Dance in all its forms is to me the most sublime expression of our shared human essence uniquely allowing us to soar to heights radically individual.
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"When I first watched the Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast Maria Petrova perform her routines on a VHS cassette tape at the 1994 World Championships in Paris (I was eleven years old), the poetry, power, and majestic beauty of her performance made me fall immediately head over heels, truly/madly/deeply in love with all manner of movement. Since then, my devotion to disciplined physicality has never faltered. I swear that this wild hearted passion of mine will follow me the rest of my days (thank goodness). My lifelong obsession has now expanded to include a wide range of fitness regimes, positive-vision design, creative methods of meditation, and innovative health habits. I’m currently in a growth spurt and find myself bursting with enthusiasm to share my experience and training with an ever increasing circle of cherished friends. I’m brimming with confidence about my ability to help people to adore their brilliant, mysterious and super capable bodies. Dance in all its forms is to me the most sublime expression of our shared human essence uniquely allowing us to soar to heights radically individual."
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"I love what Awareness Ties stands for with bringing people together to shed light on all sorts of causes that help us begin the necessary conversations to open our eyes, to heal, to contribute and create links to our common goals as human beings who want to evolve and continually be better than yesterday!"
I swear that this wild hearted passion of mine will follow me the rest of my days (thank goodness).
About Emilie
I grew up moving around a lot in Toronto but where I felt most at home in my heart was practicing ballet and gymnastics at any point, every single day no matter what. I started ballet when I was two years old and continued to train in ballet throughout my entire Rhythmic Gymnastics career and utilized my ballet techniques in my aerial dance career in L.A.
When I was eleven years old I discovered my love for Rhythmic Gymnastics and decided I wanted to compete at the Olympics in this most brutally demanding yet graceful sport. Having only trained in Artistic gymnastics and ballet I had no idea what it would take but quickly found out, as the head coach Ludmila Dimitrova from my club chose me, based on my will to work and not because I had any obvious physical talents. She always said I had thirty percent of the talent I needed but made up for it with my sheer will and work ethic. It was no easy feat and I ended up leaving home when I was eleven years old to follow my coach to Russia and train with the highest ranked Rhythmic gymnasts in the world, the Russian National Team lead by head coach Irina Viner.
In 1995 I was living in Novogorsk Russia in old Soviet style dorm rooms, training sometimes 14 hours a day and barely speaking Russian with no computers or cell phones like we have today. It was isolating but I could see my progress and was totally motivated to work to be MY best. Knowing I could never be a Russian Olympic Champion, they are normally picked by the age of four, taken from their homes and bred to be World and Olympics champions from the day they are chosen, I was humbled and understood that no dream would ever become a reality without sacrifice.
I went on to become three time National Champion of Canada, was the Pan American Champion in 1999 and I was the only individual representative at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games for the entire American Continent. After my individual career I lead the Canadian Group rhythmic gymnastics team to a 12th place finish at the 2003 World Championships in Budapest Hungary. My passion, drive, athletic career and humble yet positive outlook on life are what make me unique to inspire personal greatness in others. My openness in personality and body and my intuition help guide me through challenging situations with love and compassion.
When I was eleven years old I discovered my love for Rhythmic Gymnastics and decided I wanted to compete at the Olympics in this most brutally demanding yet graceful sport. Having only trained in Artistic gymnastics and ballet I had no idea what it would take but quickly found out, as the head coach Ludmila Dimitrova from my club chose me, based on my will to work and not because I had any obvious physical talents. She always said I had thirty percent of the talent I needed but made up for it with my sheer will and work ethic. It was no easy feat and I ended up leaving home when I was eleven years old to follow my coach to Russia and train with the highest ranked Rhythmic gymnasts in the world, the Russian National Team lead by head coach Irina Viner.
In 1995 I was living in Novogorsk Russia in old Soviet style dorm rooms, training sometimes 14 hours a day and barely speaking Russian with no computers or cell phones like we have today. It was isolating but I could see my progress and was totally motivated to work to be MY best. Knowing I could never be a Russian Olympic Champion, they are normally picked by the age of four, taken from their homes and bred to be World and Olympics champions from the day they are chosen, I was humbled and understood that no dream would ever become a reality without sacrifice.
I went on to become three time National Champion of Canada, was the Pan American Champion in 1999 and I was the only individual representative at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games for the entire American Continent. After my individual career I lead the Canadian Group rhythmic gymnastics team to a 12th place finish at the 2003 World Championships in Budapest Hungary. My passion, drive, athletic career and humble yet positive outlook on life are what make me unique to inspire personal greatness in others. My openness in personality and body and my intuition help guide me through challenging situations with love and compassion.
