This is a first in France. This Wednesday, the Clermont-Ferrand ice rink was named “Papadakis & Cizeron” in tribute to the Auvergne duo, who became five-time world champion and especially Olympic champion this year in Beijing. A ceremony was held in front of the entrance to the rink. Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron pulled back the red curtain to unveil the name.
Almost 20 years ago, the duo learned to skate on the ice of Clermont-Ferrand. For ten years they train in this rink built in 1972. “It’s extremely symbolic, it’s where we grew up, says Gabriella Papadakis. All my childhood I came at 5 a.m. to open the ice rink. Papadakis and Cizeron, both 27, remember games of hide-and-seek in the dark in the locker room at the rink, but also working hours on the ice.
“It’s funny to look back and see the journey accomplished. We always feel at home here, explains Guillaume Cizeron. We have a very strong attachment to Auvergne so it’s a lot of pride.” “The schools or gymnasiums I went to were named after people I considered legends, so to be at that level is weird, very emotional,” says Gabriella Papadakis.