Figure skating event dons Oscar night glory

Abu Dhabi, May 01: Hundreds of spectators turned up on Friday to watch the fourth annual figure skating event, ‘A Night at the Oscars’ at the Abu Dhabi Ice Rink at Zayed Sports City.

Two of the night’s performers, brother and sister, Sultan (15) and Rawan (17) Hussein from Abu Dhabi, were amongst the group of figure skaters who paid tribute to Michael Jackson by enacting his famous dance moves on ice, including moonwalking.

The Husseins also formed part of the five-member team on the Matrix performance. The Grade 11 and 12 Canadian students of the British School Al Khubeirat told Khaleej Times prior to the show that they follow a rigorous practice session everyday to prepare them for their performance.

“We practice early, at 5am, regularly,” said the eldest Rawan who started figure skating at eight years old. Sultan followed in her footsteps when he was ten. Both have participated at several shows and competitions including Australia, Canada and the UK.

The night featured 40 youngsters, ages five to 25, from different parts of the world who performed some of the world’s favourite movies on ice including Madagascar, Spiderman, Pirates of the Caribbean and Bollywood.

–Agencies