A look back at Evan Lysacek - before he became an Olympic champion
Ten years and 12 days ago, then-Daily Herald Staff Writer Stacy St. Clair introduced many of our readers to a 14-year-old figure skater from Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville.
His name was Evan Lysacek and those who knew about such things already had declared him the future of American figure skating.
On Thursday night he lived up to that promise, winning the men's gold medal by overtaking defending champion Evgeni Plushenko in Vancouver.
Much will be said and written about Lysacek, but on Feb. 10, 2000, very few of us had heard his name. This was among our first glimpses of the boy who would grow into an Olympic champion.
Evan Lysacek leads a life like any other Naperville high school freshman from 7:40 a.m. to 12:25 p.m.
There's math class, an honors history course, English and French at Neuqua Valley. The 14-year-old takes art, too, to nurture his creative talents and catch his breath during an otherwise rigorous academic schedule.
But shortly before 1 p.m. each day, Evan abandons his typical teenage life and glides into an existence only a handful of American adolescents know.
He enters a high-pressure world where he is considered the future of American figure skating, an expensive world where most of the top athletes have moved away from home and stopped going to school full time.
In this world, Evan has tasted some of his sport's sweetest victories. After winning the U.S. Novice title 12 months ago, he went on to win a prestigious international competition in November and become the second-ranked junior-level skater in the nation.
Yet the teen wears his crowns humbly, a skating prince who seems as excited about a mention in his school newspaper as he is about national press.
"His strengths are his personality and determination," said Nora Babula, figure skating director at Seven Bridges Ice Arena in Woodridge where Evan trains. "He wants it bad. Once he wants it badly, there's no stopping him. He's a great kid."
Evan is putting his talents on display this week as he competes in the U.S. National Figure Skating Championships in Cleveland. He's expected to finish in the top four, which would all but guarantee him an invitation to an international competition this spring.
He currently sits in fifth place after falling on his triple flip combination during Wednesday's short program. Skating to "42nd Street," he was one of only three skaters to land a triple lutz in the competition.
He'll take the ice again Friday morning, when he'll skate to music from "Romeo & Juliet." The program contains six triple jumps, including an impressive triple flip-half loop-triple Salchow combination.
It's still possible for him to win the competition, though other skaters would need to make mistakes. If he wins Friday's free skate, he'll finish no lower than second.
"I am so ready," Evan said before leaving for Cleveland. "I'm healthy. I've worked on consistency. I've gotten better in every area."
When Evan speaks, his voice reveals an expected enthusiasm and an undeniable maturity. He peppers his conversation with words like responsibility, motivation and dedication - three things with which he's intimately familiar.
After school each day, Evan heads to Seven Bridges Ice Arena to begin stretching and warming up. He's on the ice by 1:40 p.m., and remains there for the next two-and-a-half hours.
When practice ends, he heads to weight training, ballet or balance class, depending on the night. Then it's back to his south Naperville home where he eats dinner, does his homework and goes to bed.
"(The schedule) keeps me in line," said Evan, who began skating at 8 and won his first national title two years later. "I would just come home from school and not have anything to do. I don't think I would be as motivated to study or get my homework done."
The teen's top competitors, however, don't face the same educational demands. Most of the elite skaters competing at the national championships either attend school part time or are taught by private tutors. A less-rigid schedule makes it easier for skaters to train and attend international competitions.
It also makes for different priorities. Of the 10 high school age skaters vying for the junior men's title this week, Evan is the only one to list college as a future goal on his official biography.
"School is very important to me," Evan said. "You learn a little bit more about life at (public) school than you would if you're home-schooled. It's the only time in my life I have to be normal. The rest of the time I am alone on the ice by myself."
Evan also sets himself apart from many elite skaters by opting to live at home with his parents and two sisters.
Many of his competitors have left their hometowns in search of elite training facilities and pedigreed coaches. Such Olympic odysseys split apart families, forcing one parent to move to the new training town, while the other stays behind.
"We're trying to do everything to avoid that," Evan's mom, Tanya, said. "It's part of what makes him a special individual. He goes to school. He lives at home. We eat dinner each night as a family."
It helps that Evan's high school supports his endeavor. Neuqua administrators excuse the freshman from gym class and lunch, allowing him to leave school two hours before the dismissal bell.
Teachers also have been understanding when he misses classes for major competitions. The freshman's French and history teachers, for example, often tutor him before school. And Neuqua art instructor Carol Kienast gives him one-on-one instruction during her free period because Evan's rigid schedule otherwise wouldn't allow for the elective class.
"That's what education ought to be about," Neuqua Principal Kathy Birkett said. "We're not all cookie-cutters. We think it's wonderful for him to be able to attend school. We're very proud of him."
The arrangement works, Birkett said, because Evan is a good student and he takes his education seriously. The teen takes all tests before leaving for competitions and does his homework in his hotel rooms.
"(The Neuqua staff members) have been wonderful," Tanya Lysacek said. "I'd hate for him to give up art and other things he really enjoys. So many people have done so much for him."
While ensuring Evan's education has been relatively easy, securing enough money for him to compete at an international level is another matter. The teen's skating bills run about $35,000 annually - and that's after a skating scholarship from Seven Bridges and subsidies from the United States Figure Skating Association.
Evan has a no-frills training regimen by elite skating standards, but nothing about his sport is cheap. A pair of boots alone sets the family back about $1,100. Costumes and choreography cost thousands of dollars as well.
The family gets some financial help, including free ice time and warmup suits from Seven Bridges. And the USFSA subsidizes his travel expenses. But his mother must pay her own way when she travels with him.
"He's definitely worth it," said Cathy Budzyn, Seven Bridges' general manager. "We think Evan is a great investment not only because of his skating, but because he's a great spokesman for us."
The lingering $35,000 price tag, however, weighs heavily upon the Lysacek family. Tanya Lysacek worked as a travel agent from her home until the position was eliminated this summer. She hasn't found another job that allows her the flexibility needed for Evan's skating and her daughters' athletic pursuits.
(Evan's older sister, Laura, competes on Neuqua Valley's softball and golf teams. Christina, a fifth-grader, plays on a traveling soccer team.)
The financial crunch has forced Tanya and her husband, Don, a self-employed painting contractor, to seek sponsorships for Evan. They want their son to benefit from the training opportunities that the more-moneyed skaters enjoy.
The Lysaceks, for example, hope to send Evan to a mountain rink this summer so he can become accustomed to skating in higher altitudes. The move theoretically would help Evan next year if he competes at the Junior World Championships in Bulgaria.
"The sport is so financially demanding," Tanya Lysacek said. "We're seeking sponsorship, but nothing has panned out."
Ultimately, it could be the financial issues - not the educational or athletic ones - that force Evan to leave Naperville. If his family cannot afford to send him away for special instruction, he might move to an area that would offer him more elite training opportunities.
His parents, though, would prefer Evan stay at home, where even his prestigious skating world maintains some semblance of teenage normalcy.
"Until somebody proves to me it would be better otherwise," Tanya Lysacek said, "I'm going to keep it this way."
-- Stacy St. Clair
Skating successHere's a look at some of Evan Lysacek's achievements.2010Olympic Games: 1st U.S. Championships: 2nd2009Grand Prix Final: 1st Skate America: 1st Cup of China: 2nd World Team Trophy: 1st World Championships: 1st Four Continents: 2nd U.S. Championships: 3rd2008 Skate Canada: 3rd Skate America: 3rd Japan Open: 1st Four Continents: 3rd U.S. Championships: 1st2007 Grand Prix Final, Turin: 3rd Cup of China: 2nd Skate America: 2nd World Championships: 5th Four Continents: 1st U.S. Championships: 1st2006 Cup of China: 1st Skate America: 2nd Campbell's Cup: 1st World Championships: 3rd Olympic Winter Games: 4th U.S. Championships: 2nd2005 NHK Trophy: 2nd Skate America: 2nd Campbell's Classic: 6th U.S. Challenge: 1st World Championships: 3rd Four Continents: 1st U.S. Championships: 3rd2004 World Cup: 2nd Cup of Russia: 5th Skate America: 5th Campbell's Classic: 5th World Skating Challenge: 5th World Junior Championships: 2nd Four Continents: 3rd U.S. Championships: 5th2003 Junior Grand Prix Final: 1st Junior Grand Prix, Croatia: 1st Junior Grand Prix, Japan: 1st World Junior Championships: 2nd Four Continents: 10th U.S. Championships: 7th Midwestern Sectional: 1st Upper Great Lakes Regional: 1st2002 Junior Grand Prix Final: 5th Junior Grand Prix, Canada: 2nd Junior Grand Prix, France: 2nd Triglav Trophy: 1st U.S. Championships: 12th Midwestern Sectional: 2nd Upper Great Lakes Regional: withdrew2001 World Junior Championships: 2nd U.S. Championships: 12th Midwestern Sectional: 3rd2000 Junior Grand Prix Final: 8th Junior Grand Prix, Norway: 2nd Junior Grand Prix, Germany: 2nd U.S. Championships, Junior: 1st Midwestern Sectional, Novice: 2nd1999 Junior Grand Prix, Stockholm: 1st Junior Grand Prix, Montreal: 7th North American Challenge Skate, Toronto, Junior: 1st U.S. Championships, Novice: 1st Midwestern Sectional, Novice: 2nd Upper Great Lakes Regional, Novice: 2nd1998 Midwestern Sectional, Novice: 5th Upper Great Lakes Regional, Novice: 2nd1997 North American Challenge Skate, Edmonton, Novice: 5th Junior Olympics, Intermediate: 4th Midwestern Sectional, Intermediate: 1st Upper Great Lakes Regional, Intermediate: 1st1996Junior Olympics, Juvenile: 1st Upper Great Lakes Regional, Juvenile: 2ndSource: U.S. Figure Skating's IceNetwork.comTrue1430962Evan Lysacek was 13 and the U.S. Novice Men's skating champion, when he posed for this picture with his mom, Tanya, on April 21, 1999.Daily Herald file photoTrue <div class="infoBox"><h1>More Coverage</h1><div class="infoBoxContent"><div class="infoArea"><h2>Stories</h2><ul class="links"><li><a href="/story/?id=360494">'My mother is my inspiration'</a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=360493">Fast rise in sport didn't change skater's Midwest values</a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=360492">Evan hits national stage at age 10</a></li></ul></div></div></div>