Is your sister?

Reuters Sinéad and John Kerr at the European Figure Skating Championships in January in Tallinn, Estonia. Ice dance requires often to provide partner sizzle credible on ice.

Vancouver, British Columbia-when Alexandra Zaretsky, to the ice in the Olympic ice dance competition Friday, you'll deeply in your partner's eyes look, how the "Tango Romantica." skate

But not too deep. This is because your partner is your brother, 26-year-old Roman Zaretsky. "We try to find ways through the kind of look - or look a little up, or a little sideways," says Mrs Zaretsky. "Hey, you gotta be."

1: 36 Some ice skating pairs must pretend attraction more so than andere-- at least for those that are connected. WSJ's Geoffrey Fowler speaks four couples with Kelsey Hubbard of sibling skaters to "sizzle which' on the ice.

You are not the only ice dancers in this particular cucumber. Four of 23 ice dancing couples in competition at the Vancouver games are brother and sister. And this year, you are all required to complete a portion of the competition by forbidden dance.

Like tango with your brothers and sisters? "We get this question much," says Israeli woman Zaretsky - how all of the children compete.

AFP/Getty Images Cathy Reed and Chris Reed from Japan perform during the mandatory ice dance event 2009 the World Championship.

Ice dancing, probably the most artistic of any Olympic sport, requires a certain sizzle credible on the ice to capture a medal. "Training is a sport, but the performance is an art" Sinead Kerr says 31 of the United Kingdom, dancing with your brother John.

Figure skating and ballroom dancing combines elements of ice dancing 1976 has been added to the games. Partner remain close to each other during the routine to do rotations as a team during hand in hand. Ice dancers have run three times: a compulsory dance where all teams do the same movements and use the same music (this time it's "Tango Romantica"), a two-minute original dance on a set topic (this year it is folk/country) and select a four-minute free dance of team.

Dancers learn ice to be actors of the species. "Our coach told us, imagine, someone's head, is", says Chris Reed, 20, who dances with his sister Cathy for Japan. "It's all an act."

Getty Images pictures Christina and William Beier Championships run 2010 during the free dance to the German figure skating.

Mr. Reed watches videos of its own performance and uses reflections on practice, his movements and even his facial expressions. His Tango look "E. but adorable,", says Ms. Reed who is 22.

Mr Kerr, 29, says that dancing with his sister he is prevented from means to develop romantic themes in performance. (He says its Tango more like a battle between two people will be.)

"On the ice, we think not of each other as brother and sister," he adds.

Romance also excluded forces to more creativity and be of different types of roles on the ice, says he. In 2008 played a routine dressed as space aliens. In the Vancouver games are a segment to Johnny Cash's with Ms. Kerr as truck drivers and Mr Kerr as a Hitchhiker dressed dance, "I've been everywhere". You will be she tells story of a driver who receives a driver and then the two Exchange stories about your adventures.

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Even Nonsiblings can have a hard time learning to express all sizzle while spiders and lift their partners turn off the ground at high speeds.

"Sometimes you need remote these kinds of feelings, like you are in love with her," American skater says ice was Evan Bates, Emily Samuelson - to which he is not related - for 10 years dance with his partner. Still says "it's so hard to develop if you 10 and 11 years old, and extrapolated from girls," Mr. Bates.

All ice dance are strange relations, say athletes because you spend hours intensive include with the same person when attempting to maintain a professional partnership. Sharing a family bond can smooth over disagreements over music, practice or career path. It is proven to work above: the games of 1992, the French brother and sister team Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay won silver.

Associated press novel and Alexandra Zaretsky at the European Figure Skating Championships.

Sibling ice dancing is more common than you think. Noriko Reed, the mother of Chris and Cathy, says it was not your idea to pair your son and daughter. "It was simply together lucky ice dance coach you," she said. A third Reed of sibling, Allison, is also competing in the ice dance in Vancouver for the Georgian team with Otar Japaridze.

Brothers and sisters can certainly fight. "Other couples also fight, but the way you it do is different," says German skater Christina Beier 25 that competes with your brother William, 27. "We know to say exactly what you have, if you want the others hurt."

After an injury you was even an attempt to dance last season with new partners. "With others, it was harder," says Mrs. Beier. "It is the naturally we move together." "When we came back together, it was never divided as we."

For a dance in Vancouver, you will be relationship your own brother and sister - starting with skating together as kids, then stretch their decay and reunion. "This is our history, so it is easier to say," says Mrs. Beier.

Write toGeoffrey A. Fowler at geoffrey.fowler@wsj.com

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