Meryl Davis's Grandmother is from London, ONT. | Golden Skate

Meryl Davis's Grandmother is from London, ONT.

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
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Jul 26, 2003
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United-States
Who knew?


London area holds special place in heart of American skater Meryl Davis

By Ryan Pyette, The London Free Press

Friday, March 1, 2013 11:30:37 EST AM
http://www.lfpress.com/2013/03/01/london-area-holds-special-place-in-heart-for-american-skaters

Yes, this article is from the London, ONT, paper.

There wasn't a hint of cell phones or social media in the summer of 1939 at Bright's Grove.

But when there was a beautiful woman, this Ava Gardner look-a-like, on the nearby Lake Huron beach, word travelled like a lightning bolt.

Ken Davis, a vacationing teen from Detroit, heard about this vision – 21-year-old Cecile Dennis of London – and went to have a look. There, the 16-year-old spotted another girl, much closer to his 16 years, trying to ride a bicycle.

She crashed and Ken scrambled to her aid. They talked, and he discovered she was Cecile Dennis' younger sister Marian.

“That's how my grandmother and grandfather met,” Meryl Davis said.

and

“We would go every year to my relatives' houses in London (or a family member's farm house in tiny Iona Station) for Canadian Thansgiving,” Meryl said. “It was wonderful.
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
What a wonderful article! "This vision" of loveliness...and then it was the sister who captured his heart.

One of the great things about having Canadian relatives is that the Thanksgiving holidays of the two countries don't conflict. You can go to both! What kinds of pie do people have at Canadian Thanksgiving?
 

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
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Feb 27, 2012
I hope some of her relatives show up at Worlds!

For those who have not read the full article, it says:

"There will be dozens of Dennises cheering for Meryl to win a second world gold in a city she has spent a lot of time, but at a rink she doesn’t know as well." ....

She described it in terms of a reunion.
“It’s very special to me; my Canadian relatives don’t always get a chance to see me skate and we’ll be able to bring both sides of the family together,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to that.”
Her grandparents are expected to watch from home in suburban Detroit. Ken, now 89, hasn’t been in the best of health recently and Marian is reluctant to leave his side.
Meryl visits them once a week and has a special bond with 88-year-old Marian.

ETA:
So I think the article means that many, many family members (without her paternal grandparents, unfortunately) will be at the London arena to root in person for Davis/White. :cool:
BTW, the entire article is worth reading IMHO. Lots of nice details.
 
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Scrufflet

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 1, 2010
For those who have not read the full article, it says:

"There will be dozens of Dennises cheering for Meryl to win a second world gold in a city she has spent a lot of time, but at a rink she doesn’t know as well." ....

She described it in terms of a reunion.
“It’s very special to me; my Canadian relatives don’t always get a chance to see me skate and we’ll be able to bring both sides of the family together,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to that.”
Her grandparents are expected to watch from home in suburban Detroit. Ken, now 89, hasn’t been in the best of health recently and Marian is reluctant to leave his side.
Meryl visits them once a week and has a special bond with 88-year-old Marian.

ETA:
So I think the article means that many, many family members (without her paternal grandparents, unfortunately) will be at the London arena to root in person for Davis/White. :cool:
BTW, the entire article is worth reading IMHO. Lots of nice details.

Good to know. I hope they get interviewed.
 

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
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Country
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I would think so.

And when male dancers are asked whether those blade on his body lifts hurt, they say, "Yes."

However, I've never seen a skater get his pants sliced through in a competition-but you'd think they'd wear out a bunch of practice pants per year that way.
 

KKonas

Medalist
Joined
Oct 31, 2009
:laugh:

This bit of supposed journalism is more of a stretch than Meryl's leg line could ever be.

When a major sporting event comes to a relatively small city like London, Ontario (Pop. 366,151) and the local paper finds a connection to that city from a top foreign competitor, it should write about that connection, especially since Meryl apparently still has relatives in the area. It helps promote the international aspect of the event and the newspaper’s international credentials. BTW, it’s called Journalism 101.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
I wonder who is more numerous in London, Ont., the Dennis family or the Virtue family? Maybe this will balance out the home town advantage factor. ;)
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
When a major sporting event comes to a relatively small city like London, Ontario (Pop. 366,151) and the local paper finds a connection to that city from a top foreign competitor, it should write about that connection, especially since Meryl apparently still has relatives in the area. It helps promote the international aspect of the event and the newspaper’s international credentials. BTW, it’s called Journalism 101.

And it's a human interest article, a perfectly legitimate genre. What's wrong with that? It probably makes residents of the locality feel as if they have even more of an involvement in the competition. Hey, skating can use all the friends it can get.
 

Serious Business

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 7, 2011
When a major sporting event comes to a relatively small city like London, Ontario (Pop. 366,151) and the local paper finds a connection to that city from a top foreign competitor, it should write about that connection, especially since Meryl apparently still has relatives in the area. It helps promote the international aspect of the event and the newspaper’s international credentials. BTW, it’s called Journalism 101.

Let's not insult Journalism 101 courses. The students taking them have higher ambitions than being underpaid publicists churning out vapid fluff pieces.
 

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
Serious Business, have you ever worked as a professional journalist?

If so, I am surprised at your failure to recognize Pyette's enterprise journalism and original reporting.
After covering Virtue/Moir since the earliest years of their partnership, Pyette is to be commended for discovering a fresh angle not only on the World Championships in London, but also on the rivalry between V/M and their friends/training mates Davis/White.
The LFP story is not a regurgitation of press releases from Skate Canada or U.S. Figure Skating -- or of quotes from the Davis/White call available to all media outlets.

And if you have ever belonged to the press, SB, I am surprised also at your failure to appreciate the journalistic value of human-interest content. [In another thread discussing such a feature story, your disdain was similar to what you have expressed in this thread.]
Surely you are aware that the most successful model of Olympic coverage was pioneered by Roone Arledge, who significantly increased TV audiences for obscure sports by making viewers care about individual athletes as human beings.

ETA:

Thanks to KKonas, Mathman, and Olympia for their comments above. :agree:

I wonder who is more numerous in London, Ont., the Dennis family or the Virtue family? Maybe this will balance out the home town advantage factor. ;)

;) Based on my general impression over the years, I think it's the Moir family who shows up in really impressive numbers wherever/whenever possible. I recall seeing video of a big bus (or maybe buses plural??) that the Moirs chartered to transport their crowd from Ilderton to one event (don't remember the venue, and don't know if it was an extreme measure for them or not).
Ilderton Skating Club has printed V/M's logo and slogans for them on bright yellow shirts for supporters to wear at Worlds, so perhaps we'll even be able to count heads on our TV or computer screens. :laugh:
BTW, at least three Moirs are volunteering in leadership positions on the local organizing committee for Worlds too. A labor of love for the entire sport, presumably (not just for V/M). :thumbsup:
 
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