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The beat goes on for Canada in ice dancing: Lajoie and Lagha win world junior gold

ZAGREB, Croatia – Canada’s Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha won the gold medal in ice dancing on Saturday at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Lajoie and Lagha, in their fourth appearance at the world juniors, scored an international personal best of 176.10 placing first in both the rhythm dance on Thursday and the free dance.

“It was our best performance of the year,” said Lagha, 19, from Greenfield Park, Que. “We had to stay focused and not worry about the result and that’s what we did.”

It is second time Canada has won world junior gold in ice dancing. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir took the crown in 2006.

“It was pretty stressful to skate last against such a strong field,” said Lajoie, 18, from Boucherville, Que. “Still it went super well.”

Russian couples completed the podium with Elizaveta Khudaiberdieva and Nikita Nazarov second at 171.22 and Sofia Shevchenko and Igor Eremenko third at 170.43.

It was only back in December, that Lajoie and Lagha placed fourth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.

“The world juniors are tough to win and they were rewarded for their hard work,” said Lajoie and Lagha’s coach Romain Haguenauer. “They showed mastery and maturity, they never panicked.

They were clearly the best team and that’s how you win championships.”

Alicia Fabbri of Terrebonne, Que., and Paul Ayer of Brossard, Que., climbed from 13th to ninth.

“We were very pleased with that performance,” said Fabbri. “After nationals we intensified our training and focused on the details more. It really paid off in the end.”

It was a 1-2 Russian finish in women’s competition. Alexandra Trusova won the gold, Anna Shcherbakova was second and Ting Cui of the U.S. third.

Alison Schumacher of Tecumseh, Ont., soared from 16th after the short program to 10th.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1819/wjc2019/

Gogolev takes fifth in gutsy performance at ISU World Juniors

ZAGREB, Croatia – Toronto’s Stephen Gogolev recovered from a painful fall in his men’s free skate Friday and soared from 10th to fifth overall in his debut at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Tomoki Hiwatashi of the U.S. won the gold medal with 230.32 points, Roman Savosin of Russia was second at 229.28 and Daniel Grassl of Italy third at 224.67.

The 14-year-old Gogolev, the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final Champion in December, scored the third best free skate to place fifth at 220.66. After singling his opening quad Lutz, he recovered brilliantly with a solid quad toe and quad Salchow-triple toe combo.

However about two minutes in his free skate, he fell awkwardly on his triple Axel attempt and needed a few seconds to make sure his leg was flexible. He appeared to slam his right knee on the ice in his fall. Still he soldiered on to complete his program cleanly capped by a dizzying spin.

Joseph Phan of Laval, Que., made mistakes on his first two jump attempts and dropped from seventh after the short to 12th overall.

“I’m disappointed,” said the 17-year-old Phan, fourth last year. “I took off too fast on my first jump and my feet didn’t follow. I’ve never made a mistake like that in my life in a competition. My quad toe is usually more consistent but I’m pleased with how I came back to land the triple Axel.”

Russia is 1-2 after the women’s short program led by Anna Shcherbakova in first.

Alison Schumacher of Tecumseh, Ont., is 16th.

Competition ends Saturday with the women’s free skate and free dance. A reminder that Canada’s Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha were first after Thursday’s rhythm dance.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1819/wjc2019/

Canadians stand first after rhythm dance at ISU World Juniors

ZAGREB, Croatia – Canada’s Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha are in first place after Thursday’s rhythm dance at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Lajoie and Lagha, fourth last year, earned 70.14 points for their tango to place ahead of three Russian couples. Elizaveta Khudaiberdieva and Nikita Nazarov are second at 68.69 and Sofia Shevchenko and Igor Eremenko are third at 67.56.

“It was very stressful,” said Lagha, from Greenfield Park, Que. “The short program is always the hardest. We gave a good showing of what we’ve been working on.”

Lajoie, from Boucherville, Que., kept focused on the performance.

“I wanted to feel like it was just another competition,” she said. “I didn’t want to think about the name ‘world juniors’ and just concentrate on my skating.”

Alicia Fabbri of Terrebonne, Que., and Paul Ayer of Brossard, Que., are 11th.

“We’re very proud to be here after eight months of hard work,” said Fabbri. “We stayed in character today and kept connected through the whole program.”

The free skate in pairs was held later with Russia going 1-2-3 with Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov winning the gold.

Brooke McIntosh of Etobicoke, Ont., and Brandon Toste of Mississauga, Ont., were 10th and Gabrielle Levesque of Bridgewater, N.S., and Pier- Alexandre Hudon of St-Roc-des-Aulunaies Que., 15th.

Competition continues Friday with the men’s free skate and the women’s short program. The free dance is on Saturday.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1819/wjc2019/

Canadians in logjam in men’s medals hunt at ISU World Junior Championships

ZAGREB, Croatia – Less than six points separate the top-10, which includes Canadians Joseph Phan and Stephen Gogolev, after the men’s short program which kicked-off the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships on Wednesday.

The Americans are 1-2 with Camden Pulkinen first at 82.41 and Tomoki Hiwatashi second at 81.50. Daniel Grassl of Italy is third at 81.19.

Phan of Laval, Que., looking to improve on last year’s fourth place, is sixth at 77.89 and Gogolev, the junior Grand Prix Final champion, is 10th at 77.00. There are 37 entries and the top-24 advanced to Friday’s free skate.

In his short, the 17-year-old Phan touched down with his hand on his triple Axel and also landed his triple flip and triple Lutz-tripe toe combo.

Gogolev, 14, from Toronto cleanly landed the same three jumps as Phan.

“It was a bit shaky in the beginning but I thought it was good,” said Gogolev. “I tried to approach it as a normal competition. I think I need to settle down a bit more for the free so I can be calmer.”

In pairs, Russian teams are 1-2-3 after the short led by Polina Kostiukovich and Dmitrii Ialin in first.

Brooke McIntosh of Etobicoke, Ont., and Brandon Toste of Mississauga, Ont., are 10th and Gabrielle Levesque of Bridgewater, N.S., and Pier-Alexandre Hudon of St-Roc-des-Aulunaies Que., are 15th.

Competition continues Thursday with the rhythm dance and the pairs free skate.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1819/wjc2019/

Canadian junior skaters in Croatia for the 2019 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada has seven entries, for a total of 11 skaters competing at the 2019 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships, taking place in Zagreb, Croatia, from March 4-10, 2019. Canada will have two entries per discipline in men, pair and ice dance, one entry in women. Competition begins Wednesday, March 6 with the men’s and pair’s short programs.

Stephen Gogolev, 14, Toronto, Ont., will be one of two Canadian entries in the men’s category. Gogolev won gold at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final and won the silver medal at the 2019 national championships in the senior category. He is coached by Lee Barkell in Toronto, Ont.

Joseph Phan, 17, Laval, Que., will also compete in the men’s category. Phan finished fourth at the 2019 national championships in the senior category. Last season, Joseph placed 4th at the 2018 World Junior Championships. He is coached by Brian Orser and Ghislain Briand in Toronto, Ont.

Alison Schumacher, 16, Tecumseh, Ont., will be representing Canada in the women’s discipline. This season, she placed 7th at the 2019 national championships in the senior category. She is coached by Lee Barkell in Toronto, Ont.

Brooke McIntosh, 13, Etobicoke, Ont., and Brandon Toste, 16, Mississauga, Ont., will be the first of two Canadian entries in pairs. The two won a silver medal at the 2019 national championships in the junior category. They are coached by Andrew Evans in Mississaugua, Ont..

Gabrielle Levesque, 16, Bridgewater, N.S., and Pier-Alexandre-Hudon, 20, Saint-Roc-Des-Aulnaires, Que., will be the second pair representing Canada. The team took home the bronze medal at the 2019 national championships in the junior category. They are coached by Charleen Cameron in St. Margaret’s Bay, NS.

Canadian junior champions Marjorie Lajoie, 18, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 19, St-Hubert, Que., are one of two Canadian ice dance teams competing at this event. The two won gold at JGP Canada, silver at JGP Austria to qualify for the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final where they placed fourth. They are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon and Romain Haguenauer in Montreal, Que.

Canadian junior silver medalists Alicia Fabbri, 16, Terrbonne, Que., and Paul Ayer, 20, Brossard, Que., will be the second ice dance team representing Canada. The two are coached by Julien Lalonde in Longeuil, Que.

André Bourgeois, Skate Canada NextGen Director, and Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Ed Pilat of Winnipeg, Man., and physiotherapist Josiane Roberge, of Sillery, Que., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Reaghan Fawcette-Fortin of Aurora, Ont., and Karen Butcher of Greely, Ont., will be the Canadian officials at the event.

For results and full entries, please visit www.isu.org. The event will be live streamed by CBC with some of the event being shown on television, please check your local listings for dates and times.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT THE 2019 ISU WORLD JUNIOR FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Stephen Gogolev 14 Toronto, Ont. Toronto Cricket, Skating & Curling Club Lee Barkell
Men Joseph Phan 17 Laval, Que. CPA Laval Brian Orser, Ghislain Briand
Women Alison Schumacher 16 Tecumseh, Ont. Toronto Cricket, Skating & Curling Club Lee Barkell
Pairs Brooke McIntosh / Brandon Toste 13/16 Etobicoke, Ont. / Mississauga, Ont. Canadian Ice Academy Andrew Evans
Pairs Gabrielle Levesque / Pier-Alexandre-Hudon 16/20 Bridgewater, NS / Saint-Roc-Des-Aulunaies, Que. St. Margaret’s Bay SC Charleen Cameron
Ice Dance Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha 18/19 Boucherville, Que. / St-Hubert, Que. Montreal International Skating School Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer
Ice Dance Alicia Fabbri / Paul Ayer 16/20 Terrebonne, Que. / Brossard, Que. CPA Terrebonne / Calalta Calgary Julien Lalonde

Skate Canada names teams for 2019 ISU Championships

SAINT JOHN, NB: After completion of the 2019 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, Skate Canada has named the teams for the three upcoming ISU Championships. The week-long championships were held in Saint John, N.B., at the Harbour Station from January 14-20, 2019.

2019 ISU WORLD FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS
SAITAMA, JAPAN – MARCH 18-24, 2019
MEN
Nam Nguyen
Keegan Messing
WOMEN
Alaine Chartrand
TBD*
TBD*
PAIR
Kirsten Moore-Towers / Michael Marinaro
Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud
ICE DANCE
Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje
Piper Gilles / Paul Poirier
Laurence Fournier Beaudry / Nikolaj Sørensen
*To be determined after the 2019 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships
2019 ISU FOUR CONTINENTS FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS
ANAHEIM, CA, USA – FEBRUARY 4-10, 2019
MEN
Nam Nguyen
Keegan Messing
Nicolas Nadeau
WOMEN
Alaine Chartrand
Véronik Mallet
Larkyn Austman
PAIR
Kirsten Moore-Towers / Michael Marinaro
Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud
Camille Ruest / Andrew Wolfe
ICE DANCE
Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje
Piper Gilles / Paul Poirier
Laurence Fournier Beaudry / Nikolaj Sørensen
2019 ISU JUNIOR WORLD FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS
ZAGREB, CROATIA – MARCH 4-10, 2019
MEN
Stephen Gogolev
Joseph Phan
WOMEN
Alison Schumacher
PAIR
Brooke McIntosh / Brandon Toste
Gabrielle Levesque / Pier-Alexandre Hudon
ICE DANCE
Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha
Alicia Fabbri / Paul Ayer