Personal life

Born on April 7, 1971 in West Berlin, Victor Kraatz grew up in Switzerland. At age 15, he moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Kraatz married Finnish ice dancer Maikki Uotila on June 19, 2004 in Helsinki, Finland. They have two sons - Oliver, born September 14, 2006 in North Vancouver, British Columbia; and Henry, born on July 10, 2010.

Career

Kraatz began to skate in 1980. In Switzerland, former pair skaters Mona and Peter Szabo taught him basic skills. His first ice dancing partner was Analisa Beltrami of Switzerland.

After his move to Canada, Kraatz was coached by Joanne Sloman in Vancouver. In the early 1990s, he switched to Eric Gillies and Josee Picard in Montreal. He had a partnership with Taryn O'Neill.

Partnership with Bourne

On April 20, 1991, Kraatz began skating with Shae-Lynn Bourne, who had been a pair skater until that time. Bourne tried out with him in Boucherville, Quebec on the suggestion of a coach, Paul Wirtz.

During their career, Bourne/Kraatz were coached at various times by Tatiana Tarasova, Natalia Dubova, Uschi Keszler, Marina Klimova and Sergei Ponomarenko, and Nikolai Morozov. For the 1997-98 season, their free dance was modeled after Riverdance, with footwork instruction provided by Riverdance lead dancer Colin Dunne. Bourne/Kraatz became known for their deep edges and soft knees. They were credited with perfecting and popularizing the hydroblading technique.

Bourne/Kraatz missed the 2000 Four Continents and 2000 World Championships due to Bourne's knee surgery. In spring 2000, they changed coaches, moving to Tatiana Tarasova and Nikolai Morozov in Newington, Connecticut.

Bourne/Kraatz withdrew from their 2002 Grand Prix events due to Bourne's injury. They won their tenth Canadian national title and their third Four Continents title. Bourne/Kraatz went on to become the first World champions in ice dancing from North America, winning gold at the 2003 World Championships in Washington, D.C. They retired from competition at the end of the season.

On October 21, 2003, they announced the end of their partnership; while Bourne enjoyed show skating, Kraatz said he wanted "to experiment with other things and follow up on other dreams that I have". In January 2007, they were inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame.

Kraatz represented CPA Boucherville in Boucherville, Quebec.

Later career

After retiring from skating, Kraatz studied marketing and began working at a marketing agency in Yaletown, British Columbia.

In 2005, Kraatz joined the B.C. Centre of Excellence. He went on to coach Allie Hann-McCurdy / Michael Coreno, Carolina Hermann / Daniel Hermann, and Danielle O'Brien / Gregory Merriman. In the winter of 2012-13 season, he switched to coaching hockey players.

Programs

(with Bourne)

Season	Original dance	Free dance
2002-2003	Frühlingsstimmen, op. 410 Unter Donner und Blitz, op. 324	Adagio of the 21st Century
2001-2002	Girlfight Cell Block Tango	Billie Jean In the Closet Smile Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' Don't Stop Til You Get Enough
2000-2001	Jumpin' Jack Hey Big Spender Jumpin' Jack	March With Me

Results

(with Bourne)

GP: Part of Champions Series from 1995-96 season, renamed Grand Prix series in 1998-99

International
Event	92-93	93-94	94-95	95-96	96-97	97-98	98-99	99-00	00-01	01-02	02-03
Olympics		10th				4th				4th
Worlds	14th	6th	4th	3rd	3rd	3rd	3rd		4th	2nd	1st
Four Continents							1st		1st		1st
Final					4th	1st	2nd		5th	1st
Cup of Russia								2nd
Lalique										2nd
Nations/Spark.		5th			2nd		2nd		3rd
NHK Trophy				2nd		2nd	1st
Skate America									3rd
Skate Canada	6th	3rd	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st			1st
Nebelhorn Trophy	1st
National
Canadian Champ.	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st		1st	1st	1st

[ Source: Wikipedia ]