World Junior Medallists Purdy and Marinaro end skating partnership

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OTTAWA, ON: The 2013 world junior silver medalists in pair, Margaret Purdy and Michael Marinaro, have ended their skating partnership and will be moving on to new challenges.  Purdy, 19, Strathroy, Ont., will attend university this fall, while Marinaro, 22, Sarnia, Ont., plans to continue skating and will be looking for a new pair partner.

Purdy and Marinaro have competed together nationally since 2008, and were Canadian Junior Champions in 2010. They won medals on the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Circuit, including two golds in 2012, which qualified them for the 2012 ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.  The pinnacle of their career was the silver world medal, won at the 2013 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships, in Milan, Italy.  They were members of Canada’s national team for the 2013-2014 season.

With Marinaro’s decision to pursue skating with a new partner, Purdy made the difficult decision to retire from competitive skating and begin her university studies. She will enter the social science program at Western University in September, and plans to pursue a career in business and law.

“I’m so proud of what we accomplished. I have so many amazing memories that I will cherish for the rest of my life, and I’m so glad that I was able experience them with Mike. It was a really hard decision to retire, but I knew it wouldn’t be the same for me to skate with another partner,” said Purdy. “We have a very strong friendship with one another, and I wish Mike the very best in the future and I hope all goes well for him.”

As she reflected on what skating has meant in her life, she said, “skating has taught me how to deal with success and failure, to be organized, how to balance your life and how to constantly push yourself to be better and better. These are all valuable life lessons that will help me with what I plan to do in the future.”

Marinaro paid tribute to the friendship that was the hallmark of their partnership. “The last eight years have been a wonderful and exciting partnership. I’m blessed to have had Margaret as a partner. She is an extremely dedicated skating partner and an extremely close friend. We are just as close off the ice as we were on the ice, and we tried to bring that friendship into our skating. I’m so glad we got to share that podium moment at junior worlds together. I know she will be very successful and wish her the best for the next chapter of her life.”

Marinaro came straight out of CanSkate right into figure skating, while Purdy began as a hockey player who switched to figure skating. The pair trained for their entire career with coaches Scott Rachuk and Alison Purkiss at the London Competitive Skating Centre. They both wanted to thank their coaches and the team at the Centre.

“Thank you to Scott and Alison for everything they have done for me. They have been my coaches from the very beginning, and they are just two amazing people who not only helped make me the skater I am today but also made me the person I am today,” said Purdy. She also paid tribute to her family. “They have been along my side the whole time through the good and the bad and they have always been my biggest fans and have always supported me no matter what I chose to do, so I want to thank them so much. I hope the next chapter of my life is as wonderful as the last.”

“Our career wouldn’t have been possible without the help of many people,” said Marinaro. “I want to thank Scott and Alison and the whole London Competitive Skating Centre for everything.  They have done nothing but support us over the last eight years. And of course, Skate Canada has given us terrific support, and our families have always been there for us as well.”

Purdy plans to stay involved with the skating community because it has been such a big part of her life. She has enjoyed helping the younger skaters at the rink on the presentation and movement apects of skating, as a nice transition from the competitive side of skating. And come September, she plans to try out for the varsity skating program at Western.

Marinaro plans to continue competing in the pair discipline with a new skating partner.

Canada’s Skating Community Heads to Quebec City

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OTTAWA, ON:  Quebec City, Que., will welcome more than 500 members of the skating community for Skate Canada’s Annual Convention and General Meeting (ACGM) and National Coaches’ Conference (NCC).  The events will be held from May 28-31, 2014 at the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in Quebec City.

Over the four days, delegates and coaches will be reminded that it’s our individual experiences that provide the basis for our sport’s growth and when those experiences are combined with a passion for skating, it’s clear: Canada Skates!

The NCC kicks off officially on Wednesday evening when coaches will be joined by 2006 Olympic bronze medalist Jeffrey Buttle at the opening dinner.  The action continues all day Thursday, when coaches from across Canada will attend workshops from world-class coaches, including Manon Perron, Richard Gauthier, Janet Champion and Cathy Dalton. Off-ice sessions will include a wide variety of topics ranging from “Sport-Related Pain and Injury” with Dr. William Bridel to “Coaching Business: Apps 101” with Cyndie Flett.

Thursday evening the ACGM begins by celebrating our success in Sochi and for the first time ever, having nine Olympic medalists in figure skating.  All members of the silver medal winning team event will be in present to share their inspiring stories at the convention opening: Patrick Chan, Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford; Kirsten Moore-Towers & Dylan Moscovitch; Kaetlyn Osmond; Kevin Reynolds; and Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir.

On Friday, attendees participate in a variety of workshops, presentations and social events.  All of the workshops cover hot topic items including “Sport Psychology: Skating Begins in the Mind” by Dr. Sylvain Guimond, “Teaching the New CanSkate Program: Keys to Success” and “Bullying in Sport” by Dr. William Bridel.

A number of awards will be presented on Friday evening during the Skate Canada Achievement Awards Gala and Banquet. The program honours skaters, coaches and dedicated volunteers who have donated their time to improving the quality of skating in Canada. World renowned coach Kerry Leitch will also be inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame during the evening.

The event concludes on Saturday with the 101st Annual General Meeting of the association.

Media looking to attend any ACGM or NCC workshop or presentation are asked to arrange times through Barb MacDonald, Skate Canada Director Corporate Communications, by contacting her at 613.894.1769 or [email protected].

Canadian choreographer Lori Nichol takes her place in the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame

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These days, Lori Nichol has a spring in her step. There’s an extra lift to her walk. The world seems brighter.

It’s because this Canadian choreographer was just granted entry into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame in mid-March, and the gesture of world support has deeply affected her. “It’s an incredible honour,” said Nichol. “For them to give this nod of approval gives me an extraordinary feeling. I didn’t even think it was possible.”

This from the woman who has choreographed exquisite routines for Michelle Kwan, Patrick Chan, Mao Asada, Carolina Kostner, Evan Lysacek, Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao, Qing Pang and Jian Tong, Jamie Salé and David Pelletier, Denis Ten, and Daisuke Takahashi. In all, she designed programs for 11 singles skaters and one pair team, representing seven countries, at the Sochi Olympics.

Still, she’s surprised. “I was profoundly honoured and amazed that that could happen to me,” she said.

Because of this nod from the majordomo of the sport, Nichol says she’s having an uncommonly good choreographic season. “I feel more confident on the ice,” she said. “I keep being able to say to myself: ‘Just trust yourself, Lori, other people believe in you.’ I’m enjoying the process quite a bit more this year than I have in the past.”

She’s not tormenting herself so much. She bears the perfectionist’s burden: great is not good enough, every detail must be splendid. She can spend 20 minutes on a rocker, a change of edge. She’s always had this pervasive self-talk as she works, when she choreographs in her head and she’s watching her skaters and analyzing what parts work and what parts don’t. “Come on, Lori,” she says to herself. “You can do better than that. You know there is something more in that. Find it!’

“And having said all that, as tortured as it all sounds, I love it to death.”

Every time she sets to work to design a routine, she’s “petrified” the night before she starts it. She agonizes. Did she choose the right music? Has she given the right amount of breathing space to the skater to be able to perform and interpret? Has she balanced the athlete and artist enough? Will the choreography interfere with what the coach needs technically? Has she compromised the art too much for the technical? “Oh my goodness, the skater has come so far, or their family has sacrificed so much for them to be here,” Nichol worries. “Or is this the last program that this person will skate in an eligible career?” All sorts of things go through her head.

But then there are those moments when a skater does something amazing. “Then you feel so proud,” she said. “It could be as simple as four beats of movement that are just so fabulous and I get really excited.”

That’s just how it is when she works. She’s made friends with the process in a way. She’s even been tortured that she was tormented. Now Nichol says she’s able to accept that it’s just going to be like that. But now, “I just have this little burning ember inside of me that I didn’t have before that says: ‘You really can do this.’” Nichol said.

A case in point: the divine short program “Ave Maria” that Nichol did for Carolina Kostner, who ended up winning the Olympic bronze medal after so many Olympic disappointments. “It was a very difficult year, very emotional, and it was our ninth year together,” Nichol said. “And I felt sick almost for six months. It was Olympic year and for so many, it was their final year – or could be.”

Nichol had choreographed a Humeresque short program for Kostner, but when it received mixed reviews early in the season, Nichol’s experience allowed her to ditch it rather than try to fix it – and she brought in Ave Maria. Kostner wasn’t sure about it, but Nichol (as usual) convinced her that it would be the perfect complement to her earthy, sensual Bolero long program. “Ave Maria showed the sweetness and ethereal feeling,” Nichol said. It fit the skater.

So far this season, Nichol has already done two new programs for Gabby Daleman (“I’m very excited for her year,” Nichol said) and U.S. champion Gracie Gold, too. She’s excited about doing American Ross Miner’s long program. Right now, Nichol is doing one or two programs a week. She’s booked until the middle of July.

She attended the world championships in March after Kostner decided to compete and was asked to come first to Obertsdorf, then Japan. She returned from overseas on a Sunday. The next day, Nichol was at work, choreographing. She hasn’t had a day off since.

But still, she feels rejuvenated, even if she is tired. Her walk to the rink feels different and it’s because she’s been accepted into the World Hall of Fame.

Every day, when she opens the rink door, she tells herself that she will do everything she can to make a difference, no matter how small, in a person’s life or in the skating world, the art of skating. And now she knows she can.

“Just trust yourself,” she said. “I’m saying that to myself much more than other dialogues now. It’s a really beautiful gift and it’s an unexpected feeling from it. I never thought about what it would make you feel like. But it’s really something very, very special.”

You can only imagine what her programs will be like this year.

Beverley Smith

Canadians en Route to Germany for 2014 ISU Adult Competition

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OTTAWA, ONT: A record fifty Canadian skaters will be competing at the 2014 International Skating Union (ISU) Adult Figure Skating Competition. The event takes place in Oberstdorf, Germany, from May 25-31, 2014.

This year’s competition, which marks the 10th anniversary of the event, will see a record number of entries – 432 skaters plus 12 synchronized skating teams from 28 countries. In order to compete at the ISU Adult Figure Skating Competition, skaters must be between the ages of 28 and 78. Many entrants are former international competitors, including Canada’s own Gary Beacom, 1984 Olympian and 1988 World Professional Champion.

“The Canadian team at the 2014 ISU Adult Competition represents what it is to embrace the joy of skating. Their passion for the sport and dedication to skating for life is something we encourage all Canadians to adopt,” said Dan Thompson, Skate Canada CEO. “We know that this group will make us proud as they excel on the greatest international stage for adult skaters.”

Over the seven-day competition, skaters will compete in the following categories:

  • Ladies and Men Free Skating
  • Ladies and Men Artistic Free Skating
  • Pairs Free Skating
  • Ice Dance – Pattern Dance
  • Ice Dance – Short Dance
  • Ice Dance – Free Dance
  • Synchronized Skating

Since the event’s inception in 2005, Canada has been well represented in entries and medal count. In 2013, the Canadian team earned a total of 25 medals, including 12 gold medals, seven silver medals, and six bronze medals.

The adult figure skaters representing Canada are:

British Columbia
Alexandra Gunsett (free skate & artistic)
David Dickey (free skate & artistic)
Diana Barkley (ice dance)
Gary Beacom (free skate & artistic)
Gloria Purvey (free skate & artistic)
Geoff Squires (ice dance)
James Wilkins (ice dance & artistic)
Janette Wood (free skate & artistic)
Linda Maundrell (artistic)
Luda Kalenuk (free skate & artistic)
Michelle Lamothe (free skate & artistic)
Raye Ryan (free skate & artistic)
Sue Edwards (dance & artistic)

Alberta
Annette Nymeyer (free skate & artistic)
Bobbie Joe Donovan (free skate & artistic)
Catherine Taylor (free skate & artistic)
Denis La Rochelle (free skate & artistic)
Diane Gilders (free skate & artistic)
Isabelle Ciocoiu (free skate & artistic)
Jennifer Soeder (free skate & artistic)
Joan McGrath (free skate & artistic)
Leonard Baker (pairs)
Susan MacFarlane (pairs)

Manitoba
Tracey Muir (free skate)

Ontario
Alison Clark (ice dance)
Angela Justason (ice dance & free skate)
Francesco Ventura (free skate & artistic)
Hisayo Shibata (free skate & artistic)
Jacob Brunott (ice dance & artistic))
Jeff Bullard (ice dance & artistic)
Joan Cheng (free skate & artistic)
Ken Langlois (ice dance)
Sarina Tsai (free skate & artistic)
Takeshi Ikeno (free skate & artistic)
Terri-Lynn Black-Calleri (ice dance)

Nova Scotia
Donald Murrary (free skate & artistic)
Heather Dawe (free skate & artistic)
Jennifer Powell (artistic)
Kate McInnis (free skate & artistic)

Scotian Waves Synchronized Skating team:
Alicia McNeil
Ashley Stewart
Deborah Fountain
Elsa Pihl
Jennifer Harvie
Jennifer Powell
Jill Jackson-Rutledge
Kate McInnis
Katie Malone
Kayleigh Butler
Ola Smyth
Shannon Sutherland
Tracy Lovett

For more information, please visit www.adultskating.org or www.isu.org.

 

Amélie Lacoste announces retirement from competitive skating

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OTTAWA, ON:  Amélie Lacoste, 25, of Delson, Que., has retired from competitive skating. The 2012 Canadian Champion, representing CPA du Roussillon, was a mainstay on the Canadian National team for six years. Lacoste represented Canada many times in international competition including two 16th place finishes at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships (2011, 2012), seven appearances at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships (2005, 2009-2014) and various ISU Grand Prix events, notably earning bronze at the 2011 Skate Canada International. She is a four-time Canadian medallist at the senior level, and one of few skaters to win the Canadian title at the novice (2003), junior (2005) and senior levels (2012).

This season, she placed fifth at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic, fifth at Skate Canada International, sixth at Trophée Eric Bompard, 12th at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships and earned bronze at the 2014 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. Lacoste started in private lessons at the age of six with her first coach Lynn McKay. From 2009 – 2013 she worked with Nathalie Martin at CPA Saint-Léonard in Montreal, Que and concluded her competitive career with the team of Christy Krall, Damon Allen, Erik Schulz and Janet Champion in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

“This was a difficult decision for me, but I am excited to start a new chapter in my life. This past year, with changing my training base, helped renew my passion and love for training and competing,” said Amélie Lacoste.  “I’m very happy with all that I have accomplished and I would like to thank everyone who made my journey and my career a success. Even though I had “ups” and “downs” during the years, you were always there to help and give me advice to be a better skater and a better person. And I would like to thank my family, especially my parents and my sister. They supported me through 20 years of my skating career, and I truly cherish the commitment and sacrifices they made to allow me to pursue my dreams.”

In addition to her family, Amélie had many other people to acknowledge who supported her throughout the years. “A special thanks to my dress maker, Mrs. Luis, my physiotherapists Claude Aquin and Stephane Fournier, my sport psychologist Wayne Halliwell, and all the other specialists who worked with me. I also appreciate all the choreographers who helped me develop that very important aspect of my figure skating. My home club, CPA Du Roussillon, ARPAS (Patinage Rive-Sud), Patinage Québec and SkateCanada were with me every step of the way, and your support is so appreciated. And lastly I would like to thank all the officials, volunteers, supporters and fans, who always had a word of encouragement or cheered me on. Without all of these people in my life, I would never have achieved my goals, or become the person that I am now.

“Amélie represented Skate Canada proudly as a member of our national team for many years and as our Canadian champion in 2012,” said Mike Slipchuk, High Performance Director, Skate Canada. “She worked with great desire and determination to achieve her goals, and pursue her dreams. We are pleased she plans to stay involved in skating, and look forward to keeping her engaged now as a member of our national team alumni.”

Although not completely sure of her future plans, Amélie plans to stay connected to skating and to give back to the sport that has been so much a part of her life. She has a final word for anyone who wants to pursue and achieve a goal. “Believe in your dreams. Dreams do come true if you are willing do anything in your willpower to achieve it. Go after it. The most important thing, listen to your heart and follow your intuition.”

 

Jeff Buttle’s creative ideas come alive on the Stars on Ice tours

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This is what good choreographers can do: They knit music with movement and form and art. They tie all skating elements into a point of view. They lift crowds out of their seats. They keep crowds in their seats, mesmerized, while pins drop silently.

Canada has a lot of choreographers who can do these things, but the most recent one to join the pack, alongside the biggies, is Jeffrey Buttle, 2008 world champion, 2006 Olympic bronze medalist, always known for his artistic flair and his sensitivity to music.

He’s becoming a big deal.

“I think Jeff is one of the great talents in choreography,” says Sandra Bezic, who is, herself, one of the great talents in choreography.

“His work is rich, original and versatile,” said she, notable for memorable routines done by Barbara Underhill and Paul Martini, Kristi Yamaguchi, Kurt Browning, Josee Chouinard, Tara Lipinski, Lu Chen.

His work, said Bezic, always pushes skaters to be better. “He’s made a huge impact already and he’s raised the choreographic bar,” she said. “His work is fresh, contemporary and exciting. I’m a huge fan.”

Bezic said he did do a little work for her “Battle of the Blades” television show and she wishes he had been more available to do more. She asked for him every season.

Last season, U.S. champion Ashley Wagner got a taste of the Buttle mystique during the Stars on Ice tour, when Buttle became head choreographer for the first time. (He had been assistant the two previous years.)

Buttle created all the group numbers last season, as he has done this year, and Wagner had to work hard to master all the steps and the choreography. “I really feel that it helps me as a skater, because Jeff is definitely not an easy breezy, simple type of choreographer,” she said. “It’s difficult and it challenges me.”

In the beginning, Buttle had no aspirations to become a choreographer. He had been studying chemical engineering at University of Toronto. But when he began working with choreographer David Wilson in 1999, he found Wilson’s passion for the art was infectious. “I fell into it,” Buttle said.

Even while he was still skating competitively, Buttle was already choreographing programs for other skaters. He designed routines for a couple of young girls living as boarders with his family in Barrie, Ont. And he took on work for the long program of a young Korean skater, Yuna Kim, the year she won the world junior title.

“It was difficult at first with the language,” Buttle said. “But with choreography, luckily, it’s a lot of show and tell. Language is unnecessary at times.”

Before you knew it, Buttle was choreographing short programs for two of the sport’s top male skaters, Yuzuru Hanyu and Patrick Chan. Both were completely different skaters, so Buttle went in completely different directions for them. The two traded world record scores for those Buttle programs all year. That success put Buttle firmly on the map.

For Hanyu, Buttle chose “Parisian Walkway,” because he thought it was Hanyu in a nutshell. Hanyu had a “wild abandonment” in his skating, Buttle said. But he was shy. “It was incredible to watch him loosen up a bit and have fun with it, especially in such stressful conditions,” Buttle said. “It was one of those programs that if he didn’t commit to it, it could have been pretty bad. But he really committed to it.”

Chan arrived after his mother asked Buttle to choreograph an exhibition routine for him to Chopin music. But Buttle thought Chan needed something more dynamic, to match the power of his style. Buttle suggested a Rachmaninoff piece that he had always wanted to skate to, similar to a Rachmaninoff that he had done in a short program, too, during the 2004-2005 season. Chan liked it so much, he asked Buttle to turn it into his short program for the following year.

“Sometimes it’s not the most ideal process,” Buttle said. “When you have to cut things out, it diminishes the piece somewhat, but the piece, for once, really fit and it really came together.”

Right from the beginning, Buttle had an impact. “I didn’t realize how quickly I would be able to accomplish as much as I have,” he said. Now, working with Stars on Ice, he has to track the movements of at least 12 skaters, not just one.

Buttle has been stretched physically during this tour. He choreographed group numbers for the cast in Japan, Canada and the United States. After the Japan tour, he flew back to Halifax with five of the 12 skaters on the Japanese tour, arriving at midnight, and started rehearsals the next morning. “It hit like a stone wall around four in the afternoon,” Buttle said. Fortunately, Scott Moir, who had done the tour in Japan, helped out teaching steps.

Last season, Buttle was quite busy, creating 10 to 12 routines for eligible skaters. This year, he’d like to reduce the number to focus more on touch-ups. He’s a perfectionist, after all. Before the Stars On Ice tour ended, Buttle was already doing music searches.

For now, Buttle searches for life balance. He doesn’t want to work all the time. He wants space to breathe, and to spend time with new husband, Justin Harris, who he married in February. Buttle has also joined a recreational hockey league in Toronto, although he had no prior experience playing hockey. Unlike Kurt Browning, he’d never even worn hockey skates. “I like the team mentality because I’ve never had that before,” he said.

And one of these days, Scott Moir wants Buttle to choreograph a routine for him and Tessa Virtue, too. “I have been a big fan of Jeff’s skating for years,” said Moir. “Probably one of our favourite performances ever was watching Jeff win in 2008. I think he’s really explored a different avenue and a new avenue with his choreography.

“He’s so creative. We always knew that. But he always pushes himself and tries to do new things. And he’s trying to do something to make people think, which in skating, is badly needed.”

So life is good for Buttle these days. He’s clearly in demand.

Beverley Smith

All-event tickets for the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships on sale tomorrow

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OTTAWA, ON: All-event tickets for the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships will go on sale Friday, May 16, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. (ET). The event will take place from January 19-25, 2015 at the Rogers K-Rock Centre in Kingston, Ontario.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.ca, by phone at 1.855.985.5000 or in person at the Rogers K-Rock Centre box office.

The Senior Competition Package includes all senior practices, competition and the exhibition gala from January 23-25, 2015. This package costs $160-$185 plus applicable surcharges. Seating for this package is reserved.

The Junior Competition Package includes all novice and junior practices and competitions from January 19-22, 2015. This package costs $40 plus applicable surcharges. Seating for this package is general admission. Children aged 12 years and under are invited to attend the novice and junior events free of charge.

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.

Athletes will vie for spots on the Skate Canada National Team and the Canadian teams that will compete at the 2015 ISU World Figure Skating Championships, the 2015 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships and the 2015 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Kingston to host the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships

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OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada and Canadian Tire announced Kingston, Ontario as the location of the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. It will take place from January 19-25, 2015 at the Rogers K-Rock Centre. 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.

This will be Kingston’s first time hosting the championships. In 2010 Skate Canada International was held in the city for the first time as well.

“The Canadian Tire National Skating Championships is the highlight of the season for many skaters. This is where we will see hard work pay off as these athletes who began in our CanSkate program now compete to become champions,” said Dan Thompson, Skate Canada CEO. “We are excited to be able to bring this historic event to Kingston for the first time. We know the city and Skate Canada Eastern Ontario will be tremendous hosts as we celebrate 101 years of champions.”

“The Canadian Tire Family of Companies has celebrated skating for over 90 years and we are extremely proud to be title sponsor of this event for the third year in a row,” said Kim Saunders, Associate Vice President, Sport Partnerships, Canadian Tire Corporation.  “The Canadian Tire National Skating Championships is a part of Canada’s heritage and brings much pride and accomplishment to athletes, families, coaches and communities across the country.  We look forward to bringing this exciting event to Kingston in 2015.”

“Kingston is proud to have been selected as the host community for the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in January 2015,” said Mayor Mark Gerretsen. “We look forward to welcoming athletes, coaches, family members, fans, sponsors, and volunteers to Kingston and watching these tremendous athletes showcase their talents.”

“We are extremely delighted that Skate Canada will return to the City of Kingston, building off of the success of the 2010 Skate Canada International event. We are very fortunate to have a supportive figure skating community, state of the art facilities, and a proven event hosting resume to support this event. We look forward to welcoming athletes, coaches, and spectators to Kingston in 2015,” said Rob Carnegie, Director, Tourism Kingston.

Athletes will vie for spots on the Skate Canada National Team and the Canadian teams that will compete at the 2015 ISU World Figure Skating Championships, the 2015 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships and the 2015 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Event ticket packages will go on sale this Friday, May 16, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. (ET).  Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.ca, by phone at 1.855.985.5000 or in person at the Rogers K-Rock Centre box office.

The Senior Competition Package includes all senior practices, competition and the exhibition gala from January 23-25, 2015. This package costs $160-$185 plus applicable surcharges. Seating for this package is reserved.

The Junior Competition Package includes all novice and junior practices and competitions from January 19-22, 2015. This package costs $40 plus applicable surcharges. Seating for this package is general admission. Children aged 12 years and under are invited to attend the novice and junior events free of charge.

Pair team Julianne Seguin & Charlie Bilodeau skating through life’s lessons together

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After only nine months together, Julianne Seguin and Charlie Bilodeau left a lasting impression at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. They were a dynamic, exciting pair with a world of potential (And doesn’t the world need pairs?).

First after the short program at the junior level at the Canadian championships last January, and, finally (after a few bobbles in the long), silver medalists, Seguin and Bilodeau were set to represent Canada at the junior world figure skating championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Then life happened. Like John Lennon once warbled:  “Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans.” This spring, Seguin and Bilodeau have had to face the toughest lessons of all.

They missed the world junior championships.

But after what followed, their inability to go turned out to be a good thing. Hard to believe, but true.

They had to withdraw after Seguin injured her lower back while creating some programs for shows two weeks before the championships. It was bad. Seguin couldn’t even bend forward. She had done a move with her partner, going up into the air, and her back locked. “I think the year was long and I had to get a break,” she said. “I had to stop. My body wasn’t following me.”

She rested the back, and did some physiotherapy. The worst part was breaking it to Bilodeau that they would have to pull out of the world junior championships, but Bilodeau was magnificent. He showed no wrath at chances missed. “Well, we just have to learn something else,” he told her. “We just have to go with it. I’m not going to be angry at you.”

“I was like, ‘oh my god, thank you,” Seguin recalled. “I was happy about that. That is a nice partner.”

With possible changes in age minimums coming for junior international events, Seguin and Bilodeau might not have another chance at competing at junior worlds. Seguin is only 17, but Bilodeau is already 20. If the age limit drops to 19, they will have to look at senior events only. That would affect their Junior Grand Prix career, too.

No matter. This is a good team, with strong connections. “I really like to skate with him,” Seguin said. “We like each other. And we have a nice friendship.” She illustrates this by interlacing her fingers together. They fit each other. They complement each other. Seguin, too, is a people person. She loves people. She’s not difficult.

But what they faced was.
Bilodeau’s grandfather died. Then his father, Robert, was found in a diabetic coma. Bilodeau rushed to be by his side in intensive care, but it was in a town four hours away. Gradually, his condition weakened, and he died April 11.

March and April disappeared for the pair. For a month and a half, Bilodeau was caught up in things other than skating, really important events. “He would have missed that, if we had gone to the junior world championships,” said coach Josee Picard. “Luckily, we didn’t go.”

The team cancelled all shows. Robert Bilodeau’s funeral was on the Monday of the development camp for singles that Seguin attended. On the Tuesday, Bilodeau finally came back to the ice and Picard set about organizing all the music and the meetings with choreographers. In early May, it was to be Shae Zukiwsky, designing the short program. The week of May 12, Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon were to come to work on their free skate. It will be an exciting time for these young pair skaters, working with ice dancers.

The creative work and the bustle will be good for Bilodeau, who says he will turn a page. “Let’s start a new life,” he said.

“You know you always wonder why something happens for a reason,” Picard said. “The injury allowed him to be at his father’s side.”

The team has done nothing since the injury. Seguin lost about six weeks of training. She started training again only one week before the development camp, not so sure she’d make it through all of the fitness testing.

Now, Seguin says her first priority is to ensure her back is sound. As a singles skater (at the senior level), she is keeping her long program and having Julie Marcotte design a new short program. Seguin is doing all triples, up to the triple Lutz. She’s doing triple toe loop- triple toe loop combinations and she’s working on a triple flip – triple toe loop, necessary to go toe-to-toe with the current high-flying Canadian female singles skaters.

Seguin and Bilodeau, uncertain about the junior age rules, are putting senior programs together. All these details will be healing for a pair with so much promise. And so much life knowledge.

Beverley Smith

National Team member Kharis Ralph retires from competitive skating

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OTTAWA, ON:  Kharis Ralph, 22, Toronto, Ont., who had a long career in ice dance with Asher Hill, 23, Pickering, Ont., has retired from skating.  The duo trained at the Scarborough Figure Skating Club’s Ice Dance Elite with coaches Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs.  They competed at one ISU World Figure Skating Championships, finishing 13th at the 2012 event in Nice, France, and were 6th at this year’s Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

In making her decision, Ralph said, “It has been both a privilege and a challenge to be on the National Team for the last five years and I am grateful for the opportunity. I would like to thank Skate Canada for all the support through the years, and wish everyone well for the future.”

“For eight years Kharis and Asher were mainstays on the international scene. Their hard work and determination resulted in them being one of very few teams to have ever represented Canada at both a junior and a senior world championship”, said Mike Slipchuk, High Performance Director, Skate Canada.  “Kharis’ positive attitude and charismatic personality made her a role model for other skaters and she will be truly missed.”

Ralph’s immediate plans include finishing her undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto, majoring in History, and minoring in Political Science and Philosophy, and then to pursue graduate studies. She hopes to stay involved in the sport, possibly in the area of judging or as a technical specialist. Hill is currently looking for a new partner and hopes to continue competing in ice dance.

At just 11-years-old Alison Schumacher is always rising to challenge

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Alison Schumacher looks up at you with earnest brown eyes and an air of maturity.

This, despite the fact that she is only 11-years-old and the youngest athlete at the Skate Canada Development Camp for singles skaters in Markham, Ontario.

Garbed in a royal purple sweater, she takes everything in and pushes on, listening intently to coach Lee Barkell, who is handing out technical tips on jumps. She’s up for the challenge. She always has been.

Jennifer Jackson has been her coach at the Riverside Skating Club in Windsor, Ontario since almost the beginning. Her first vision of the girl was as a five-year-old sprite. Like many others, Schumacher showed up in moulded skates and a helmet. And there the story began.

Schumacher has blossomed very quickly since. “She’s very dedicated and she comes to the rink all the time. And she has a definite passion for skating,” said Jackson, a coach for 27 years. “She has some fast-twitch muscles and she has a lot of things going for her as far as talent goes, but her number one asset is her work ethic.”

You see, Schumacher is driven, even at her young age. She’s very coachable. She’s smart and listens to everything her coach tells her. Jackson doesn’t have to tell her twice. “She’s always been that way,” Jackson said. “She’s always been able to focus and listen and get on her task.”

As a little sprig, Schumacher competed with girls her own age. But she started to progress and Jackson figured she’d better keep her moving up the ladder. “There’s no point in standing still,” she said. A couple of years ago, when she was nine, Schumacher began to compete against girls who were as old as 15 and 16 – and they were doing triples.

That year, Jackson entered Schumacher at an international competition, Skate Detroit, across the border. With a club that has perhaps one skater a year that makes it to the national championships, Jackson knows she has to get her skaters out to see others. “It would be nice for her to see what she has to do if she’s serious about this,” Jackson said. So she entered Schumacher in a novice competition, although that was a level above her head.

Even Jackson was surprised when Schumacher finished fourth, just off the podium. “She’s always been that way,” the coach said. “You give her a challenge and she rises to it.”

Schmacher’s next goal was to master the double Axel by the time she turned 10. The Skate Challenge competition – where Schumacher was to compete nationally as a pre-novice skater – was 1 ½ weeks after her tenth birthday. She finally hit that double Axel when she turned 10 and then landed the thing at the championships. She won the bronze medal.

Then Schumacher went after the triples. She mastered her first triple –a triple loop of all things – last fall. And a lover of the edge jump, she also has a triple Salchow in her arsenal. Jackson advised her to try both triples out at Skate Canada Challenge, to test them out before competing at the novice level at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships last January in Ottawa.

Schumacher admitted to nerves when she competed at her first Canadian championship. Under this sort of pressure, Schumacher finished 15th in the short program, but then she collected herself and finished seventh in the free skate, earning level fours in all three spins. That put her in 11th place overall in a novice women’s competition that was deep, very deep with talent.

“I was sort of nervous because I was with older girls,” she said in her tiny voice.  “And they’re probably in that category longer than me, so they had more experience.”

Edge jumps have been her thing so far. She also loves the triple Salchow. But now she’s working on the triple toe loop and even the triple flip – and sometimes the triple Lutz.

A sixth-grader in Windsor, Schumacher watched the Sochi Olympics, and found someone to admire: Julia Lipnitskaia, the Russian youngster who, at 15, became one of the stars of the Games, with her exquisite spins and winsome choreography. What does Schumacher like about her? “Her consistency,” the little skater said.

Does she aspire to the Olympics? “I’m not really sure,” she said. “I do like skating in general. I like competition and I like having the pressure and I like seeing my friends when I compete.”

In school, Schumacher is a math whiz.

At the camp, Schumacher soaked up tips from some of the best. “The coaches have different strategies and they’re all good and it’s just something new and I find it really helpful,” she said.

Jackson, too, benefitted from the development camp. “It’s always good to listen to whatever people have to say,” she said. “You take what you can out of it.” She loves Joanne McLeod, because she starts skaters out from the grassroots level and develops them. “She deals with so many levels,” Jackson said.

Jackson also found it valuable to hear the tips and tricks that the veteran coaches gave the young skaters. “Then I don’t have an 11-year-old coming home and trying to translate for me, what she thought she heard,” Jackson said. She also likes to see how her students stack up against the others, just in terms of work ethic. “We always think they’re working really hard here, and we’re doing everything,” she said. “It’s nice to see to make sure we’re on track.”

As for Schumacher, the sky is the limit for her, if she stays healthy and can always feel the passion, Jackson said. “She’s still in the learning phase. Every week she comes in, there is something that is better.

“I don’t think there are a lot of limits,” Jackson said.

Beverley Smith

From carbon copies to iPads, Nicole Guerin has seen it all after 40 years at Skate Canada

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With retirement waiting in the wings following a memorable 40-year career at Skate Canada, Nicole Guerin has a confession.

She almost backed out of the original job interview, all thanks to an elevator.

After four decades in the same Finance position she has held since day one, Guerin is bidding farewell to Skate Canada and stepping into well-deserved retirement. She will punch the proverbial clock for the final time on May 6th, exactly four decades to the day that she walked into the offices of Skate Canada, then known as the Canadian Figure Skating Association, for her first day of work.

Guerin laughs as she reflects back to that first interview, admitting she almost took herself out of the running for the job because of a fear of elevators.

Back in 1974, the shy 20-year-old answered an ad in her hometown Hawkesbury newspaper for an accounts payable/payroll position with the CFSA. Guerin, at the time working part-time in the finance department of a grocery store in Hawkesbury, borrowed a friend’s car and made the hour-long trip to Ottawa for an interview. Unfamiliar with what she refers to as “the big city”, not only did Guerin park in the wrong lot, but the large building on River Road that housed the CFSA head office cast a rather imposing shadow for the self-proclaimed small-town country girl.

When she walked through the front door and realized the office was on the 10th floor, Guerin, having never stepped in an elevator, turned around and walked back outside towards her car.

Not speaking a word of English was something Guerin figured she could overcome. Getting on an elevator for the first time, however, didn’t seem to be an option.

“I told myself I was not going, I could not get on that elevator,” says Guerin. “But then I said ‘I can do this, I have to do this.’ I went back in and got on that elevator. It was such a weird feeling. Everyone was speaking English. I was petrified.”

After riding the ten floors up, Guerin, walked off the elevator and straight into the CFSA office, telling the receptionist the only words she knew in English.

The same sentence she had been practicing all day.

“I’m Nicole Guerin and I have an interview.”

After filling out her application, she met with office manager Lois Hyland and was offered the job. She has handled accounts payable and signed payroll cheques at the CFSA/Skate Canada ever since.

To put the length of Guerin’s tenure in perspective, in 1974, Pierre Elliott Trudeau was Prime Minister of Canada, the average price of a new car was about $3,500 and you could pick up a quart of milk for under 50 cents.

And 20-year-old Nicole Guerin was about to set out on the journey of her life.

“Those first five years were not easy,” admits Guerin. “I was calling my mother almost every day. But I knew I had to do this for myself.”

For Guerin, it’s no coincidence her last day of work will come 40 years to the day that she started. May 6th, 2014, has been circled on her calendar for the past three years.

Guerin welcomes retirement and the freedom it will bring, even if the transition is going to take a little getting used to.

“It’s hard to say goodbye, a lot harder than I thought,” says Guerin. “This is a new, exciting time in my life, but I’ve been doing the same routine, day after day, for 40 years. It’s tough to say goodbye to the people.”

Of all the close relationships Guerin has developed at Skate Canada over the years, there is none closer than the one she shares with Diane Vanier. The two met when Vanier worked at the National Sport & Recreation Centre, located in the same building as the CFSA, 38 years ago. Six years later, Vanier joined the CFSA team.

They’ve been best friends ever since.

“Nicole is such a wonderful friend, and we’ve developed a very special relationship over the years,” said Diane Vanier. “It won’t be the same without her.”

“Yes, Diane means the world to me,” adds Guerin. “We’re like sisters. She is very special, she has been my closest friend for a long time.”

Skate Canada staff honoured Guerin’s remarkable career last week in Ottawa. Among those in attendance were former CFSA Director General David Dore and current Skate Canada CEO Dan Thompson.

“Nicole has been an integral member of the Skate Canada team over the past 40 years, and we would like to pass on congratulations as she celebrates her retirement,” stated Dan Thompson.

“Nicole has consistently been a model for service excellence and integrity throughout her entire career. On behalf of the Skate Canada family, I would like to wish her well as she sets off on this new, exciting chapter in her life.”

Over the course of her career, others who have sat in the Skate Canada CEO chair include Douglas Gunter, Hugh Glynn, Lou Lefaive, Patrick Sharp, Pam Coburn and William Thompson.

Guerin began her career in the era of adding machines and carbon copies, and finished with laptops and iPads. One thing that never changed, however, was her love of numbers.

“My job was changing for me all the time, but I was always very happy to learn new technology,” she adds.

“My specialty has always been numbers. It is my passion.”

So much a passion that Guerin watches the odometer on her car to make sure she doesn’t miss those moments when the digits roll over to match exactly. There haven’t been many times when Guerin has missed seeing the numbers change, whether it be 33,333, 88,888 or any other combination.

“Sometimes I’ve had to pay attention to the road, miss when the numbers change and get upset,” laughs Guerin.

“I have a sickness for numbers.”

As she gets set to ride off into the retirement sunset, Guerin says she plans on travelling the world, doing some fishing and golfing and “reading books in weeks instead of months.” She would also like to volunteer her time at local hospitals to assist patients filling out complex forms.

Guerin will not head into retirement alone – her husband, Denis, retired last month.

“He’s waiting for me,” she says. “We are going to enjoy this. We’ve waited a long time.”

“It seems like yesterday that I was taking that elevator for the first time. I’ve enjoyed every minute of this. I’ve never been great at words – numbers have been my specialty. I love being around people, and the people here are very special. I knew a long time ago I was in the right place and I wanted to stay for good.”

And now, four decades later, Guerin gets a little choked up at the thought of walking out the front doors of Skate Canada for the last time.

“Right now, I’m trying not to think about it too much,” says Guerin with a smile, her voice breaking. “I don’t want to cry.”

Retirement? That’s the easy part.

Saying goodbye will be a little tougher.