Lloyd EISLER

Lloyd Eisler began his figure skating pairs career with Lorri Baier and the two of them ended up in 9th place at the 1982 World Figure Skating Championships. He switched partners to Katherina Matousek the following year and finished 10th at the World Championships. The following year they improved to 5th and took the Canadian title in both pairs and fours (alongside Melinda Kunhegyi and Lyndon Johnston), but finished 8th at the 1984 Winter Olympics. They skated together for one more year, winning a bronze medal at the 1985 World Championships, before splitting, at which point Eisler took a two-year hiatus from major competition. He partnered with Isabelle Brasseur in 1987 and they were runners-up at their first Canadian Championship together in 1988, in addition to placing 7th at the World Championships and 9th at the 1988 Winter Olympics. The following year they were 7th once more at the World Championships, but took the Canadian Championships and would never again fail to see the podium at any major tournament. The duo took second place at the 1990 World Championships, but slid to third at their national tournament. They regained the Canadian title the following year and held it through 1994. During that time, they won two bronze medals at the Winter Olympics in 1992 and 1994, as well as two more silver medals (1991 and 1994), one bronze (1992), and one gold (1993) at the World Championships.

Brassuer and Eisler retired from active competition in 1994, but continued their professional relationship in other ways. Along with a woman by the name of Lou-Anne Brosseau, they formed B.B.E. Productions in 1992, which organized charity figure skating events across Canada to benefit the Children’s Wish Foundation. The organization won several awards, put on over 25 shows, and raised more than a quarter of a million dollars until it ceased operating in 2006. They were awarded the Meritorious Service Decoration in 1994 and inducted as members of the Canada Sports Hall of Fame and the Canadian Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1996 and 2000 respectively. In 1996 he helped write the book “Brasseur & Eisler: To Catch a Dream” and later followed it up with “Brasseur & Eisler: The Professional Years”. His personal life began running into trouble in 2006 when he appeared on the reality television program “Skating with Celebrities” with partner and actress Kristy Swanson. The media began focusing on Eisler after he was alleged to have been romantically involved with Swanson while his wife Marcia O’Brien was pregnant in 2005, but Eisler claimed that his relationship did not begin until he and his wife were separated. He was further scrutinized after he was suspended from coaching by Skate Canada later that year for allegedly sending sexual messages to a 15-year-old student. Whatever the case, Swanson and Eisler were married in February of 2009.