Can Evan Lysacek Make Male Figure Skating Cool?

There’s a battle going on for the future of male figure skating, and the powers-that-be really hope Evan Lysacek wins it. In one corner there’s Johnny Weir, the flamboyant performer who once posed for BlackBook in a sarong and high heels. In the other, there’s Lysacek, a skater so technical he’s almost robotic. He’s “a little less Nutcracker, a lot more Tony Hawk,” writes Emma Rosenblum in New York.

Weir once quipped that if Lysacek “doesn’t want to skate to music that’s pretty and wear a pretty costume, then go Rollerblade or skateboard.” But figure skating’s power brokers think they can bring in better endorsement deals if Lysacek can make the sport seem more masculine. But they also like the drama of the Weir-Lysacek feud. “They’ve sort of pitted me and Evan against each other like Britney and Christina,” says Weir. “I’m Christina, of course.” (More figure skating stories.)