Coaching and I

When I returned from the US in September 1999, I was pleased to find that there is substantial interest in figure skating. There was a group of wonderful coaches at Fuji Ice Palace (FIP) who were brought in from China. However, I soon realised that with the increasing interest, more coaches were needed for the sport to develop further.

I applied to coach at FIP, and started coaching in mid-2000. With a full-time job, I coach only on the weekends, and sometimes in the evenings. This came to head when the FIP management imposed a commitment to minimum time *or* minimum number of enrollments for part-time coaches, which I was unable to meet. I then moved to coach at Super Ice World (SIW) at Kallang instead, and was there for almost 2 years until it closed.

In May 2003, I returned to FIP as a coach. I have been there since, and have found that the management of the skating school to be tighter and more systematic than at SIW. While there is always room for improvement, I have now settled into an arrangement that I find acceptable.