Life on ice still nice for Sale and Pelletier

EDMONTON - In their wisdom, the Powers That Be behind Thursday's Stars on Ice figure skating show (in this case, the folks of the truly powerful IMG group) like to schedule interviews with their celebs well in advance, even when they involve people who live in the same town. Normally, it's not too hard to fake freshness in these things, the topics at hand being general icy, skaty kinds of things.

What a difference five weeks can make. Back in March, rumours of war were on Jamie Sale's mind as the spectre of impending combat was slapping somewhat of a pall over the American leg of the annual Stars on Ice tour. Attendance was down -- she has her theories -- and the crowds were a bit on the jittery side. It didn't sound much like home cooking when she spoke on the phone poolside on a "rest day" in Jacksonville, Fla.

"I'm telling you, we can't wait to get to Canada."

Sure, you say, aware that the author of this heartwarming comment is surrounded by palm trees and the odd missile silo -- and paid weekly in American dollars.

"It's true," she says. "Listen, Canada is home for us and it makes a big difference. It's more exciting for us, the fans are more knowledgeable, into it, ready to let go.

"The crowds in the States? The economy in the States isn't as good as it was, and some of their favourite skaters have retired. You lose someone like Scott (Hamilton) a year ago and it takes some time to recover. But the fresh blood is good, too, there is a cool energy happening, and also the veteran skaters around to help show us newer ones on the tour the ropes."

It's a gruelling tour -- 73 shows in five months -- and the first long-term professional gig for Sale and her partner David Pelletier since the couple turned pro after winning a gold medal at the 2002 Olympics.

One of the bigger buzzes of this year's show obviously involves the reunion of Sale,

Pelletier and the Russian team of Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, who shared the spotlight, the controversy and ultimately the gold at Salt Lake City. It's sweetness and light, says Sale.

"We're happy to see them, it's great. Elena and I hung out in Chicago, just girls on the town. There is no bad anything associated with them, we're happy to be working with them. They are so good."

And then there's the classic question of moving from sport to showbiz. (Including rumours of a future collaboration with Cirque du Soleil.) Any wrinkles?

"Competition is great, but it's nice to turn the page, too. It's just so much fun doing this. You can be really sexy in these wonderful beaded costumes, which is exciting -- we're never able to do that in competition to that degree. And we're able to stress our versatility, able to be ourselves. We're also all rooting for each other.

"We're usually on a bus together every day from three to 10 hours, so you get to know each other. Like anything else, you have to learn to pace yourself, to eat well, all that."

There are no plans for her and Pelletier to leave Edmonton, not that they've been around much lately.

"Well, we missed the winter, which is pretty smart. But Edmonton's a great place to be and David is the first to say that. It's comfortable, supportive -- look at how people here came out to see us after the Olympics. You don't see that many places. It's a neat place to live -- home."

The IMG universal consciousness has asked that we restrict our questions to Stars on Ice, but who can resist? After all the troubles and the outcry at Salt Lake, does Sale think there will be wholesale reform in Olympic skating, officiating, the bureaucracy? "No. It's amazing, but we've -- and I mean the skaters, the athletes, all of us -- have never been asked by anyone in control about our opinions on how to change the policies. It's business as usual, and it's all bad, I'm sorry to say."