Exclusive: Torvill on the Winter Olympics

She will be locked in a BBC television studio in London commentating on the fortunes of Britain's latest figure skating couple burdened by the Olympic legacy left by herself and ice dance partner Christopher Dean.

Torvill and Dean remain legends after winning a gold medal at the Sarajevo Winter Olympics in 1984 with their mesmerising routine set to the music of Bolero.

That performance, which earned a perfect set of scores from all nine judges for artistic impression, was recently voted eighth in a television poll of top 100 sporting moments.

Torvill believes comparisons are erroneus and is full of praise for Marika Humphreys and Vitaliy Baranov who were selected for Salt Lake City even though they missed the original British qualification by one place when finishing 16th in the World Championships.

She said: "It is not like they are going to embarrass us. They are actually a very good couple. They will do the country proud. They were 11th in the Europeans in only their second season. I think they'll make the top 15 at the Olympics. That would be good progress. They just have to keep working hard.

"I've known Marika a long time and went up to interview her recently. I don't believe she was intimidated! It's unfair to compare them to Chris and myself. They must get quite annoyed when people ask them that."

She accepts there has been a lack of British success in ice dance since the golden era of John Curry, Robin Cousins and Torvill and Dean.

"I've got no real answers. I suppose the fact there aren't that many rinks and there is lack of funding. Perhaps we came through when there was a rich period of talent."

As a result, the Winter Olympics in Britain is low profile. "In the United States it is as big at the summer Olympics but I don't think any of my broadcasts will be shown on prime time in Britain."

Torvill has a gentle, self-effacing manner. But what she says is forthright. Straight questions get straight answers. What of the 'gynaecological' dance routine furore that is likely to cause debate hot enough to melt the surface of the Salt Lake Ice Center?

Some commentators have been incensed by the skimpy outfits and one international judge said: "If I want a young man waving his partner's assets in my face I can rent a porn movie."

Torvill said: "A lot of the ice skating girls take 'gynaecological' positions which often look ugly. It's not hard to change your leg position. I danced with Chris in Sarajevo to sensual, emotional and sexy music when I did the Bolero. But I didn't feel I had to throw my legs open to the world! Less is more. You want to leave something to the imagination.

"To me it comes from the aesthetics, interpreting the music, even if it is Led Zeppelin! We had a chance to earn a lot of money from what we did but would always be selective."

There was a ripple of discontent when Torvill and Dean only won bronze on their Olympic comeback in Norway in 1994.

"The sport's governing body allowed the professionals to enter and used us to get more attention for that Games. Chris and I went into the final dance in gold medal position and skated the best we could. We had to accept the judges' mark and we did, but we weren't naive and were very aware politics was involved. Yet the support and response saying we should have won was almost better than having a second gold medal."

Torvill is as open when discussing Dean, particularly when he reduced her to tears in a television documentary prior to the 1994 Games.

"The producer was desperate because our training sessions were too boring and he told us he wasn't sure if they'd continue. Chris responded as he was afraid they wouldn't carry on shooting. In the next session, if there was any chance of an argument, he just took it and ran with it. I kept saying 'Chris the camera's on' but he just completely lost it.

"It was over the height of my leg and he wanted to adopt a position I thought was rather vulgar in the action rather than the look. He made me cry and I left the ice. The rest of the world saw a bad side of him and he was silly to do it because that's what people remember.

"Yet what wasn't filmed was that I came back and we finished the session. We always did, we never wasted our time. We laugh about it now."

They remain friends. "We grew up together and were different personalties with the same goal, although we never envisaged winning the Olympics..

"We were close and single-minded and although we were asked if we were going to get married, it has never been that kind of relationship. We didn't want to be involved with other people either because we were so focussed.

"We are still very close even though Chris now lives in America. We talk on the phone every couple of days discussing anything from skating to what we bought at the supermarket. My husband understands and knows Chris as he produced our last shows."

She doesn't watch re-runs of her golden moment ("I'd be too critical of the performance and I live in the present") but recalls it with a joy that was missing at the point of triumph.

"If I do happen to see it, it almost feels like I'm watching somebody else as it was so long ago. But it's something I'll never forget because it was very special.

"I didn't appreciate how big worldwide it was when it happened. We felt a great sense of relief after all the hard work, but didn't revel in the glory. We just got on with our lives and the next goal was the World Championships. "

Now 44, she does some charity, coaching and media work and, with Dean, is putting on a gala for the Queen's Jubilee in their home town of Nottingham in July.

She has also helped promote the idea of a community ice rink in Sussex with Cousins, who lives in Brighton.

But much of her time is spent running the house she shares with husband Phil Christensen near Heathfield, walking their dogs, having yoga sessions and playing tennis. It is light years away from the spotlight.