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Moore-Towers and Marinaro take silver in pairs, surprise bronze for Sadovsky at NHK Trophy

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SAPPORO, Japan – Canada reached the medal podium twice on Saturday at the NHK Trophy with Kirsten Moore-Tower and Michael Marinaro taking silver in pairs and Roman Sadovsky adding a surprise bronze in men’s competition.

The event is the sixth stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit and the last event before the Grand Prix Final December 5-8 in Torino, Italy.

Moore-Towers and Marinaro punched their ticket to Torino earning 208.49 points. They were also second at their other Grand Prix assignment – Skate Canada International last month in Kelowna, B.C. It is their first Grand Prix Final since teaming up in 2014.

“Our big goal was to qualify for the Grand Prix Final,” said Moore-Towers from St. Catharines, Ont. “We left a few levels on the table that we are determined to pick up in a couple of weeks but for the most part we are pleased.”

World champions Wenjing Sui and Cong Han of China took the gold with 226.96, followed by the Canadians and Anastasia Michina and Aleksandr Galliamov of Russia in third at 203.35.

In the men’s event, Sadovksy, from Vaughn, Ont.,  unleashed the second best free skate of the night to climb from fourth to third spot with a personal best 247.50 points for his first career Grand Prix medal. Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan was the winner at 305.05 followed by Kevin Aymoz of France at 250.02.

“I’m really glad I could pull that out,” said the 20-year-old Sadovksy, 10th at Skate Canada International. “I’m looking forward to keeping that long program consistent for the rest of the season.”

In ice dancing, world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France won the gold medal while Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver moved from ninth after the rhythm dance to eighth overall.

“It was a good experience overall for us and we are satisfied with our performances,” said Firus. “Our next big event are the nationals (in January) and we really want to work on our technical issues until then.”

There were no Canadian entries in women’s competition.

Full results: ISU GP NHK Trophy 2019

Moore-Towers and Marinaro stand second after short at NHK Trophy

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SAPPORO, Japan – A fabulous season continued for Canadian pairs skaters Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro as they stand second after Friday’s short program at the NHK Trophy figure skating competition.

The event is the sixth and last stop on the ISU Grand Prix circuit before next month’s Final.

World champions Wenjing Sui and Cong Han of China are first with 81.27 points followed by the Canadians at 71.21. Anastasia Michina and Aleksandr Galliamov of Russia are third at 69.00.

Moore-Towers and Marinaro were second last month at Skate Canada International and a medal here would likely lock up a berth in the Grand Prix Final in Turin, Italy. On Friday, they delivered a clean program highlighted by a triple twist, throw triple loop and side-by-side triple toes.

“We love skating in front of such a knowledgeable crowd,” said Moore-Towers from St. Catharines, Ont. “We’re fairly pleased with our position heading into the long program.”

In men’s competition, Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., produced an impressive fourth place performance in the short program with 78.51. He opened with a quad Salchow on route to a clean program. Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan leads with 109.34, Kevin Aymoz of France is second at 91.47 and Sergei Voronov of Russia third at 88.63.

Conrad Orzel of Toronto is 10th.

In ice dancing, world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France are in first place after the rhythm dance while Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver are ninth.

There are no Canadian entries in women’s competition.

Competition ends Saturday with the free skates.

Full results: ISU GP NHK Trophy 2019

Six Canadian skaters headed to Japan for final stop on ISU Grand Prix Circuit

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OTTAWA, ON: Team Canada will be competing at the 2019 ISU NHK Trophy in Sapporo, Japan, from November 22-24, 2019. This will be the final stop of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series.

In the men’s discipline, Conrad Orzel, 19, Toronto, Ont., will be the first of two Canadian entries. This season, Orzel finished 11th at Cup of China and sixth at Autumn Classic International. He is coached by Tracy Wilson and Brian Orser in Toronto, Ont.

Roman Sadovsky, 20, Vaughn, Ont., will be the second Canadian entry in men. This season, he placed 10th at Skate Canada International and third at Finlandia Trophy. Sadovsky is coached by Tracey Wainman and Grzegorz Filipowski in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Kirsten Moore-Towers, 27, St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro, 27, Sarnia, Ont., will be the only Canadian entry in pairs. The team won a silver medal at Skate Canada International and a gold medal at Nebelhorn Trophy this season. They are coached by Bruno Marcotte in Oakville, Ont.

In the ice dance discipline, Carolane Soucisse, 24, Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus, 25, North Vancouver, B.C., will be representing Canada. This season, they finished seventh at Internationaux de France, third at U.S. International Figure Skating Classic and fifth at Autumn Classic International. The team is coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon and Romain Haguenauer in Montreal, Que.

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director and Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Cole Beavis of Saskatoon, Sask., and physiotherapist Josiane Roberge of Sillery, Que., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Debbie Islam of Barrie, Ont., and Sabrina Wong of Toronto, Ont., will be the Canadian officials attending the event.

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

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2019 NHK TROPHY – SAPPORO, JAPAN

DISCIPLINE NAME AGE HOMETOWN CLUB COACH
Men Conrad Orzel 19 Toronto, Ont. Toronto CS & CC Tracy Wilson / Brian Orser
Men Roman Sadovsky 20 Vaughn, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Tracey Wainman / Grzegorz Filipowski
Pairs Kirsten Moore-Towers / Michael Marinaro 27 / 27 St. Catharines, Ont. / Sarnia, Ont. St. Catharines SC / Point Edward SC Bruno Marcotte
Ice Dance Carolane Soucisse / Shane Firus 24 / 25 Chateauguay, Que. / North Vancouver, B.C. CPA Repentigny / CPA Repentigny Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon / Romain Haguenauer