| Hernandez Girouard in 2014 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | |
| Born | January 29, 1975 Mexico City, Mexico |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Indoor skydiving |
Event | Freestyle |
| Coached by | Mikhail Razomazov, Tamara Koyn |
Lise Hernandez Girouard (born January 29, 1975) is a Mexican-Canadian indoor skydiving competitor. She is recognized in the sport for introducing the integration of music into indoor freestyle skydiving competitions, a discipline colloquially known as Indoor Skydancing. [1] [2] Her athletic background includes competitive figure skating.
Born in Mexico City to a Canadian mother and Mexican father, Hernandez Girouard began formal figure skating training in 1984 at Skatorama in Lomas Verdes. After moving to Ciudad Victoria in 1992 and later to Monterrey for university, she competed in figure skating at the national level. [3]
Hernandez Girouard began skydiving in 1995. She initially focused on Formation skydiving and was part of the Canadian 102-way national record set on July 13, 2012, in Farnham, Quebec. [4] She later transitioned to Freestyle skydiving after being inspired by the performances of Dale Stuart.
In 2013, Hernandez Girouard moved to France to focus on indoor skydiving. [5] The French government supported her residence by granting her a "passeport talent profession artistique et culturelle" visa. Drawing on her figure skating background, she sought to combine bodyflight with musical choreography, a concept she termed "Indoor Skydancing." [6] The term was chosen to honor Deanna Kent, a freestyle pioneer known as "Skydancer." [7]
To address the challenge of hearing music inside a noisy wind tunnel (~100 dB), Hernandez Girouard developed a technical solution using custom-molded ear seals with integrated monitors and wireless transmission, allowing both the athlete and the audience to hear the music in real-time. [8]
Following the 2016 Wind Games, musical freestyle became a standard category in subsequent international competitions. [14]