Canadians en route to Sweden for 2021 ISU World Figure Skating Championships

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send eight entries, for a total of 13 skaters, to the 2021 ISU World Figure Skating Championships. The event is set to take place March 22-28, 2021, in Stockholm, Sweden. Canada will have two entries in women, one entry in men, two entries in pair and three entries in ice dance.

Keegan Messing, 29, Girdwood, Alaska, USA, will be the only Canadian entry in the men’s category.  This will be his third time competing at this event, having finished 15^th in 2019. This season, Messing won bronze at 2020 Skate America. The three-time Canadian medallist is coached by Ralph Burghart in Anchorage, Ak, USA.

Madeline Schizas, 18, Oakville, Ont., will be the first of two Canadian women competing at the event. This will be her first time competing at this event. Schizas claimed the gold medal at the 2021 Skate Canada Challenge event in January. She is coached by Nancy Lemaire and Derek Schmidt in Milton, Ont.

Emily Bausback, 18, Vancouver, B.C., will be the second Canadian entry in the women’s category. This will be her first time competing at this event. The 2020 Canadian champion is coached by Joanne McLeod and Neil Wilson in Burnaby, B.C.

Kirsten Moore-Towers, 28, St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro, 29, Sarnia, Ont., will be the first of two Canadian entries in pair. This will be their fourth time competing at the world championships, having finished 7^th in 2019. The 2020 Canadian champions are coached by Bruno Marcotte, Alison Purkiss and Brian Shales in Oakville, Ont.

Evelyn Walsh, 19, London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud, 24, Trenton, Ont., will be the second Canadian entry in pair. This event will mark their second time competing on the world championship stage, having placed 12^th back in 2019. The 2020 national silver medallists are coached by Alison Purkiss, Andrew Evans and Paul Macintosh in Brantford, Ont.

Piper Gilles, 29, Toronto, Ont., and Paul Poirier, 29, Unionville, Ont., will be the first of three of Canadian entries in ice dance. This will be their eighth time competing at this event, having finished in the top ten the past five consecutive seasons. The 2020 Canadian champions are coached by Carol Lane, Juris Razgulajevs and Jon Lane in Scarborough, Ont.

Laurence Fournier Beaudry, 28, Montreal, Que., and Nikolaj Sørensen, 32, Montreal, Que., will be the second Canadian entry in ice dance. This will be their second time competing at this event, having finished 10^th in 2019. The 2021 Skate Canada Challenge silver medallists are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer, Josée Piché, Samuel Chouinard, Emilie Josset and Benjamin Brisebois.

Marjorie Lajoie, 20, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 21, Saint-Hubert, Que., will be the third entry in ice dance. This will be their first time competing at this event. The 2019 World Junior champions are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer, Pascal Denis and Josée Piché in Montreal, Que.

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director, and Dr. Shae Zukiwsky, Senior Director, Performance Excellence, will be the team leaders at the event. Physiotherapist Paige Larson of North Vancouver, B.C., and Dr. Ghislaine Robert of Seattle, WA., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Leanna Caron, Skate Canada President, will also be attending.

For results and full entries, please visit isu.org or https://stockholm2021.se/.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2021 ISU WORLD FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS