As you know, Les Solutions de rangement Prisma is proud to sponsor the Ice Sisters, and we thought it was important to introduce you to these famous Ice Sisters.
To embark on the Trophée Roses des Sables adventure, you need courage and guts. Add to that a background as competitive athletes and exceptional organizational skills, and you get the two remarkable women who make up crew no. 50: the Ice Sisters. A meeting with true forces of nature.
Why the number 50?
First of all, it’s important to know that their crew number is not a coincidence or a love for round numbers. 50 refers to the age that Annie Adam and Josée Mailhot, the Ice Sisters, will be the year of their Trophée Roses des Sables. A milestone year, which they chose to celebrate by taking on this grand rally through the Moroccan desert.
What started as a vague idea lingering for a few years suddenly clicked late at night during a trip with friends in Ontario. Josée remembers the moment vividly: “It was 2 a.m., after a couple of glasses of wine, and I don’t know why, but I had this kind of idea… I didn’t even have time to finish my thought before I looked at Annie and said, ‘Annie, next year we’ll be 50 — that’s when the Trophée Roses des Sables is happening.’ She paused, looked at me, and said, ‘Yes, I’m in. Let’s do it!’”
Two passionate women who found each other on the ice
Those few seconds perfectly represent the spirited nature of our Ice Sisters, but also the bond that unites them. A bond that took root when they first met on the ice nearly 20 years ago. Back then, they were on rival teams, and it wasn’t until five years ago that Josée joined Nova, Annie’s team. Two passionate women who found each other on the ice and have been inseparable ever since — to the point of considering themselves sisters, hence their team name, the Ice Sisters.
However, their passion for synchronized figure skating goes back much further than the past 20 years. In fact, Annie put on her first skates at the age of 3, then fully committed to synchronized figure skating around the age of 8 and began competing. She admits that the demanding lifestyle sometimes made her question her passion for the sport: “At some point, you ask yourself if you still love it, if you still have the same fire. It takes commitment. When you skate, it’s from 8:30 to 11:30 at night, and then you have to get up the next day for work.” Clearly, the passion is still there, as at the time of writing, Annie and her team had just returned from a provincial championship with a silver medal!
Now it’s Josée’s turn
As for Josée, she started figure skating at 9 years old in Montréal-Nord before discovering synchronized skating almost by chance. “Honestly, I don’t remember why I ended up there, but I loved it right away. First, because I liked being in a group, and second, because I didn’t have the talent to be a solo skater! (laughs) I really did it just for fun; at 12, it was too late [to think of making it a career], but it was enough for me.
Discovering synchro allowed me to skate in a group, and when you’re in a group, you’re stronger in facing challenges. I really fell in love with this sport.” That newfound passion kept her going until she was 25, when she put away her skates to focus on her studies — only to come back stronger than ever in the adult categories. Since then, opportunities haven’t stopped flowing: Canadian championships, senior-level international competitions, trips to Sweden, Finland, France, the United States, Western Canada… On the verge of turning 50, Josée feels truly lucky to still be able to practice her childhood sport at such a high level of competition.
For those who would like to join the Ice Sisters adventure, it’s still possible by purchasing raffle tickets or by sponsoring them. The draw will take place on April 8, 2020.
To be continued…
