Evelien’s dreams come true on ice

EVELIEN Ballantine is living life according to her motto of always following your dreams. Not only is she a flautist and member of the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra, but she is passionate about figure skating, an acitivity she only took up later in her life.

Evelien, who is Dutch, won an audition to join the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1990, and came to Durban. “I have always followed my dreams and becoming a flautist and moving to South Africa has been one of them,” she said.

Evelien met her husband, Chris, a professor of music at UKZN, within the first three weeks of her arrival in Durban.

“He saw this new blonde flautist and was determined to meet me!” laughed Evelien. She said she and Chris have two daughters, one who is following in her mom’s footsteps and has moved to London with the hopes of studying drama and the arts, and the other, who is planning on studying film.

It was her daughters who first interested her in figure skating. She spent many hours waiting for them to finish skating, but it was only when she was 53 years old that she decided to venture out on the ice herself. “One is never too old to learn,” she says laughing.

“I knew what a demanding sport it was and one day I decided, ‘it’s my turn’! It’s so easy for parents to say their children should try harder, but when you do it yourself, you realise how difficult it really is. I never had a forceful attitude with my girls when it came to their skating. It is an incredibly hard, but beautifully fascinating and challenging sport. When I get on the ice, I focus, there’s no time to think about my worries, I’m free on the ice,” she said.

Evelien met her coach, Wendy Van Der Hammen, at an adults’ skating club four years ago. “She’s amazing! My other coach, Dean Fox, has different strengths and helps me a lot. I skate for three hours every day except on the weekends,” she said.

The past four years has seen Evelien exell beyond her wildest dreams. In November 2016, she won her division in the Ethekweni Metro Figure Skating Championships for the fourth consecutive year. Since embarking on the competitive side of the spart, she has won practically every competition she has ever entered. Her titles, not just in solo skating, but also in ice dancing with partner David-Trevor Roberts, include KZN Provincial Champion 2013 to 2016 and KZN Inter-provincial champion 2013, 2015 and 2016.

Evelien’s competition wins extend beyond KwaZulu-Natal. In September 2016, she won the Gauteng inter-provincial competition and a month later went on to win the Cape Town inter-provincial competition held at Grandwest Ice Arena, beating skaters many years her junior.

“We’re lucky to have the new big rink in Durban to use. The ice is so smooth it is like a mirror. It has also attracted a lot of new coaches. A Russian coach arrived recently and gave me advice when I was training,” said Evelien.

Evelien also teaches beginner skaters in Amanzimtoti, which she said is something she loves to do.

For information, visit Toti Seals Figure Skating Club and Durban Junior Ice Skating Club on Facebook.