Ola Pedro

Pierre Carmin, who passed away in October, will always remain one of the most charismatic and talented skiers and coaches in our sport. As a skier, the Frenchman will be remembered as a three-time European champion, the only person to do so in each event: 1986 trick, 1987 slalom, and 1988 jump. Let’s take a look back and remember his incredible achievements

Pierre, at 17 years old, led the overall competition of the French championships in Saint Pardoux, ahead of Gilles Cambray, despite Cambray jumping two meters further to win the jump event. Pierre placed second in tricks behind Patrice Martin. In 1978, Pierre competed as a Junior in the European Championships, which took place in Jyvaskyla, Finland, a rough site dominated by rain and wind. Thanks to three bronze medals in all three events, and the top performance in the slalom finals with a score of 2@13m, Pierre won the overall title. Young, fearless, and confident, he finished his season perfectly by winning two medals during Open Europeans in Temple-sur-Lot.

In 1979, Pierre gave solid performances in Toronto, allowing him to finish in 4th place in two events. Holding onto gold medals is a heavy burden, but in this world-ranking context, this simply demonstrates the skier’s potential. Pierre was a young skier with strong skills, holding his spot right behind World Dominators: Jeff McClintock (Canada), Carlos Suarez (Venezuela) and Mike Hazelwood (UK).

In the 1980's, Pierre was part of the French Team, which included another skilled and combative skier: Tanguy Benet. The two young men embraced life with no restrictions. Hottempered, ambitious, and solid, Pierre was above all, a competitor. This time, he equaled the French slalom record belonging to Jean Michel Jamin with 5@11,25m (38off), scored 8130 points in tricks, and jumped to a French record with 53,30m. His ambition to join the world elite was justified. Despite his talent, things were not as easy as they looked. Through fractures, injuries, and periods of doubt, Pierre remained confident, as if a good slap from time to time sparked him to resume training even more seriously. In 1984 Milan, Pierre won the bronze medal in front of Battleday and directly behind Mapple and Kjellander. That same year, he took the French Title in slalom against Patrice Martin. Although during this year, the world record was broken three times in a row during the McCormick Cup (Bob LaPoint 3,5@10,75m, Mapple 4@10,75m and Kris LaPoint 4,5@10,75m), everybody waited for Pierre on this rope length, along with his competitor and friend, American Carl Roberge.

In England, Pierre took home many medals! He became the European champion in tricks with massive risk-taking in terrible weather conditions. He earned the silver medal in jump and overall, behind the local champion, Mike Hazelwood. Pierre missed the overall medal by only 30cm. He earned the bronze medal in slalom to complete his portfolio. Pierre was on fire!

Pierre repeated in 1987 with a second European title: this time in slalom! He was the only skier in the tournament to reach 11,25m (3buoys), ahead of Bettosini (Switzerland), Cavanna (Italy) and Martin (France). Pierre earned the bronze medal in jump and silver medal in overall, behind Andrea Alessi (AKA Bubu). The two skiers would become close friends and training partners.

“When you feel you’re not going down, that’s when you fly far!”

In London, 1988, Pierre became the first European Jump Champion, 23 years after Jean Marie Muller in 1959 in Milan. Pierre was at the top of his game: 10 medals in 3 years, with 3 gold medals in 3 different events. Ladies and gentlemen, only you can imagine who might be the next french skier who can reach that performance…

At the end of his professional career, Pierre endured many jump crashes. The physical wear and tear slowly pushed him towards slalom specialization. He remained successful on the Continental Waterski Tour. His image slightly changed over the years and his coaching status becomes indisputable. Young talents and rising stars trained with Pierre, including Anthony Ahnine, Mathieu Boucher, Dimitri Gamzukoff, and Nancy Chardin, not to mention the first pro wakeboarder, Rodolphe Win-Thung, and his great friend Eric Bacos. Pierre launched his own ski school next to Paris: Ski West. On the water with Pierre, you were never bored!

Sebastien Cans authored this tribute; Gregoire Desfond translated it into English. It was edited with permission for publication in the Journal.