Olympic gold medallists Sale, Pelletier divorce

Discussion in 'Great Skate Debate' started by Sylvia, Jun 4, 2010.

  1. lise

    lise Well-Known Member

    Honestly, I think they are both at fault.

    David is not known for fidelity; he cheated on his first wife with Jamie and is known to many people as controlling. I have a feeling that he controlled everything in his professional and home life. I knew instinctively in 2002 that if they were to get married, it would not work unless David would get help with his issues.

    Jamie is no saint either, but David left her close to 2 years ago. i think she tried to make it work for Jesse's sake, but if you look at the timing, Jesse was 6 months old when they separated and it's also the same time David started solo projects helping Annie Barabe with her skaters. By the time Battle of the Blades started, it was over. If David is with Tessa, it would explain why the Olympics sealed the divorce.

    Do I condone affairs? Not at all, but they are both to blame and they will have a lot to explain to Jesse when he grows up. I do have an inkling that their on-ice partnership will disolve soon as I don't see them able to work together anymore as evidenced at CSOI.
  2. Winnipeg

    Winnipeg Well-Known Member

    How do we know he wasn't already separated from his wife? (Craig that is)
  3. ildah

    ildah New Member

    You are right. A lot is being inferred. If they were separated since early 2009, Jessie was a year and a half old. We don't know if David left her, or if the bombshell hit their marriage and she asked him to leave. I still think that David's wandering was a red flag and a sign of the stress in the marriage after the baby, not a desire to leave and get a divorce. If he truly didn't want her anymore and wanted out of the marriage, then that humiliation and stress would have been awful for her. Even if it was "just" affairs, in the small and incestuous skating world it would also have been humiliating and devastating for jamie, as it would for any normal woman.

    I know they had to hold it together for their Olympics contract and skating contracts, but my gut still tells me that they were trying to reconcile and had not thrown in the towel in Sept-Dec 2009. But now that I see that so much of the personas was 'acting' you wonder what was real.

    I remember hearing that following 9/11 about a year later there were a huge number of sudden divorces and split ups in the NY fire department. In every case, the man left his wife/kids for one of the 9/11 firefighter widows that he had been connected to as a kind of surrogate father/mentor. The NYFD long had a policy when a firefighter died of making another firefighter take over to make sure the family was OK. I remember finding it strange that widows who had just recently been devastated by the loss of their husbands and experienced terrible grief, didn't put themselves in the shoes of the wives of the living firemen who left them for these same widows.

    Yes, there is a point to my story. Whatever her behavior now, it looks like Jamie and David too had a very stressful 2009. Now another woman, married for many years and the mother of 3 teenagers is going through that pain thanks in part to her husbands new 'friend'. She and her kids visited the set of battle of the blades and the whole Simpson family went out to dinner including Jamie and David to celebrate. No, Craig simpson was not separated. He just didn't see the locamotive coming along the train tracks.

    If you look at Jamie at the bell gala in October, there was a woman who had done a complete turnaround from the way she looked the last 2 years and had decided to 1) become as desireable as possible to win back her husband or to get back at her husband 2) had made a goal to move on and find herself someone new, if at all possible.

    If battle of the blades had not happened last fall, they would not be getting a divorce, I'm sure of it. They might be still struggling to get the trust back and working on things, but jamie saw a way forward where she wouldn't be alone and she took it.

    I heard Craig simpson on the fan 590 about 3 weeks ago and at the interview they asked him about a possible appearance on this years battle of the blades or maybe as a judge, and he was very vague and closed off the subject really quickly by saying somethng like 'no I've put those skates away in the attic that's finished' but boy oh boy could you ever tell he wanted to get off that subject as soon as possible. He must know hes going to look like a laughing stock from some reality show instead of a hero who earned a pile of money for a worthwhile charity.
  4. skatesindreams

    skatesindreams Well-Known Member

    We don't know the true circumstances.
    It's none of our business.
    smurfy and (deleted member) like this.
  5. Winnipeg

    Winnipeg Well-Known Member

    True, but then this entire post should be gone (and many others on this site!:rolleyes::D:D:p:drama:
  6. Rex

    Rex Well-Known Member

    I don't mind. Of course their private conversations regarding their breakup are private, but all this "it's none of our business" bunk makes me :lol:. I wanna hear more speculation. And dish.
  7. The Observer

    The Observer New Member

    I thought David had improved his ability to handle his outbursts, temper and attitude a number of years ago. I remember all those interviews with him and Richard Gauthier where they talked about how difficult David was to work with in the early years and how he would blow up all the time but that training with Richard got him to become much more focused on positive thinking and becoming less angry and impatient.

    But perhaps it is still a work in progress since we all know it can take us many years to change our behavior and make changes in our lives. At the very least, it appears that David is still struggling with maintaining a long-term relationship/marriage. Going through 2 marriages by the time you are only 35 is definitely an indication that some more self-exploration would be a good idea.
    alilou and (deleted member) like this.
  8. judgejudy27

    judgejudy27 Well-Known Member

    I suspect if their relationship was not so good at the time (and it sounds like it wasnt) she was purposely trying to needle him and go out of her way to mock him. As much as David's character and actions could be questioned, I felt sorry for him. Jamie was completely disrespectful and out of line with many of her on air comments, then again that seems to be nothing new for her.

    She is after all an Olympic Gold medalist, rich, and got a lucrative competitive and touring life for a decade because of him, regardless how their marriage was. If it wasnt for him she would still probably be working at a coffee shop or whatever it was she was doing. Of course he owes her alot too, just saying....
  9. danceronice

    danceronice Corgi Wrangler

    Her name's not Stephenie Meyer or Bella Swan, is it?

    [Runs and hides from the Twihards, but really, you just summed up Edward/Bella in a nutshell and why many of us find the books far more creepy than romantic. I'd be a constant nervous wreck with a "partner" like that.]

    Regarding Hao Zhang--snipey or not, I heard from someone the guy can press-life other MALE pair skaters...I can't blame Jamie for saying it and really, David couldn't have argued he could lift her like that. I can't think of many male pair skaters who have the power the Chinese men do.

    If we want a tough 'marriage counsellor', though, I suggest Dennis Leary's therapy program: Shut the Fcuk Up. "I'm just not happy, I'm just not happy..." "Shut the fcuk up! Happieness is short, you eat the cookie, you come, you smoke the cigarette, it goes away. I'm just not happy..." No one is happy all the time, no one feels romantically super in love with their partner all the time. Life is not about feeling happy all the time, 24/7, and getting along perfectly. Every minor disagreement and annoyance is not World War II, though with some relationships these days it seems to be. More partners of both genders might keep their pants zipped and their skirts down if they'd just accept that it's not ALWAYS gonna feel like the honeymoon, get over it.
  10. Winnipeg

    Winnipeg Well-Known Member

    I just don't see what Tessa sees in him..............egad already. She could do so much better .............
    maggylyn and (deleted member) like this.
  11. pani

    pani Well-Known Member

    Did you saw them together?
  12. tabbie

    tabbie New Member

    I remember after Dean married Trenary (Wife # 2 ) he was quoted as saying something like "I don't think I could ever do anything to hurt (emotionally, I assume) her". At the time I thought it was an interesting quote--that he would feel the need to comment on what he wouldn't do with Trenary. They are divorced now. Don't know if Dean is on to wife # 3 yet.

    Pelletier (known for his controlling attitude and angry outbursts, like Dean) has probably turned some of this around, but he may be the type who gets caught up in the excitement of a new, fresh, "clean slate" kind of relationship; he may be less able to hold it together over time.

    Before you all :angryfire me, please relax. I have no more idea about what goes on in Pelletier's or Dean's mind than I know what goes on in the Queen of England's mind. It's just a thought. True, you could accuse me of playing armchair analyst, and so I am!

    PS I have no thoughts, wise or otherwise, about Jamie's role in the breakup, or Craig Simpson's apparent infidelity.
  13. Pratfall

    Pratfall Active Member

    :( I hope the Tessa rumour turns out not to be true.. I have a lot of faith in Tessa's being sensible. Actually , I was raising my eyebrows a bit over some other young skater ( well , much younger than David ) in the 2009 season , but I'm not adding any more names here...I have no access to behind the scenes info , but there were a couple of moments caught on TV that seemed to catch an intense level of energy..some intriguing body language between the two ( at the time, it just seemed a bit out of place )...I hope neither is true..but would have thought the Non-Tessa possibility more likely..:shuffle:
  14. Sk8tn

    Sk8tn Member

    Does anyone remember the picture of Steve Hartsell doing a press lift with Aaron Parchem? I remember one person commenting that Parchem had good posture and remembered to point his toes at the top of that lift.:D
  15. leafygreens

    leafygreens Well-Known Member

    Tessa is so Virtue-ous it would be hilarious to have her caught up with a married man... Hopefully she's smart enough to realize that when you lay with dogs, you get up with fleas. But young women caught up in scandalous relationships think he'd never do the same to her... :violin:
  16. smileyskate

    smileyskate New Member

    Hopefully the Tessa rumour is just that. It is possible (esp. given the age and life-experience differences) that he was just being a friendly big brother type. Wasn't it stated someplace that he was acting as some sort of mentor to V/M during the Olympics?
    This is kind of an issue the workplace as well. If a female is seen spending time with a male, or vice-versa it's assumed that there is "more to the story" which may not be the case. (Yes, I do know that it can be slippery slope for both parties, but some look up to people with more experience to be mentor like, and that is it).
  17. overedge

    overedge Well-Known Member

    Since Dean was married previously, maybe his comment was in the context of what he had learned from his previous relationship. I don't think you can infer from this remark that he had thought of hurting Trenary but decided not to.
  18. Wyliefan

    Wyliefan Well-Known Member

    Hear, hear.
  19. Perky Shae Lynn

    Perky Shae Lynn Well-Known Member

    The "married" man has been separated for 19 months. The alleged relationship started about a year ago. You do the math. :rolleyes:
  20. Japanfan

    Japanfan Well-Known Member

    ildah, you say all this if you know for that it is true for a fact. Is that so?

    This thread has assumed a life of its own. We have a difficult marriage, a story is painted of a philandering husband now involved with a ice dancer and a hurt ex-wife who participated in the destruction of a happy family.

    Do we know all this to be true or are we just feeding the fires of gossip?
  21. lclevers

    lclevers New Member

    Jaime and David have boldly stated in the past that "their hearts beat as one." I never believed it, yes they were good skaters, but in my opinion not the best. Does anyone remember which skating couple fans used to say this about? If you think about it these two skating teams accomplished winning Olympic Gold Medals, they both eventually married, had children, and skated professionally. Gordeeva and Grinkov's partnership lasted until Sergei's death, they had been together for 13 years and were still madly in love. They faced the same hardships and had to work just as hard as the other skating teams; even harder when they reinstated as amatuers in 1993. Will there ever be another G & G? They truly lived a fairytale life that had a terrible ending. Can you imagine where G & G would be today if Sergei was still alive? I know there are other skating teams that have married and are still together but their lives weren't portrayed as fairytales. I guess if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
  22. The Observer

    The Observer New Member

    I agree. And one of the reasons the public thought they were a fairy-tale couple is because it served the interest of the Canadian sports media to portray them that way. They wanted a perfect, fairy-tale couple to create a positive image and interest in Canadian pairs skating and to attract non-skating fans to the sport.

    No couple is perfect or lives a fairy-tale life or a perfect love story, and yet that is what many of the sports columnists used to write about Sale & Pelletier. Terry Jones is still doing it in one of his columns from earlier this month, saying it is such a tragedy that this love story didn't have a better ending etc. etc.
  23. Rafter

    Rafter Well-Known Member

    David Pelletier had his biggest and worst public outburst at Canadians in 2002, when Richard Gauthier was no longer in the picture (they were coached by Jan Ullmark by then). Guys like this do not change overnight.
  24. Twilight1

    Twilight1 Well-Known Member

    You are joking right? If my mom kept her mouth shut, she would have ended up an alcoholic in the loony bin...and my dad not much better. Some marriages neeeeed to split for the sanity and well being of all involved.
  25. Rex

    Rex Well-Known Member

    I can see...but it is still disappointing. :fragile:
  26. tabbie

    tabbie New Member

    Thanks, I did mean it as you have said it. When I heard him say that about Jill, I thought that he had probably done things he regretted in his earlier relationships, and he did not think that he would repeat those mistakes. Perhaps David Pelletier goes into new relationships thinking that he won't repeat earlier mistakes. Both Dean and Pelletier have shown themselves to be controlling and somewhat volatile so I do compare this two in this very specific way. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't respect their talents or wish them well. It doesn't mean that their partners bear no responsibility in a break-up. But my guess is that their partners have found them difficult to love at times.

    But I don't really know...it's just an observation, armchair analysis. If Dr. Phil can do it, why can't I?
  27. ildah

    ildah New Member

    David was at the nat'l ballet of canada's new production of Onegin 2 nights ago as Kurt Brownings guest. It was Sonia's 20th anniversary with the Nat Ballet. Huge audience in spite of all the G20 media fearmongering. David is very good looking in person. Looks like he's visiting Southern Ontario for a little while ;) He looked happy.
  28. Tinami Amori

    Tinami Amori Well-Known Member

    I know freedom of speach and all..... and this is a "saying"..... But nowdays most dogs don't have fleas if properly cared for.... And there is no need to drag innocent animals into human ugliness, and attract "negative attention" to animals....

    In this economy it's hard enough to get dogs adopted from the shelters..... and it is absolutely not necessary to portray dogs in a negative light in order to discuss a human behavior. :dog: (especially something as trivial as two youngsters sleeping together).

    Dogs rule! :dog:
  29. Jenny

    Jenny From the Bloc

    Off topic, but Jeff Buttle was also there, although not sitting with Kurt's friends and family.
  30. WildRose

    WildRose Well-Known Member

    Here's a link to a photo that someone posted on Twitter:
    LynnW and (deleted member) like this.