11 Facts About Gwendal Peizerat

Gwendal Peizerat was born on 21 April 1972 and is a French former competitive ice dancer.

Gwendal Peizerat started skating at age four when he and his sister followed their parents to the ice rink.

Gwendal Peizerat was coached by Muriel Boucher-Zazoui since the age of six and throughout his entire career.

Gwendal Peizerat settled in France, focusing intensely on skating and insisting her partner, who was dividing his time between skating and his education, be equally focused on their career.

Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat were selected for the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer but her French citizenship was granted a few weeks too late.

Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat won the 1998 Olympic bronze medal and 1998 and 1999 World silver medals behind Anjelika Krylova and Oleg Ovsyannikov.

The Russians retired due to injury and Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat then developed a rivalry with the Italians Barbara Fusar-Poli and Maurizio Margaglio.

Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat continued to use the move in all of their free dances after 1998; figure skating writer and historian Ellyn Kestnbaum speculates that since they finished first or second in every competition during that period, they were not penalized for it, even though other dance teams might have used it as a gimmick rather than as an expression of their skating skills or an interpretation of their music.

In 2001, Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat won European and World silver behind the Italians but surged past them in 2002 to reclaim their European title and become the Olympic Champions.

Gwendal Peizerat was named a Chevalier of the National Order of Merit in 1998 and a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 2003.

In 2010, Gwendal Peizerat was elected regional councillor on the list of the Socialist Party in the Rhone Alpes region and was appointed Councillor Delegate in charge of sports in the Regional Executive headed by Jean-Jack Queyranne.