal is now his home base, but when Hugh Brabyn-Jones competes on the international figure skating circuit, Great Britain is his country.
While the 18-year-old athlete was born and raised in Ottawa, both his parents are originally from London, England. Carrying dual citizenship, Brabyn-Jones first inquired about representing GB four years ago, eventually completing the switch this season since he saw greater opportunities at the international level with Britain instead of Canada.
“Getting to the Olympics is my ultimate goal, and I have always felt that going this way, I can get there faster,” indicates the 6th-place finisher at last season’s Canadian junior men’s championships in Ottawa. “I gain international experience a lot quicker and get recognized earlier if I compete well, and get one step closer to getting to the Olympics.”
Brabyn-Jones feels that his decision has paid off already, with a strong 18th-place debut at a September Junior Grand Prix competition in Estonia and then a junior men’s bronze medal at November’s British championships.
“I know I didn’t take the normal route, but I do like that I did something different and so far it’s been really good for me,” he says.
Brabyn-Jones’ skating journey began at age 3, first enrolling in figure at 5. It wasn’t until a few years ago, when he started landing some pretty serious jumps, that he realized he wanted to pursue a career in figure skating.
“I never had a plan, and then I started making all these jumps and I said, ‘I’m going to get there one day,’” recounts the Minto Skating Club-brewed athlete.
Brabyn-Jones recently moved to the Ste-Julie club on Montreal’s south shore in order to join a greater number of advanced skaters.
“In Ottawa, there may have been 5 or 6 people doing the triples or the bigger jumps, whereas when I moved to Montreal it was like over 20 people doing those same jumps,” he explains. “Once I started hitting the jumps, I just wanted to be around skaters who were hitting the jumps consistently.”
It wasn’t an easy decision to make, and was initially tough leaving home.
“I knew if I wanted to reach my goals that I had to make sacrifices,” adds Brabyn-Jones, who boards with a family he knew while growing up in Ottawa.
A heavy financial commitment is also part of the equation. Brabyn-Jones is in the midst of a fundraising campaign (at http://gofundme.com/jedbhw\) for his upcoming competition in Slovenia – the April 14-19 Triglav Trophy & Narcisa Cup, where he needs to pay travel, means and hotel expenses for both himself and a coach.
Brabyn-Jones’ demanding training schedule means that school is a challenge as well, but Ontario’s online Independent Learning Centre allows him to complete one course at a time in a maximum of 10 months from a distance.
“I’m basically teaching myself, and when I am home, my dad and I have a study period for two hours where we go over the work I have done,” details Brabyn-Jones, emphasizing that the irregular moves are all in pursuit of one ultimate goal: “The Olympics. One day, I am going to get there.”
Chartrand 11th at worlds
Making her World Championships debut, Alaine Chartrand of the Nepean Skating Club finished in the crucial top-12 of the women’s event at the March 23-29 competition in Shanghai. The 19-year-old finished as the top Canadian in 11th place, securing two entries for her country in the women’s division for next year.