News & Press Releases – Page 63

Nicolas Nadeau wins at Skate Canada Challenge, Soucisse and Tanguay take ice dance title

December 7, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

EDMONTON – Nicolas Nadeau of Boisbriand, Que., won the gold medal in the senior men’s event on Sunday at the Skate Canada Challenge figure skating competition.

Nadeau, a silver medallist earlier this season at the Junior Grand Prix event in Croatia, totalled 233.01 points. Olympian Kevin Reynolds of Coquitlam, B.C., took the silver at 207.09 and Keegan Messing of Sherwood Park, Alta., was third at 200.50.

“It wasn’t perfect but I achieved my goals,’’ said Nadeau. “I feel I’ve set myself up well for the nationals.’’

In ice dance, Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Simon Tanguay of Montreal were the winners at 143.70. They edged Lauren Collins and Shane Firus of Barrie, Ont., in second at 142.98 and Andréanne Poulin and Marc-André Servant of Montreal in third at 142.96.

‘’We didn’t expect the gold medal,’’ said Soucisse. ‘’We wanted to do a good performance in both programs. We were more clean with the elements especially in the short dance.’’

In junior competition, Joseph Phan of Gatineau, Que., took the men’s title while Melinda Meng and Andrew Meng of Montreal were the ice dance winners.

‘’I didn’t feel nervous here because I was well prepared,’’ said Phan. ‘’I just need to keep working hard for the nationals.’’

‘’We produced two pretty solid performances,’’ said Melinda Meng. ‘’We really wanted to bring up the emotion in our programs and we skated our best so far in that sense.’’

The weekend’s winners in novice competition were Stephen Gogolev of Toronto for the men and Alicia Fabbri of Terrebonne, Que., and Claudio Pietrantonio of Laval, Que., in ice dancing.

The pre-novice winners were Koen Kucher of Regina for the men and Natalie D’Alessandro and Bruce Waddell of Toronto in ice dancing.

This is the sole qualifying event for novice, junior, and senior skaters to earn entries to the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships taking place in Halifax, N.S., from January 18-24, 2016.

Full results: 2016 Skate Canada Challenge.

Grenier, Deschamps take pairs title, Daleman wins handily at Skate Canada Challenge

December 5, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

EDMONTON – Vanessa Grenier of Johnville, Que., and Maxime Deschamps of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., are the senior pairs champion at the 2016 Skate Canada Challenge being held through to Sunday at the the Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre.

Grenier and Deschamps earned a season-high 162.10 points for their short and long programs. Brittany Jones and Joshua Reagan of Toronto were second at 148.70 and Shalena Rau of Waterloo, Ont., and Sebastian Arcieri Montreal were third at 140.12.

“We improved our score and everything was much better,” said Deschamps, who competed at two ISU Grand Prix’s this fall. “We want to keep improving for nationals.”

Grenier says preparation will be key to success at the national championships next month.

“We have to keep being solid in training,” she said. “We have to keep working on improving our lifts and spirals so we don’t lose those little points that can often wind up costing us.”

Gabrielle Daleman of Newmarket, Ont., took the senior women’s title convincingly with 193.62 points. Véronik Mallet of Sept-Iles, Que., was second at 152.40 and Larkyn Austman of Coquitlam, B.C., third at 148.76.

‘’I was very pleased with how it went,’’ said Daleman, a 2014 Olympian. ‘’I came here especially to get another long program under my belt and I know what I need to work on towards nationals.’’

In junior competition, winners so far are Amanda Tobin of Burlington, Ont., in women’s singles and Hope McLean of Newbury, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Strathroy, Ont., in pairs.

“I feel I competed really well and brought a lot of confidence in my two programs,” said Tobin. “I need to bring more consistency in my free program for the nationals so I can produce a clean skate more often and also land my triple-triple combination which I have been working really hard on in training.”

McLean and Michaud performed a new short program.

‘’The short program wasn’t our best but it just gave us more motivation for the free skate,’’ said Michaud. ‘’We want to keep pushing the envelope and build our speed.’’

Winners in novice competition so far are, Katrina Lopez and Kurtis Schreiber of Calgary in pairs and Olivia Gran Kelowna, B.C., in women’s singles.

Pre-novice winners so far are Vasilisa Matantseva of Burnaby, B.C., in women’s singles and Keara Harney of Candiac, Que., and Zachary Freedman of Kingston, Ont., in pairs.

Competition continues through to Sunday. This is the sole qualifying event for novice, junior, and senior skaters to earn entries to the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships taking place in Halifax, N.S., from January 18-24, 2016.

Full results: 2016 Skate Canada Challenge

Skaters headed to 2016 Skate Canada Challenge in Edmonton

December 1, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON: Approximately 500 skaters from across Canada are headed to Edmonton, Alta., for the 2016 Skate Canada Challenge. This year’s event will be taking place from December 2-6, 2015, at the Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre.

This is the sole qualifying event for novice, junior, and senior skaters to earn entries to the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships taking place in Halifax, N.S., from January 18-24, 2016. Skaters have qualified for the 2016 Skate Canada Challenge by advancing through their home sectional championships.

The 2016 Skate Canada Challenge will also see the crowning of the 2016 Canadian Pre-Novice Champions in men’s, women’s, pair, and ice dance.

National team member and Alberta/Northwest Territories/Nunavut Section representative Keegan Messing, 23, Girdwood, AK., will be competing in his home section in the senior men’s competition. Other national team members entered in the competition are Canadian champion Gabrielle Daleman, 17, Newmarket, Ont., (senior women’s), Canadian bronze medallist Véronik Mallet, 21, Sept-Îles, Que., (senior women’s), Roxanne Rheault, 20, Victoriaville, Que., (senior women’s), Kim DeGuise-Léveillée, 17, Sorel-Tracy, Que., (senior women’s), and Vanessa Grenier, 23, Johnville, Que., and Maxime Deschamps, 23, Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., (senior pair).

Local Edmonton skating clubs will have a strong representation at the event with a total of 25 entries across all categories and disciplines, including six senior entries, five junior entries, three novice entries and 11 pre-novice entries.

For schedule, entries and start orders please click here.

General admission tickets will be available for purchase at the Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre throughout the event. All-event tickets are $50, day tickets will be available for purchase for $10 on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and $20 on Saturday and Sunday. 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 at [email protected].

Skate Canada Qualifies Five Entries for the ISU Grand Prix Final

November 30, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada has qualified five entries for a total of eight skaters for the ISU Grand Prix Final in Barcelona, Spain from December 10-13, 2015. The ISU Senior Grand Prix Final will be held jointly with the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.

The Canadian team will consist of:

SENIOR MEN’S

Patrick Chan

SENIOR PAIR

Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford

Julianne Séguin / Charlie Bilodeau

SENIOR ICE DANCE

Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje

JUNIOR MEN’S

Roman Sadovsky

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: United States (Skate America), Canada (Skate Canada International), China (Cup of China), France (Trophée Eric Bompard), Russia (Rostelecom Cup), and Japan (NHK Trophy). 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.

Due to the tragic events in France that caused the cancellation of the free program and free dance segments of the Grand Prix event in Bordeaux, there has been an adjustment to the qualifying process. Any first substitute skater/team that placed 7th in the 2015/16 Grand Prix ranking has been invited to the Final, provided that they skated the short program or short dance at the event in Bordeaux.

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 click here.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT THE 2015 ISU GRAND PRIX FINAL

Discipline	Name	Age	Hometown	Club	Coach
Senior Mens	Patrick Chan	24	Toronto, Ont.	Granite Club	Kathy Johnson
Senior Pair	Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford	29/30	Lively, Ont. / Balmertown, Ont.	CPA Saint-Léonard / CPA Saint-Léonard	Richard Gauthier / Bruno Marcotte / Sylvie Fullum
Senior Pair	Julianne Séguin / Charlie Bilodeau	19/22	Longueuil, Que. / Trois-Pistoles, Que.	CPA Longueuil / CPA Chambly	Josée Picard
Senior Ice Dance	Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje	26/28	Toronto, Ont. / Waterloo, Ont.	Sault FSC / Kitchener-Waterloo SC	Angelika Krylova / Pasquale Camerlengo / Shae-Lynn Bourne
Junior Mens	Roman Sadovsky	16	Vaughan, Ont.	YRSA Winter Club	Tracey Wainman / Gregor Filipowski

Gold medal for Duhamel and Radford

November 28, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

NAGANO, Japan – Skating to Adele’s My Hometown Meaghan Duhamel of Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford of Balmertown, Ont., won the gold medal in pairs on Saturday at the NHK Trophy, the sixth stop on the ISU Grand Prix circuit.

Duhamel and Radford earned 202.72 points for their fifth straight victory on the circuit. They will easily qualify for the Grand Prix Final in two weeks in Barcelona. Xiaoyu Yu and Yang Jin of China were second at 191.02 and Alexa Scimeca and Chris Knierim of the U.S. third at 190.66.

The Canadians had two noticeable mistakes in their free skate but their loaded program remained superior to the rest of the competition.

“As was the case in the short program, we missed a few things we know we can do a lot better,” said Radford. “On the plus side, we got great execution on our pairs elements such as lifts, twists and spins. So we have a lot of good things we can bring with us to the Grand Prix Final. We may change a couple of things so we can go for a cleaner skate which we will need to do to remain competitive with the other top teams.”

Duhamel agrees the program needs to show more polish.

“We need to go to Barcelona and do a clean short and clean long,” she said. “When we skate clean programs we are in control of our own destiny. That was the situation last year and we’ll do what it takes to achieve that again.”

Second-year partners Lubov Iliushechkina and Dylan Moscovitch of Toronto were fifth with a personal best 180.63.

In men’s competition, Elladj Balde of Pierrefonds, Que., was 11^th while Kaetlyn Osmond of Marystown, N.L. moved from eighth to sixth overall after her free skate in women’s singles.

Osmond was pleased to improve on her 11^th place finish at Skate Canada last month.

“It was a long gap between here and Skate Canada,” she said. “For me I just really wanted to go out and compete after all the training.”

Canada had no entries in ice dancing.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1516/gpjpn2015/index.htm

Duhamel and Radford top pairs after short program

November 27, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

NAGANO, Japan – World champions Meagan Duhamel of Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford of Balmertown, Ont., are in first place after the pairs short program on Friday at the NHK Trophy, the sixth stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

Duhamel and Radford earned 71.04 points in their short program skated to Elton John’s Your Song. They are looking for a fifth straight victory on the circuit. Alexa Scimeca and Chris Knierim of the U.S. are second at 68.43 and Xiaoyu Yu and Yang Jin of China third at 67.00.

“We had to fight through this,” said Duhamel. “Our strength and training really showed today. We know we can do this program a lot smoother and we know if we want to be first against all the top teams we have to be better.”

“There were a couple of little miscues that never happened before,” said Radford. “But some quick thinking and we still pulled off a decent program.”

Lubov Ilyushechkina and Dylan Moscovitch of Toronto are fifth at 63.80.

In men’s competition, Elladj Balde of Pierrefonds, Que., is 11th after the short program while Kaetlyn Osmond of Marystown, N.L. is eighth after the women’s short program.

The short dance and the free skates for men, women and pairs are on Saturday. The free dance is on Sunday.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1516/gpjpn2015/index.htm

Canadian skaters prepared for final stop on ISU Grand Prix circuit

November 26, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will have four entries, for a total of six skaters competing at the 2015 NHK Trophy in Nagano, Japan. Canada will have one entry in men’s and ladies, and two entries in pair at the event which takes place from November 26-29, 2015 at the Nagano Wakasato Tamokuteki Sports Arena.

Elladj Baldé, 25, Pierrefonds, Que., will be the Canadian entry in the men’s category. Last season, he placed sixth at this event. This season, the representative of CPA Anjou Kinsmen won gold at the Nebelhorn Trophy and placed 11^th at the Cup of China. Baldé trains in Montreal, Que., with coaches Bruno Marcotte and Manon Perron.

Two-time Canadian champion and Olympic silver medallist (team) Kaetlyn Osmond, 19, Marystown, Nfld., will represent Canada in ladies. This will be her first time competing at this event. Earlier this season, she won gold at the Nebelhorn Trophy and placed 11^th at Skate Canada International. She is coached by Ravi Walia and represents the Ice Palace Figure Skating Club.

World champions and Olympic silver medallists (team) Meagan Duhamel, 29, Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford, 30, Balmertown, Ont., are the first of two Canadian pair entries. The representatives of CPA Saint-Léonard are the defending champions at this event. This season, they won gold at the Skate Canada Autumn Classic International and Skate Canada International. The four-time Canadian champions are coached by Richard Gauthier, Bruno Marcotte, and Sylvie Fullum at CPA Saint-Léonard.

Lubov Ilyushechkina, 24, Moscow, Russia, and Dylan Moscovitch, 31, Toronto, Ont., are the second Canadian pair entry. This will be their first time competing at this event. Earlier this season, the representatives of the Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club placed fourth at the Ondrej Nepela Trophy and seventh at the Cup of China. The Canadian silver medallists are coached by Lee Barkell, Bryce Davison and Tracy Wilson.

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director, and Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. John Philpott of Toronto, Ont., and physiotherapist Meghan Buttle, also of Toronto, Ont., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Jeff Lukasik of Calgary, Alta., and André-Marc Allain of Gatineau, Que., will be the Canadian officials at the event.

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

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2015 NHK TROPHY

Discipline	Name	Age	Hometown	Club	Coach
Mens	Elladj Baldé	25	Pierrefonds, Que.	CPA Anjou Kinsmen	Bruno Marcotte / Manon Perron
Ladies	Kaetlyn Osmond	19	Marystown, Nfld. & Sherwood Park, Alberta	Ice Palace FSC	Ravi Walia
Pair	Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford	29/30	Lively, Ont. / Balmertown, Ont.	CPA Saint-Léonard / CPA Saint-Léonard	Richard Gauthier / Bruno Marcotte / Sylvie Fullum
Pair	Lubov Ilyushechkina / Dylan Moscovitch	24/31	Moscow, Russia / Toronto, Ont.	Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club / Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club	Lee Barkell / Bryce Davison / Tracy Wilson

Mississauga Awarded 2016 Skate Canada International

November 23, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

MISSISSAUGA, ON: The Mississauga Celebration Square Ice Rink hosted some of Canada’s top skaters today as Skate Canada, in partnership with the City of Mississauga and Toronto Tourism, announced that Mississauga has been awarded the hosting of the 2016 Skate Canada International competition. The event will take place from October 27-30, 2016 at the Hershey Centre. Ticket packages for the event will go on sale to the public this Thursday, November 26 at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Mississauga has been one of the leading host cities for Skate Canada competitions. Skate Canada International has visited the city in 2011, 2003 and 2000, Skate Canada Challenge was held in 2008 through 2011, and in 2013 the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships were also held at the Hershey Centre.

“We are thrilled to be returning to Mississauga for the 43rd instalment of Skate Canada International. Over the years the City of Mississauga, Toronto Tourism and the Hershey Centre have proven to be valuable partners and have contributed to the success of several Skate Canada events,” said Dan Thompson, Skate Canada CEO. “Over the event weekend, fans will see some spectacular skating from Canadian stars and high-level international athletes. It is an event you won’t want to miss out on. We hope to see the community come out and support all the competitors.”

Skate Canada International is the second competition in the annual ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. Other Grand Prix events include the United States (Skate America), China (Cup of China), France (Trophée Eric Bompard), Russia (Rostelecom Cup), and Japan (NHK Trophy). Competing skaters are awarded points based on their placements in the series’ events. The top-six men and ladies and the top-six pair and ice dance teams qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final to be held in December 2016.

“Mississauga is truly excited to play host to the 2016 Skate Canada International competition at our celebrated Hershey Centre,” Mayor Crombie said. “We look forward to welcoming athletes, coaches, and fans from communities throughout Canada.”

Mayor Crombie added that “Mississauga is a proud sports’ community, home to first-rate facilities with a history of hosting national and international competitions. City Council has a vision for Mississauga to be a community where active and healthy lifestyles – through sports and recreation opportunities – are encouraged by City Hall.”

All-event ticket packages will go on sale this Thursday, November 26 at 10 a.m. (ET). Packages prices range from $157.50-$195, plus applicable surcharges. Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.ca, by phone at 1.855.985.5000 or in person at the Hershey Centre box office.

These prices offer a discount of 25% from the single event ticket prices. Single event tickets will go on sale in later in 2016.

Grand Prix gold medal for Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje

November 21, 2015/0 Comments/in News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases, News & Press Releases /by Skate Canada

MOSCOW – Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont., won the gold medal in ice dancing on Saturday at the Rostelecom Cup, the fifth stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

Weaver and Poje earned 173.58 points for their fifth straight victory on the circuit. It was just 0.21 points lower than the score they received three weeks ago in their victory at Skate Canada. Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte of Italy were second at 171.61 and Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia third at 167.40.

“We can feel very strong here about our competition in Moscow,” said Weaver. “We had two clean performances. Both can be better of course. The free was a little bit conservative but it is still early in the season and we are growing so much with this program.”

Weaver said the program can look even more effortless.

“We could have been a little bit more free,” she said. “Especially with the emotions and also with the speed. But we got the job done, we did the important things, we build each time we are out.”

In women’s competition, Alaine Chartrand of Prescott, Ont., struggled with her jumps and dropped from second after the short program to sixth. She finished with a season’s best 173.42 points.

Elena Radionova led a Russian medal sweep.

In men’s competition, 17-year-old Nam Nguyen of Toronto finished seventh. He landed two quad jumps and a triple Axel in his demanding program. His most noticeable mistake was touching his hand on the ice after his triple Lutz.

“It was a good fight from yesterday,” said Nguyen, seventh in Friday’s short program. “But I felt my energy level was really low so my performance suffered on that front.”

Javier Fernandez of Spain won the gold medal.

In pairs, Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov led Russia to a 1-2 finish. Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., were seventh and Hayleigh Bell and Rudi Swiegers of Regina were eighth.

The sixth and last stop before the Grand Prix Final is Friday and Saturday at the NHK Trophy in Nagano, Japan.

Full results : ISU GP Rostelecom Cup 2015

Season’s best for Weaver/Poje and Chartrand second after short

November 20, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

MOSCOW – Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont., lead in ice dancing and Alaine Chartrand of Prescott, Ont., stands second in women’s singles after Friday’s short programs at the Rostelecom Cup, the fifth stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

Weaver and Poje produced a season best 69.49 points in their program skated to Johann Strauss waltzes. Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte of Italy are second at 67.82 and Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia third at 63.63.

“I think that we skated fairly well,’’ said Weaver. ‘’We’ve doubled the amount of training time for this program since Skate Canada. So that feels great to have a little bit more mileage. We definitely can perform it better and we’re looking forward to growing on this program and make it the best it can be.’’

In women’s competititon, Elena Radionova of Russia is first at 71.79. Chartrand earned 67.38 and Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia is third at 67.03. Chartrand opened with a perfect triple Lutz-triple toe combo and never looked back roaring to a personal best score.

“I’m excited to be back in Russia,’’ said Chartrand, 19, a bronze medallist here last season. ‘I’ve been training really well and I’m glad I showed that today”,

On the men’s side 17-year-old Nam Nguyen of Toronto landed a quad jump and triple Axel but fell in the second part of his triple Lutz combo to stand seventh.

Adian Pitkeev of Russia (87.54 points) Spain’s Javier Fernandez (86.99), and Ross Miner of the U.S. (85.36.) are holding down the top three spots, respectively.

In pairs Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., are seventh and Hayleigh Bell of Rudi Swiegers of Regina are eighth.

The four free skates are on Saturday.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1516/gprus2015/index.htm

Single Event Tickets for the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships On Sale Friday

November 18, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON: Single event tickets for the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships will go on sale this Friday, November 20 at 11:00 a.m. (AT). The championships will take place from January 18-24, 2016 in Halifax, N.S., at the Scotiabank Centre.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketatlantic.com, by phone at 902-451-1221 or toll free 1-877-451-1221 or in person at the Ticket Atlantic box office located on the Scotiabank Centre Promenade.

Senior competition prices range from $30-$55 per session, plus surcharges. Promotional four-packs are available for $100-$175, for senior events only.

Tickets for the junior and novice competition are $15-$20 per day. Seating for the junior and novice competition days is general admission. Children 12 and under are free for the junior and novice events only.

In addition, all-event ticket packages are still available for purchase.

EVENT INFO

The event will feature approximately 250 skaters in the men’s, women’s, pair and ice dance disciplines, competing in three levels: senior, junior and novice.

Leading the senior events are 2015 World Pair Champions Meagan Duhamel, 29, Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford, 30, Balmertown, Ont. The four-time Canadian champions will look to win their fifth title, taking on Canada’s best. Current Canadian champion Nam Nguyen, 17, Toronto, Ont., will go head-to-head with three-time world champion Patrick Chan, 24, Toronto, Ont., as he returns to competition after a year off. In ice dance, two-time world medallists Kaitlyn Weaver, 26, Waterloo, Ont., and Andrew Poje, 28, Waterloo, Ont., plan to capture their second Canadian title. In women’s Gabrielle Daleman, 17, Newmarket, Ont., will defend her 2015 Canadian title against two-time Canadian champion Kaetlyn Osmond, 19, Marystown, Nfld. & Sherwood Park, Alta., who will return to competition after missing last season due to injury.

Athletes will vie for spots on the Skate Canada National Team and the Canadian teams that will compete at the 2016 ISU World Figure Skating Championships, 2016 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, and 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Rostelecom Cup marks fifth stop for Canadian team on ISU Grand Prix circuit

November 17, 2015/0 Comments/in /by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send five entries, for a total of eight skaters, to Moscow, Russia, for the 2015 Rostelecom Cup. Canada will have one entry per discipline in men’s, ladies and ice dance, and two entries in pair at the event which takes place from November 20-22, 2015.

Canadian champion Nam Nguyen, 17, Toronto, Ont., will represent Canada in men’s. This will be his first time competing at this event. Earlier this season, Nguyen won silver at the Skate Canada Autumn Classic International and placed fifth at Skate Canada International. He is coached by Brian Orser and Ernest Pryhitka at the Toronto Cricket Skating & Curling Club.

Canadian silver medallist Alaine Chartrand, 19, Prescott, Ont., will be Canada’s entry in the ladies category. Last season, she won the bronze medal at this event. Earlier this season, she placed fourth at the Nebelhorn Trophy and 12^th at Skate America. The representative of the Nepean Skating Club is coached by Michelle Leigh and Brian Orser.

Kirsten Moore-Towers, 23, St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro, 23, Sarnia, Ont., are the second Canadian entry in pair. This will be their first time competing at this event. Earlier this season, Moore-Towers and Marinaro won bronze at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic and also won bronze at Skate Canada International. The representatives of Kitchener-Waterloo SC and Point Edward SC are coached by Bruno Marcotte, Richard Gauthier, Sylvie Fullum, Julie Marcotte and Cynthia Lemaire at CPA Saint-Léonard.

Hayleigh Bell, 19, Acton, Ont., and Rudi Swiegers, 28, Kipling, Sask., will be Canada’s second entry in the pair category. This will be their second international assignment since teaming up this summer. Earlier this season, they placed fifth at the Skate Canada Autumn Classic International. Representing Skate Regina, the pair train in Calgary, Alta., with coaches Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay.

Canadian champions and two time world medallists Kaitlyn Weaver, 26, Toronto, Ont., and Andrew Poje, 28, Waterloo, Ont., will be the Canadian entry in ice dance. This will be their third time competing at this event, having won silver in 2011 and 2013. Earlier this season, they won gold at the Finlandia Trophy and gold at Skate Canada International. The representatives of Sault FSC and Kitchener-Waterloo SC are coached by Angelika Krylova, Pasquale Camerlengo and Shae-Lynn Bourne in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Bev Viger of Abbotsford, B.C., will be the Canadian team leader at the event. Dr. Lee Schofield of Toronto, Ont., and physiotherapist Scott Fraser of Kingston, Ont., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Leanna Caron of Timmins, Ont., and Reaghan Fawcett of Aurora, Ont., will be the Canadian officials at the event.