At six foot three, Dylan Archambault is taller than your average skater. It's both a blessing and a curse.
The height he gets with his triple jumps is amazing, but the strength it takes to rotate his body for three revolutions is exhausting resulting in more than an average amount of injuries.
In the year prior to the 2010 nationals he sustained two serious ankle sprains, one while skating at the Mariposa Skating Club in Barrie, Ont. The third sprain which accompanied a torn Achilles tendon was suffered two days before he was to skate at the B.C. qualifying sectional competition which resulted in him not being able to compete at all last year.
"I was definitely at a crossroads with skating. I was 18 at the time and concerned about how many more injuries I could sustain," said the 19-year-old Archambault, a lifelong Richmondite.
"At the end of the day I just couldn't stay off the ice so I bought a new pair of skates, changed up my training routine with less ice time and more gym time and spent some time with a great sports psychologist."
Archambault is coached by Kelly Champagne and Bruno Delmaestro at the Coquitlam Skating Club.
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