Eighteen Canadian Skaters headed to Laval for Skate Canada International

OTTAWA, ON: Top Canadian and international figure skaters are headed to Laval, Quebec for the 2018 Skate Canada International, taking place from October 26-28, 2018. The event will take place at Place Bell and will feature 12 Canadian entries (three entries per discipline in men, women, pairs and ice dance) for a total of 18 skaters.

This event will mark the second of six competitions on the annual International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating series, in which skaters compete to qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, taking place December 6-9, 2018 in Vancouver, B.C.

In the men’s field, Keegan Messing, 26, Sherwood Park, Alta./Brantford, Ont., is the first of three Canadian men competing. This will be his third time competing at this event, having placed eighth in 2017 and 11th in 2015. Earlier this season he won gold at the Nebelhorn Trophy and last season, Messing placed eighth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships. He is coached by Ralph Burghart in Anchorage, AK, USA.

Roman Sadovsky, 19, Vaughan, Ont., is the second Canadian men’s entry. This will be his first Skate Canada International. The 2018 Autumn Classic International bronze medalist is coached by Tracey Wainman and Gregor Filipowski at the York Region Skating Academy.

Ajax, Ontario’s Nam Nguyen, 20, rounds out Canadian men’s entries. This event will be Nguyen’s second Skate Canada International appearance, having finished fifth at the 2015 event. This season, Nguyen won gold at the 2018 U.S. International Classic. He is coached by Robert Burk and trains at the Richmond Hill Training Centre.

Alaine Chartrand, 22, will be representing Canada in the women’s category. She placed 11th at this event last year and finished eighth at the 2018 Nebelhorn Trophy in September. The Prescott, Ont., native is coached by Tracey Wainman and Gregor Filipowski and trains at the York Region Skating Academy.

Véronik Mallet, 24, Sept-Iles, Que., will be the second Canadian women’s entry. Mallet is coming off a sixth place finish at the Finlandia Trophy earlier this month. She is coached by Annie Barabé and trains out of CPA Sept-Iles.

Alicia Pineault, 19, Varennes, Que., rounds out the Canadian women’s entries. Pineault finished sixth at the Autumn Classic International earlier this season. She is coached by Stephane Yvars and trains out of SC Varennes.

Kirsten Moore-Towers, 26, St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro, 26, Sarnia, Ont., are one of three Canadian entries in pairs. This season they won bronze at the Autumn Classic International and silver at the Finlandia Trophy. This will be their third time competing at this event, winning bronze in 2015 and placing sixth in 2014. The pair are coached by Richard Gauthier, Bruno Marcotte and Sylvie Fullum, and they train out of St. Léonard, Que.

Camille Ruest, 24, Rimouski, Que., and Andrew Wolfe, 24, Calgary, Alta., will make their Skate Canada International debut in Laval. They are coming off a fifth place finish at the U.S. International Classic in September. Ruest and Wolfe are coached by Richard Gauthier and Bruno Marcotte in St. Léonard, Que.

Evelyn Walsh, 17, London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud, 22, Trenton, Ont., will represent Canada in pairs at their first Skate Canada International. The pair finished seventh at the Nebelhorn Trophy at the end of September. Walsh and Michaud are coached by Alison Purkiss in Brantford, Ont.

Piper Gilles, 26, Toronto, Ont., and Paul Poirier, 26, Unionville, Ont., will represent Canada in ice dance. The team took home a gold medal at the Nebelhorn Trophy earlier this season. This will be their fourth time competing at Skate Canada International, having won medals in 2014 and 2016. They are coached by Carol Lane, Juris Razgulajevs and Jon Lane in Scarborough, Ont.

Carolane Soucisse, 23, Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus, 24, North Vancouver, B.C., will make their second appearance at this event, they placed seventh in 2017. They are coming off a third place finish at the Autumn Classic International and a fourth place finish at the Finlandia Trophy earlier this season.  They are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon in Montreal, Que.

Haley Sales, 21, Kelowna, B.C., and Nikolas Wamsteeker, 21, Langley, B.C., will make their senior Grand Prix debut in Laval. The dancers placed fourth at the U.S. International Classic earlier this season. They are coached by Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe in Burnaby, B.C.

The official practices on Thursday, Oct 25 will be streamed live on the Skate Canada Dailymotion page.

Six-time Canadian champion and 2010 Olympic Winter Games bronze medalist Joannie Rochette, 32, Ile Dupas, Que. will act as the official Athlete Ambassador during Skate Canada International. Rochette, having competed at Skate Canada International six times during her career, will be conveying her own personal experiences to media and fans over the course of the week.

Elladj Baldé, 27, Montreal, Que., will act as Skate Canada’s digital host for Skate Canada International. Baldé has competed internationally for Canada 27 times as a junior and senior competitor. He will be taking fans behind the scenes at the event, giving fans an exclusive look at what takes place at grand prix events.

During the exhibition gala fans will also get the chance to see special performances by Baldé, who will also choreograph the gala group number finale. Les Suprêmes one of Canada’s top synchronized skating teams will also perform a special number during the gala on Sunday, Oct 28.

Tickets can be purchased online at placebell.ca, by phone at 1-855-634-4472 or in person at the Place Bell Box Office.

Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., and Carolyn Allwright of Waterloo, Ont., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Tatiana Jevremovic of London, Ont., and physiotherapist Agnes Makowski of Toronto, Ont., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Glenn Fortin of Aurora, Ont., Debbie Islam of Barrie, Ont., Veronique Gosselin of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., and Andre-Marc Allain of Ottawa, Ont., will be the Canadian officials at the event.

For results and full entries please visit the event page.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2018 SKATE CANADA INTERNATIONAL

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Keegan Messing 26 Sherwood Park, Alta. / Brantford, Ont. Sherwood Park FSC Ralph Burghart
Men Roman Sadovsky 19 Vaughan, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Tracey Wainman, Gregor Filipowski
Men Nam Nguyen 20 Ajax, Ont. Richmond Hill Training Centre Robert Burk
Women Alaine Chartrand 22 Prescott, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Tracey Wainman, Gregor Filipowski
Women Véronik Mallet 24 Sept-Iles, Que. CPA Sept-Iles Annie Barabé
Women Alicia Pineault 19 Varennes, Que. CPA Varennes Stephane Yvars
Pairs Kirsten Moore-Towers / Michael Marinaro 26/26 St. Catharines, Ont. / Sarnia, Ont. Winter Club of St. Catharines / Point Edward SC Richard Gauthier, Bruno Marcotte, Sylvie Fullum
Pairs Camille Ruest / Andrew Wolfe 24/24 Rimouski, Que. / Calgary, Alta. CPA Rimouski / Glencoe Club Calgary Richard Gauthier, Bruno Marcotte
Pairs Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud 17/22 London, Ont. / Trenton, Ont. London SC / Trenton FSC Alison Purkiss
Ice Dance Piper Gilles / Paul Poirier 26/26 Toronto, Ont. / Unionville, Ont. Scarboro FSC / Scarboro FSC Carol Lane, Juris Razgulajevs, Jon Lane
Ice Dance Haley Sales / Nikolas Wamsteeker 21/21 Kelowna, B.C./Langley, B.C. Kelowna SC / Champs International Skating Centre Megan Wing, Aaron Lowe
Ice Dance Carolane Soucisse / Shane Firus 23/24 Chateauguay, Que. / North Vancouver, B.C. SC Repentigny / SC Repentigny Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon
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