Aurora Cotop wins senior women’s event at Skate Canada Challenge

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PIERREFONDS, Que. – Aurora Cotop of Toronto won the gold medal in senior women’s event on Sunday to conclude the Skate Canada Challenge figure skating competition.

Cotop was third in the free skate but maintained top spot overall with 162.85 points. Michelle Long of Newmarket, Ont., won the free skate to soar from eighth to second at 161.47 and Alicia Pineault of Varennes, Que., was third at 159.25.

‘’It was alright, certainly it’s been better in training,’’ said Cotop, 15, about her free program. ‘’There are jumps that I’m still working on towards the nationals.’’

In senior ice dancing, Haley Sales of Burnaby, B.C., and Nikolas Wamsteeker of Langley, B.C., hung on to top spot with 156.66. Sarah Arnold of Waterloo, Ont.,  and Thomas Williams of Burnaby, B.C., won the free skate to move from third to second at 151.70 while Molly Lanaghan and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Scarborough, Ont., were third at 142.94.

‘’This week has been really good for us,’’ said Sales. ‘’We have a lot more work to do for nationals. We need to reach the next level with our free program and that’s going to be a big focus in our preparations.’’

In junior ice dancing, Ashlynne Stairs of Burnaby and Lee Royer of St. Albert, Alta., remained first despite the third best free skate with 137.78. Alicia Fabbri of Laval, Que., and Claudio Pietrantonio of Terrebonne, Que., won the free skate to surge from fourth to second at 135.60. Olivia McIsaac and Elliott Graham of Angus, Ont., were third at 134.56.

‘’Our free dance was a little shaky,’’ said Royer. ‘’We know what need to do to improve for the nationals.’’

Iliya Kovler of Richmond Hill, Ont., won the men’s junior event.

Skate Canada Challenge was the sole qualifying event for novice, junior, and senior skaters to earn entries to the 2018 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships taking place in Vancouver, January 8-14, 2018.

Full results: 2018 Skate Canada Challenge

Joseph Phan takes home the gold medal at the 2018 Skate Canada Challenge

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PIERREFONDS, Que. – Sixteen-year-old Joseph Phan upset national team members Nicolas Nadeau and Nam Nguyen Friday to win the gold medal in men’s senior competition at the Skate Canada Challenge figure skating event.

Phan, of Laval, Que., posted a personal best 245.22 points for his routine that included two quads and a triple Axel. Nadeau, of Boisbriand, Que., was second at 231.43 and Nguyen, from Toronto, took the bronze at 223.47.

‘’I felt stressed as usual but that helps me compete better,’’ said Phan, 11th at the senior nationals  last season. ‘’I worked really hard for this competition and I felt ready. I was pleased with both my programs and my plan is to add a second triple Axel in my long for nationals (in January).’’

There was no surprise in senior pairs as Julianne Séguin of Longueuil, Que., and Charlie Bilodeau of Trois-Pistoles, Que., won the gold medal with 202.46. Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Trenton, Ont., were second at 176.90 and Sydney Kolodziej and Maxime Deschamps of St-Léonard, Que., third at 165.52.

‘’It was not our best performance,’’ said Bilodeau. ‘’We made a few mistakes on technical elements. But our goal here was to prepare for nationals and get some momentum going.’’

In junior pairs, Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Levis, Que., were the winners with 144.36. Mariah McCaw and Steven Adcock of Kitchener, Ont., were second at 139.36 and Olivia Boys-Eddy and Mackenzie Boys-Eddy of Brampton, Ont., third at 136.68.

‘’We improved a lot,’’ said Matte. ‘’We wanted to put energy into our programs and entertain the crowd. The programs have different styles and we are working toward being more consistent in our elements.’’

In novice pairs, Brooke McIntosh and Brandon Toste of Mississauga, Ont., took the gold ahead of two Quebec teams. Camille Perreault and Bryan Pierro were second and Marine Pouliot and Alexandre Simard third.

Skate Canada Challenge is the sole qualifying event for novice, junior, and senior skaters to earn entries to the 2018 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships taking place in Vancouver, January 8-14, 2018.

Competition continues through to Sunday at the Sportplexe Pierrefonds.

Full results: 2018 Skate Canada Challenge

Gilles and Poirier climb to fourth at Skate America

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LAKE PLACID – Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Toronto climbed from fifth after the short dance to fourth overall on Sunday to conclude Skate America, the seventh stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani of the U.S. took the ice dance gold with 194.25 points with Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte of Italy second at 181.63 and Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia third at 176.53.

Gilles and Poirier followed at 166.54.

‘’We didn’t let a disappointing short program get us down today,’’ said Gilles about the free dance. ‘’We feel a lot more comfortable in the free dance. We were especially pleased to keep the flow going and the energy up during the slow piece in the middle of the program.’’

Poirier said the couple made changes to the free skate following their fourth place at the Grand Prix stop in Russia.

‘’We opened up the transitions making them less cumbersome so we can move and skate more freely.

Japan was 1-2 in women’s competition. Satoko Miyahara took the gold, Kaori Sakamoto the silver and Bradie Tennell of the U.S. was third.

Gabrielle Daleman of Newmarket, Ont., third after the short program, struggled in her free skate and placed sixth overall.

‘’Technically it didn’t go my way today,’’ said Daleman. ‘’That’s the way this sport goes and that’s the name of the game. I know what I need to work on and it is just a lot of repetition.’’

Canada ended the competition with one bronze medal earned by Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford in pairs on Saturday.

Full results: ISU GP 2017 Bridgestone Skate America

Skate Canada Qualifies Four Entries for the ISU Grand Prix Final

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OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada has qualified four entries for a total of seven skaters for the ISU Grand Prix Final of Figure Skating in Nagoya, Japan from December 6-10, 2017. The ISU Senior Grand Prix Final will be held jointly with the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.

The Canadian team at the 2017 ISU Grand Prix Final:

SENIOR WOMEN
Kaetlyn Osmond

SENIOR PAIR
Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford

SENIOR ICE DANCE
Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir

JUNIOR ICE DANCE
Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha

The ISU Senior Grand Prix Final is the concluding event of the ISU Senior Grand Prix of Figure Skating circuit.  The series hosts six stops: Russia (Rostelecom Cup), Canada (Skate Canada International), China (Cup of China) and Japan (NHK Trophy), France (Internationaux de France), and the United States (Skate America). Skaters are awarded points based on their placements at their assigned two events and the top six in each of the four disciplines advance to the Final.

Similar to the senior qualification, juniors are assigned two events on the seven-event series. Only the top six in each category advance to the Final.

For results and full entries please visit the ISU website.

Skaters from across Canada in Montreal for 2018 Skate Canada Challenge

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OTTAWA, ON: Over 500 skaters from across Canada are headed to Montreal, Que., for the 2018 Skate Canada Challenge. This year’s event will be taking place from November 29-December 3, 2017, at the Sportplexe Pierrefonds.

Skate Canada Challenge is the sole qualifying event for novice, junior, and senior skaters to earn entries to the 2018 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships taking place in Vancouver, B.C., from January 8-14, 2018. Skaters qualified for the 2018 Skate Canada Challenge by advancing through their local sectional championships.

The 2018 Skate Canada Challenge will also see the crowning of the 2018 Canadian Pre-Novice Champions in men, women, pairs, and ice dance.

Many Skate Canada national team members are entered in the senior competition including:

Local Montreal skating clubs will have a large representation at the event with a total of 24 entries across all categories and disciplines, including six senior entries, seven junior entries, six novice entries and five pre-novice entries.

For event information including schedule, entries, and start orders please click here. All three competition rinks will be live streamed and can be accessed through the event page or the Skate Canada Dailymotion page.

General admission tickets will be available for purchase at the Sportplexe Pierrefonds throughout the event. All-event tickets are $50, and single-day tickets will be available for purchase for $25. Admission is free for children ages 12 and under.

Media who have not already applied for accreditation are asked to contact Allan Gordon, Communications Coordinator. He will be the media contact at the event and can be reached onsite at 613.697.1354 or at [email protected].

Duhamel and Radford earn bronze at Skate America

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LAKE PLACID – Two-time Canadian world champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford are headed to the ISU Grand Prix Final following a bronze medal performance on Saturday at Skate America, the seventh stop on the figure skating circuit.

Aliona Savchenko and Bruno Massot of Germany won the gold medal with 223.13 points, Xiaoyu Yu and Hao Zhang of China were second at 219.20 and Duhamel and Radford followed at 215.68.

‘’Today wasn’t our best skate but it wasn’t our worst,’’ said Duhamel, from Lively, Ont. ‘’We fought and I think overall we are happy with this competition. This is our next to last Grand Prix and I refuse to leave here frustrated.’’

Skating to music from Muse, Duhamel and Radford opened with a triple twist before Duhamel fell on the side-by-side jump and touched her hand down on the throw quad Salchow.

‘’We’re on the podium with these great teams, it was a great competition and we are really proud.’’

Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., were sixth.

In men’s competition, Nathan Chen led the U.S. to a 1-2 finish with Adam Rippon second. Sergei Voronov of Russia was third.

Liam Firus of North Vancouver was eighth, Kevin Reynolds of Coquitlam, B.C., ninth and Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., 10th.

Gabrielle Daleman of Newmarket, Ont., is in third spot after the women’s short program behind Japanese skaters Satoko Miyahara in first and Kaori Sakamoto in second.

‘’My program is definitely a step-up performance-wise,’’ said Daleman. ‘’On the technical side there’s a lot of improvement to be done. I need to work  hard on it and be prepared for the next time.’’

In the short dance, Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Toronto are fifth.

The women’s free skate and free dance are on Sunday.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1718/gpusa2017/

Canada’s Les Supremes Seniors fourth in synchro skating at Shanghai Trophy

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SHANGHAI – Les Suprêmes Seniors from St-Léonard, Que., took fourth spot in the synchronized skating competition on Saturday at the Shanghai Trophy.
Team Paradise from Russia won the gold medal with 202.06 points, Team Magigold Ice Unity from Finland the silver at 191.00 and Team Surprise from Sweden the bronze at 182.97.
Les Suprêmes, third after the short program, followed at 179.53.
Skating for Les Suprêmes were Jessica Allaire, Rebecca Allaire, Julia Bernardo, Audrey-Anne Blouin, Joannie Brazeau, Kayla Grace Charky, Marie-Ève Comtois, Mary Elizabeth Corbet, Laurie Désilets, Molly Katherine Farber, Raphaelle Laurie Gauthier, Sora Hatano, Dana Malowany, Agathe Sigrid Merlier, Christina Morin, Andréanne Paradis, Martha Maria Pietrasik, Alessia Malissa Polletta, Florence Poulin and Sofya Squalli.
Last season, Les Suprêmes won the bronze medal at the 2017 Leon Lurje trophy in Sweden, the silver medal at the 2017 Canadian championships, the silver medal at the Budapest Cup and placed eighth at the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships 2017.
 
The representatives of CPA Saint-Léonard are coached by Marilyn Langlois, Pascal Denis and Amélie Brochu.

Ticket Info: 2018 Skate Canada International

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LAVAL, QC: All-event tickets for the 2018 Skate Canada International will go on sale to the public on November 24, 2017 at 12 noon ET. The event will take place in Laval, Que., at Place Bell from October 25-28, 2018.

All-event ticket packages will include all competitions as well as practices. Fans will be able to choose from four levels of all-event ticket packages that are priced at:

  • $136.25 ($120 ticket + $16.25 venue service fee)
  • $177.75 ($160 ticket + $17.75 venue service fee)
  • $220.75 ($200 ticket + $20.75 venue service fee)
  • $298.75 ($275 ticket + $23.75 venue service fee)

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

SUPER FAN SECTION 

The 2018 Skate Canada International will feature a special Super Fan Section! This section includes the first three rows of the arena, allowing fans to be closest to the action. All fans purchasing tickets in this section will receive a limited edition scarf, event program, event pin and a keepsake bag.  All-event ticket packages in the Super Fan Section which includes the deluxe super fan kit are priced at $298.75 ($275 ticket + $23.75 venue service fee).  Fans sitting outside the first three rows of seating may also purchase a Super Fan Bag for only $60.

EVENT

The inaugural Skate Canada International was held in 1973 in Calgary and the event was added to the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in 1995, the year the series began. Laval will host the 45th installment of Skate Canada International and it will be their first time hosting a major skating event.

Skate Canada International is the second competition in the annual International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. The other events take place in the United States (Skate America), Russia (Rostelecom Cup), France (Internationaux de France), China (Cup of China) and Japan (NHK Trophy).

Each skater/team can be assigned a maximum of two events. Skaters are awarded points based on their placements at their events. The top six from each discipline (men, ladies, pair and ice dance) qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final.

Les Suprêmes senior synchronized skating team in China for 2017 ISU Shanghai Trophy

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OTTAWA, ON:  Canada will have one entry competing at the 2017 ISU Shanghai Trophy in Shanghai, China. Les Suprêmes senior will be the Canadian synchronized skating entry at the international invitational event taking place from November 24-26, 2017.

Last season, Les Suprêmes won the bronze medal at the 2017 Leon Lurje trophy in Sweden, the silver medal at the 2017 Canadian championships, the silver medal at the Budapest Cup and placed eighth at the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships® 2017. The representatives of CPA Saint-Léonard are coached by Marilyn Langlois, Pascal Denis and Amélie Brochu.

Karen Robertson of Chelsea, Que., will be the sole Canadian official at the event.

For more information on the event please visit www.isu.org.

Canadian team set to travel to USA for final stop of 2017 ISU Grand Prix series

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OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send seven entries, for a total of ten skaters to the sixth and final stop of the 2017 ISU Grand Prix circuit, the 2017 Skate America. Canada will have one entry per discipline in ladies and ice dance, two entries in pairs and three entries in men at the event which takes place from November 24-26, 2017, in Lake Placid, NY, USA.

Olympic silver medallist (team) Kevin Reynolds, 27, Coquitlam, B.C., is the first of three Canadian men’s entries. This will be his second time competing at this event, having placed sixth in 2009. Reynolds placed eighth at his first ISU Grand Prix assignment this season, the Cup of China. The four-time Canadian silver medallist is coached by Joanne McLeod in Burnaby, B.C.

Roman Sadovsky, 18, Vaughan, Ont., is the second Canadian entry in men’s. This will be his first ISU Grand Prix assignment. Earlier this season, he placed 10th at the ISU Challenger Series Finlandia Trophy. Sadovsky is coached by Tracey Wainman in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Liam Firus, 25, North Vancouver, B.C., will be the third Canadian entry in men’s. He won the bronze medal at both of his ISU Challenger Series assignments this season, the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic and the Warsaw Cup. Firus is coached by Bruno Marcotte in Sainte-Julie, Que.

World bronze medallist Gabrielle Daleman, 19, Newmarket, Ont., will represent Canada in ladies. Last year, Daleman placed fourth at this event. This season, she placed sixth at her first ISU Grand Prix assignment, the Cup of China. The 2017 Canadian silver medallist is coached by Lee Barkell and Brian Orser in Toronto, Ont.

Two-time world champions Meagan Duhamel, 31, Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford, 32, Balmertown, Ont., are the first of two Canadian entries in pairs. This will be their first time competing at this event. Duhamel and Radford won the gold medal at their first ISU Grand Prix assignment of the season, Skate Canada International. The six-time consecutive Canadian champions are coached by Bruno Marcotte in Montreal, Que.

Canadian bronze medallists Kirsten Moore-Towers, 25, St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro, 25, Sarnia, Ont., are the second Canadian entry in pairs. This will be their first time competing at this event. Moore-Towers and Marinaro won the bronze medal at their first ISU Grand Prix event this season, the Cup of China. They are coached by Bruno Marcotte, Richard Gauthier and Sylvie Fullum in Montreal, Que.

Canadian bronze medallists Piper Gilles, 25, Toronto, Ont., and Paul Poirier, 26, Unionville, Ont., will be the Canadian entry in ice dance. They previously competed at this event in 2015, winning bronze. Gilles and Poirier placed fourth at this first ISU Grand Prix this season, the Rostelecom Cup. They are coached by Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs in Scarborough, Ont.

André Bourgeois, Skate Canada NextGen Director, will travel with the team as team leader. Dr. Sari Kraft of Toronto, Ont., and physiotherapist Josiane Roberge of Sillery, Que., will be the Canadian medial staff onsite. Jodi Abbott of Edmonton, Alt., and Jeff Lukasik of Calgary, Alta., will be the Canadian officials at the event.

For results and full entries please visit www.isu.org.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2017 SKATE AMERICA

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Kevin Reynolds 27 Coquitlam, B.C. Vancouver SC Joanne McLeod
Men Roman Sadovsky 18 Vaughan, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Tracey Wainman
Men Liam Firus 25 North Vancouver, B.C. Vancouver SC Bruno Marcotte
Ladies Gabrielle Daleman 19 Newmarket, Ont. Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club Lee Barkell / Brian Orser
Pairs Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford 31/32 Lively, Ont. / Balmertown, Ont. CPA Saint-Léonard / CPA Saint-Léonard Bruno Marcotte
Pairs Kirsten Moore-Towers / Michael Marinaro 25/25 St. Catharines, Ont. / Sarnia, Ont. Kitchener-Waterloo SC / Point Edward SC Inc. Bruno Marcotte / Richard Gauthier / Sylvie Fullum
Ice Dance Piper Gilles / Paul Poirier 25/26 Toronto, Ont. / Unionville, Ont. Scarboro FSC / Scarboro FSC Carol Lane / Juris Razgulajevs

Canada’s Liam Firus wins bronze medal at Warsaw Cup

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WARSAW – Liam Firus of North Vancouver earned his second medal this season on the ISU Challenger Series figure skating circuit on Sunday placing third in men’s competition at the Warsaw Cup.

Matteo Rizzo of Italy took the gold with 232.98 points followed by Stephane Walker of Switzerland at 204.48 and Firus, also third after the short program, with 200.71.

‘’It wasn’t the performance I wanted,’’ said Firus, also third at the U.S. International earlier this season. ‘’Still it’s a step in the right direction my goal is to be up there at the national championships and it’s all about pacing the season properly and figuring out what to tweak.’’

On Saturday, Emy Decelles of Baie-Comeau, Que., was sixth in women’s competition while in ice dancing Sarah Arnold of Waterloo, Ont., and Thomas Williams of Okotoks, Alta., were eighth and Molly Lanaghan of Scarborough, Ont., and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Ajax, Ont., were 10th.

Full results: ISU CS Warsaw Cup 2017

Canada’s Liam Firus in medal hunt at Warsaw Cup

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WARSAW – Liam Firus of North Vancouver is in third place after Saturday’s men’s short program at the Warsaw Cup, part of the ISU’s Challenger Series figure skating circuit.

Matteo Rizzo of Italy stands first with 75.64 points, Stephane Walker of Switzerland is second at 68.92 and Firus follows at 66.58 out of 19 entries.

The ice dance and women’s events were completed on Saturday.

In women’s competition, Serafima Sakhanovich led Russia to a 1-2 finish. Emy Decelles of Baie-Comeau, Que., was sixth.

‘’I performed under my expectations,’’ said Decelles, 19. ‘’I’m pleased with my technical points but disappointed to pop two of my jumps. The big thing to work on is managing my emotions on the ice.’’

In ice dancing, Betina Popova and Sergey Mozgov of Russia earned the gold. Sarah Arnold of Waterloo, Ont., and Thomas Williams of Okotoks, Alta., were eighth and Molly Lanaghan of Scarborough, Ont., and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Ajax, Ont., were 10th.

Arnold returned to competition after a five-year retirement from the sport last season. She is in her second year with Williams.

‘’It was probably two of our strongest skates so far as team,’’ said Arnold about the event. ‘’We are really starting to gel. The practices have been going well and it was nice to finally duplicate what we’ve been doing in practice. For my part, I’m feeling more and more comfortable on the ice.’’

Lanaghan and Razgulajevs have been together for eight months.

‘’The performance was good,’’ said Razgulajevs. ‘’We wanted to please the crowd and we achieved that. We continued to work on our speed and power and that seemed to keep improving.’’

Competition ends Sunday.

Full results: ISU CS Warsaw Cup 2017