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Bent & MacKeen win silver in Estonia

TALLINN, Estonia – Ice dancers Mackenzie Bent of Uxbridge, Ont., and Garrett MacKeen of Oshawa, Ont., won the silver medal on Saturday at the Tallinn Cup, the fifth stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

Anna Yanovskaya and Sergey Mozgov of Russia slipped by the Canadians in the free dance tabulating 152.00 points.  Bent and MacKeen, first after the short dance, followed at 144.51 and Alexandra Nazarova and Maxim Nikitin of Ukraine were third at 128.59.

It was the second medal performance this season on the circuit for Bent and MacKeen.  Earlier this month they won gold at the third stop in Ostrava, Czech Republic but improved their overall score by six points on Saturday.

The performances put them in an excellent position to advance to the Junior Grand Prix Final December 11-14 in Barcelona.

‘’We are super excited about our performances this week,’’ said Bent, 17.  ‘’Our skating was much better than a couple of weeks ago.  It is very important for us to get to the Junior Grand Prix final after just falling short last season.’’

The couple now have five career Junior Grand Prix podium finishes.

‘’The key to our success today was duplicating what we’ve been doing in training,’’ said MacKeen.  ‘’For me, I felt our expression was a lot stronger.  To be this consistent early on in the season is a very good sign.’’

Canada stands a great chance to ice two dance teams at the Junior Grand Prix Final for the first time since 2004. Madeline Edwards of Port Moody, B.C., and ZhaoKai Pang of Burnaby, B.C., have also won two medals this season on the circuit.  Back in 2004, the eventual Olympic champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir as well as Allie McCurdy and Michael Coreno were the Canadian ice dance entries.

In women’s competition twin sisters Kim Decelles and Emy Decelles were 13th and 19th respectively.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/jgpest2014/

Great start for Bent & MacKeen in Estonia

TALLINN, Estonia – Mackenzie Bent of Uxbridge, Ont., and Garrett MacKeen of Oshawa, Ont., hold a slight lead after the short dance on Friday at the Tallin Cup, the fifth stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

The Canadians tabulated 59.83 points with Anna Yanovskaya and Sergey Mozgov of Russia second at 59.56 and Carolina Moscheni and Adam Lukacs of Hungary third at 51.61.

Audrey Croteau-Villeneuve of Montreal and Jeff Hough of Russell,Ont., are seventh.

In pairs, Maria Vigalova and Egor Zakroev led a Russian medal sweep winning gold.  Mary Orr of Brantford, Ont., and Phelan Simpson of Lunenberg, N.S., were sixth and first-year partners Shalena Rau of Waterloo, Ont., and Sebastian Arcieri of Montreal seventh.

In men’s competition, Alexander Petrov of Russia was the winner.  Bennet Toman of St.Lazare, Que., was 10th and Edrian Paul Celestino of Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Que., 11th.

In women’s competition after the short program, Kim Decelles and her twin sister Emy Decelles of Baie-Comeau, Que., are 11th and 18th. It is the international debut for both skaters.

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

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/jgpest2014/

Tallinn Cup Marks Fifth Event of Season for Canadian Skaters on the ISU Junior Grand Prix Circuit

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send eight entries, for a total of 12 skaters to Tallinn, Estonia, for the fifth stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit. Canada will have two entries per category in men’s, ladies, pair, and ice dance at the event which takes place from September 24-27, 2014.

Canadian junior champions Mackenzie Bent, 17, Uxbridge, Ont., and Garrett MacKeen, 20, Oshawa, Ont., are the first of two entries in ice dance. Bent and MacKeen won gold at their first ISU Junior Grand Prix assignment this season in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Last season, the representatives of Uxbridge SC and Bowmanville FSC won gold at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Riga, Latvia, placed seventh at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Kosice, Slovakia, and placed 12th at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. They train at Scarboro Ice Dance Elite with coaches Juris Razgulajevs and Carol Lane.

Audrey Croteau-Villeneuve, 17, Montreal, Que., and Jeff Hough, 18, Russell, Ont., will also represent Canada in ice dance. The newly formed team representing the Town of Mt. Royal FSC and Minto Skating Club will be competing at their first international assignment. They are coached by Darryl VanLuven at the Minto Skating Club in Ottawa, Ont.

Bennet Toman, 17, St. Lazare, Que., is one of two Canadian entries in men’s. Earlier this season, he placed 12th at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Courchevel, France. Representing CPA Vaudreuil, Toman is the 2014 Canadian junior silver medallist. He is coached by Robert O’Toole at the Canadian Ice Academy in Mississauga, Ont.

Edrian Paul Celestino, 16, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Que., is the second Canadian entry in men’s. This is his first international assignment. Representing Saint Laurent FSC, he is the 2014 Canadian novice silver medallist. He is coached by Daniel Beland at the Dollard Civic Centre.

Emy Decelles, 16, Baie-Comeau, Que., is one of two Canadian entries in the ladies category. This is her first international assignment. Representing CPA Baie-Comeau, she placed 6th in the junior women’s competition at the 2014 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. She is coached by Karen Sauvageau and Fanny Jean at CPA Baie-Comeau.

Emy’s twin sister Kim Decelles, 16, Baie-Comeau, Que., is the second Canadian entry in the ladies category. This is also her first international assignment. Representing CPA Baie-Comeau, she is the 2014 Canadian novice silver medallist. She is coached by Karen Sauvageau and Fanny Jean at CPA Baie-Comeau.

Mary Orr, 18, Brantford, Ont., and Phelan Simpson, 18, Lunenburg, N.S., are one of two Canadian pair entries. Last season, they earned a seventh place finish at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Riga, Latvia, and placed sixth at the 2014 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. Orr and Simpson also won bronze in junior pair at the 2014 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. They train at the Kitchener-Waterloo Skating Club where they are coached by Kristy Wirtz and Kris Wirtz.

Shalena Rau, 15, Waterloo, Ont., and Sebastien Arcieri, 20, Montreal, Que., will be the second Canadian entry in pair. The newly formed team will be competing at their first international assignment together, but the representatives of the Kitchener-Waterloo Skating Club and CPA St. Leonard each have experience on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit with past partners. They are coached by Kristy Wirtz and Kris Wirtz at the Kitchener-Waterloo Skating Club.

Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., and Terra Findlay of Echo Bay, Ont., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Ghislaine Robert of Montreal, Que., and physiotherapist Paige Larson of North Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Jerome Poulin of Montreal, Que., and Sally Rehorick of Vancouver, B.C., are the Canadian officials at the event.

The ISU will be live streaming the competition via the ISU Junior Grand Prix YouTube channel. For results and full entries please visit www.isu.org.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT ISU JGP #5 – Tallinn, Estonia

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Mens Bennet Toman 17 St. Lazare, Que. CPA Vaudreuil Robert O’Toole
Mens Edrian Paul Celestino 16 Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Que. Saint Laurent FSC Daniel Beland
Ladies Emy Decelles 16 Baie-Comeau, Que. CPA Baie Comeau Karen Sauvageau / Fanny Jean
Ladies Kim Decelles 16 Baie-Comeau, Que. CPA Baie Comeau Karen Sauvageau / Fanny Jean
Pair Mary Orr / Phelan Simpson 18/18 Brantford, Ont. / Lunenburg, N.S. Kitchener-Waterloo SC / Kitchener-Waterloo SC Kristy Wirtz / Kris Wirtz
Pair Shalena Rau / Sebastian Arcieri 15/20 Waterloo, Ont. / Montreal, Que. Kitchener-Waterloo SC / CPA St. Leonard Kristy Wirtz / Kris Wirtz
Ice Dance Mackenzie Bent / Garrett MacKeen 17/20 Uxbridge, Ont. / Oshawa, Ont. Uxbridge SC / Bowmanville FSC Juris Razgulajevs / Carol Lane
Ice Dance Audrey Croteau-Villeneuve / Jeff Hough 17/18 Montreal, Que. / Russell, Ont. Town of Mt. Royal FSC / Minto SC Darryl VanLuven