Benoît Richaud on Shaidorov's future, Denis Ten and coaching 16 skaters at once

- This season you are working with 16 figure skaters from 13 different countries. Is that a record? How is it even possible to keep so many programs, personalities, and goals in your head at the same time?

I believe it is a record, because I do not think it was like that in the past, but I am not sure about that.

How do I do it? I work every day, nonstop. Skating is my life. I think I spend a lot of time on the ice, and that is why I am able to do so much. And if I do so much, let’s not forget, it is also because skaters trust my work. If they did not trust my work, they would not work with me.

So of course it is about me, but it is also very much about the skater. And I guess the skater must find something different in me. And that is probably why they want to work with me.

What is more difficult - creating a program or emotionally “switching” between athletes from different cultures within the same hour? 

There is nothing very difficult for me, actually. What I am doing, I feel I was born to do. So anything that is connected to my skaters is very natural, very organic for me to do. And I feel very blessed to be able to feel all of those emotions, to be around them, and to create so many programs. It’s a blessing from God.

Is there a risk of an internal conflict when your own students compete against each other?

First of all, all of my skaters are friends. It is something people probably do not realize, but they are all friends. Making choreography is about individuality. It is not like teaching proper technique. Every skater has his own way of jumping. Every skater has his own way of dancing and moving, and in the end, the best will win.

It’s hard for me to let something like that happen, and I will not tolerate jealousy or bad behavior from my skaters. I think it works well because the skaters know I give everything to all of them.

And if there will be a question from them, then I don’t think they will just stop working with me. I believe that because they see I give not even 100%, but 200%, they know there is nothing to be worried about.

You see, at the main event I have three boys in the top 10, and they are friends. They practice together, they hang out together, and they all feel fine. Also, let us not forget that figure skating is a very small community. There are not many of us. I also think that is one of the reasons why.

Your programs are often described as “cinema on ice.” What matters more to you - technique or dramaturgy?

No, I mean, we are doing a sport, and I think it is important that we should not forget that. And you could see Shaidorov, who became Olympic champion, it was mainly because of his jumping ability, not because of his components.

So we are doing a sport, and I think it is job to find the right balance. I see a jump as choreography. For me, a jump is a piece of art, and a spin is the same. So I think it is really a mix of everything and finding a way to incorporate the jumps so they feel like they are totally part of the choreography.

You mentioned Mikhail Shaidorov’s program. The structure, musical choice, and dramaturgy seem very specific to his performance. Some might say this was one of the artistic secrets behind his victory. What do you think? What was the main component for you?

No, I think Shaidorov won because he was the guy who performs the best. I think he has amazing talent. He is a very gifted skater. He has an amazing technique, very clean, very beautiful jumps. He has a very nice line and a very beautiful body.

And if I go more into my part of the job, I think he is a skater in progress. It means that I don’t think he still haven’t found his own style, or who he is on the ice. And I think he can actually progress a lot.

What I want to say is that I know he is already Olympic champion right now with his skating, but I have the feeling that his potential is far more in front of him.

So I am very curious to see how we are going to develop in the near future, because I think there is really something special about this skater.

- Your collaboration with Kazakh figure skater Denis Ten became an important chapter in your career. What was he like as an artist on the ice?

- Well, Denis Ten was a special person, not like everyone else. He was very different. It’s the way he talked, the words he chose, the way he looked at people. There was something very poetic and almost romantic about him. I always had the feeling that Denis was not from this world. He belonged somewhere else. There was something very special about him.

Working with him, when he asked me, was a gift for me. I have known Denis since we were skating together in Junior Grand Prix. I have pictures with him from when we did Junior Grand Prix together and when we talked. Then he asked me to choreograph for him. He was just a gift.

And I think what we did together, people did not really see that program, but this program was like a masterpiece. It is one of my best programs, and not many people saw it. He was an incredible mover.

It is actually funny, because Adam Siao Him Fa reminds me a lot of Denis Ten. I can see Denis Ten’s inspiration inside Adam Siao Him Fa. And a lot of people told me that they feel the way Adam moves is in many ways similar to Denis Ten. They also have a bit of the same kind of body type. So it is very interesting to think about that.

- If you were creating a program today for a Kazakh figure skater, what would you want to emphasize - national identity or a universal style?

If I will work with a Kazakh skater, I would just do what God wants me to do. What I mean is that I always work in a way that the feeling comes to me. Then I decide and discuss with the skater, and together we find what God wants us to do.

If it is something very traditional, then I will do it. And if it is more universal, I will also do that. But it will always be very much connected to who they are. I always try to go to the truth and find the real personality of my skater. At the end of the day, they are young. They are not very mature. Skaters are all very young. Maturity and age help you to be more calm, to be more yourself, and most importantly, to accept who you are, with your weaknesses and your strengths. That is what I would try to do if I were working with them.

To what extent has figure skating today become a global art form rather than a national sport?

I think figure skating is going, in my view, in a good direction. There is a switch since three years, and the ISU wants to change the system to make things different. So I believe we are switching in a very good direction, making it very athletic while also developing much more the art part of our sport.

I am very positive, I have to say, about where figure skating is going. There were many years when we were kind of lost, but I think now there is a new beginning in a way.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that French choreographer and figure skating coach Benoît Richaud unexpectedly became one of the most talked about figures of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.