Closing in toward the end, the Grand Prix of Figure Skating moved to France, specifically the beautiful city of Grenoble, for the Interationaux de France, this past weekend.
I was especially excited to see this competition, which was skated in the same city where Shining Through’s Winter Games take place.
Grenoble was host of the 1968 Winter Olympics, and seemed like the perfect location for my fictional version. Without giving away any spoilers, I’ll say that one of my favorite scenes has Tabitha and Daniil looking out at this panoramic view.

But Shining Through’s French competition takes place in Paris, where Daniil faces off against his main rival, Tanzo Okuta of Japan. Okuta is rock-star popular in his homeland and even has his own Anime series.
One of my favorite male skaters is Shoma Uno of Japan, whose charismatic performances last season inspired me when I created the character of Okuta. Shoma Uno competed at the Internationaux de France, and while he didn’t skate quite as well as last year, he’s still fun to watch.
https://youtu.be/lLizwb2YRgk
Internationaux de France winners included Javier Fernandez of Spain in men’s, Alina Zagitova of Russia in ladies’, Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov of Russia in Pairs and Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France in ice dance.
Next up is Skate America, Nov. 24- 26. Catch it on the Olympic Channel Nov. 24 and 25, and 26, on NBCSN Nov. 25 and NBC Nov. 26. Check local listing for broadcast times.
Enter a Goodreads #giveaway for a signed print copy of Shining Through! Or, to start reading right now download the ebook from your favorite online retailer:
Amazon | B&N | iTunes Books | Kobo | Google Play Books | Goodreads
 
 
And come back next week for more Romance of Figure Skating!