Photo tweeted by Johnny today:
"Kissing for freedom. Поцелуй за свободу.
@ Красная Площадь Город Москва
[Kiss for freedom. @ Red Square Moscow]"
UPDATE: Johnny's withdrawal from TEB is confirmed
in articles from U.S. Figure Skating and Ice Network.
For an excellent, thoughtful, and levelheaded
analysis of Johnny's comeback road,
read Jackie Wong's article and feel better!
For an excellent, thoughtful, and levelheaded
analysis of Johnny's comeback road,
read Jackie Wong's article and feel better!
So it appears that the ISU has officially withdrawn Johnny from Trophée Eric Bompard, his second Grand Prix event in which he was scheduled to participate this coming weekend. This updated PDF was posted by the ISU today (go here, then click "Entries Men 2012/13- All 6 Events"):
(Please click twice for larger view.)
The ISU also posted this video earlier this morning (although TEB is not addressed here):
And of course this is a disappointment, both for fans and for Johnny himself. It's not the comeback any of us had hoped for.
And it might seem hugely discouraging. All those thousands of hours falling, falling, falling in an ice rink, hoping to soar above the competition—and now for what?
He has reassured us that it's not a career-ending injury, and that he remains focused on his goal of the Sochi Olympics. And so we support him wholeheartedly, and wish him a speedy recovery and continued pursuit of his dreams. #TeamWeirVoronov #WeBelieve
But the arena of competitive figure skating is a small and stuffy one. It's a tiny niche in the big, messy world in which we all live, not always so comfortably, with each other.
Champions come and go; there's always next season; medals sit on dressers or in display cases, quietly gathering dust.
Johnny's astonishing and often dramatic figure skating career, punctuated by tremendous highs and lows and highlighted by his charismatically outsize personality and utter inability to censor himself no matter what the cost, has earned him the kind of global recognition almost unheard of for a figure skater.
All those hours of falling, falling, falling—perhaps ultimately for this:
To soar beyond the ice in moments like the one captured above.
A simple kiss with his husband. Not even the most passionate.
But certainly one of the most beautiful and brave kisses ever exchanged against the backdrop of a gorgeous church that houses a religion that continues to promote persecution of homosexuality, in a country that Johnny loves with all his heart even as it passes draconian laws against him.
Love as civil disobedience.
Ironically, that's pretty much what the Jesus revered in the cathedral behind them practiced.
Nothing Johnny has done or will do in an ice rink—as brilliant as he is in that arena, as remarkable as his achievements are, as uniquely gifted as he is both in his unparalleled natural talent and his ability to connect with the audience and transport them into the beautiful, icy vision of his soul—will be as globally significant or as long-lasting a legacy as what he can do outside the rink:
Show the world that love is love.
And that it will not—cannot—be denied.
The husbands in Russia. ♥
Photo tweeted today by @ugachan.
Johnny and Victor's marriage is reportedly the focus of an episode of Russia's popular Channel One show, "сегодня вечером" ("Tonight"). They filmed portions of the episode last week with host Andrei Malakhov, as noted here and here. As I understand it from Russian fans, the husbands' episode is expected to be aired this Saturday, November 17. We hope video will be available as soon as possible; it looks like full episodes are uploaded to the show's website (though they are in Russian, of course...!). I applaud the courage of all involved.
A new post from Patti
on Johnny's Comeback Gift Fund website!!
Please go read it now!
NEW!! Announced last Friday:
Holiday Dreams On Ice 2012!!
Visit the HDOI website for info and tickets!
Johnny's also blogging regularly
about his comeback journey for ESPN!!
His first entry, "A Fresh Start"—personal, honest,
very Johnny—was posted last Friday and is the source
of the quote on the Spirit Day photo above.
Looking forward to reading more from him
as the season progresses!
Please alert absolutely everyone you've ever met
to "like" and follow the new
Because he should be on all the things.
With or without ice.
But definitely with Viacheslav.
Please vote for Johnny!!
Please be sure to check in with GetGlue
anytime you're watching the show...
or thinking about watching the show....
or wishing you were watching the show....
anytime you're watching the show...
or thinking about watching the show....
or wishing you were watching the show....
Landing quads and kicking ass
at a Grand Prix event near you!
Read his comeback statement
on his website!
Yes, YOU can be a part of Johnny's comeback!
Please visit Johnny's Comeback Gift Fund today
and chip in as little as $1 via PayPal.
Our small gifts can help make his dream of competing
in his third Olympic Games come true!
And now you can leave a message
of support for Johnny, too!
in his third Olympic Games come true!
And now you can leave a message
of support for Johnny, too!
Please click to vote for Johnny
once a day as "Best Sportsman"!
Because he retweeted Luisa Lotka to tell us
he wants us to! (Note: With his "58.132" rating,
he is currently in 1st place in both
Figure Skating AND across all sports!)
Q and A! Go read it now!
At last: Pop Star On Ice is now available on DVD!
Order yours today from the Pop Star On Ice website!
Johnny tweeted:
"Buy my single,'Dirty Love' via iTunes.
Tell all your friends to as well. The more copies sold
takes me one step closer to making a video! №1!"
IN THE SAME WAY THAT IT NEEDS AIR.
You know what to do.
Please buy the song from Johnny's website,
or just click the "Buy" button on the player
at the top of the blog!
at the top of the blog!
Hey, Welcome to My World also is available
as an eBook! More info on Johnny's website!
copyright 2012 / Binky and the Misfit Mimes / Lynn V. Ingogly / all rights reserved
7 comments:
All those hours of falling, falling, falling—perhaps ultimately for this:
To soar beyond the ice in moments like the one captured above.
There. Right there. You nailed it.
A beautiful post, a much-needed one. Thank you so much.
Hard to be passionate when you have to keep one eye out for the skinheads who would beat you to the cobbles for that kiss.
I love how open Johnny has become about his sexuality, but I have to give big props to Victor. I can't imagine the courage it took to go from the closet to international activist in just a little over a year.
The two of them have strength and determination that compliment each other so well. It's a beautiful thing to see.
Johnny and Victor look so happy to be in Russia. Moscow's architecture is very inspiring. Makes me want to visit, too.
Johnny's body's injury timing has always been heartbreaking, and adds so much drama that is part and parcel of his life.
Hope Johnny's acl heals completely. Hope Johnny gets to practice his competition programs in front of crowds so he can really truly be ready for Nationals. Johnny does the most amazing skating when he is fully trained.
"I love how open Johnny has become about his sexuality, but I have to give big props to Victor. I can't imagine the courage it took to go from the closet to international activist in just a little over a year."
I can only agree with that. That deserves definitely major props and full admiration. *thumbs up*
Thanks for the beautiful blogpost, Binky. Love it.
Thank you, Johnny and Victor, for what you do. Shining a light on being able to marry the person you love will help closeted gays in Russia gain acceptance.
...like a boxer fighting the fight of his life, taking blow after blow, and suddenly getting pounded with a crippling body shot...but there's still a few more rounds to go...there's still fire in your belly...don't lose sight of it... (ok, watching "Rocky" over the weekend rubbed off on me)...
...despite the presence of bad news in this latest post, it it full of WIN...could not have said it better, Misfit...that picture speaks VOLUMES...it is comforting to know that, at the end of the day, no matter how bad things get, and things are beyond his control, he has the support and love, and comforting embrace of the man he loves...makes the punch hurt a little less..
Another great blog, MM! (But aren' they all!)
I agree, I admire the courage it took for Johnny and Victor to take that picture the way they did. I love the way so many of Johnny's fans have embraced Victor and jsut taken him into the fold like he was always here. And I do have to give Victor credit like Jenn, GermanSoulMate and aaaack have said. Like Jenn said, "I love how open Johnny has become about his sexuality, but I have to give big props to Victor. I can't imagine the courage it took to go from the closet to international activist in just a little over a year." That is so true... I have found myself wondering if Victor has ever wondered what the heck he has gotten himself into!
Anyway, I'm so sorry for Johnny's injury. He'll bounce back, he always does. But he does have to do what is best for HIM, not US! True fans, and he does have a lot of them, may be disappointed if it doesn't all work out, but at the same time, they'll understand.
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