Canadian skaters headed to Helsinki for 2017 ISU World Figure Skating Championships

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OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send 10 entries, for a total of 16 skaters to the 2017 ISU World Figure Skating Championships. The event takes place from March 29-April 2, 2017, in Helsinki, Finland, at the Hartwall Arena. Canada will have two entries per discipline in men and ladies and three entries per discipline in pairs and ice dance.

Three-time world champion Patrick Chan, 26, Toronto, Ont., is the first of two Canadian men entries. This will be his eighth time competing at this event, having medalled on five occasions. This season, Chan won the silver medal at the Finlandia Trophy, gold medals at both Skate Canada International and the Cup of China, placed fifth at the ISU Grand Prix Final and fourth at the ISU Four Continents Championships. The nine-time Canadian champion is coached by Marina Zoueva, Oleg Epstein and Johnny Johns in Canton, MI, USA.

Kevin Reynolds, 26, Coquitlam, B.C., is the second Canadian men entry. This will be his sixth time competing at this event; his best result came in 2013 when he placed fifth. This season, Reynolds won silver at the Ondrej Nepela Trophy, bronze at Skate Canada International, silver at the 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, and placed 12th at the ISU Four Continents Championships. He is coached by Joanne McLeod in Burnaby, B.C.

Kaetlyn Osmond, 21, Marystown, Nfld./Edmonton, Alta., is the first of two Canadian representatives in the ladies’ category. She has previously competed at this event in 2013, placing eighth, and 2014, placing 11th. This season, Osmond won gold at the Finlandia Trophy, silver at both Skate Canada International and the Cup of China, and placed fourth at both the ISU Grand Prix Final, and the ISU Four Continents Championships. The three-time Canadian champion is coached by Ravi Walia in Edmonton, Alta.

Gabrielle Daleman, 19, Newmarket, Ont., will also represent Canada in ladies. This will be her fourth consecutive appearance at the world championships, with her best placement (ninth) coming last season. This season, Daleman won bronze at the Nebelhorn Trophy, placed fourth at Skate America and the Trophée de France, and won silver at the ISU Four Continents Championships. The 2017 Canadian silver medallist is coached by Lee Barkell and Brian Orser in Toronto, Ont.

Two-time consecutive world champions Meagan Duhamel, 31, Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford, 32, Balmertown, Ont., are one of three Canadian entries in the pairs discipline. This will be their seventh time competing at this event, having medalled the past four years. This season, Duhamel and Radford won gold at the Finlandia Trophy, Skate Canada International and the NHK Trophy, won bronze at the ISU Grand Prix Final, and won silver at the ISU Four Continents Championships. The six-time consecutive Canadian champions are coached by Richard Gauthier, Bruno Marcotte and Sylvie Fullum in St. Leonard, Que.

Lubov Ilyushechkina, 25, Moscow, Russia, and Dylan Moscovitch, 32, Toronto, Ont., will be the second Canadian pairs entry. This will be their third time competing at this event; last season they placed seventh. This season, Ilyushechkina and Moscovitch won the silver medal at the Nebelhorn Trophy, bronze at Skate Canada International, bronze at the Cup of China, and bronze at the ISU Four Continents Championships. The two-time Canadian silver medallists are coached by Lee Barkell, Bryce Davison and Tracy Wilson in Toronto, Ont.

Julianne Séguin, 20, Longueuil, Que., and Charlie Bilodeau, 23, Trois-Pistoles, Que., will round out the Canadian pairs teams at the event. They have only competed at this event once in their careers, in 2015, when they placed eighth. This season, the pair won gold at Autumn Classic International and Skate America and placed fifth at both the Rostelecom Cup and the ISU Grand Prix Final. Séguin and Bilodeau are coached by Josée Picard in Chambly, Que.

Two-time world champions Tessa Virtue, 27, London, Ont., and Scott Moir, 29, Ilderton, Ont., will be the first of three Canadian entries in ice dance. They have previously competed at this event seven time, medalling six times. This season, Virtue and Moir have won gold at each of their events: Autumn Classic International, Skate Canada International, NHK Trophy, ISU Grand Prix Final, and the ISU Four Continents Championships. The seven-time Canadian champions are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon in Montreal, Que.

Two-time world medallists Kaitlyn Weaver, 27, Toronto, Ont., and Andrew Poje, 30, Waterloo, Ont., are the second Canadian entry in ice dance. This will be their ninth time competing at this event, having won the silver medal in 2014 and the bronze medal in 2015. This season, Weaver and Poje won the bronze medal at the Rostelecom Cup, silver at the Cup of China, and fifth at the ISU Four Continents championships. The 2017 Canadian silver medallists are coached by Nikolai Morozov and train in Hackensack, NJ, USA.

Piper Gilles, 25, Toronto, Ont., and Paul Poirier, 25, Unionville, Ont., are the third Canadian entry in ice dance. This will be their fifth time competing at this event; their best placement (sixth) came in 2015. This season, Gilles and Poirier won the bronze medal at the Nebelhorn Trophy, Skate Canada International, and Trophée de France, and placed sixth at the ISU Four Continents Championships. The 2017 Canadian bronze medallists are coached by Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs in Scarborough, Ont.

Skate Canada High Performance Director Mike Slipchuk will be the team leader along with Cynthia Ullmark of Canmore, Alta. Dr. Laura Cruz of Toronto, Ont., and physiotherapist Mike McMurray, of Oak Bluff, Man., will be the Canadian medical staff at the event. Leanna Caron of Timmins, Ont., Jeff Lukasik of Calgary, Alta., Sally Rehorick of Vancouver, B.C., and Nicole Leblanc-Richard of Dieppe, N.B., will be the Canadian officials at the event.

Emma Bowie, Skate Canada Communications Manager, will be the media contact at the event. She can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at 613-914-2607.

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

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2017 ISU WORLD FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Patrick Chan 26 Toronto, Ont. Granite Club Marina Zoueva / Oleg Epstein / Johnny Johns
Men Kevin Reynolds 26 Coquitlam, B.C. Vancouver SC Joanne McLeod
Ladies Kaetlyn Osmond 21 Marystown, Nfld. & Edmonton, Alta. Ice Palace FSC Ravi Walia
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 Richard Gauthier / Bruno Marcotte/ Sylvie Fullum
Pairs Lubov Ilyushechkina / Dylan Moscovitch 25/32 Moscow, Russia / Toronto, Ont. Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club / Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club Lee Barkell / Bryce Davison / Tracy Wilson
Pairs Julianne Séguin / Charlie Bilodeau 20/23 Longueuil, Que. / Trois-Pistoles, Que. CPA Longueuil / CPA Chambly Josée Picard
Ice Dance Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir 27/29 London, Ont. / Ilderton, Ont. Regroupement élite de patinage artistique de Montréal / Regroupement élite de patinage artistique de Montréal Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon
Ice Dance Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje 27/30 Toronto, Ont. / Waterloo, Ont. Sault FSC / Kitchener-Waterloo SC Nikolai Morozov
Ice Dance Piper Gilles / Paul Poirier 25/25 Toronto, Ont. / Unionville, Ont. Scarboro FSC / Scarboro FSC Carol Lane / Juris Razgulajevs

Lajoie and Lagha reach new heights at ISU World Juniors

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TAIPEI CITY – Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of Greenfield Park, Que., showed a giant improvement from one year ago in their sixth place finish in ice dancing on Saturday to conclude the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Rachel Parsons and Michael Parsons of the U.S. won the gold medal with 164.83 points, Alla Loboda and Pavel Drozd of Russia were second at 164.37 and Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko of the U.S. were third at 154.68.

Lajoie and Lagha, fifth after the short dance on Thursday, earned a personal best 148.26. They improved from a 13th place finish last year.

‘’It was something special to warm up with the final group of skaters and we felt we did our job,’’ said Lagha. ‘’We wanted to show that we deserved to be among the top teams.’’

‘’We are super happy, we really managed our stress levels and produced a strong skate,’’ added Lajoie.

Ashlynne Stairs of Calgary and Lee Royer of St. Albert, Alta., were 14th.

‘’Our technical scores weren’t what we wanted them to be,’’ said Stairs. ‘’So that’s something we really want to improve upon. We got a great idea this week of what we need to strive for in the future.’’

‘’The biggest improvement we need to make is on our turns and our flow on the ice,’’ added Royer. ‘’The best teams here were a lot faster.’’

In women’s competition, Alina Zagitova of Russia won the gold ahead of Japanese skaters Marin Honda in second and Kaori Sakamoto in third.

Sarah Tamura of Burnaby, B.C. gained two spots in the standings for 17th place.

‘’It definitely wasn’t my best but I’ll take this experience and learn from it,’’ said Tamura. ‘’To compete against the best in the world, you can’t make any mistakes in your program.’’

Canada was shutout of the medals at the world juniors this week. The best result was a fifth place finish for Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Strathroy, Ont., in pairs on Friday.

‘’Our long program is our absolute favorite,’’ said Michaud, who joined forces with his partner less than a year ago. ‘’Even in training we enjoy showing it off so we just wanted to do the same here. We were really calm and relied on each other the entire time.’’

‘’We’ve been in a fast lane learning curve and it’s been super fun,’’ added Walsh.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1617/wjc2017/index.htm

Canada’s Les Suprêmes win silver at Budapest Cup synchronized skating competition

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BUDAPEST – Overall standings remained the same after Saturday’s long program as Les Suprêmes from St-Léonard, Que., won the silver medal at the Budapest Cup synchronized skating competition.

Team Paradise from Russia won the gold medal with 210.42 points followed by the Canadians at 188.39 and Team Passion from Hungary at 135.58.

Les Suprêmes free skate included music by Sia and represented a pursuit of a dream.

‘’We made some errors in the long program and we need to correct those to gain more ground on the Russians for the world championships,’’ said Les Suprêmes team co-captain Claudia Sforzin.  ‘’Our short program was very strong and that gave us a lot of confidence.’’

Skating for Les Suprêmes, tuning-up for the ISU World Championships April 7-8 in Colorado Springs, were:  Rebecca Allaire, Katherine Beaucage, Alexandra Bernardo, Audrey-Anne Blouin, Joannie Brazeau, Marie-Ève Comtois, Emma Maria Corona, Alessandra Criscuolo, Laura Désilets, Molly Katherine Farber, Sora Hatano, Ditte Rosa Miranda Louhikoski, Dana Malowany, Agathe Sigrid Merlier, Christina Morin, Alessia Malissa Polletta, Geneviève Rougeau, Claudia Sforzin, Sofya Squalli and Hélène Stojanovski.

Les Suprêmes want to improve on last year’s fifth place finish at worlds.

‘’We’ve got another couple of weeks to work on the areas we need to improve,’’ said co-captain Laura Désilets. ‘’Our programs are very unified right now and it’s really the technical details we need to fine-tune.”

This season, Les Suprêmes also won the bronze medal at the 2017 Leon Lurje trophy in Sweden and the silver medal at the 2017 Canadian championships.

The representatives of CPA Saint-Léonard are coached by Marilyn Langlois, assisted by Pascal Denis and Amélie Brochu.

Full results: BUDAPEST CUP 2017_ISU

Walsh and Michaud crack top-five at ISU World Junior Championships

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TAIPEI CITY – Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Strathroy, Ont., climbed to fifth place in pairs on Friday for Canada’s best result so far at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya and Harley Windsor of Australia didn’t win either the short or long programs but emerged with the gold medal with 163.98 points. Aleksandra Boikova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii of Russia, first after the short, were second at 161.93 and Yumeng Gao and Zhong Xie of China third at 161.09.

Walsh and Michaud improved their personal best score to 150.74.

Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Lévis, Que., were ninth.

In women’s competition, Alina Zagitova of Russia is first after the short program with Marin Honda of Japan second and her compatriot Kaori Sakamoto third.

Sarah Tamura of Burnaby, B.C., is 19th in her second career appearance at the world juniors.Competition ends Saturday with the free dance and women’s free skate.

Full results: ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2017

Skating Community Mourns the Passing of Donald Gilchrist

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OTTAWA, ON: It is with a heavy heart that Skate Canada says goodbye to cherished Hall of Famer Donald Gilchrist. He passed away peacefully at age 95 on Tuesday, March 14, 2017. Gilchrist of Toronto, was a champion for figure skating and synchronized skating throughout his life.

His skating career began as a national and international competitor and then went on to become a judge. He began officiating at the international level in 1951 and judged several world championships and Olympic Games over his career. His technical expertise filled a tremendous need in the growing years of figure skating in Canada. Gilchrist was the first Canadian delegate to participate at the 1951 International Skating Union (ISU) Congress.

For the next 40 years Gilchrist was active in every technical aspect of the highest-ranking skating competitions. An event referee at countless competitions, he was made an honorary member of the ISU when he retired in 1992. Gilchrist was inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame in 1996 and was induced into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 2006.

Skate Canada offers its sincere sympathies to Gilchrist’s family and friends.

Canadian ice dancers in medal contention at ISU World Junior Championships

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TAIPEI CITY – Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of Greenfield Park, Que., are in the medal hunt standing fifth after Thursday’s short dance at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

‘’It went super well, we were really well focused on the ice,’’ said Lajoie, 13th with her partner at last year’s world juniors. ‘’To be fifth right now is better than we expected but it’s not going to affect how we prepare for the free skate. We are going keep the same plan and not worry about results.’’

Alla Loboda and Pavel Drozd of Russia are first at 67.59, Rachel Parsons and Michael Parsons of the U.S. second at 67.29 and Anastasia Skoptcova and Kirill Aleshin of Russia third at 63.38. Lajoie and Lagha notched 60.79.

Ashlynn Stairs of Calgary and Lee Royer of St. Albert, Alta., are 12th.

‘’We put out our best and that’s what we wanted to do,’’ said Stairs. ‘’Everything was clean and done to the best ability that we could. It gives us a lot of confidence that we can do the same in the free skate.’’

In men’s competition, Vincent Zhou of the U.S. prevented a Russian medal sweep taking the gold with 258.11. Dmitri Aliev was second at 247.31, Alexander Samarin third at 245.53 and Alexander Petrov fourth at 243.47.

Nicolas Nadeau of Boisbriand, Que., was 12th, Conrad Orzel of Woodbridge, Ont., 13th and Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., 17th.

‘’I’m proud of what I’ve done at my first junior worlds,’’ said Orzel, a two-time silver medallist this season at international junior events. ‘’I did everything I planned and delivered my best skate of the season. I was a bit star truck this week with the great skaters here and the whole experience was very inspiring.

‘’I’ve learnt I can deal with the biggest worlds stage pressure and can adapt to situations even though it’s not perfect.’’

Competition continues Friday with the pairs free skate and women’s short program.

Full results: ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2017

Canadians need to play catch-up at ISU World Junior Championships

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TAIPEI CITY – Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Strathroy, Ont., were the top Canadians Wednesday standing sixth after Wednesday’s short program in pairs at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Aleksandra Boikova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii of Russia lead with 61.27 points, Yumeng Gao and Zhong Xie of China are second at 59.97 and Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya and Harley Windsor of Australia third at 59.82.

Walsh and Michaud totalled 51.93 while Lori-Ann Matte of and Thierry Ferland of Lévis, Que., follow in seventh at 50.78.

“That was our best score internationally so we are very pleased about that,” said Michaud. “It’s a great way to go into our free program which we are really excited about and been skating well in practice.”

In men’s competition, Dmitri Aliev of Russia is first after the short program at 83.48, Jun Hwa Cha of South Korea second at 82.34 and Alexander Samarin of Russia third at 82.23.

All three Canadian men executed clean programs.

Nicolas Nadeau of Boisbriand, Que., is seventh with 77.20, Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., is ninth at 76.27 and Conrad Orzel of Woodbridge, Ont., is 18th.

“I felt my short program was very good and for me it’s a good way to end the season with this program,” said Nadeau, last year’s silver medallist. “My goal coming into this event is to do two clean skates.”

Sadovsky wasn’t feeling 100 percent confident heading into his short program.

“I had a rough practice this morning so my expectations weren’t high,” said Sadovsky. “I just stepped on the ice wanting to prove I could skate and do well, so to go out and do a clean short is pretty satisfying.”

For Orzel, the competition is a learning experience and he scored a personal best 66.21.

“I executed all my jumps well and I achieved my goal with a personal best score,” said Orzel. “It’s a good stepping stone for next year but there is still a lot to work on. It’s a good way to start my final event of the season.”

Competition continues Thursday with the men’s free program and short dance.

Full results: ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2017

Les Suprêmes Synchronized Skating Team in Hungary for 2017 Budapest Cup

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OTTAWA, ON:  Canada will have one team competing at the 2017 Budapest Cup in Budapest, Hungary from March 16-19, 2017, at the Tüskecsarnok arena. Les Suprêmes will represent Canada in the senior category at the competition.

This season, Les Suprêmes won the bronze medal at the 2017 Leon Lurje trophy in Sweden and won the silver medal at the 2017 Canadian championships, qualifying for the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships® 2017 in Colorado Springs, CO, USA. Last season, they won the silver medal at the Neuchâtel Trophy, placed fourth at the French Cup, won the gold medal at the 2016 Canadian championships, and placed fifth at the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships® 2016. The representatives of CPA Saint-Léonard are coached by Marilyn Langlois, assisted by Pascal Denis and Amélie Brochu.

Susan Morriss of Victoria, B.C., will be the sole Canadian official at the event.

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

Canadian junior skaters in Chinese Taipei for the 2017 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

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OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada has eight entries, for a total of 12 skaters competing at the 2017 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships taking place from March 15-19 in Taipei City, Chinese Taipei. Canada will have two entries per discipline in pairs and ice dance, one entry in ladies and three entries in men’s. Competition begins Wednesday, March 15, with the men and pairs short programs.

Defending world junior silver medallist Nicolas Nadeau, 19, Boisbriand, Que., is the first of three Canadian men. This season, he placed 11th at the Golden Spin of Zagreb, fourth in senior at the 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and won the junior level at the Bavarian Open. Nadeau trains in Rosemère, Que., and is coached by Yvan Desjardins.

Roman Sadovsky, 17, Vaughan, Ont., is the second Canadian entry in men’s. This will be his third time competing at this event, having placed 13th in 2014 and 14th in 2015. This season, he placed fifth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Japan and won the silver medal at the Junior Grand Prix in Estonia. At the senior level, he placed seventh at the Golden Spin of Zagreb and ninth at the 2017 Canadian championships. Sadovsky is coached by Tracey Wainman in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Canadian junior silver medallist Conrad Orzel, 16, Woodbridge, Ont., will round out the Canadian men entries. This season, Orzel placed 10th at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in France and won the silver medal at the Junior Grand Prix in Germany. He also won the junior silver medal at the 2017 Bavarian Open. Orzel is coached by Eva Najarro and trains in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Sarah Tamura, 16, Burnaby, B.C., is the Canadian entry in ladies. Last year, she placed 13th at this event. This season, Tamura placed eighth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Slovenia and sixth in Germany. She also won the junior competition at the Bavarian Open and placed fifth in the senior level at the 2017 Canadian championships. Tamura is coached by Joanne McLeod in Burnaby, B.C.

Canadian junior champions Evelyn Walsh, 15, London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud, 20, Strathroy, Ont., are one of two Canadian pairs competing at this event. Earlier this season, Walsh and Michaud placed 11th at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Estonia and fifth in Germany. They also won the junior competition at the Bavarian Open. Walsh and Michaud are coached by Alison Purkiss and Margaret Purdy, and train in London, Ont.

Canadian junior silver medallists Lori-Anne Matte, 17, Lévis, Que., and Thierry Ferland, 19, Lévis, Que., are the other Canadian junior pair entry at the event. Earlier this season, they placed sixth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in the Czech Republic and fourth in Russia. Matte and Ferland also won the silver medal in the junior competition at the Bavarian Open. They are coached by Martine Simard in Lévis, Que.

Canadian junior champions Marjorie Lajoie, 16, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 17, Greenfield Park, Que., are the first of two Canadian ice dance entries. Last year, they placed 13th at this event. This season, they finished fourth at both of their ISU Junior Grand Prix assignments (Japan and Germany), and won the silver medal at the Bavarian Open in the junior category. Lajoie and Lagha train in Montreal, Que., with coaches Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer and Pascal Denis.

Canadian junior silver medallists Ashlynne Stairs, 16, Calgary, Alta. and Lee Royer, 18, St. Albert, Alta., will also be representing Canada in the ice dance discipline. This season, they finished seventh and fifth respectively at their ISU Junior Grand Prix assignments in France and Slovenia, and won the bronze medal at the Bavarian Open in the junior category. Stairs and Royer are coached by Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe in Burnaby, B.C.

Bev Viger of Abbotsford, B.C., and Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Cole Beavis of Saskatoon, Sask., and physiotherapist Sylvia Ciurysek of Berwyn, Alta., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Leslie Keen of Vancouver, B.C., will be the sole Canadian official at the event.

Skate Canada NextGen Director André Bourgeois will also be traveling with the team.

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

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT THE 2017 ISU WORLD JUNIOR FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Nicolas Nadeau 19 Boisbriand, Que. CPA Boisbriand Yvan Desjardins
Men Roman Sadovsky 17 Vaughan, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Tracey Wainman
Men Conrad Orzel 16 Woodbridge, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Eva Najarro
Ladies Sarah Tamura 16 Burnaby, B.C. Champs International SC Joanne McLeod
Pairs Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud 15/20 London, Ont. / Strathroy, Ont. London SC / Prince Edward SC Alison Purkiss / Margaret Purdy
Pairs Lori-Anne Matte / Thierry Ferland 17/19 Lévis, Que. / Lévis, Que., CPA St. Romuald – St. Jean / CPA St. Romuald – St. Jean Martine Simard
Ice Dance Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha 16/17 Boucherville, Que. / Greenfield Park, Que. CPA De Boucherville / CPA St. Lambert Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon / Romain Haguenauer / Pascal Denis
Ice Dance Ashlynne Stairs / Lee Royer 16/18 Calgary, Alta. / Ft. St. Albert, Alta. Champs International SC / Champs International SC Megan Wing / Aaron Lowe

Canadian teams fifth and sixth at ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships

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MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – Nexxice from Burlington, Ont., produced the third best free skate to climb from seventh to fifth overall on Saturday to conclude the ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships.

Team Russia 2 took the gold medal with 168.83 points with Finland 1 second at 158.06 and Finland 2 third at 156.24. Russia 1, the leader after the short, experienced difficulties in its free skate to drop to eighth overall.

Nexxice delighted the home crowd with a powerful free skate to place fifth with 155.97 and move ahead of Les Suprêmes from St-Léonard, Que., which remained sixth overall at 154.36 despite the fourth best free skate. There were 19 entries.

‘’It honestly felt amazing,’’ said Emiko Marr of Nexxice. ‘’I can’t put into words the feeling, it was so overwhelming. When we hit that end pose, most of us were already in tears. It was a really good ending to the season. We did the best-ever performance of our long at the perfect time.’’

Also skating for Nexxice were Isabella Del Villar, Alycia Giro, Abbey Glumpak, Sarah Hayman, Taylor Johnston, Amanda Kauffman, Kaitlin Lees, Anna Ljunberg, Carolyn Matheson, Shayna McFadden, Jessica Morgan, Scarlet Panning-Stinson, Angie Qie, Nicole Suszek, Emily Van Berkel, Emily Wright and Olivia Xie.

It was also a great finish for Les Suprêmes.

‘’We didn’t quite reach the objectives we wanted to,’’ said Alessia Arsenault, team captain for les Suprêmes. ‘’But we are happy with our performance and with how well we prepared the past months for this event.

‘’The crowd was so supportive and we gave it our all out there.’’

Also skating for les Suprêmes were Jessica Allaire, Amélie Béland, Julia Bernardo, Véronik Boisvert, Rachel Cecere, Lynnson Ceneston, Alice Côté, Ariane Conn, Marie-Ève Deschênes, Olivia Di Giandomenico, Giulia Hart-Lewis, Jessica Iacono, Anélie Jalbert-Tousignant, Grace Le Touzel, Andréanne Paradis, Florence Poulin, Julia Spilak, Anne-Laurence Trudeau and Sarah Verville.

Full results: 2017 ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships

Russia and Finland dominate, Canadians trail at ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships

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MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – Russia and Finland’s two teams grabbed the top-four places in Friday’s short program at the ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships while Canada’s entries are sixth and seventh.

Team Russia 1 stands first at 62.55 points followed by Team Russia 2 in second at 62.34. Team Finland 1 is third at 61.55 and Team Finland is fourth at 57.72.

Les Suprêmes from St-Léonard, Que., is sixth at 55.53 and Nexxice from Burlington, Ont., are seventh at 54.78. There are 19 entries.

‘’The atmosphere felt really great and welcoming,’’ said Emiko Marr of Nexxice. ‘’That gave us the mindset to go out and perform the best we could. We persevered really well through the program and we want to keep that level of focus for the free skate.’’

Also skating for Nexxice were Isabella Del Villar, Alycia Giro, Abbey Glumpak, Sarah Hayman, Taylor Johnston, Amanda Kauffman, Kaitlin Lees, Anna Ljunberg, Carolyn Matheson, Shayna McFadden, Jessica Morgan, Scarlet Panning-Stinson, Angie Qie, Nicole Suszek, Emily Van Berkel, Emily Wright and Olivia Xie.

Les Suprêmes were world junior bronze medallists in 2015.

‘’Our performance felt great,’’ said Alessia Arsenault, team captain for les Suprêmes. ‘’The crowd gave us so much energy and it was really exciting. We want to improve for the final and keep working together. If we duplicate what we do in practice it will go well.’’

Also skating for les Suprêmes were Jessica Allaire, Amélie Béland, Julia Bernardo, Véronik Boisvert, Rachel Cecere, Lynnson Ceneston, Alice Côté, Ariane Conn, Marie-Ève Deschênes, Olivia Di Giandomenico, Giulia Hart-Lewis, Jessica Iacono, Anélie Jalbert-Tousignant, Grace Le Touzel, Andréanne Paradis, Florence Poulin, Julia Spilak, Anne-Laurence Trudeau and Sarah Verville.

Nexxice and Les Suprêmes earned their entries to the world junior championships winning gold and silver respectively at Skate Canada Central Ontario’s annual Winterfest competition in January.

Competition ends Saturday with the free skate at 3 p.m. (EST)

Full Results: 2017 ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships

World’s top junior synchronized skating teams in Mississauga for the ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships® 2017

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OTTAWA, ON: The best junior synchronized skating teams in the world will meet in Mississauga, Ont., this week for the ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships® 2017, from March 10-11, at the Hershey Centre. Nineteen teams from 14 ISU member nations will compete for the title of World Junior Synchronized Skating Champion 2017.

Canada will send two teams: Nexxice junior, from the Burlington Skating Centre, and Les Suprêmes junior, from CPA Saint-Léonard, who earned their entries to the world junior championships winning gold and silver respectively at Skate Canada Central Ontario’s annual Winterfest competition in January.

Canadian silver medallists Nexxice junior will be the first Canadian entry. In 2015, they placed fifth at this event. Earlier this season, the representatives of the Burlington Skating Centre won the silver medal at the 2017 Mozart Cup. Nexxice junior are coached by Trish Perdue-Mills.

The 2017 Canadian champions Les Suprêmes are the second Canadian entry. They are the defending bronze medallists at this event and the 2016 ISU Junior World Challenge Cup champions. This season, Les Suprêmes junior won the gold medal at the Leon Lurje Trophy. They are coached by Marilyn Langlois, assisted by Pascal Denis, Amélie Brochu, and Kassandra Patenaude.

This will mark the first time Canada has hosted the event in its short history, with the inaugural event having been hosted in 2013 by Helsinki, Finland. The ISU World Junior Synchronized Skating Championships was a biennial event but it was recently decided at the 2016 ISU Congress that the event will become annual beginning with this edition. In 2015, Team Canada (Les Suprêmes) won the nation’s first medal at the championships, a bronze.

Tickets are available and can be purchased online at ticketmaster.ca, by phone at 1-855-985-5000 or in person at the Hershey Centre Box Office.

The competition will be streamed live for fans to watch the events from home. For more information, including schedule, results and full entries, please visit the official event website or www.isu.org. Fans can also follow along on social media and join the conversation using the official event hashtag: #WorldJSynchro.