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How They Met: Kurt Browning takes a spin at love with Alissa Czisny
| Source: |
Streets of Toronto |
| Date: |
May 4, 2023 |
| Author: |
Julia Mastroianni |
Canadian skating legend Kurt Browning has done it all. He’s a
four-time world champion; an Olympic flag-bearer; a Canada Sports Hall
of Famer; was a judge, performer and co-host on CBC’s Battle of the
Blades; and is the first person in history to land a quadruple jump in
competition. He’s also in his 30th year performing with the Stars on
Ice tour — and this year, he gets to do so with his new wife,
U.S. national champion figure skater Alissa Czisny. Ahead of the tour
coming to Toronto on May 5, the couple shares how they re-met on the
rink and their accidental first date.
How they met
Face to face, at an ice rink! We have known each other for years
through skating. We “re-met” in 2015 when we were both performing in a
skating tour together.
The first date
Syracuse, New York, when we were on the tour together (October
2015). A group of U.S. skaters went to a mall in Syracuse. When an
incredibly small and minor emergency occurred, the group disbanded,
leaving us looking at each other and saying, “Lunch?” Our lunch turned
into an entire afternoon of exploring the city together … and the rest
is history, as they say! Many years of friendship and trust evolved
into something else that day, and we quickly realized that we enjoyed
who we were with each other.
The courtship
We spent the first five or so years long-distance dating, travelling
between Detroit and Toronto to visit each other. It gave us time to
really get to know each other better and figure out what our lives
would become if merged. We had many adventures together, including
participating in a single-day, 100-mile bicycle ride and a
cross-country road trip, highlighted by a visit to the Grand Canyon
and Grand Teton National Park.
The proposal
Fittingly, we were on another skating tour together.
Spontaneity factor: 5 out of 5
Eloquence factor: 4 out of 5
Romance factor: 3 out of 5
Setting factor: 2 out of 5
Creativity factor: 1 out of 5
Ring factor: 0 out of 5
She-said-yes factor: perfect 10
The wedding and honeymoon
We were married in a small, private ceremony in an enchanted forest on
the Niagara Peninsula in Ontario on Aug. 11, 2022. We often travel
together for work, so we have not yet taken an official honeymoon, but
we will be going to Australia together this upcoming summer!
The kids
Kurt has two wonderful, amazing, handsome boys — they made us write
that! — Gabriel and Dillon, ages 19 and 15.
Balancing careers and a marriage
On thin blades of steel! With both of us being figure skaters, there’s
a complete understanding of what the other one is going through. How
many other couples at the end of their work day get to hold hands and
bow together!
Shared hobbies and interests
Kurt: We share all hobbies — except for reading. I leave that to
Alissa! We both love biking, hiking, rollerblading, antiquing, rock
climbing, playing tennis, playing pool, working out, going on
adventures, pretty much everything… and we both rather dislike
cooking.
The secret to success
Alissa: He buys me a constant stream of blueberries!
Kurt: I like that the further away she is from her glasses, the better
looking I get! The most important thing is that we laugh together
every day.
The future
If we could look into the future, we would have bought stock in Apple,
Google, Netflix and Amazon. But even though we don’t have any stock in
those companies, we are very happy with our investment in each
other. When we look forward to our future together, there is likely
less time on the ice, but more time off the ice to do lots of other
things that we enjoy together!
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