Olympic ice aspirants give fans the chills

Skating competitors give young O.C. admirers
visions of being champions some day.

Aliso Viejo, Ca, Jan. 4 - For nearly an hour
Thursday, 300 girls and parents oohed and
ahhed, looked on wide-eyed or applauded
politely as figure-skating champions worked
through their routines at the Aliso Viejo Ice
Palace.

On the crowded bleachers, Danielle Castillo's
first pair of ice skates were inside a small,
purple bag.

Danielle waited for her idol, Sasha
Cohen, the 17-year-old Olympic hopeful
from Laguna Niguel, to autograph them.

The skates will always be the starting
point for Danielle, 9, who hopes some
day to be a champion skater herself.

Danielle was shoulder-to-shoulder with
hundreds of others seeking the glow of
championship skaters.

"I like to see the costumes. I like to
see them skate," said Danielle, who
anticipated this moment for months.

Cohen and 13 other top-drawer atheletes
were preparing for the national
championships that begin Sunday at
Staples Center in Los Angeles. The top
finishers will skate for the United
States in the Winter Olympics in
February.

To many of the preteen girls sitting in
the bleachers or peering through the
Plexiglas circling the ice, Cohen is
their star outfielder, their superstar
tailback, their idol.

Some girls hope they will rise to be
skating stars like Cohen and injured
Naomi Nari Nam of Irvine. The two young
women are products of what coach John
Nicks of Costa Mesa calls a fertile
ground of figure skating.

"I think the whole area of Orange County
is so family- oriented, so family-
supportive," Nicks said. "Very good
facilities. It's a healthy environment."

Sasha said she, too, once chased down
autographs from her skating heroes and
now doesn't mind signing away. "It's
really inspiring to be a role model. I
feel that I have duties to them.''

Danielle, who takes skating lessons here
herself, has spotted Sasha a couple of
times and wants her, big time, to make
the Winter Games.

"That would be an amazing thing for me,"
said Danielle, flashing a rink-size
smile.

Sasha fans, small and big, agreed with
that.

Claire Nilmeier of Laguna Niguel read
weeks ago about Thursday's free
exhibition, marked the day on the
calendar and the family talked about it
in anticipation.

"We were so thrilled - it's so local,"
she said. "We've been following her for
a long time. It would make watching the
Olympics so much more exciting - having
somebody from your hometown."

Her 10-year-old twins, who sometimes
skate just for fun, are fans. Sarah, for
one, has no designs on trying to chase
down a gold medal - not if the cost is
hours-long practices.

"Ah, no," she said, sliding her eyes
sideward.

Her mom probably wouldn't be too keen on
the $30,000 or more it takes each year
to cover costs for top skaters, either.

When it came her time, Sasha skated a
routine that Nicks later proclaimed a
good run.

As soon as she stepped off of the ice, a
dozen small girls weaved through the
crowd, running, until they could push
notebooks, paper and an empty checkbook
into Sasha's view.

She stoically and patiently signed them
all: "Sasha," right behind her drawing
of a loopy heart.

Then, only Danielle - and her first pair
of skates -- waited.

"Ah, wait. Sasha," Danielle called out
softly. She handed the skates to Cohen.

Cohen took the skates gently, signed
near the heels, and moved on.