andrew-poje-editorial

featuring Andrew Poje

Somewhere in Time

Photographer Jennifer MassauxCreative Director & Style Editor Kurtiss Valentino

Grooming Leila D’AmatoHair Lauren Moser

Assistant Brett CarsonWritten By Pamela Perry

*Special thanks to Marie Gabriel Couture and Schuyler 4 Showroom

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Fans of Canadian ice dancer and World Champion

Silver Medalist Andrew Poje will still recognize him

out of costume and without his skating partner,

Kaitlyn Weaver.

Azzarenko’s creative director, Kurtiss Valentino,

initially thought of the idea of Andrew in a

fashion editorial after viewing his and his partner’s

spellbinding performance to “Je Suis Malade” a few

seasons ago.

Kurtiss traveled to Detroit after the Olympic

season to catch Andrew between training practices

and felt the unattended Gothic church was the

perfect architectural setting for capturing the 2014

Sochi Olympic skater, as well as chatting about his

hectic lifestyle.

Andrew has been training as a professional skater

for many years. He followed in the footsteps of his

older sister, who skated at the local rink down the

street from his Waterloo, Ontario home. Andrew’s

great-aunt is Agnesa Burilova, who skated at the

1964 Winter Olympics. a


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As his fans are well aware, Andrew loves skating

and trains up to 12 hours a day. A perfect day for

Andrew is getting a good night’s sleep and sweet

potato hash at the Commonwealth Diner on the

corner of his training facility block. Training includes

cardio workouts with weights, yoga, ballroom and

modern dance, and of course skating!

Andrew leaves the costume ideas to his

choreographer and stylist. For the most part his

lifestyle mandates that he wear athletic attire. When

he gets dressed up, Andrew goes for “Snappy

casual” and TV’s “Mad Men look.” Andrew says his

6’3 frame is both an advantage and a challenge: “It’s

great for showing a longer line, but when the routine

has quick, sharp movements, there’s more to move!”

Andrew has a natural need for speed. He loves

motorsports, like racing motorcycles and cars. His

grandfather did some racing with Indy and Formula

One. “Speed is in my blood,” says Andrew. For

simple relaxation, he enjoys cooking; he explains, “If

I wasn’t a professional skater, I’d be a chef.” And he

can always make time for a game of golf. a



When we asked Andrew what his goal in skating

was, he responded, “To evoke deep emotion

through my performance, that’s why I love the

Argentine Tango.” Appropriately, Andrew and

Kaitlyn skated to ‘Maria de Buenos Aires’ at the

2014 Olympics, an operatic tango that tells the

story of a streetwalker in Argentina who dies

and is magically brought back to life through the

power of music and dance.

Andrew says his biggest skating challenge

is “the unknown.” “Competing is intense,” he

explains, “and not knowing what new programs

other people are bringing to the table is always on

my mind.”

When we asked Andrew what his favorite

country to visit was, he said, “I really enjoy Japan,

the fans are amazingly supportive, and the culture

is so unique. It’s always a pleasure to perform in

Japan.”

Look for Andrew Poje and Kaitlyn Weaver up

next in ‘Stars on Ice, Canada.’


andrew-poje-editorial

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