MEET CANADA’S WORLD TEAM: LADIES

Alaine Chartrand 

A year ago, Alaine came achingly close to her first national title, finishing less than two points behind Gabrielle Daleman. In 2016, she turned the tables, edging Daleman in Halifax for the Canadian championship. Alaine spends most of her week training in her hometown of Prescott, Ont. before travelling to the Toronto area to train on weekends. The travelling has paid off, as the powerful jumper can now add Canadian champion to her growing resume. Although she says she was too young to remember, Alaine has been told she landed her first axel when she was just six years old.

“I don’t know if my mindset is any different,” Alaine says of attending her first worlds as Canadian champion. “I definitely gained a lot of confidence from my performances at nationals. I know I can do two clean programs in one competition and that’s one thing I’ve struggled with in the past.”

FUN FACT: On long skating trips, Alaine often rides in the family RV. In her younger years, Alaine’s father racked up more than 500,000 km on his six-seat pickup truck.

Gabrielle Daleman

After what she referred to as an “extremely disappointing” short program at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, Gabrielle bounced back in a big way in the free to win silver, coming up just short in her bid for a second straight national title. At just 16 years of age, Gabrielle was the youngest member of the entire Canadian Olympic Team at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. A former gymnast, “Gabby”, uses her lightning speed as the springboard for her powerful jumps.

FUN FACT: Gabby always has to have her special travel companion with her when she is on the road: her purple blanket.