Haiti on Ice show finally on

A definite challenge for Haiti event organizers, Haiti on Ice. A chance meeting at a music festival one year ago brought about one of the few happy spots in Haiti's recent history. From their encounter, tourism minister, Stephanie Villedrouin planted a seed into the head of her new acquaintance, Super Canal Prod. rep, Francois Yrius, and nurtured the idea into fruition. While it was slow to yield, with many postponements and other obstacles, the image of a basketball stadium in Port-au-Prince Haiti being a spot suitable for ice staking to hold Haiti on Ice show, was this year made real.

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The first challenge for Haiti on Ice show was changing people's mindsets. When Minister Villedrouin first suggested the plan, Yrius had reservations as to the likelihood of it being possible because, well... Haiti is hot! Then came the thought of how much such a venture would cost, a concern exacerbated by the tenuous infrastructure left after years of damage caused by natural disasters, like the 2010 earthquake, and neglect.

For various reasons, mainly though because the ice just refused to stay frozen under the battering ram that is the Caribbean Sun, the Haiti on Ice show was cancelled over twelve times, to the advantage and enjoyment of the media. It was soon realized that the plans would have to be amended to suit the particular set of circumstances present in Haiti, and the plan to host the event outdoors was scrapped. The move indoors, and the besting of each successive obstacle including further costs and a hurricane, allowed the dream to finally be realized and the naysayers silenced. Haiti on Ice opened with skaters from as far away as Russia, France, and Germany and was witness to the skating of an Olympian, Britain's Penny Coomes.

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Read more: Ice Skating, Figure Skating, Haiti on Ice, Entertainment

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